[Chat] Ch 1: The Transmigrant

— — — — — — — 

"1997, 1998, 1999... 2000!"

It was a quiet afternoon in the depths of a secluded bamboo forest.

A young man wielding a three-foot-long blade was fully focused, repeatedly practicing his strikes with unwavering concentration.

Nearby, a little girl, around nine or ten years old, sat on a fallen bamboo trunk, swinging her feet as she counted each strike aloud.

Upon reaching two thousand, she clapped her hands and praised him with a bright smile, "Father, you're amazing~~"

"Could you at least sound a little more natural?"

The young man paused mid-swing and shot her a look. "Anyone listening in would think you're praising a child."

"But Father, you do realize that compared to the years I've lived through, you're practically a child yourself~"

She raised her hand and made a tiny gap between her thumb and index finger to emphasize her point.

"Oh, so you actually remember that much..."

Veyron sheathed his blade and looked at her in exasperation.

Her name was Houraisan Kaguya.

She was the daughter of a supreme deity in the local mythos and had once lived as a princess in the Lunar Capital. However, she had committed a grave transgression against the laws of the moon and was subsequently exiled to the Earth.

Though she looked like an innocent young girl, her true nature was anything but—just as she had said herself. Even a fraction of her actual age would still be far older than Veyron could even fathom.

As for why this ancient being appeared as a child and why she addressed him as "Father," well... that all started with his transmigration.

A "transmigrant"—as the term suggests—is someone who crosses over from one world to another.

Having crossed over, his past life didn't really matter anymore. The only thing Veyron remembered was that he had stepped into empty air and, after an endless free fall, had somehow ended up in this unfamiliar yet strangely familiar world nine years ago.

During his descent, some unknown substance had leaked from his body, coalescing into a peculiar system of status entries.

After landing and taking just a few steps, he noticed a bamboo stalk in the distance emitting a soft, moon-like glow.

He had no idea where he was, but one thing was clear—this was no ordinary scene.

His first instinct? Turn around and walk away.

Yet no matter which direction he chose, he somehow always found himself back in front of that glowing bamboo.

Out of options, he grabbed a conveniently placed hatchet and cautiously cut the bamboo open—only to discover an infant swaddled inside.

The whole situation felt eerily familiar. With the pile of gold beside the baby and a jade plaque inscribed with the name "Houraisan Kaguya" in ancient characters, Veyron quickly realized exactly which world he had landed in.

Touhou Project.

More specifically, he had arrived in a time period centuries before the formation of Gensokyo itself—the very beginning of the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.

In the original story, an elderly couple who made a living cutting bamboo discovered a baby sealed within a stalk of glowing bamboo. They adopted her, and thus began the legend of Princess Kaguya.

Now, however, the one who had stumbled upon Kaguya wasn't some unsuspecting old couple—it was a transmigrant like himself.

Unlike the original adoptive parents, who had no knowledge of Kaguya's origins, Veyron knew exactly who she was.

And if he had to pretend, for years on end, that he was oblivious to her true nature—pretend that she was just a slightly out-of-the-ordinary little girl...

Well, let's be honest. Even if he were only trying to deceive her, he didn't have much confidence in pulling it off.

Not to mention, behind Kaguya lurked another potential observer—one of the greatest minds of the moon, Yagokoro Eirin.

So Veyron decided to lay everything out from the start.

He told Houraisan Kaguya that he had heard of her before—that she was the daughter of Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, one of the three noble gods of Takamagahara.

If she needed anything from him, she could just ask.

If not, he could leave, and they would pretend this meeting had never happened.

Her response was completely unexpected.

Despite technically having a father—a deity, no less—there had never been any actual familial bond between them.

So, she said, she wanted to experience what it was like to be a daughter. To have a real father.

Veyron: "..."

And that was how, in the depths of this remote bamboo forest, a house called Eientei was built.

"You're stopping already, Father?"

Seeing him sheath his blade, Kaguya glanced up at the sky in confusion.

Training with the sword had become part of Veyron's daily routine.

After adopting her, he had discovered that every time he cut down a bamboo stalk, there would be gold hidden inside. Thanks to this, he never had to worry about making a living.

Any necessary supplies were brought to him by an elderly couple from the foot of the mountain.

With no financial burdens, he had dedicated himself to training—day in, day out, without fail.

"Am I not allowed to take a break once in a while?"

Veyron walked over and playfully pinched Kaguya's cheeks. As expected, they were as soft as ever.

"If the outside world weren't so dangerous, and if I had been born with an advantage like you, you think I'd need to work this hard?"

"Father, given that you actually gain something every time you train, I'd say you're already luckier than 99.999% of humans in this world."

Kaguya rubbed her cheeks, pouting as she slipped out of his grasp.

Over the past nine years, he had gone from being completely untrained, to understanding the proper form, to wielding real force, and now, even with an ordinary blade, he could split stone with a single strike.

As someone with no inherited lineage or awakened spiritual power, his progress was nothing short of miraculous.

And what shocked Kaguya the most was that, thanks to what he called his "cheat ability," Veyron's growth followed a very simple principle:

Hard work pays off.

One swing, one tiny gain.

The amount he gained each time was small, but the key here was each time.

Nine years of training had turned an ordinary man into a swordsman capable of fending off minor yokai.

What about ninety years? Nine hundred? Nine thousand?

Terrifying thought.

"...You have a point."

Seeing the system notification in his mind.

[Basic Swordsmanship (Lv. 27) +1 XP]

Veyron nodded slightly.

He had stayed in the bamboo forest all these years not just because the outside world was dangerous, but also because his system ensured that every effort he made was rewarded.

"Back to business."

Without dwelling on their previous conversation, he asked, "Kaguya, did you notice anything strange when I swung my 1,997th strike?"

"Something strange?"

She furrowed her brows, thought for a moment, then shook her head. "No."

"What about the person watching behind you?"

"Eirin? She hasn't said anything, so I assume not."

"...Interesting."

Veyron muttered to himself as he looked at the floating text in front of him.

[Would you like to join the Dimensional Chat Group?]

[Yes] / [No]

.

.

.