Mom, a handsome man just fell from the sky!

Early in the morning, when neither people nor magical beasts had yet awakened, it was the perfect time for petty theft, sneaking about, slaying beasts, and snatching treasures.

Reluctantly sprawled across someone’s shoulder, Zizi looked thoroughly dispirited, exuding a sense of lethargic idleness.

“Don’t slack off—show the way, or if we run into a big one, I’ll toss you out as its breakfast!” The voice was low, calm, but left no room for argument.

At once, Zizi sprang up nimbly and pointed a paw in a certain direction: “Zizi! (That way!)”

Following Zizi’s lead, she pressed on. Whether it was killing or saving, it was clear these things were not her strengths. Still, her feet did not falter.

The other day, after the purple-haired girl had casually revealed that Liang Yin’s days were numbered, she had also, almost inadvertently, mentioned the method to save her: it was simple—find a water-type magical beast that had formed a magic core, defeat it, retrieve the core, and give it to Liang Yin. That was all.

It sounded so straightforward, just like washing vegetables, chopping them, tossing them into the pot, adding seasoning, and stir-frying.

With a bitter face, she lamented her fate. She had been diligently cultivating these past days, but at most she could help the purple-haired girl defeat those large magical beasts that hadn’t even developed a core and could only use magic through their innate traits. To think she could challenge a beast with a magic core alone—wasn’t that just delivering herself as breakfast? Worse yet, she’d be serving two meals at once, completely solving the breakfast woes of some voracious magical beast.

In this world, magical beasts came in many varieties. Some were born with low aptitude, destined only for scratching and biting. Others, blessed with talent, could sense magical elements from birth and wield magic as easily as play. But only the rarest and most gifted could condense those elements within themselves into a magic core.

Such beasts, with magic cores, evolved intelligence akin to humans. They were rare, proud, and solitary—fortunately so, for if they ever banded together, they could destroy humanity. She remembered reading this once in an old tome back when she was a librarian.

Looking at her pitifully plain clothes and the simple wand in her hand, she felt like a rookie in some game, venturing naked to solo the final boss.

Maybe I’ll become famous for this, she consoled herself. If this world had newspapers, I’d probably make headlines: “Novice Mage Dies Tragically Trying to Challenge Magical Beast—Experts Advise Rational Adventuring and Caution.”

Her wandering thoughts were pulled back by Zizi’s trembling little paw. Feeling the quiver of its body, she steadied herself, cloaking her presence with her increasingly proficient water magic.

As she crept closer in the indicated direction, waves of intense energy surged toward her, as if some mighty battle raged nearby. The commotion only grew louder.

Peeking ahead, Zizi dove straight into her clothes in terror. Though the little creature’s fur prickled her skin, she had no time to care—she inched forward, step by cautious step.

Suddenly, a shadow streaked past, crashing into a great tree behind her with a resounding thud before falling to the ground.

The tree swayed, and startled leaves rained down, pelting her face in a frantic clatter.

Holding her breath, she turned to see an unidentifiable, lifeless mass sprawled beneath the tree. She poked it with a stick—no movement. Good. Safe for now. It looked suspiciously like a fragment of a giant aquatic beast’s tentacle. If debris like this had been flung so far, clearly two magical beasts were locked in fierce combat nearby.

Taking advantage of chaos to reap the rewards of others’ strife—she loved nothing more. Pleased, she crept forward, hoping to find a vantage point to watch and await her chance.

She finally found a small, inconspicuous opening, ringed by trees and foliage, offering a perfect view of the battleground—a superb spot for covert observation. Peering out, the sight before her left her stunned.

It was a human boy who was thrashing the mighty Sawtooth Shark King—reputedly the aquatic dragon of legend—leaving the beast disoriented and battered. The youth had smooth, short silver hair and bright red eyes, the corners upturned, his lips curved in a smile so dazzling and harmless he seemed the very picture of a sunny, beautiful boy.

Yet as he smiled so innocently, his hands showed no mercy. Golden lightning crackled and twisted in his grasp, growing ever larger and more menacing. The Shark King, helpless against such powerful electric magic, could only endure the assault. Perhaps with cunning it might yet survive, but brute force had failed.

Finally, after a prolonged beating, the Shark King bowed its noble head. “Respected one, I am willing to submit to you.” Clearly, the beast’s grasp of language was lacking, she thought wryly. The phrase was halting and awkward, and if not for that legendary “One Lesson to Understand Foreigners’ Accents—Guaranteed Comprehension Training” she’d suffered through, she’d have had no idea what it meant.

“Is that so?” The boy’s smile remained bright, but the electric current only intensified as he poured fresh energy into it. The lightning in his hands roared and lashed, the sound so fierce it seemed to set the air ablaze.

Boom! Conducted perfectly by water, the surge struck the Shark King’s face. Surely that was a fatal blow, she thought, shifting in preparation to dash out and see if she could claim its magic core.

But the Shark King was not so easily taken. With a sweep of its tail, it churned the lake’s mud into a shield before itself, then lunged directly at the boy.

Up close, the beast’s strength gave it the advantage, but the boy stood motionless, seemingly lost in thought, as the Shark King hurtled toward him.

“Watch out!” she cried, surprise and courage surging unbidden. Without thinking, she hurled a water sphere straight at the boy.

The blast knocked the boy forward, almost toppling him, but it also caused the Shark King’s attack to miss by a hair’s breadth. Ignoring the unexpected interloper, the boy, with a sword of lightning conjured in his hand, struck the Shark King at the base of its neck.

(The following scene has been redacted by the author due to excessive gore.)

Compared to the boy’s triumphant figure, her own state was wretched. She had chosen the perfect angle for her water sphere, but in doing so lost her footing and tumbled from her hiding place.

Landing flat on her back, she lay sprawled like Hermione petrified in Harry Potter, her wand arm frozen at a right angle, utterly motionless.

Crack. As she tried to lift her shoulder, her bones protested with a chorus of pain, demanding that she remain perfectly still to heal, or else they’d give up entirely.

If I don’t move, I’ll die of hunger or thirst before my bones have the chance to quit on me, she thought, but couldn’t muster the will to move. Zizi was nowhere to be found—she was truly alone now, waiting for grass to grow on her grave. No, wait—wasn’t the handsome boy still here?

Suddenly, someone gripped her throat and lifted her, forcing her to meet the boy’s gaze. His hand sent fresh waves of pain through her battered bones.

“Well? What are your intentions?” The boy’s smile was still pure and harmless—if one ignored the blood-soaked clothes.

“You… you’re choking me so hard, how do you expect me… to say anything…” she managed, using the last of her strength.

“Oh, is that so?” He blinked innocently, then released her, hand still poised as if holding her.

Thud! She hit the ground again, this time almost losing her life altogether.

“Well? Give me a decent reason, or I’ll make sure you join the Shark King in pieces.” The boy’s smile was as warm as spring sunlight.

A chill ran down her spine.

Mother, the weather’s turning cold—don’t forget to lay out an extra quilt…

Stardust Chronicle 021_021: Mother, a Handsome Man Has Fallen from the Sky! — End of Update.