The unhurried words sent a tremor through every viewer in the live stream, their hearts stretched taut like violin strings.
The secret Bai Heng had been hiding, everything about him.
This was what they, as his audience, had always been so curious about. And now…
The answer was finally coming.
On the screen, Firefly also wore a tense expression, her small face serious as she nodded.
Seeing her like this, Bai Heng let out a soft chuckle. He reached out and ruffled her hair. "No need to look so nervous. It's not something particularly frightening."
After offering the girl a small bit of comfort, Bai Heng's gaze drifted toward the dawn light rising on the horizon. His tone was leisurely:
"Have you heard of the Emberfly? It's a mysterious insect. While it has a dazzlingly beautiful appearance, each beat of its wings provides surrounding creatures with just the warmth they need. No matter how bitter the cold, they can always create a comfortable, habitable sanctuary."
"But similarly, their lifespan is extremely short. From the moment they emerge from their chrysalis to their final breath, they only exist in this world for a mere thirty days."
"After death, they wither like autumn leaves, falling in great numbers upon the earth. Yet, miraculously, after they vanish from the world, the innate 'warmth' they carried lingers. The soil becomes fertile, plant life is revitalized, and even the animals grow more vigorous."
He spoke as if telling a simple story, his voice soft, a faint smile on his face, giving him a peculiar magnetism. Just as Firefly was becoming captivated, bit by bit, by the 'Emberfly' he described...
Bai Heng turned his head and met the eyes of the girl beside him.
"We, the Star Children, are a similar existence."
His words, neither too long nor too short, caused Firefly's thoughts to short-circuit for a brief moment.
A similar existence...?
What... what did that mean?
Firefly was stunned, a sense of foreboding slowly rising in her heart.
At that moment, Bai Heng continued, slowly offering an explanation:
"We Star Children are born blessed by the Aeon of Beauty, Idrila. We possess a beauty that ordinary people crave, a beauty so potent it often requires restraint. This beauty brought prosperity to our homeworld, a future, the power to resist external threats..."
"But, as a price, the Star Children have a lifespan of only fifteen short years."
"That is also why we are called the Star Children."
"As brilliant as a shooting star, and just as fleeting."
Firefly already knew all this.
Or rather, it was recorded in the universe's archives. But even knowing it, hearing it spoken directly by Bai Heng now made her chest feel inexplicably tight and panicked.
Bai Heng's light, calm narration continued.
"And at the moment a Star Child's life fades, a brilliant meteor falls from the sky. It is a celestial body containing the blessing of the Aeon of Beauty. It plummets to the earth, bringing thriving prosperity to the land where it falls."
"We call it 'The Place Where Stars Fall.' The Family refers to it as 'The Evangelion.'"
Those last two words tugged at a recent memory for Firefly.
The curse of that female performer echoed slowly in her mind. 'What Star Children! Nothing but short-lived mayflies! If the Family didn't need your Evangelion, you wouldn't even be qualified to come to Penacony!'
Firefly slowly lifted her gaze, her lovely face etched with shock as she stared at the young man before her. She was beginning to glimpse an answer she desperately did not want.
Bai Heng's words continued.
"Star Children do not age, but our lifespans are precisely fixed. Fifteen years, not a day more, not a day less. So we know exactly how much time we have left."
"Precisely because of this, 'dying' Star Children become 'commodities' used for diplomacy. Traded for vast resources, they are sent to various planets, only to finally 'fall' on that world, becoming the nourishment that makes it flourish."
At this, Bai Heng's lips curved into a bitter arc. He offered an apologetic smile, the gentle expression he often wore dimming slightly.
"Sorry for lying to you before. I'm no special guest of Penacony. Frankly, there's no such thing as a 'special guest' on this planet. The reason for all the various privileges and honors is only because..."
"I am merely a commodity that was traded here."
His final words landed heavily on Firefly's heart, shattering the last sliver of hope she clung to.
She stared dumbly at the young man before her, unsure how to react.
Astonishment, sorrow, and countless other emotions tangled together, stirring up an ache in her heart that was difficult to suppress.
Even in the live stream, the atmosphere was unbearably heavy.
For a moment, no one even posted a comment.
Honestly, before Bai Heng revealed his truth, they had never imagined things would unfold like this.
After all, the Bai Heng shown in the stream seemed to experience all of Penacony freely. He could laugh from the heart, run wild with Firefly in the Hour of Scorched Sand without a care.
And at all times, his face carried that gentle, elegant smile.
But this same person...
Was shouldering such a heavy fate...
The live stream continued to play.
On the rooftop, brushed by the morning breeze, the girl named Firefly clutched her chest tightly. After a long silence, she finally managed to force out a sentence.
"Can... can you tell me your age?"
His age was a countdown to his life.
From the day he was traded as a 'commodity' to Penacony, his fate was sealed; his life was destined to reach its end.
Even so, Firefly wanted to know.
She wanted to know more, to know everything about this young man before her.
"Fourteen years and eleven months."
Bai Heng said with his usual gentle smile, stating a number that was, for a Star Child, unbearably harsh and terrifying.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.