The Astral Express

Before this chapter kicks off, just wanted to ask a quick question. Are the people of Teyvat aware of concepts such as planets, galaxies, and universes? I'm asking this because there have been a number of times such things have been mentioned and it's making me question what their level of knowledge on the cosmos is.

Examples exist in the book known as 'Vera's Melancholy' and where an NPC in the recent quest 'Into The Deepwater Murk' mentions the term 'universe' casually. Are these just irrelevant pieces of text that don't actually hold weight in regard to Teyvat's level of astronomy or do they actually suggest Teyvatian's know of such concepts?

This is purely to satiate my own curiosity, and I probably won't be changing my stance for the characters in this book in regard to their knowledge of the cosmos. I'll probably keep the Teyvatian's in this book as greenhorns when in comes to the universe.

Anyway, enjoy!

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Keqing had no idea what to think at the moment as she was now sitting on the edge of a bed inside of a rather large bedroom that had both things she could recognise as well as things she wasn't entirely sure about.

However, her focus was not on her surroundings, but on the people who were now standing in front of her. Two of them looked to be around her age while the other two were probably a number of years older, with the male of the older two probably ten or so years older than the female.

As for the two who were around Keqing's age, the female had bright pink hair and was wearing clothes that had a white, blue, and purple colour palette. As for the male, he had black hair and was wearing clothes that had the colours of black, white, and green.

For the older two, the woman had flowing crimson hair and was wearing a white toga underneath a black coat with golden lines and various other accessories. As for the man, he had brown hair and was wearing a gray and white dress coat, along with a scarf and wearing a pair of glasses.

(A/N: I'm giving very simple explanations for appearances, don't want most of the story being taken up by pure descriptions. Main reason being that I suck at descriptions)

After March, the pink-haired girl, had come back with the black and red-haired individuals, Keqing had come to learn of these people's names. March was the pinkette, Dan Heng was the one with black hair, the redhead was Himeko, and finally the man with brown-hair was Welt.

"So, you don't remember how you found yourself floating in the middle space?"

"Well, no..."

"It's miracle that you even survived, let alone come out unscathed. Most would only be capable of persisting for a few seconds." Dan Heng crossed his arms over his chest as he said this. "You... wouldn't happen to have come from the Xianzhou, have you?"

"Xianzhou?" Keqing muttered and looked genuinely confused after being asked the question. The Xianzhou was certainly not a term she was familiar with, though the way he asked the question made it sound like it was most likely a place. "I am not from this Xianzhou."

"I see..."

"Stop with that, Dan Heng! She might have a headache." March waved her hands a few times in front of Dan Heng in an action to push him away. March then gave a smile as she looked at Keqing. "Keqing, right? You don't remember how you ended up out there, so maybe you have amnesia like I do!"

"Eh?" Keqing blinked at this. "You've lost your memories?"

"Yep! In fact, the others here found me in a situation similar to yours not too long ago, except they found me floating in a block of ice." Keqing wasn't entirely sure what to think about that. "You're really lucky though, at least you weren't completely naked out there!"

Hearing this, Keqing couldn't help but imagine herself in the same situation, which naturally made her face gain a rather deep shade of red in response. If that did happen, she was never going to let Xingfu go.

"That's enough, March." Himeko gave a small cough before giving a small laugh. "Everyone, we should leave Keqing to rest for a while. She may need some time to gather her thoughts, so it'd be best for us all to leave her alone for now."

Although March was a bit reluctant, she ultimately did as Himeko said while both Welt and Dan Heng understood and quickly left the room. Before leaving herself, Himeko turned to face Keqing before speaking.

"You should rest. When you're feeling better, feel free to come out of the room and look for us."

"Th-Thank you."

Keqing watched as Himeko walked out of the room as the door automatically closed horizontally, and silence was all that remained after this. Looking around, Keqing was now able to fully take in her surroundings.

"Incredible..." Sitting up from the bed, Keqing tapped her fingers against the desk that was set up in the room. From what she understood, all of this was actually a simulation and wasn't at all real in the physical sense. "My body should still be in the cafe, it's unbelievable..."

No matter how she looked at things, everything around her felt as real as real could possibly be. Let it be the temperature, the feeling of the objects around her and their material composition, anything she saw felt and looked real.

"Should I go out no-."

『???: Lady Keqing, can you hear me?』

"Kyaa~!"

Not expecting the sudden voice to sound in her ears, Keqing suddenly let out a horrified shriek as her body literally jumped up more than a meter. Her pigtails even somehow spiked up before falling back down during this.

Looking around with widened eyes, Keqing soon noticed a strange small 'creature' hovering next to her. The entity looked like a small white ball with a black round face with two glowing circular eyes which seemed to be staring at her, and she also noticed the tiny black face-mask it seemed to have on.

And the voice...

"Xingfu...?"

『Xingfu: It is indeed me, Lady Keqing. How are you feeling about this so far?』

"Well, it certainly is extraordinary..." Keqing responded after taking a second to compose herself. "Everything around me feels so life-like, it's hard to believe that it's all fake. The people I talked to just now are also fake too, correct?"

『Xingfu: Yes and no. The ones you just encountered are fakes, but they do actually exist as genuine people here in the real world』

"Incredible..."

『???: Keqing, you're okay!』

Keqing then watched as another entity just like Xingfu's avatar suddenly popped into existence beside Xingfu, except this one had purple pinkish-gold eyes and even had a pair of black and red horns sprouting from the top of the head.

"Ganyu too?"

『Ganyu: We're watching and talking with you back in the cafe, it seems that your consciousness truly has been transported into this simulation!』

『Xingfu: I just hope you aren't feeling any discomfort. For the time being, if you wouldn't mind, could you either say or think the word 'status' for me?』

Although confused, Keqing nodded. 'Status.'

As soon as this thought passed through her mind, Keqing flinched back a bit when a strange holographic screen soon projected itself in front of her eyes. The screen seemed to be displaying all kinds of different pieces of information.

For people who played the Honkai Star Rail game, there were many elements that those players would immediately recognise. However, in this version of the 'experience', the status screen was altered extensively to better fit the circumstances.

.

『Character』

● Name: Keqing

● Credits: 0

● Stellar Jade: 0

● Type: Lightning

● Path: The Hunt

● Trailblaze Level: 1

● Equilibrium Level: 0

● Eidolon: E0

● Light Cone: [None]

● Relics: [None]

● Abilities: [Details]

.

"This is?"

『Xingfu: It's a bit hard to explain in terms that you'd understand, but I suppose the best way would be to say that this list of information represents your progression through the simulation as well as an analysis of your combat capabilities』

Unlike in the original game, there was no thing such as stats in the form of numbers, nor was there anything like health. This version of the game magnified the idea of realism, and ones perseverance through battle could be determined entirely by the individual themselves.

『Xingfu: Explaining everything in detail will take quite some time, so I won't bother as of yet. You'll be able to learn everything as time goes on, so please do exercise some patience. For right now, please either tap or think of the abilities section at the bottom』

Looking at the specified point, Keqing casually raised her finger before tapping onto the 'Details' button at the bottom next to the area labelled 'Abilities'. Soon, another window projected itself directly to the right of the current one.

.

『Abilities』

● Basic ATK: Yunlai Swordsmanship - [Basic strikes dealing Lightning DMG] [Level: 1/6]

● Skill: Stellar Restoration - [The ability to produce a Lightning Stiletto that deals continuous Lightning DMG, which can also act as a conduit for lightning-fast movements as well as enhanced Lightning DMG] [Level: 1/10]

● Ultimate: Starward Sword [A powerful attack that deals extreme Lightning DMG, delivering a barrage of continuous lightning fast strikes] [Level: 1/10]

● Talent: Electro Field [After producing a Lightning Stiletto, a small field of lightning will be generated around the Stiletto until the Stiletto disappears. When present within this field, all attacks dealing Lightning DMG are enhanced] [Level: 1/10]

● Technique: Tempest Blade [For a short amount of time, the user can infuse their weapon with Lightning. All Lightning DMG dealt while this is active will increase by 1.2x]

.

As can be seen from the wording of the descriptions of each section, they were altered and simplified to better fit a more realistic setting. The system was actually what automatically generated a person's skills inside of the simulation, and it seems that it took Keqing original skill template from Genshin Impact as a basis.

Both Keqing and Ganyu looked at the screen in front of the former with a curiosity, and they both naturally realised how similar these abilities sounded in comparison to Keqing's usual style of fighting. The only new parts were the sections labelled 'Talent' and 'Technique'.

As far as they were aware, Keqing possessed no ability to project any kind of field of lightning, nor did she have any ability to increase the power of her strikes with her manipulation of Electro. She could definitely coat her sword in lightning, but not increase its overall slashing power.

『Xingfu: You can't at the moment, but you will eventually be able to improve these skills of yours. Just not at the current time』

"What about this Path? What is The Hunt?"

『Xingfu: That's a bit more complicated, it's something I'll explain to you later on. Whether or not you'll be able to wrap your head around it is entirely on you. For now, though...』

The avatar belonging to Xingfu turned its entire body to look at the avatar of Ganyu, who seemed to notice his gaze as both she and Keqing gave him confused looks. Giving a small chuckle in response, Xingfu spoke again.

『Xingfu: Before it's too late, why don't you join her, Miss Ganyu?』

In this version of Honkai Star Rail, there was a maximum limit of two people who could exist in one version of the game world at a time. However, this also came with its disadvantages if you decide to not go solo.

First of all, you could only add another person before the canon events officially begin. Secondly, both individuals must be present if you wish to start the game. Finally, each individual cannot join more than one world, meaning you couldn't enter another person's version of the game if you have already started your own or joined another.

Xingfu had already explained these details to the two Liyue locals, it was very important information after all. After hearing what Xingfu said, Ganyu unconsciously glanced up at Keqing with her avatar as Keqing looked down at her as well.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Oh no! Mr Yang, there's another person floating out in space!"

"Wh-What?!"