Chapter 1: The Price of a Signed Photo

Gu Qing lifted his hand, glancing at his wristwatch.

It was ten fifty at night.

His transaction partner was already twenty minutes late.

The evening breeze, carrying a chill, swept across the overpass.

He clicked his tongue in annoyance, suppressing the urge to light a cigarette.

Having resigned from his job half a year prior, he had used his meager savings to take over a convenience store.

The business was neither good nor bad, barely allowing him to make ends meet.

However, his daughter Gu Qianqian’s enrollment in St. Sakura Aristocratic Academy (TL Note: A prestigious, high-tuition private school) for the new semester meant exorbitant tuition fees that instantly strained his financial situation to its limits.

Just as he was at his wit’s end, he had stumbled upon a preposterous news article while browsing online a few days ago.

[Auction of Golden Age exclusive merchandise: The strongest magical girl ‘Sky Blue Star’s’ concert-worn stockings fetched a million-dollar sky-high price!]

Gu Qing stared at his phone screen, a wave of nausea churning in his stomach.

‘Socks I’ve worn are worth that much?’

‘Has the world gone mad?’

Yet, an absurd thought soon latched onto him.

If that were the case, wouldn’t he, as ‘Sky Blue Star’ himself, be able to endlessly produce “sky-high priced merchandise?”

Consequently, adopting a ‘nothing ventured, nothing gained’ mindset, he registered a new account and discreetly listed some long-forgotten “merchandise” on a clandestine dark web forum.

To ensure a swift sale, he had set a remarkably “conscientious” price: a rare, signed photo for merely twelve thousand, a sum that would alleviate his immediate financial distress.

To his surprise, not long after he posted the listing, someone contacted him.

The buyer had haggled the price down from twelve thousand to eight thousand five hundred, but Gu Qing, desperate for the money, had agreed.

Now, standing in the cold wind, the gnawing guilt of a thief grew heavier in his heart.

He still couldn’t fathom the expressions of those fervent fans if they were to discover that the serene, noble, and star-like magical girl ‘Sky Blue Star’ they revered was, in reality, a scruffy, decadent old man.

‘They’d probably want to tie me to a stake and burn me alive,’ he thought.

“Excuse me, are you Mr. ‘Ai Wan’?”

The ID ‘Ai Wan’ (TL Note: Meaning ‘Love Evening’ or ‘Cherish Evening’), which he had typed in casually, was derived from his deceased wife, Su Wanning.

A cool, clear female voice sounded from behind him.

Gu Qing turned around.

Under the moonlight, a beautiful girl stood not far behind him, dressed in a school uniform identical to his daughter’s.

Her waist-length black hair flowed like a smooth waterfall, framing a small face whose skin was whiter than snow.

Her amber pupils held no discernible emotion, like a still, stagnant pool.

Gu Qing was utterly stunned.

‘He had assumed that anyone using an ID like “Potato Chip Stuck to Keyboard” and buying such items on the dark web would surely be some sort of otaku.’

‘But it’s a high school girl?’

“Inspect the goods.”

Her voice was flat, devoid of inflection, like a robot issuing a command.

Gu Qing finally snapped out of his daze, extending the black tote bag to her.

The girl took it, unzipped it, and retrieved a slightly yellowed photograph from within.

The photograph depicted two girls smiling brilliantly.

One was himself, the magical girl ‘Sky Blue Star’ from back then.

The other was his beloved, the magical girl ‘Blazing Sun Star’ Su Wanning.

It was an official limited-edition signed photo, taken backstage during their one and only, and ultimately last, joint concert, bearing their youthful handwriting.

The girl merely cast a calm glance at the photo, confirming the authenticity of both the signature and the image.

“No problem.”

She retrieved a thick envelope from her backpack and handed it directly to Gu Qing.

“Eight thousand five. You can count it.”

Gu Qing took the wad of cash, lowering his head to count it, finding not a single cent missing.

Yet, the guilt in his heart threatened to drown him.

‘Scamming a student out of her money.’

‘Gu Qing, you’re truly going backwards in life.’

Just as he was about to find an excuse to conclude the transaction, the girl suddenly spoke.

“Tonight, may I stay at your house?”

“Huh?”

Gu Qing suspected he had misheard, utterly bewildered.

‘What kind of development is this? A honey trap?’

The girl’s expression remained unchanged, her amber pupils gazing at him calmly, as if merely stating the most ordinary of facts.

“I’ve run away from home.”

Gu Qing’s right eyelid suddenly twitched.

‘This girl is definitely big trouble.’

He instinctively took half a step back, widening the distance between himself and the girl.

“You could go to a friend’s house, or find a hotel for the night and figure things out in the morning.”

“I have no friends.”

The girl’s reply was terse and direct.

She pointed to the envelope in Gu Qing’s hand.

“And what I just gave you was the last of my money; I can’t afford a hotel.”

Gu Qing fell silent.

‘So, she spent all her worldly possessions just to buy a signed photo, only to render herself homeless?’

‘What kind of performance art is this?’

But he had to refuse.

‘What would it look like, a thirty-seven-year-old single man taking a high school girl home for the night?’

‘If his daughter found out, where would he put his old face?’

“No, absolutely not.” Gu Qing returned the money to the girl. “Take your money back, give me my item back, and let’s pretend this transaction never happened.”

The girl, however, did not take it, merely staring at him in silence.

That gaze made him feel like a villain bullying a child.

“Uncle.”

She spoke suddenly.

“You are a good person.”

“…Huh?”

“Therefore, you will definitely agree.”

Gu Qing was choked by her divine logic.

He tugged at the corner of his mouth, a self-deprecating smile gracing his lips.

“A good person? Little sister, where did you get the idea that I’m a good person?”

The girl, however, shook her head. For the first time, his reflection appeared in her amber pupils.

“The fact that you possess rare Sky Blue Star merchandise proves you’re a loyal fan, just like me.”

Her voice was soft, yet imbued with certainty.

“I trust you.”

“Because most people who like Sky Blue Star are good people.”

A wave of shame washed over Gu Qing.

He wanted to say something, anything, to shatter the ridiculous fantasy she held.

He wanted to tell her that the ‘Sky Blue Star’ beloved by all had died long ago. She had perished in that great catastrophe, alongside Su Wanning.

What remained was merely an empty shell named Gu Qing.

But the moment he opened his mouth, a bone-chilling coldness crept through his entire body.

The streetlights on the overpass began to flicker, and the air filled with a familiar, nauseating scent.

It was the stench of the Abyss (TL Note: ‘Xu Yuan,’ a dimensional rift or void that unleashes monsters and supernatural phenomena).

The girl, oblivious, merely felt a sudden coldness surrounding her, and a wave of sorrow welled up from deep within her heart.

‘A perfect doll…’

‘Be a good child…’

‘It’s so hard to pretend…’

‘No one loves you, no one understands you, just a tool…’

‘Why not just fall asleep now…’

Gu Qing’s first instinct was to flee.

‘Damn his luck, not only did he encounter a strange person during a transaction, but now he had to run into an Abyssal Beast (TL Note: ‘Xuyuan Shou,’ a monster from the Abyss).’

He was no longer the magical girl ‘Sky Blue Star’ who needed to save the world.

Yet his feet remained rooted to the spot; Gu Qing simply couldn’t abandon the girl and escape.

He cursed inwardly, then took a deep breath and closed his eyes.