Heavy girl? I feel worse than Black Hole Trigger!

Zhe Li shook his head helplessly.

But, Teyvat? Fontaine? ...Inazuma?

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration came to him, and he quickly captured this vague impression from distant memory.

There were overwhelming advertisements, standard introductions, and a key visual image of a purple-haired woman pulling a knife from her chest.

"..."Original God"?"

Baodeng Zheli once thought about it.

Since he could enter the world of tokusatsu dramas, it wasn't impossible for him to suddenly find himself in anime or games. He'd also read light novels about people traveling to familiar games and unleashing cheat codes, so it was only natural for him to make such an association.

But before there was "BanG Dream!", and after there was "Genshin Impact"...

How come after I left Kamen Rider Build, I ended up in places I knew nothing about?

Bao Deng Zheli had indeed realized this long ago. Having a "script" didn't mean his fate was set in stone, nor did it mean he could anticipate the enemy's moves or be omnipotent—but it did at least allow him to handle emergencies with greater confidence.

Even if reality is bound to conflict with "fate", the advantage of foresight allows people to take action as soon as the first signs of an event appear.

Forget about Bangbang's daily worldview where he can conquer everything with his combat power, but now he has really come to a dangerous world, but he has no idea about the world behind the door, which makes him feel a little uneasy.

"'Original God'...?"

When Zheli was lost in thought, trying to capture more information from the distant memories of his past life, Wanye heard the nouns he was muttering, but he took off a round bead ornament pinned on his clothes.

"Is this what the store manager is interested in?"

"……This is?"

A flash of emerald green light flashed across the round bead.

Fengyuan Manye stared at it and whispered:

"————'Eye of God'."

Chapter 13: Autumn Frost and Falling Maple Leaves, Snow Clears and Meets the Plum Tree: Chapter : "Eyes of God"

When faced with circumstances beyond their control, people always lament their own powerlessness.

But at the steepest turning point in life, if a mortal's "desire" reaches its extreme, the gaze of God will be cast down.

"This is the 'Eye of God.'" Kaedehara Manye showed the orb to Hoto Oreki and Nagasaki Motoyo, who curiously turned his gaze towards her. "The Eye of God is granted to those recognized by the gods. It's an external magical organ that allows people to channel and utilize the power of the elements."

"And what I hold is the Eye of God of the Wind element."

"Wind?" Zhe Li quickly thought of their first "encounter": the young man in front of him drew his sword towards him in a strange storm.

It turns out that it wasn't some kind of witchcraft or Yin-Yang magic, but came from this "Eye of God"?

"I once had the good fortune to read an ancient collection in my family's library." Seeing that they had all withdrawn their gazes from the "Eye of God," Wan Ye tucked his clothes back on and continued his narration: "I don't remember the specific content very clearly. However, there is one description that I can recount—"

"The possessors of the 'Eye of God' are all qualified to become gods, possessing the qualifications to ascend to the heavens. Therefore, they are called 'Original Gods' by the world... Although the author did not leave any evidence in the book, it is only recorded as a legend."

Having said that, Manye smiled and shook his head, then added:

"The 'original gods' that the store manager mentioned were probably excerpted from ancient legends like these."

Just as otherworldly beings would leave ancient gifts in Teyvat on rare occasions, Teyvat would also, under certain circumstances, pass on ancient stories to otherworldly beings. Or perhaps, as he was doing now, he could use a magical door to meet visitors from another world?

Fengyuan Manye was a little absent-minded, and Zheli didn't know what expression to make.

...I just read the name of a game.

But technically speaking, Manye's statement cannot be considered wrong: Baodō Zeri did recognize this name with the help of "legend" - it's just that the carrier of "legend" is a video game.

Zhe Li didn't intend to explain this. He didn't want Su Shi to start suspecting that he was also a character in a fictional work.

Besides, he had more important issues to worry about.

"So, in your world called 'Teyvat', people must rely on this 'Eye of God' to harness magic and the 'elements'?"

"Hmm? Ah, that's right. I've heard that the neighboring nation of Liyue has an ancient tradition of 'immortal arts' that allow one to harness elemental power without relying on the Eye of God. Later, the Onmyoji Inazuma, drawing on immortal arts, created Onmyoji, which also harnesses elemental power with the help of talismans... In most cases, ordinary humans can only rely on items like talismans, which inherently possess elemental power, to harness elemental power to a limited degree."

"Ordinary humans." Zhe Li caught the word.

"Yes, only humans must rely on the Eye of God to control the elements. Elemental creatures, born between heaven and earth, naturally possess the ability to control the corresponding element." Wan Ye paused, lowered his head, and averted his gaze from Zhe Li. He stared at the Earl Grey tea on the table before saying, "...For example, slimes are pure elemental life."

"Oh? Then can I also control the elemental power?" Zhe Li's eyes lit up.

While Zheli could create sparks and lightning when fighting, that was ultimately just the ultimate application of frictional heat and bioelectricity. In terms of efficiency, it was certainly not as effective as the "magic" of this fantasy world.

Not knowing when he could return to the Build world to get a full bottle, he had been craving superpowers for a long time.

"This... is not impossible." Wan Ye couldn't help but smile.

His caution seemed unnecessary.

Then the topic paused, and Wan Ye picked up the teacup and took a sip to moisten his throat.

He had been a little distracted earlier, but now he finally savored it carefully. He found the flavor unique and quite smooth, and couldn't help but murmur in admiration, "This is quite delicious black tea. Did they add sugar? The tea aroma is also very rich. Even compared to the teahouse in Inazuma Castle, it's not inferior."

"Thank you for the compliment."

Manye's praise made Zheli sigh with emotion: now, no one in CRYCHIC, with the exception of Toyokawa Shoko, would comment on his tea art. Even Su Shi, who had tasted this Earl Grey tea countless times, was reluctant to say more.

Anyway, it tastes good, what else can I say.

Manye didn't notice Zheli's odd expression. He gently swirled his teacup, staring intently at the liquid inside. He took another sip, nodded in admiration again, and then looked up at Zheli and said, "Excuse me for asking, but in this other world, does 'coffee shop' also mean tea room?"

"No, that's not what I meant. A cafe is a cafe."

Manye's eyes showed a questioning look: "Then why is your shop's specialty tea?"

“…….” “…….”

Zhe Li and Su Shi were speechless for a moment.

In the awkward silence, Lenai looked left and right, tapped the counter lightly, and said, "Matcha parfait."

Zhe Li also gave up thinking for the time being, turned his head and gave the little girl a helpless smile: "Okay, I'll make it for you right away."

"No." Unexpectedly, Le Nai shook her head, looked directly into Zhe Li's eyes, and said, "Matcha is also a 'famous thing'."

Zhe Li, who was about to turn around and open the refrigerator, paused and turned back with a pensive expression.

"...If you say so, you can't be wrong."

The owner of the cafe "Nascita" is known for his two most common dishes, hot Earl Grey tea and matcha parfait, both of which he prepares most frequently. This fact is also mentioned in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient History).

Manye blinked, unable to hide the confusion on his face: "Matcha, parfait?"

Setting aside the question of what a parfait is, he still understood the word matcha. Could it be that a café isn't just a shop specializing in the exotic beverage "coffee"? How could both "specialties" be tea?

"Our coffee is made by machine... an automatic mechanism, so it's just average."

Even before Zheli ordered a manual espresso machine, the coffee flavor of this shop was already limited by this automatic espresso machine. Furthermore, the coffee beans in this shop were also fully automatically produced, and they would be refilled every time the cabinet was opened.

Of course, it's definitely not unpalatable, and even compared to smaller brands, it's definitely of superior quality. But when you factor these two factors together, compared to tea made with premium tea leaves specially ordered from the source, and brewed with the microsecond precision of Super Blood Stars, it ultimately lacks the potential to push the limits of human taste.

"I see. It seems I have good luck today."

Wan Ye looked at the teacup in his hand, smiled happily, and then drank it all in one gulp.

"I once had the pleasure of trying that exotic drink called 'coffee', but it was truly unpalatable. Before entering the shop today, I had to prepare myself mentally. Now, to be able to taste such delicious tea is truly a pleasant surprise."

Originally asked, "Does Inazuma also have coffee?"

"Exactly. Merchants from Fontaine and Xumi happened to bring back 'coffee beans'. They claimed they had been roasted for days and only needed to be ground into powder and brewed with hot water." Manye shook his head and sighed, "However, even after hiring experts to teach me the brewing technique, the finished product was still bitter. I'm afraid my taste wouldn't match that."

"Everyone has different tastes, so you don't have to take it too seriously." Zhe Li comforted him.

This young man's speech was a bit cryptic, but he possessed a surprisingly good personality. His choice of words was also very tactful. Furthermore, he single-handedly helped a strange woman exorcise a monster (though it turned out to be a misunderstanding). His strength and character were both impressive.

Such a person, still so young, actually became a "ronin"?

He still remembered Fengyuan Manye's description of the "Eye of God" just now—

"At the steepest turning point in life, when a mortal's 'desire' reaches its limit, the gaze of the gods will be cast down."

So, what kind of life turning points did this young man who also possessed the "Eye of God" experience, and what kind of "desire" did he condense?

The store manager was a little curious about this.

Chapter 14 of the Box: Autumn frost and falling maples, snow and clearing, meeting the cypress: Chapter : Encounter in another world, enjoy delicious food

Although I was somewhat curious about Kaedehara Manye's experience, it was somewhat impolite to ask about her personal matters on our first meeting.

Baodeng Zheli thought for a moment and then asked another question: "By the way, are there many countries in your world?"

While the outlying island ports were bustling, they were ultimately only by "ancient Japanese standards." Compared to Earth, they were like ports under the policy of isolation: there were some foreigners, but not many. Against this backdrop, it's hard to imagine that Kaedehara Manyo, a "ronin," could possess such a rich understanding of world affairs.

"Teyvat is based on seven elemental forces, and there are seven nations, each responsible for one of them."

Apparently because he knew the other party's identity as a "person from another world", Manye explained the common sense of the people of Teyvat very carefully.

"Inazuma is the land of thunder, and Fontaine is the land of water..."

MapleStory's Teyvat Elementary School lasted for a while.

Until the sunlight was at an angle high enough to penetrate the counter through the window, leaving a black and white mark on the wood grain on the table.

Normally, this slanting ray of sunlight heralds the official opening of Nascita. The store manager would leisurely flip the sign on the door to "OPEN" near dusk, then wait for the long, quiet day to end before closing the shop and calling it a day.

He habitually looked up at the window, and this action reminded Wan Ye that the half-empty teacup in front of him had long stopped emitting steam.

"Is it so late already?" Wan Ye looked apologetic.

The rambunctious kitten, curled up in a ball, snoring, had been soundly asleep for who knows how long. Le Nai, lying beside it, was also dozing peacefully. Nagasaki Suyo quietly snapped a photo of the two kittens. The click of her phone only made Le Nai hum softly, "Mmm..." without waking her.

So Manye raised his glass and drank it all, then handed the empty glass back to the store manager and said, "It's time for me to take my leave."

"Thank you for coming." Zhe Li waved to him and did not try to keep him.

If the "door" is a miracle that happens only once, then the two of us who will never see each other again should just part ways calmly; if there is a chance to meet again in the future, then there is naturally no need to add to the sentimentality.

The young man in red clothes and white hair seemed to have a similar idea. After getting up, he turned around and nodded slightly to him, then placed a heavy purse on the table.

Zhe Li was stunned for a moment, "What is this?"

"I believe Mr. Manager doesn't have the Inazuma price, so I'll just pay according to my own custom." Manye looked at the empty cup and said with a chuckle, "This delicacy is rare in the world. I'm just offering a small amount of money as a token of my appreciation. Please don't mind, Mr. Manager."

"No need. You can keep it. It's just a cup of tea. Consider it your reward for telling me so much."

They charged people all their travel expenses just for serving them a cup of tea. Even the most unscrupulous shops are not as shady as this.

Manye continued, "I am a wanderer, and money is like a cloud to me. Mr. Manager has done me a great service by taking away the source of this world's troubles."

Seeing that the other party seemed to insist on paying the bill, Zhe Li had nothing to say and took the purse to put it in the cash register. As he lifted the purse, Zhe Li intuitively felt the value of the bag of coins in his hand - at least enough to buy two large meals at his affordable Western restaurant with some left over.

However, Zhe Li still did not hesitate and put the whole bag of money directly into the cabinet. After all, he was a healthy and capable person, so he could spend the money however he wanted, and no one else could interfere.

At worst, I can just treat him better next time we meet.

"Then I'll take my leave."

The boy disappeared behind the door like a gust of wind. It seemed that the portal was still functioning normally.

"Meow……"

The sound of the door opening and closing seemed to wake the kitten. She yawned lazily, looked left and right, and finally opened her bright eyes to Zhe Li, meowed again, and jumped off the counter.

"Are you going back too? Be careful on the road."

"Meow."

The kitten raised its tail high and shook it gently, as if waving goodbye, then opened the door and walked out.

●

The afterglow of the setting sun illuminates the market which is gradually becoming quiet.

The kitten smacked her lips again. After leaving that magical "cafe," she was able to transform back into human form, but the taste of the braised chicken rice ball in her mouth seemed to still linger between her lips and teeth.

"Mr. Zheli is a good man~" she couldn't help but sigh.

Even though he knew she was a monster, he still let her roll around and act like an ordinary pet cat.

Normally, being treated as an ordinary cat would make Qiliangliang very unhappy: in order to live in human society, she tried very hard to be a good cat, meow!

But being able to eat free meals is another matter.

Besides, Mr. Zheli didn't really treat her like a pet cat. For example, before serving her any food, he would ask her if she liked it. Although in the store, Qiliangliang couldn't perform the simple magic of not only transforming into a human, but also speaking human language, and could only meow, Mr. Zheli seemed to understand it.