"Back then, a ball of light appeared in Gensokyo, claiming it could grant any miracle. The first one to get it was a blue-haired fairy. Her wish was to make it rain frozen frogs all over Gensokyo. That idiot threw Gensokyo into instant chaos, but she was happy about it, so she shared the thing with her fairy friends."
"Later, that ball of light was passed around, and more fairies' wishes were granted. Fortunately, most of the fairies who got the ball of light were idiots, so it didn't lead to a world-ending crisis," Kaguya said with a sigh, casually snatching the bowl of fresh bamboo shoot soup that Chen Li had just ladled for himself and was about to drink.
In order to hear the rest of the story, Chen Li could only swallow his anger.
"Until... someone got the ball of light and wished for world peace." Even after two years, Kaguya was still fuming as she recalled the event.
"What's wrong with that?" Chen Li asked, confused.
"Everything was wrong with it. Because of that wish for 'world peace,' any existence that could potentially or had the ability to harm the [World] was targeted. The first to suffer was the Dragon God. Though I don't know exactly what happened, the entire world echoed with the Dragon God's anguished cries."
"Huh?"
"If you want world peace, then there can be no existence that can threaten the world, not even the world itself. Based on that logic, the second to suffer was Gensokyo."
"Huh?"
"Both layers of Gensokyo's barrier shattered on the spot. Yakumo Yukari, who had been hiding in the shadows trying to figure out who the mastermind behind the ball of light was, instantly flipped out."
"Yukari shot out from a gap and, in a very direct and physical sense, erased that person from existence. Then she grabbed the ball of light and wished for everything to return to the moment just before it appeared in Gensokyo, and also wished for it to get the hell out of this world and never come back. It's a good thing she reacted so quickly. Otherwise, given the nature of her abilities, she would have been the third or fourth one to get wiped out," Kaguya said.
"That was a pretty quick reaction. But what does that have to do with you being transported here?"
"Because... Yukari left behind a little 'legacy'," Kaguya said, her teeth grinding audibly as she held the bowl.
"What legacy?"
"According to what Yukari told Eirin, the legacy was a [Channel] left behind when the ball of light left the world. This channel should have faded in an instant, but Yukari seized the opportunity. Using her boundary abilities and some specks of light she had collected from a previous [Miracle Incident], she managed to extend the channel's existence for an hour."
"What did Yukari want to do?"
"According to her, she wanted to study the channel to prevent similar entities from coming to this world. Anyway, Yukari used her incredible boundary ability to bring the channel to the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, wanting to study it with Eirin," Kaguya explained.
"And then?"
It sounded like Yukari's intentions were good.
"And then the Dragon God, who had also noticed the channel and saw that it still existed, instantly flew into a rage. It swung its tail over and flattened the entire Bamboo Forest of the Lost, trying to completely crush the channel."
"That's great, but..." Chen Li glanced at Kaguya.
There had to be an accident.
"Ah, yes, there was an accident. And I was that accident. When the channel was crushed, Yukari, who was carrying it, was fine. The Dragon God, who attacked it, was fine. Eirin, who was studying it, was fine. But I, who was watching from a safe distance, got splashed all over with fragments of the channel. And then I was transmigrated! Dammit!" Kaguya seethed with injustice.
Why did it have to be me?!
"..." - Chen Li.
"So that's the long and short of it. As for why I came directly to this world, I have no idea. I just closed my eyes, opened them, and here I was," Kaguya said with a dramatic sigh.
"Hm? Why aren't you saying anything?" Kaguya asked, nudging him with her elbow when she saw that he had gone silent.
"Oh, I was just wondering how you ended up having to send scam messages to survive," Chen Li replied casually.
In truth, Chen Li was thinking about just how much Miracle Power the Miracle System must have wasted in Gensokyo to achieve everything Kaguya had just described.
Miracles were never free.
Miracle Power was what made the impossible possible.
But the more impossible the event, the more Miracle Power it consumed.
An ant couldn't possibly solo-kill a human, nor could it solo-kill a dragon.
Miracle Power could help it, but the cost of the former would definitely be lower than the latter.
If all that Miracle Power had been saved and given to him, what kind of terrifying Curios could he have forged?
Then again, if the Miracle System hadn't wasted all its power, it wouldn't have become "blackened," and he wouldn't have picked it up.
"Speaking of which... when I first arrived in this world, I was pretty seriously injured. And because of the temporal and spatial effects of the transmigration, my wounds healed very slowly. Luckily, I know a little bit of martial arts, so I beat up a few thugs until their own mothers wouldn't recognize them and snatched their phone."
"But those thugs were so poor! The money in their accounts was barely enough for me to have a full meal," Kaguya said, getting angrier the more she thought about it, and slammed her fist on the table.
If you don't have money, what are you doing being a thug?!
"Of course thugs don't have money. If they had money, why would they be thugs?" Chen Li retorted.
Thug was also a profession in this world.
Because of their profession traits, they could rarely make big money, but they also wouldn't starve.
"You're right. So afterward, I just mass-sent a bunch of messages using the phone number format of your world. And then you fell for it."
"Hm?" Chen Li's gaze turned murderous.
"Ahem, what I mean is, you were the only one with a kind heart. Mwah," Kaguya said, blowing him a kiss.
"Ugh. An old hag will be an old hag. Still using such an ancient meme." Chen Li shuddered with disgust.
Kaguya's face instantly darkened.
Fine, hold it in, hold it in.
I still need something from him. Hold it in.
"Anyway, that's how it was. With your money, I was able to rent a place and, by baring my heart and soul to you, I managed to make my fortune. Although it was a mutually beneficial relationship, I will always remember your help. If I ever get back to Gensokyo, I'll definitely have Eirin make you 100 Hourai Elixirs, I swear," Kaguya said with great conviction.
"You're laying it on so thick. What do you want?" Chen Li asked, looking at her warily.
We've been online friends for two years. Do you think I don't know you?
Just spit out what you want.