Blue Lightning, A Visit

When the sky began to pale at dawn, Ke Mingqing opened his eyes on the tatami in his bedroom.

He threw off the blanket covering his legs. Cicadas chirped outside, and the summer heat was stifling. His blurred vision gradually came into focus, but what entered his sight was neither the ceiling nor the first ray of morning sunlight.

It was a damned system notification window.

[Good morning, dear player "Ke Mingqing." Today is Tuesday, July 3, 2026. Time remaining until the deadline for the "Exterminate Superhumans" mission: 177 days, 18 hours, 20 minutes, 30 seconds.]

The daily sense of ceremony arrived right on schedule, giving the day a wonderful start...

Looking at the blood-red words on the panel, Ke Mingqing could not help thinking of an ad slogan he had heard on TV.

He sat up and lowered his head to glance at the faintly brightening sky beyond the window.

Summer vacation starts in four days. Once it's over, those people at school will probably have completely forgotten about that mess on the school bus, right?

There was no school today because the high school entrance exams were using their teaching building, so the first-year students had been given two days off.

Both he and Xia Zili could stay home and study on their own, or they could simply go out and have fun.

So Ke Mingqing had gotten up especially early today. Everyone else in the house was still sleeping like a log, while he had already washed up and prepared for his morning training.

Around one or two in the afternoon, I'll take the bus to Hitomi Kuroki's place and give her the combat suit design sketches.

Hitomi Kuroki had asked him last night whether he wanted her driver to pick him up and take him home directly. But Ke Mingqing had flatly refused. Otherwise, he could already foresee his entire family teasing him for ten days and nights without stopping.

Besides, judging by the original owner's personality, he did not seem like someone who would openly reveal his relationship to his family. Being too high-profile would only backfire.

Once his family noticed that the two of them were close, he could explain that they were dating. That was the proper way to make use of this fake relationship.

When he reached the first-floor entryway and crouched down to put on his sneakers, Ke Mingqing noticed that the item he had bought online with his allowance yesterday had arrived. The package was sitting on the shoe cabinet.

He opened it and found a black T-shirt printed with Magical Girl Ember's face.

The design on the front showed Ember with her arms folded, turning her head to gaze at the distant horizon over the sea. The girl's eyes looked vacant as the sea breeze lifted the hair by her ears;

The design on the back showed Ember avoiding the camera's gaze as she posed like a finger gun, her index finger pointed at the lens. At the same time, she winked.

This was a photo taken two years ago, when Ember had just debuted and a reporter asked her to make a "playful" expression... Later, she had become increasingly headstrong and never again catered to anyone else's gaze, making this a black-history photo from her immature days.

Yet the fan T-shirt printed with this photo was Taobao's best-selling item.

If Xia Zili found out, she would definitely be so angry that she could not sleep for days. Knowing this, Ke Mingqing had deliberately placed an order with 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, eagerly anticipating Xia Zili's reaction.

After casually pouring in some detergent and selecting the quick-wash setting, he left the house.

Walking down the empty streets, Ke Mingqing tucked both hands into his hoodie pockets and drew in a breath of fresh morning air.

Before long, he arrived at an empty riverside path. A slanting ray of morning sunlight made the lake shimmer, while his thin, elongated reflection warped amid the ripples.

He looked around. There were not many surveillance cameras nearby.

Even if there were, it would not matter. After all, he would personally debut as a superhero later to ensure that his family would pull him out of danger when it mattered.

Ke Mingqing silently issued the command to activate his "third skill."

[Skill in skill slot three activated—"I Am Lightning." Cooldown time...]

At that instant, deep-blue lightning filled the depths of his pupils, and fine arcs of electricity began dancing around his body. The blue arcs seemed to burrow into his skin and flow through his veins, spreading throughout his entire body.

His heart began pounding faster, as though it would burst apart the next moment.

Ke Mingqing leaned forward slightly, then burst into a sprint. His body accelerated, accelerated again, and accelerated further, until he seemed to turn into a streak of blue lightning. Afterimages trailed behind him as he covered more than twenty meters in a single second.

He ran five or six laps around the riverbank, like a bolt of lightning racing in circles, faint thunder rumbling in its wake. When he finally returned to his starting point, less than a minute had passed, but the drain on his body was immense.

By the time Ke Mingqing stopped, he was drenched in sweat, practically soaked through.

He bent over, bracing his hands on his knees as he gasped for air.

It says it can last five minutes, but the stamina drain is way too much. Still, the actual effect feels like it's already beyond the scope of a D-rank skill. He raised his head and looked around.

Fine arcs of electricity still lingered along the path he had run, crackling softly.

The deep-blue current danced through the air before slowly fading away.

After returning home and taking a shower, Ke Mingqing changed into pajamas, sprawled across his bed, and closed his exhausted eyes.

When he opened them again, it was already two in the afternoon.

The fan turned lazily as hot summer wind stirred the curtains. Scorching sunlight beat against his face. At that moment, Xia Wenna knocked on the door from the hallway and slowly urged him, "A-Qing... Why are you still asleep in the afternoon?"

Ke Mingqing climbed up and glanced at the clock on the wall, immediately becoming far more alert. "Mom, I'm meeting a friend for lunch. I'm going to be late!"

With that, he stuffed the sketchbook beside his pillow into his schoolbag, slung it over his shoulder, and ran outside.

When he looked up, he saw Xia Wenna holding a black T-shirt in her arms.

"I brought in your clothes for you," she said.

"Thanks, Mom." He took the T-shirt printed with the magical girl, stripped off his pajamas, pulled the shirt over his head, and hurried out the door.

Not long after, Ke Mingqing caught the bus.

Soon, he got off at a stop along the coastal highway. After walking for a short while, he stopped in front of a seaside villa.

Hitomi Kuroki opened the door. She was wearing a black dress today, dressed with an air of wealth and elegance.

"You're here."

"I overslept," Ke Mingqing said.

Only then did he notice a girl standing beside Hitomi Kuroki. The girl was petite, wearing a polo shirt and a white apron. She had airy bangs, and a superhuman panel floated above her head.

[Codename: "Magical Girl Little Red Riding Hood"]

[Threat Level: B+]

[Superhuman Description: Little Red Riding Hood is a prospective A-rank magical girl signed to Magical Girl Company. She is one of the rare "snow-element" magical girls and is therefore one of Magical Girl Company's key trainees. Her magical attire is a Christmas dress, and her magical weapon is the "Christmas Sleigh."]

"This is my family's maid," Hitomi Kuroki introduced. "She's half Chinese and half Japanese. Her Chinese name is An Youlu."

An Youlu silently stared at Ke Mingqing. Her expression was blank, but her eyes were filled with wariness.

She first looked at the fan T-shirt printed with "Magical Girl Ember," then raised her head to inspect Ke Mingqing. Her gaze seemed to plainly say: Disgusting shut-in nerd.

Ke Mingqing tilted his head and met her eyes. If you keep looking at me like that, I'll wear a Little Red Riding Hood fan T-shirt next time.

"Is he Milady's classmate?" An Youlu asked quietly.

"He's my boyfriend," Hitomi Kuroki corrected.

An Youlu fell silent for a moment. "Young Miss, my classmate is here too." As she spoke, her gaze passed straight over Ke Mingqing and landed on the coastal highway.

A taxi had suddenly stopped on the coastal highway. Then a pale, slender leg emerged from the car, followed by a girl in a white linen dress. She stepped out and closed the door, her figure bathed in the sunlight by the sea.

The taxi drove away, leaving Xia Zili standing there. She lowered her head to look at the navigation on her phone, then slowly walked toward the villa.

After a while, she looked up and finally noticed three figures standing at the entrance, quietly watching her.

She froze for a moment, ignoring the two girls as her gaze settled on the boy in the middle wearing a black T-shirt.

Ke Mingqing and Xia Zili looked into each other's eyes in silence.

A chilly sea breeze brushed across their faces. The wind chimes at the villa entrance clattered, while the sound of waves crashing against the shore filled their ears.

A moment later, the brother and sister came to their senses. They spoke almost at the same time.

"Why are you here?!" Ke Mingqing asked.

"I should be asking you that, shouldn't I?!" Xia Zili demanded.