Meteor Fall Master in the 'Starry Abyss'
Chapter 756 - 365. Fate

Chapter 756: 365. Fate

The blacksmith looked up and glanced at her gratefully.

"You told me the beautiful myths of the moon, so as a token of gratitude—I’ve heard a story during the long years."

Granny Baba Yaga said patiently:

"In the myths, countless deities dwell in the starry sky, endlessly battling the monsters that devour stars."

"These warriors are cast down to the mortal realm time and again, sometimes even relegated to mundane things like humans, mice, trees, or cars—the most ordinary of things."

"But no matter how many times they are struck down, they always find a way to reforge their divine bodies, ascend the ladder to the starry sky, and thus, their mythic tales are continuously sung upon the earth."

"No matter how many times the deities fall to the lower world, child, that’s not what’s important; what matters is whether your myth can continue to be told."

Granny Baba Yaga’s words left the blacksmith slightly stunned.

The evening breeze brought with it a chill, a deadly cold that swept across the entire village in an instant, freezing the blood in one’s veins.

Dong—

The watchman, making his rounds on the streets, swayed two and fro, calling out:

"It’s seven o’clock, seven o’clock. All households close your doors, no more taking out the trash..."

The blacksmith turned his head and looked inside the house.

The box of nails was still sitting in its original place.

[..."Blacksmith, I will surely be back before seven o’clock, please take care of it for me!"...]

It was seven o’clock.

The blacksmith slowly stood up, removed his apron, and walked into the house. Moments later, the neatly dressed fat man came out holding the box of nails.

He put on the evening shadows, passing Granny without a word, and walked alone toward the woods.

"Hold on, lad!"

Granny Baba Yaga called out loudly, and the blacksmith turned around. The old woman immediately, leaning on her cane, briskly walked up to him. She pulled a piece of white bread from her basket and handed it to the blacksmith, her eyes twinkling as she smiled:

"Lad, don’t you think this bread looks like the moon you described?"

The blacksmith took the bread; the thin, large loaf was both white and fresh. He lifted it above his head, where it faintly reflected the weak glow of the starry void.

It was as if it truly shone.

"...Exactly alike."

The blacksmith said, tucking the loaf into his chest and striding into the forest. Within a few large steps, his figure had vanished.

"Yes."

Granny Baba Yaga picked up her now empty basket, smiling slightly:

"The moon and the bread, dreams, and reality—haha, they’re not so different after all."

Dang!

The watchman just happened to pass by her, glanced at her, and said:

"Granny, were you just talking to the blacksmith?"

"Yes, that guy’s pretty good. I haven’t met a kid like that in a long time."

Granny Baba Yaga nodded, saying contentedly:

"Even though he’s very strong, he’s also kind and gentle—not like that other boy I met, who had a fine appearance wasted entirely on meaningless competitions, with no understanding of how to love life."

"Ho-ho—rare indeed!" The watchman sneered. "From the way you talk, you’re not his mother, yet you praise the blacksmith Leoz so highly."

"Yes, because he really is good," she replied and then fell silent.

The two remained quiet for a moment before Granny spoke:

"...What did you say?"

"I say you’re not his mother..."

"No, not that."

Granny Baba Yaga asked in a puzzled tone:

"Who is Leoz?"

"It’s the blacksmith."

"Him? His name is Leoz?"

"Right, you didn’t know?—Oh, that makes sense."

The watchman scratched his head and said:

"After all, that name is as common as cheap shirts in the wholesale market. As for other aspects—well, this eyesore—is ugly, stupid, socially inept, and poor. His blacksmithing skills are just mediocre. He doesn’t talk well, nor does he drum up business. He’s neither diligent nor fun-loving, and he can’t get along with anyone."

"If it weren’t for a lady named Ensi who had to leave on urgent matters and had no choice but to leave him with our village, nobody would want such an eyesore living under the same sky."

Granny Baba Yaga’s eyes twinkled thoughtfully:

"Is that so, originally it was like this, Leoz, hehe..."

She paused, then asked:

"Has this Leoz never done anything good?"

"Hmm... Not that he hasn’t. He’s outstandingly inefficient. He’d leave a job half-done to jump into the water to save a child who fell in, resulting in his house almost catching fire. When he himself can’t afford meals, he still fixes the church’s railing for free. At Grandma Agatha’s funeral in the next village, he just went along for trade, but ended up straightening the tombstone, shoveling dirt, and escorting the fainting son home."

Thinking it over, the watchman said reluctantly:

"He’s a ... well, a good eyesore, I guess. Even though he did a bunch of good deeds, no one likes him."

"A good eyesore—haha." Granny Baba Yaga laughed and squinted her eyes: "Watchman, I ask you, do you think—If he was handsome, strong, wealthy, and a politician, would people still look at him the same way?"

"Ho, that would be something else! Such a kind-hearted big fella, if he had any of those traits, people would surely want to get along with him." The watchman joked: "But where on earth could you find such a perfect person?"

"Indeed, where would you find such a person..." Granny Baba Yaga nodded in agreement.

"However, any way you slice it, he’s not going to last much longer."

The watchman said:

"I heard that a few lads learned he exchanged a few words with Polina and will likely soon be bullied by that gang of thugs—among them, one guy, his brother is close with the village chief’s daughter—probably won’t be long before Leoz is driven out of the village."

"Hehe, oh, Leoz."

The old lady smiled and said with a meaningful tone:

"Who knows where this child’s path will lead?"

"But, I didn’t expect it to turn out like this—what would you call this? Perhaps it’s fate."

The old lady shook her head, looking in the direction where Leoz had left, and sighed:

"Oh well, whatever he becomes is none of my business now."

She turned around, as if agreeing with the watchman’s words:

"Being abandoned by the world is certainly not a pleasant feeling. But when no one dotes on you, you need to be strong on your own."

"Don’t blame me for never willing to say too much."

"After all, I’m not your mother."

Boom, boom, boom...

Thunder rumbled through the mountains.

The watchman looked up, pulling a pocket watch from his chest: three twisted, slender snakes, intertwined like gears, relentlessly stretched their bodies straight, like steel needles.

"Huh, it’s settled now."

Pocketing the watch, the watchman turned and struck the gong through the street, yelling at the top of his voice:

"Substance Rain is coming, secure your doors and windows, Substance Rain is coming, shore up the beams."