"Please tell me, who exactly is the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?"
"Since the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles maintains the Heavenly Principles, then what exactly are the 'Heavenly Principles'?"
Charlotte opened with a bombshell question that left even Lin Qiu momentarily at a loss for words.
Never mind that Lin Qiu's own understanding of the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles wasn't all that deep. Even if it was, he couldn't just blurt it out.
Lin Qiu was someone from outside the world, so his affairs wouldn't be recorded on Irminsul. Him writing or talking about these things posed no issue, and the Heavenly Principles wouldn't know a thing about it.
But Charlotte was a native Teyvat citizen through and through. Knowing too much would only bring her harm.
After a moment's thought, Lin Qiu spoke up. "Let's keep it under wraps for now. Otherwise, wouldn't that be a spoiler?"
Charlotte nodded in agreement. Fontaine was not only a nation of justice but also a nation of opera. Its people loved going to the opera, so they naturally understood how awful spoilers were.
What she didn't know was that while Lin Qiu was saying no spoilers right now, his novel was about to drop a massive one any moment.
"Then, where did the Twins come from?"
"Spoiler territory."
"What exactly is the 'child of man's hubris'?"
"Spoiler territory."
"What kind of creature is Paimon, really?"
"Spoiler territory."
"Has Ying found her brother?"
"Spoiler territory."
"..."
"..."
Charlotte puffed out her cheeks. In the end, she hadn't gotten a single answer out of him. Every question was spoiler territory.
She gave up asking and put away her notebook, picking up the book to read again.
In the story, the protagonist Ying and Paimon arrived before a Statue of the Seven. Ying merely touched it lightly and gained the power of Anemo.
Seeing this, Charlotte couldn't help but sigh. It was fiction, after all. The protagonist's cheat skill was pretty nice. If only she could do the same—after traveling the world for interviews, she'd have all seven elements at her command by now.
That said, Charlotte wasn't obsessed with power. She just marveled briefly at Ying's golden finger before continuing to read.
A massive dragon flew over the Traveler's head, heading toward a distant forest.
When the Traveler entered the forest, they saw a young boy soothing the dragon's emotions.
The green-clad youth cupped his hands and said gently, "Don't be scared. Relax, I'm back."
Lin Qiu had blurred the description of Venti a bit. After all, if his identity as the Anemo Archon was guessed right away, where was the fun in that? Lin Qiu quite enjoyed watching Venti and Zhongli put on their acts.
With the level of vagueness in Lin Qiu's writing, it could fool ordinary folks who didn't know better, but anyone familiar would still recognize Venti.
"Mondstadt's Dragonspike?"
Seeing Mondstadt and the dragon, Charlotte immediately thought of Mondstadt's Dragonspike. She'd been there before to cover the story.
"It's been a while since it happened, right? Is it still hot news?"
For Fontaine, the novelty of Mondstadt's Dragonspike had worn off long ago. Few people still brought it up in conversation. Writing about it now in a novel—could it even ride the hype anymore?
"But this green-clothed boy can actually talk to the dragon. Who is he?"
As she kept reading, Charlotte's questions weren't resolved. If anything, they only multiplied.
Just as she wanted to read on, the cruise ship arrived at the station.
"Passengers, please mind your safety," the Melusine reminded those disembarking.
"Already here? So soon?" Charlotte blinked in surprise. She'd only just gotten into the beginning.
Lin Qiu grumbled from the side, "That's because you spent most of the time grilling me with questions."
Worried that Lin Qiu, new to town and unfamiliar with everything, might get lost, Charlotte volunteered to be his guide.
Lin Qiu had no objections. This Fontaine was way bigger than in the game. He really was afraid of getting turned around here.
The two chatted as they walked.
"Miss Charlotte, I think we're familiar enough now. You don't have to call me 'Teacher' or use formal 'you' with me."
"Got it, Teacher Qiu Cheng."
"I mean, could you just call me Qiu Cheng, or Lin Qiu?"
"Sure thing, Teacher Qiu Cheng."
"?"
We're all speaking Teyvat tongue, right? Is Fontaine's language habit different from Liyue's, or did I not express myself clearly? Why do I feel like we talked for ages and got nowhere?
'Emotion Points gained: 100'
'Emotion source: Charlotte'
'Emotion content: Why is he deliberately calling me Miss Charlotte? I don't even have the surname Charlotte!'
Charlotte pretended not to notice Lin Qiu's puzzled look.
She was answering like that on purpose. Who asked him to deliberately call her Miss Charlotte? Lin Qiu had said he knew about The Steambird and its staff, which meant he knew full well she didn't have the surname Charlotte and called her that anyway!
How mean!
Jokes aside, though, Charlotte had serious business to discuss with Lin Qiu.
"Teacher Qiu Cheng, I can't assess your worth just yet, so the interview payment will have to wait. How about I treat you to a meal first?"
"Sure."
Lin Qiu didn't stand on ceremony. He'd already spent most of his pocket money on the way here. Now that he was in Fontaine, he'd need to rent a place, and who knew when the payment would come through. Charlotte treating him to a meal was a real lifesaver.
It might even be the best meal he'd have for a while.
Plus, she wasn't using formal 'you' anymore. A phased victory! Next step: drop the 'Teacher.' After that, getting her to call him 'hubby' wasn't far off, right?
He'd transmigrated into the Genshin world, after all. If he didn't hear these female characters call him hubby, what was the point?
He'd really become their hubby then.
Charlotte had no idea what was going through Lin Qiu's mind right now. She just quietly led the way.
"This is The Steambird. The editors are on the second floor, to the left—first three rooms are editorial. You can head up and find one yourself, Teacher Qiu Cheng. I need to get back to my desk and sort materials. Can't keep you company."
Charlotte had just returned from a news interview. Besides Lin Qiu's exclusive, she had other reports to organize.
"Once I drop off my stuff, I'll come find you. Then we'll grab that meal and find you a place to stay." Charlotte was already dashing into The Steambird, waving as she called back.
Good thing Lin Qiu's ears were sharp. At her sprinting speed, he might not have caught the latter part from too far away.
"She runs so fast. I didn't even get to say thanks..." Lin Qiu sighed. So this was a Vision holder for you. That speed was no joke.
He entered The Steambird and found an editor at the spot Charlotte mentioned—a random NPC Lin Qiu didn't recognize.
The talk went smoothly. The editor read the content, conferred with others, and agreed to publish Lin Qiu's novel. They'd trial it in Fontaine and Mondstadt.
As for payment, it was a 50-50 split.
Hearing that split, Lin Qiu nearly blurted out, "Who's the other fifty?"
He barely held back the goofy urge. Otherwise, he'd look like an idiot.
When he stepped out of The Steambird, Charlotte was waiting at the door.
"Oh right, the exclusive interview! I need to hurry back to The Steambird and sort my materials." As she spoke, Charlotte handed the book back to Lin Qiu.
"Teacher Qiu Cheng, follow me. I'll take you to The Steambird." She remembered him saying he wanted to submit there.
"You're new to Fontaine, right? Let me be your guide."