My Superpower Is Kind of Cute

Chapter 44: Loneliness Is Just Fine

I don’t know how long it had been when Bai Ling gave my shoulder a gentle nudge, and I woke up groggily—I’d actually fallen asleep in the car. Bai Ling’s driving skills must be top-notch. I rubbed my eyes and looked around—we were in an underground parking garage. “Where are we?” “The underground parking garage at Wanshi Plaza.” “Oh,” I replied, glancing at my watch—it was already 9:30. Even if I’d ridden my bike here without taking any shortcuts, it would’ve only taken an hour to get here. But driving a sports car would’ve taken an hour and a half—no wonder he came to find me so early. Bai Ling got out of the car and pointed to an emergency exit not far away. “Let’s go this way.” I yawned and followed him. The Qi Feng brothers, who’d been wandering around aimlessly, also returned to my side and entered with us. “Is your research institute actually located here? Isn’t that a bit too conspicuous?” After all, Wanshi Plaza gets a huge amount of foot traffic, and I knew that spiritualists wouldn’t share this kind of thing with Muggles—the location clearly didn’t make sense. Bai Ling didn’t answer my question directly, but gave a mysterious smile. “Just follow me and you’ll find out.” It felt like he was luring a child away. Qi Yun kept glancing at my arm and, standing beside me, asked in a low voice as if by accident, “How did you sleep last night?” “Pretty good.” I instantly looked at him warily. “What are you up to?” “Nothing,” Qi Yun replied decisively. After a moment’s thought, he shook his head and said, “Never mind, it’s nothing.” I furrowed my brow and muttered, “Why are both of you being so mysterious?” After saying that, I glanced at Qi Feng and added, “And the other one’s a nutcase.” When we reached the entrance to the emergency exit, a middle-aged man who looked like a security guard was dozing off outside the door. Hearing our footsteps, he lifted his eyelids and glanced our way, then nodded silently at Bai Ling without saying a word. Bai Ling walked straight toward the stairwell leading downstairs. I was a bit puzzled, but I followed him anyway. At the bottom of the stairs, there was actually another large, locked door with a sign posted on it that read, “Storage Area—No Trespassing.” Bai Ling took out a key and deftly unlocked the door. I peered inside—it was indeed a storage room, filled with all sorts of scrap metal and discarded junk. I couldn’t help but wonder if he had some ulterior motive for bringing me here, but this was a classic movie trope. “Keep up,” Qi Feng said, noticing I was spacing out. He gave my shoulder a nudge, signaling me not to fall behind. Bai Ling walked over to the frame of a huge, old promotional poster for Wanshi Plaza. Using his spiritual energy, a wisp of black mist appeared at his fingertips, and he effortlessly moved the giant poster aside. As the poster shifted, a large stainless-steel door instantly appeared before me. “So you’re an undercover agent, huh?” I joked on the surface, though I was genuinely surprised inside. I hadn’t expected this kind of twist—it just goes to show that movie plots really are inspired by real life. “You’ll be even more shocked once you go inside,” Qi Feng explained smugly. “Only those with spiritual power can move this painting. You didn’t see that coming, did you?” I shot Qi Feng a sidelong glance and quietly examined the door, finding no keyhole. A device was mounted nearby. Bai Ling took out her badge and held it up to the device; with a “ding,” the door slowly swung open. I followed him inside, and the door closed automatically. My eyes, still adjusted to the darkness of the storage room, were suddenly hit by a blinding light—so bright I had to squint. Once my eyes adjusted, I opened them slightly to take in the scene. Just as Qi Feng had said, what I saw left me even more astonished. Before me lay a vast underground space—so vast I couldn’t see where it ended. The surroundings were lush with greenery, and there was even a stream—it looked more like a park than any of the ones outside. Not far away were several shops of various kinds. I glanced at the map posted on the wall and saw that there were even entertainment and recreational facilities like internet cafes, KTVs, swimming pools, and basketball courts. This wasn’t a guild at all—it was practically a magic academy. I swallowed hard and asked, my voice trembling, “Is this really a converted basement?” Bai Ling nodded. “Yeah, the floor below the underground parking garage—the entire area beneath this plaza—is our guild’s base.” “That’s impressive, man.” I couldn’t help but marvel. If I hadn’t met Qi Yun, I probably would’ve died without ever knowing there was a hidden paradise like this here. “Hello, Young Master Bai.” Bai Ling led me forward. Wherever we went, passersby would greet him warmly whenever they saw him, and he returned each greeting in turn. This feeling was all too familiar to me—after all, I’d received the same treatment when I visited my dad’s toy factory back in the day. “That’s quite something,” Qi Yun said, surveying everything around us with a mix of surprise and curiosity. He whispered in my ear, “Everyone here is a spiritual power user.” “That’s normal. Otherwise, how could it be called the Supernatural Abilities Research Institute?” I replied nonchalantly, feeling completely unfazed. After all, I was now part of the inner circle—there was nothing to make a fuss about. I turned to ask Bai Ling, “Are they all union members?” I noticed that everyone was wearing a badge—some were copper-colored, while others were even the color of iron. Bai Ling nodded. “Yes, our institute has several hundred members, and that number is constantly growing.” After leading me around for about ten minutes, Bai Ling finally arrived at the institute’s main conference hall. Everyone inside wore a silver badge on their chest, including Wu Peng and Geng Dong. I asked again, “Do these people just hang out here all the time?” “They’re all elite researchers,” Bai Ling replied honestly. “Of course, there aren’t any mandatory requirements—they don’t have to come every day. It’s up to them whether they want to come or not. The only strict requirement is that if the Guild issues a summons, they must be present—though it doesn’t seem like that’s happened very often.” I nodded; that was acceptable. Earlier, I’d been worried about having to come in every day to “clock in”—that would be exhausting. Wu Peng spotted me and narrowed his eyes, studying me for a moment. I looked somewhat familiar to him, but he couldn’t quite place me—after all, my appearance had changed. Bai Ling turned to one of the women and said, “Could you please call one of the officers over? I need to talk to them.” I glanced at the woman standing next to Bai Ling, and my eyes seemed to get stuck there. She was tall with a curvaceous figure, dressed in an office lady uniform. Her burgundy hair, parted down the middle, fell over her shoulders. Even from a distance, I could catch a faint, sweet scent. Her skin was fair, her eyes bright, and her teeth pearly white. A pair of red-rimmed glasses sat on her high, straight nose, and she exuded a subtle, maturefeminine allure. “Mm-hmm,” the woman replied to Bai Ling in a neither warm nor cold tone. As if sensing my intense gaze, she turned her head and glanced at me. I was startled—I hadn’t expected her to look my way—and forced a smile to greet her. The woman raised her eyebrows slightly, revealing a clearly displeased expression. “Tsk.” Then she turned and walked away. I stood there dumbfounded for a few seconds, instinctively touching my face—I’d already returned to my normal appearance this morning. Damn it, am I really that unlikable? That look seemed to be saying just how terrible my martial arts skills were. Qi Yun gave me a meaningful look and teased softly, “Mengmeng, you’re getting worse and worse.” “Shut up,” I snapped, shooting him a disapproving glare to signal he should stop rubbing it in. Bai Ling sensed my slight annoyance and came over with a wry smile to explain, “Chen Meng, don’t take it personally. My sister’s just like that—her sense of aesthetics is really, really off.” “She’s your sister?” I looked at Bai Ling in surprise. Thinking back carefully, I realized the two of them did share some similarities. Pretending not to care, I waved my hand dismissively. “No way. I’m used to it. If you’re ugly, just read more books. I’ll just be lonely—that’s fine.”