Superhumans of the Dome City

"Huff... ah..."

Another nightmare gave Gongsun Ce a severe headache; the gray-white mist still seemed to linger in his vision, causing the young man to feel a chill deep in his bones. Clutching his forehead, he took a few breaths, adjusting his state amid the panting.

Supibia, the Disaster from the Underworld... the contents of the dream hadn't changed, still the events from three years ago... Where had he fallen asleep again? The surroundings were noisy... Wooden tables for four, plastic chairs, students conversing in different languages, superpower users at the next table creating ice cubes and lightning, frolicking around...

That's right, he must still be in the Sky City, at the fast food restaurant near the university...

"Are you okay, Ah Ce?"

A familiar female voice reached his ears, bringing Gongsun Ce's chaotic thoughts back to calmness. He lifted an arm weakly, "Got a mirror, please?"

"Here."

A hard object was thrust into his hand, and Gongsun Ce put on his glasses and looked at his just-awoken reflection.

His gray hair, from dozing face down on the table, was flattened in one area; below his rectangular glasses, his golden pupils were full of weariness and confusion. Paired with his blue shirt and gray jeans, he looked like a college student whose spirit wandered elsewhere during an early 8 AM class.

Everything seemed normal, except for the "mirror" itself...

"I say, Miss, I asked for a mirror, didn't I?"

Gongsun Ce gazed dully at the girl across the table, "But this thing, from any angle, it's just an used napkin, right?"

As Gongsun Ce had said, the reflective object he used had a crumpled square appearance, with suspicious oil stains in the corners. Rather than calling it a mirror, it was more like a napkin turned into a mirror.

"I didn't have a mirror on hand, so I used my power to change the reflectivity of the napkin," said the Miss, "It's really a stroke of genius. I am amazed by my own wit."

"Don't talk about everyday tricks as if they're superpower entrepreneurial ideas."

Those participating in this ridiculous conversation were bound to be seen as quite odd by others. Fortunately, in this city, strange individuals were not at all scarce, and the Miss herself was more unusual than the conversation.

The full name of the Miss was Qin Qianbai, phrased by Gongsun Ce due to her origin from an Empire's great clan. She donned what was known as an "ancient princess style" hairstyle, her sleek black hair long at the back, and wore a white hairband above her overhead fringe. However, the princess-haired Qin Qianbai was not demure and moving as a princess should be; instead, she was filled with a doll-like coldness.

The reason was simple; on the beautiful face of this girl, there was never a trace of expression. If it weren't for the fluctuations in her voice when she spoke, Gongsun Ce would almost believe he was conversing with a living doll.

Just like now, the Miss clasped her hands with excitement, yet no excited expression could be seen, "Napkin makeup mirrors are definitely going to be popular."

"They most certainly will not." Gongsun Ce replied listlessly.

Qin Qianbai's power was to change the "properties" of objects. Hardness, toughness, strength, rigidity... any parameter that decided an object's properties could be altered through her power. This bizarre "mirror" was naturally a product of her power, but it was a pity; the city was filled with superpower entrepreneurs, and a mere Paper Mirror was unlikely to earn more than pocket change.

The Miss tilted her head, making a query with her unique tone.

"Look at you, look at you, that's a worried expression. Ah Ce, you're speaking with very little energy, aren't you not feeling well?"

"How could that be? Mr. Gongsun is in excellent shape, at peak condition at all times."

Having lied in response to his friend's concern, Gongsun Ce habitually surveyed the surrounding environment.

It was half-past four in the afternoon; the lunchtime peak was long gone, yet the fast-food restaurant was still bustling. The aroma of fried food mixed with the scent of milkshakes and ice cream as energetic young men and women nibbled on high-calorie foods they needed most, while laughing and chatting loudly. The news program in the screen wall barely broke through the noisy chatter, bringing snippets of international news to Gongsun Ce's ears, "... the true perpetrator of last year's end-of-year bloodshed in the eastern part of Zero Island remains at large, Zero Island police raised the reward to three million today to capture the criminal suspect..."

Gongsun Ce pricked up his ears, wanting to listen more closely, but the presenter had already finished the news flash and started to promote the new album of a popular idol. Gongsun Ce reluctantly gave up on the idea, asking, "Where did Mr. Shiyu and Kardesia go?"

"Kardesia wanted to go see Biochemical Seal, so she unilaterally dragged Mr. Shiyu away."

Those two were the same as always.

"Poor Mr. Shiyu, once again toyed with in the palm of the top hat lady," Gongsun Ce said insincerely, expressing his sympathy, "Well, Mr. Gongsun will go buy some afternoon tea and be off—"

Gongsun Ce didn't get up from his seat smoothly, as Qin Qianbai across the table grabbed his sleeve.

"Don't try to bluff your way through, Ah Ce." Qin Qianbai said, "You're encountering a problem."

Gongsun Ce stretched, replying in a relaxed voice, "You're overthinking it! Mr. Gongsun simply stayed up too late playing games last night, that's why he accidentally fell asleep just now."

"Lies. The always careful and prudent Ah Ce would never fall asleep in public."

Qin Qianbai's gaze, as if peering into his soul, made the young man want to duck his head.