Chapter 1: Starting with Summoning a Giant Boulder
“You are awake! I dragged you out of a Hilichurl camp.”
Xu Qing opened his eyes. The first thing that met his gaze was a red ribbon tied into perky rabbit ears, followed by the striking, pretty face of a young woman.
She had long chestnut hair and wore a reddish-brown tunic with two utility pouches slung at her waist. One leg was clad in a white thigh-high sock, the other in red. Crouched over him, she was checking his vitals.
“There was quite a commotion back there. It was hard not to notice,” she continued cheerfully. “Hello! Let me introduce myself properly. I am Amber, Outrider of the Knights of Favonius.”
Seeing him stare blankly, she tilted her head. “Can you not talk? Don’t tell me you’re some kind of mutated Hilichurl?”
She rested a slender, pale finger against her chin in thought.
“Hmm, I recall reading in Hilichurl Cultural Customs in the Knights’ library that Hilichurls possess a level of civilization roughly equivalent to primitive tribes. It’s not impossible for one to mutate and look completely human, like you. Should I put you down right now to keep Mondstadt safe?”
Hearing that she was debating whether to eliminate him on the spot, Xu Qing snapped out of his daze and scrambled upright, abandoning any thoughts of admiring her charm.
“Wait, wait, don’t! I’m not a Hilichurl!”
“Oh? So you can talk after all!” Amber perked up, her eyes narrowing slightly. “State your name and affiliation!”
“My name is Xu Qing! I’m a student from Modu No. 1 High School!”
The knight before him radiated the fiery presence of someone not to be crossed. He decided that playing along was the smartest move for survival.
“Number One High School? An unknown faction,” Amber muttered, crossing her arms. “Please come with me to the Knights of Favonius headquarters to meet the Grand Master!”
Amber took the lead, with Xu Qing trailing behind, quietly weighing his chances of slipping away. But those thoughts evaporated the moment he saw her draw her bow, nock an arrow blazing with genuine fire, and effortlessly wipe out several savage Hilichurls that lunged at them from the bushes.
No way am I running.
Those creatures were vicious beasts. After spotting a collection of bleached human skulls scattered around their encampment, any lingering desire to flee completely died out.
System? he thought desperately.
No response.
Status panel? Stat points?
Nothing.
Hint prompt?
Amber glanced back over her shoulder, calling out sternly, “What are you muttering back there? Hurry up, keep pace!”
“Right, coming!”
Xu Qing hurriedly checked himself over, and to his surprise, he found his cheat after all.
On the back of his hand rested an intricate pentagram magic circle. As he focused his gaze upon it, a stream of knowledge flowed directly into his mind:
[The Astral Summoning Array transcends worlds and dimensions to summon whatever items, powers, or even Heroic Spirits you desire, requiring only a bonded catalyst. Because the power of the stars would disrupt cosmic balance, the Astral Summoning Array may only be used once per day. As an outlander traveler unable to receive the blessing of the gods, accept this gift from the stellar spirits.]
Xu Qing glanced around. They were out in the wilderness, surrounded by nothing but grass, shrubs, and dirt. There was hardly anything worthy of being called a bonded catalyst.
Seeing Amber looking ahead, he discreetly scooped up a small pebble from the path.
Summon!
The pebble in his hand vanished in the blink of an eye.
A sudden chill prickled the nape of his neck. He looked up by pure instinct and his heart leaped into his throat: a boulder the size of a two-story house was plummeting straight out of the sky, directly toward them. Amber, still marching ahead, had not noticed in the slightest.
“Look out!”
Xu Qing lunged forward and shoved her aside with all his might. The two of them tumbled across the grass just as the colossal rock slammed into the earth behind them with a deafening crash, sending violent tremors through the ground.
“That was too close...”
Gasping for breath, Xu Qing stared at the enormous boulder with lingering terror. He had tossed in a tiny pebble, and the array had hurled down a rock the size of a house. If he had not looked up in time, both he and Amber would have been crushed into meat paste.
Imagine being a transmigrator who got squashed on day one by his own summoned object. That would have made him the laughingstock of all穿越ers across the multiverse.
A faint, squeaky whisper came from beneath him.
“Um... could you please get off me first?”
Xu Qing looked down. He was pinning Amber firmly to the grass, and her face was flushed bright crimson. In the heat of the moment, survival had been his only thought.
“Ah! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to!” He scrambled to his feet.
Amber stood up as well, dusting off her tunic and clearing her throat, trying her best to look composed despite the rosy blush lingering on her cheeks.
“Where on earth did such a massive rock come from?” she murmured, bewildered.
Xu Qing quickly chimed in, wide-eyed with innocence, “Yeah! Where could such a giant boulder have fallen from?”
He would take this secret to the grave. An attempted murder charge on an Outrider of the Knights of Favonius would guarantee him a life behind iron bars. He had no desire to rot in a dungeon, especially when it had been an honest accident.
After an awkward silence, Amber looked at him softly. “By the way... thank you for saving me.”
“Don’t mention it,” Xu Qing replied, feeling a twinge of guilt. He had nearly flattened her himself, and here she was thanking him. He would have to find a way to make it up to her later.
The rabbit-eared girl pumped her fist and declared with conviction, “I officially proclaim your suspicions cleared! You’re definitely not a bad guy, because a bad guy wouldn’t risk his life to protect a righteous Outrider of the Knights of Favonius!”
The setting sun bathed her side profile in a warm, golden glow, perfectly matching her bright, open spirit.
Xu Qing finally settled on his official persona. “I’m really just a traveler who got hopelessly lost.”
Amber grinned enthusiastically, her energy returning in full force. “Alright then! Since you’re a traveler, allow me to guide you into Mondstadt!”
Xu Qing asked cautiously, “So... you’re not taking me to see the Grand Master anymore?”
She gave a confident, cheerful wave of her hand. “There are so many people coming and going from Mondstadt every day. If I dragged every single one to the Grand Master, she’d never get any work done. A small matter like this is something I can easily handle on my own!”
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