"Li Qing, do you want to go to the movies this weekend? I found a really good horror film called Zhenzi vs. Gourd Kids. I've heard it's been getting rave reviews lately! I really want to see it, but I'm so scared. Will you accompany me, please?"
"Sorry, I need to play Luke this weekend, so I can't make it."
Li Qing looked at the phone with an expression of sorrow as the woman he had marked with a red heart sent him a 'smile' emoji.
He didn't know what he said wrong, but the other party sent a deadly 'smile' emoji back. He was obviously doing something important, making bricks to save up for a down payment.
He actually always liked this woman, even though she was three years older than him... But as the saying goes, "a woman three years older holds a golden brick," right?
He sighed deeply, then silently opened his phone's browser, skillfully navigating to a certain website before picking up a tissue next to him...
...and wiped the grease off the corner of his mouth.
He watched the blood-boiling video edits on the small broken site on his phone and sighed another long sigh silently.
Today was his thirtieth birthday. People say stand firm at thirty, but as he saw it, thirty was just that.
Somewhat cluttered rental house, with a table nearby displaying leftover takeout, old posters on the walls, clothes casually tossed about, and a still-glowing computer monitor broadcasting something from a live-streaming platform.
This was the quintessential home of a single man—chaotic yet orderly. Li Qing was very familiar with where he placed his items. The most update n0vels are published on NoveI[F]ire.net
Glancing back at the computer's live-stream content, Li Qing touched his own face.
"I don't look bad, so how come I've never had a girlfriend by now, really..."
It's true; all through his life, Li Qing always had just two words written on him.
Despite his fair and clean appearance, which could be considered a plus, his friends introduced him to many people. Any initial attraction would dissipate into nothingness by the time they started talking.
This troubled Li Qing greatly. He consulted many female friends around him, asking, even staging scenarios.
The unanimous conclusion was that Li Qing's way of speaking was wrong. In other words, he was even harder to deal with than steel—comparable to the latest super-hard alloy.
His words could harm without being seen, reaching max damage to females.
So much so, that those enthusiastic female friends, after simulating conversation scenes with him, avoided him for three days.
Thinking of this, Li Qing felt distressed. He wanted to do something practical, but whenever he tried, it was a complete mess, full of mishaps.
Just thinking about it, as he was about to rise and grab some more takeout to eat, his phone suddenly vibrated.
Li Qing paused, looking at the unusual caller ID displayed above, feeling a bit puzzled. Who would call at this time of night? Could it be someone remembering his birthday?
No, no, that's definitely not it. His parents disappeared when he was fourteen, leaving without a trace. Since then, he's lived on his own, renting out his house for a wider financial margin in this super big city, choosing to live in a single room for himself instead.
Aside from that, no one would know that today was his thirtieth birthday.
Maybe it's work-related.
He couldn't help but answer the call with a hint of helplessness.
Listening to the static on the phone, Li Qing frowned slightly, about to hang up, when a male voice suddenly came through.
"Hello, hello, is this Mr. Li Qing?"
Hearing the excited yet humorous tone in the voice, Li Qing had a feeling.
It's probably someone's prank.
Li Qing replied blandly, "Yes, who is this?"
"Oh, well, congratulations! You are really the luckiest person in the world, did you know... Oh oh, first of all, happy thirtieth birthday, and also, congratulations on thirty years of being single, ha ha ha ha ha..."
Saying this, the male voice couldn't help but laugh, almost as if he cracked up.
This didn't make Li Qing look good: "Is my being single for thirty years something worth you laughing at?"
"No, no, I just thought of something happy."
"My wife gave birth..."
Li Qing couldn't take it anymore: "Do you think I've never seen a movie? Please don't bring these lame jokes into this conversation, alright? Don't go too far, I advise you to use your brain!"
Just about to hang up the call, the other party hurriedly said, "Wait... I haven't finished speaking. This is a call that will change your life; don't you want to listen?"
Li Qing hesitated for a moment, eventually suppressing his anger, "Go on."
The other person coughed twice and introduced himself, "My name is Zhuang Xu, admissions tutor at Gray Magic Academy. Congratulations on qualifying and successfully being accepted by our school... Ah, I believe the acceptance letter will reach your address soon..."
"...What the hell, Magic Academy?"
Li Qing was a bit baffled. If you're gonna scam, at least say something normal. Isn't this just nonsense?
Hearing this made Li Qing more interested; this was his first time receiving such a scam call.
"So tell me, why did I qualify to enter this Magic School?"
Zhuang Xu's voice suddenly became solemn: "Have you heard this legend before? If a man keeps his innocence till thirty, he can become a mage and use magic."
Li Qing was stunned: "Wh...What the hell?"
"It's true. If a male is still single by the age of thirty, he can switch professions to become a mage and learn various magic. Believe me, this is your life's turning point, make sure to..."
Li Qing hung up the phone expressionlessly. This lunatic didn't know where to get his number to call him today specifically to ridicule him.
Li Qing was slightly stunned, turning his head toward the window, and was startled, seeing a dark figure standing on the window ledge, with a pair of bright green eyes staring at him eerily.
Its head bobbing along with the 'knock knock knock' sound.
A strange and creepy atmosphere suddenly floated up, making his skin crawl, and his legs weak enough to barely stand.
Li Qing swallowed, standing frozen for about thirty seconds. Seeing the thing having no movement, he summoned up the courage to inch toward it.
Once in front of it, Li Qing let out a sigh of relief and then cursed, "Scared the hell out of me!"
It was an owl, but this owl had pitch-black feathers, without a touch of other colors, and a pair of highly human-like eyes, like two inlaid black gems, glaring at him with a look of disdain.