Meteor Fall Master in the 'Starry Abyss'

Chapter 1032 - 68: So, You Also...

Saga Qi reminisced:

"When you all hadn’t descended yet, Lady Asano seemed completely different. She didn’t smoke or wear heavy makeup. In her spare time, she even worked as an accountant and nanny. She didn’t like cooking, always making do with semi-prepared meals, but when a few of us summoned folks would gather, Lady Asano could whip up a really good meal..."

He spoke in great detail, perhaps because, after being summoned for so long, he had come to treasure moments of rare freedom and leisure.

Caramel Snail listened quietly, his eyes growing increasingly moved.

Even though he had realized a long time ago that "Starry Abyss" wasn’t just a game, and he had once broken ties with Frost Plated over Ziluo Star, also losing a friend like Azi due to the secret invasion...

Caramel Snail had never understood their lives so thoroughly.

The NPCs of "Starry Abyss," no, the original inhabitants of the Layer Abyss.

They also had worries about everyday life. Privately, they’d complain about players who suicidally attacked bosses or express concern if their Descender hadn’t logged in for a while, wondering if something might have happened.

These summoned individuals, eighty percent were already dead, the remaining twenty were summoned at the brink of death. Living again, their personalities were relatively pure, and their ideals and wishes were primarily to assist the Descenders and continue contributing to this world as much as possible.

But to say they were completely selfless and highly enlightened would be nonsense.

They were also human, with all sorts of random interests and hobbies, experiencing emotions and desires. When players weren’t online, they’d run food deliveries, attempt cooking, pursue adult education degrees, secretly embezzle players’ assets to spend on anime mobile games, or even indulge in a little something while staring at the world map—it’s not a matter of vulgarity or not, it’s just basic human desire.

"I never noticed... you all have such a rich life."

Caramel Snail felt a wave of self-reproach:

"I always thought I cared more about the culture of Starry Abyss than others, but in the end, I never even paid attention to you."

"Hahaha, that’s quite normal, O Descender," Saga Qi laughed. "That’s just human nature. Humans often turn a blind eye to what’s most familiar to them, unable to pay attention to those most willing to get close. No need to feel guilty."

"Truly, I’m very sorry."

Caramel Snail said:

"Saga... Qi, I was only concerned about my battles and the game. All these years, I’ve never paid attention to your thoughts."

"I don’t really have any thoughts. Being able to assist you in battles, see you grow, defeat Society and all kinds of monsters, and even save my home country—I’ve been very happy."

"But," Caramel Snail said unwillingly, "if I had realized these things earlier, if I could be a bit stronger, maybe I could—"

"Class is insurmountable, O Descender."

Saga Qi gently reminded him:

"This is Starry Abyss, the essence of Starry Abyss is that class determines everything. You are a Deity, an Ascender, destined to be greater than mere mortals like us, you don’t need to feel any guilt... Starry Abyss has always been this way, no one can go against it."

"But I—"

"More importantly, O Descender, there’s actually something I have to tell you."

"What?" Caramel Snail was surprised.

"About Lady Asano Saeko—she often shares with us about the young lady who summoned her."

Saga Qi said:

"Lady Asano Saeko said: ’Azi is actually a very sensitive and fragile girl. She pretends to be carefree and indifferent on the surface, but in reality, she hesitates to confess to the one she truly likes.’"

"...Is that so?"

Caramel Snail shrugged:

"Doesn’t sound like her, Lin Ranxia... I mean Cumin Powder. I always thought Azi was the coolest girl in the world."

"Lady Asano also said, ’Azi frequently discusses beauty and fashion with me. You may not believe it—Old Lady Asano, she’s actually a distant relative of President David Lyn of Frost Plated, and is quite confident in her own appearance. But Azi isn’t like that. Azi told me she had facial injuries before, which cause allergies and redness when she wears makeup, so every time she descends, she puts on heavy makeup to make herself appear beautiful.’"

"However, Lady Asano was curious why she wanted to look so beautiful. Why would a girl who can fight and endure care so much about her appearance?"

"After much questioning, Lady Asano extracted the truth from Miss Cumin Powder."

Saga Qi looked at Caramel Snail and said:

"She wants to present her most beautiful self before that clumsy yet adorable boy, the one who’s more reliable than anyone when serious."

"She’s dissatisfied with her appearance in reality and can’t change it with makeup, so she can only frequently dress up in the game."

"However, it’s hard to say if this is good or bad... that boy seems not to care about Cumin Powder’s looks, making Miss Azi both happy and disappointed."

"Happy, perhaps, because the person she likes doesn’t love her for her looks but cares for her as a person."

"As for disappointed... I think it’s because the makeup she painstakingly applied never caught that boy’s attention."