A Night of Peaceful Sleeplessness
It was deep into the night.
In a high-rise apartment somewhere in Boundary City's central district, Baili Qing, dressed in pajamas, poured herself a glass of hard liquor and strolled over to the spacious floor-to-ceiling window.
The room's lights were off. Only the dim yellow glow of a night-light in the corner outlined the furnishings. Beyond the broad floor-to-ceiling window lay a magnificent nightscape rushing toward her. The enormous city was illuminated by neon, its gorgeous colors flickering and flowing between the dense rows of buildings like some kind of breathing, living creature. The land seemed endless, and the lights and shadows of the city's buildings stretched infinitely into the distance, vanishing at last into a hazy curtain of night. Against that darkness, Baili Qing's own reflection in the glass appeared especially thin and slight.
Fog had formed beyond the window.
The thin mist seemed to materialize out of nowhere, swiftly and evenly covering the night outside. It gradually became a surging gray-white curtain. Boundary City's scenery grew hazy and unreal within the fog. Then a pair of indifferent eyes appeared beyond the window, calmly watching Baili Qing standing before it.
The eyes had a shape resembling a human's, but were severely lacking in color. Their extremely pale pupils were almost identical to Baili Qing's own. They seemed to float in the thin fog outside the window, yet also appeared to be printed directly onto the glass, filling the entire pane.
"Drinking at night isn't a good habit, Big Sis."
A voice entered Baili Qing's mind directly—mechanical and monotonous, yet exactly identical to her own voice.
"It helps me calm down," Baili Qing said casually, swirling the glass in her hand. "Especially after being jolted awake from a nightmare by a phone call."
"A nightmare?"