When the pale light of dawn broke across the horizon, Ke Mingqing opened his eyes on his bedroom tatami.
He threw off the blanket. Cicadas chirped outside, the summer heat already stifling. His blurry vision slowly focused, but what filled his eyes was neither the ceiling nor the first rays of morning sunlight.
It was a damn system prompt.
[Good morning, dear player Ke Mingqing. Today is Tuesday, July 3, 2026. Time remaining until the "Exterminate Superhumans" quest deadline: 177 days, 18 hours, 20 minutes, and 30 seconds.]
The daily morning ritual arrived right on schedule, getting the day off to a wonderful start...
Looking at the blood-red text on the panel, Ke Mingqing recalled a commercial slogan he had heard on TV.
He sat up and glanced out the window at the faintly brightening sky.
Summer vacation starts in four days, he thought. By the time the break is over, everyone at school will probably have forgotten about that mess on the bus.
He didn't have school today. The college entrance exams were commandeering their building, so the first-year high school students had a two-day break.
He and Xia Zili could stay home to study or just go out.
Because of this, Ke Mingqing had woken up exceptionally early. The rest of the family was still fast asleep, but he had already washed up and was ready for his morning training.
He planned to wait until one or two in the afternoon before taking the bus to Kuroki Hitomi's house to drop off the combat suit designs.
Last night, Kuroki Hitomi had asked if she should send her driver to pick him up. Ke Mingqing had flatly refused; otherwise, he could easily foresee his family relentlessly teasing him for ten days straight.
Besides, given the original owner of this body's personality, he wasn't the type to openly reveal his romantic relationships to his family. Being too flashy would only backfire.
He would wait until his family noticed how close they were before explaining that they were dating. That was the proper way to use this fake relationship.
When he went down to the entryway and crouched to put on his sneakers, Ke Mingqing noticed that the item he had bought online yesterday with his allowance had already arrived. The package was sitting on the shoe cabinet.
He tore the package open. Inside was a black T-shirt printed with the face of Magical Girl Ember.
The design on the front showed Ember with her arms crossed, turning her head to gaze at the distant horizon. The young girl's eyes looked empty, the sea breeze blowing through the hair at her ears.
The design on the back featured Ember looking evasively at the camera. She had her hands up in a finger-gun pose with her index finger pointed right at the lens, giving a playful wink.
This photo was taken when Ember first debuted two years ago, captured when a reporter asked her to make a "playful" expression... Later on, she became increasingly headstrong and never catered to the public gaze again, making this a piece of dark history from her naive early days.
However, the fan T-shirt printed with this photo was the highest-selling item on Taobao.
If Xia Zili found out, she would be so furious she wouldn't sleep for days. Ke Mingqing knew this perfectly well, which was why he had specifically ordered it from a local shop while he was still at school yesterday.
He returned to the second floor and stuffed the T-shirt into the washing machine, already looking forward to Xia Zili's reaction.
After haphazardly pouring in some detergent and selecting the quick-wash cycle, he headed out the door.
Walking down the empty street, Ke Mingqing shoved his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and took a deep breath of fresh morning air.
Before long, he arrived at a deserted riverside path. A touch of morning light spilling from the horizon made the water sparkle, his lanky reflection twisting in the ripples on the surface.
He looked around. There were no security cameras nearby.
Even if there were, it wouldn't matter. After all, he was going to debut as a superhero soon, ensuring that his family would save his life at a critical moment.
Ke Mingqing silently recited the command to cast his third skill.
[Skill activated from the third slot—"I Am Lightning", cooldown time]
At that moment, the depths of his pupils flooded with deep blue electric light, and fine arcs of electricity began to dance around his body. The blue sparks seemed to bore into his skin, coursing along his blood vessels.
His heart started beating faster, feeling as if it might burst at any second.
Ke Mingqing leaned forward slightly, then broke into a wild sprint. He accelerated, faster and faster, until he seemed to transform into a beam of blue lightning. His figure left behind afterimages, darting forward over twenty meters in a single second.
He ran five or six laps around the riverbank, looping like a streak of racing lightning and even letting off a faint rumbling sound. When he finally returned to his starting point, the whole sprint had taken less than a minute, but the toll on his body was immense.
By the time he stopped, Ke Mingqing was drenched, practically turned into a man of water by the sweat.
He bent over, resting his hands on his knees and panting heavily.
It says it can last for five minutes, but the physical drain is way too huge, he thought, glancing up. Still, the actual effect feels like it's already surpassed the scope of a D Rank skill.
Fine arcs of electricity still lingered along the path he had run, crackling and sizzling.
The deep blue currents danced through the air, only slowly dissipating after a short while.
...
...
After returning home and taking a shower, Ke Mingqing changed into his pajamas, sprawled spread-eagle on his bed, and closed his weary eyes.
When he opened his eyes again, it was already two in the afternoon.
The fan spun sluggishly. A hot summer breeze lifted the curtains, and scorching sunlight roasted his face. Just then, Xia Wenna knocked on his door from the hallway, calling out at a leisurely pace:
"A'Qing... how are you still asleep this late?"
Ke Mingqing clambered up and glanced at the clock on the wall, instantly wide awake. "Mom, I promised to get food with a friend, and I'm going to be late!"
He stuffed the sketchbook from beside his pillow into his bag, slung it over his shoulder, and bolted out of the room.
Looking up, he saw Xia Wenna holding a black T-shirt.
"I brought your laundry in," she said.
"Thanks, Mom." He took the T-shirt printed with the magical girl, stripped off his pajama top right there, pulled the shirt on, and hurriedly dashed out of the house.
Before long, Ke Mingqing caught his bus.
He got off at a stop along the coastal highway. After a brief walk, he stopped in front of a seaside villa.
Kuroki Hitomi opened the door. Today, she was wearing a black dress and looked elegantly wealthy.
"You're here."
"Overslept," Ke Mingqing said.
Only then did he notice a girl standing beside Kuroki Hitomi. The girl was petite, wearing a polo shirt with a white apron tied around her waist and wispy bangs framing her face. Above her head floated a superhuman panel.
[Superhuman Codename: "Magical Girl Little Red Riding Hood"]
[Danger Rating: B+ Rank]
[Superhuman Profile: Little Red Riding Hood, a prospective A Rank magical girl contracted with the Magical Girl Company. She is a rare "Snow-attribute" magical girl, making her one of the company's key development targets. Her magical garment is a Christmas gown, and her magical weapon is the "Christmas Sleigh".]
"This is my family's maid," Kuroki Hitomi introduced. "She's half-Japanese and half-Chinese, and her Chinese name is An Youlu."
An Youlu stared silently at Ke Mingqing. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes were full of caution.
She first looked at the "Magical Girl Ember" fan T-shirt Ke Mingqing was wearing, then lifted her head to size him up. Her gaze practically screamed it out loud: damn otakus are disgusting.
Ke Mingqing tilted his head to meet her gaze, thinking that if she was going to look at him like that, he'd wear a Little Red Riding Hood fan shirt next time.
"Is he your classmate, Miss?" An Youlu asked softly.
"My boyfriend," Kuroki Hitomi corrected.
An Youlu fell silent for a moment. "Young Miss, my classmate is here too." As she spoke, her gaze drifted right past Ke Mingqing and landed on the coastal highway.
A taxi had suddenly pulled up on the highway. A pale leg stretched out, and a young girl in a white linen skirt stepped out of the car. She closed the door, her figure bathed in the seaside sunlight.
The taxi drove away, leaving Xia Zili standing there. She glanced down at the navigation app on her phone and slowly walked toward the villa.
A moment later, she looked up, only to realize that three figures were standing by the doorway, quietly watching her.
She froze for a second, then ignored the two girls entirely, her gaze locking onto the boy in the black T-shirt in the middle.
Ke Mingqing and Xia Zili's eyes met in total silence.
A chilly sea breeze blew past their faces. The wind chimes by the villa's door clattered, and the sound of the ocean waves crashing against the shore filled their ears.
A moment later, the siblings finally snapped back to reality, speaking up at almost the exact same time.
"Why are you here?!" Ke Mingqing asked.
"That's what I should be asking you!" Xia Zili demanded.
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