Chapter 1077: Returning to the Academy
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 1077: Returning to the Academy
"Xiao Han is just too amazing~"
"Let big sister give you a squeeze~ Hehe~"
Before I could say another word, a crowd of witches had already surrounded me in a state of high excitement. As for Dinah? She had already been shoved aside by the boisterous mob.
After all, this "duel" was different from any other. As witnesses to history, they had seen something truly incredible unfold. Their emotions were genuine and uncontrollable.
"Hey, hey~ Make way! The star of the show is here!"
One of the witches shouted, and the noisy crowd reluctantly parted to create a narrow path for Bai Yu to squeeze through.
Bai Yu, naturally living up to everyone's expectations, made her way to the very center. The cheering and heckling showed no signs of stopping.
Seeing this scene, some witches who hadn't shown themselves from the start, or those who simply preferred peace and quiet, silently departed. This incident had certainly been an eye-opener for them as well.
However, at this moment, the joys and sorrows of the witches and the vampires were not shared.
The students who had secretly returned to check the status of the battle only found the witches' clamor irritating. Yet, a faint trace of envy lingered in their eyes.
Those were all Transcendent witches—the mentor class. And there they were, playing and fooling around with a Little Witch without a single care in the world.
Of course, those peering from the shadows weren't nearly as shocked as the witch students who were gradually returning to survey the battlefield. They didn't know exactly what had happened, nor did they understand why so many mentors were cheering after such a short time.
All they knew was that a second Earth-Sun Tragedy seemingly hadn't occurred. But after asking around, they learned... Sister Xiao Han had won.
That’s right... she won!
A teaching assistant had defeated a Transcendent mentor!
Even if it was a vampire Transcendent—who might be considered "watered down"—the sight of the Vampire Grand Duke lying there like a corpse silenced all doubt!
Naturally, the members of the No. 0 Special Combat Sequence weren't the only ones excited. Far away at the Witch Academy, the United Club was also closely monitoring the situation.
When they saw with their own eyes a Transcendent mentor die at the hands of Teaching Assistant Xiao Han, they realized exactly what kind of existence they were working with.
Though they had caught a glimpse of this power during the Earth-Sun Tragedy, personally beating a Transcendent to death brought the shock to an entirely different dimension.
Cleveland immediately convened a meeting of the United Club.
As for the combat sequences that had been fighting tooth and nail in Fudu Valley, they all withdrew. Since the enemy's home base had been sniped, there was no point in continuing a war of attrition.
The first order of business for the meeting was the upcoming arrival of the Vampire Affiliated Academy representatives at the Witch Academy to sign the treaty of defeat, covering reparations and the ceding of territory.
To be honest, they hadn't expected Sister Xiao Han to suddenly pull off such a stunt. However, one thing was certain: this act would undoubtedly ignite a massive pro-war sentiment within the academy!
After all, the blood sacrifice incident was inextricably linked to the vampires. The grudge between the Witch Academy and the vampires had been settled long ago.
Even if the root cause could be traced back to the Wizard Academy or even the top-tier academies as a whole, it didn't stop them from loathing the vampires.
With the Blood Slave Peninsula now belonging to the Witch Academy, everything the vampires had done there was being exposed to the entire academy—they weren't leaving them even a shred of dignity.
Guiding emotions and then providing a vent for them would bolster the perceived righteousness of the United Club's actions. This was the outcome every member of the United Club hoped to see.
Meanwhile, back at the Vampire Affiliated Academy...
Once the cheering died down, the students began an orderly evacuation.
After all, the blitzkrieg on the Vampire Affiliated Academy had been a whim I’d had while I was still at the Blood Slave Peninsula. Now, we were heading back with a full harvest.
When I summoned the 500-meter floating battleship again, several witch sisters suggested hitching a ride.
I readily agreed. For Transcendent witches, traveling anywhere was easy; their request to board naturally came with their own considerations.
Sure enough, once the battleship had leveled off in the air, they sought me out again. Some even brought congratulatory gifts—not for conquering the Vampire Affiliated Academy, but to congratulate me on publicly defeating a Transcendent in a head-on clash!
Of course, that was just an excuse. The real goal was to use the opportunity to get to know me, as they were all very optimistic about my future.
From their perspective, I was a Little Witch who would step directly into the Saint Realm the moment I ascended to Transcendent! Although the prime window for "investment" had passed, making a friendly acquaintance was still a winning move.
After a round of warm greetings, the only ones left were Sister Bai, Dinah, and a few other witches.
"I’ve noticed Xiao Han seems a bit different than before. Do you guys feel it too?"
"I don't think so?" I looked at the witch sister who asked. Though I said that, I was curious myself.
I could guess the reason; it likely had to do with the extraction of the [Transcendent Knowledge] fragment for the Great Weakening Spell.
"Bai Yu~ what do you think? Xiao Han is your girlfriend, after all~" one of the witches teased, throwing the ball to Sister Bai.
"Is she? I feel like Xiao Han has never changed in my heart. If she has, it’s only that she’s become even better."
"Ewwwww~~~" Bai Yu’s answer immediately drew a chorus of sour, playful groans from the single witches nearby.
After that topic, the conversation shifted to pleasant small talk. Witches talk about everything, including the events that had just transpired.
I was forced to join this gathering. They treated the area like a tea party; some witches even brought out small stools, tables, black tea sets, and desserts.
In this atmosphere, I found that I still preferred being a listener, though their topics would still drift back to me from time to time.
"It seems the rumors are true; Xiao Han still isn't that fond of socializing. Is it because you used to be a boy, so you can't get into some of the topics we talk about?"
"I actually think Xiao Han looks quite nice when she's being quiet."
"Let's talk about something Xiao Han is interested in," Dinah suggested from the side. "Like Fool's Dream? Bai Yu told me Xiao Han has been putting a lot of energy into Fool's Dream lately. Is that true? My witch cat cafe is relying entirely on those cute cat-girl Fool's Dream spirits of yours as the main attraction!"
"I know about that! The Dream State Life Experiment that's been trending lately—lots of sisters have already formed interest research groups for it!"
"I joined one too, but our group's progress is way too slow... Xiao Han~ are you really not going to open up some purchase channels for your Nightmare Workshop?"
"Sister, are you silly? Even if she opened purchase channels, you wouldn't be able to buy anything."
"Then I'll wait until production capacity goes up."
As the conversation continued, the topic Dinah started went completely off the rails. Upon inquiry, almost all the witches present were involved in dream life research. They brought it up because they wanted to find a way to acquire Dream State Soul Essence from me.
According to their exaggerated claims, they were currently in a situation where they couldn't buy it even if they threw money at it.
And the "money" they spoke of wasn't the currency of the Main World, but the Transcendent materials used as universal currency in the Void. Even Orichalcum, the top-tier mainstream material in the Main World, seemed like a mere side character in these trades.
In the end, the result was simply maintaining the status quo. I didn't have much time to continue optimizing the Incubation Purification Method, nor did I have time to hand-roll another Nightmare Workshop. However, the witch sisters still left their business cards.
They also hinted that I could contact them anytime, even for things unrelated to Dream State Soul Essence trades.
As time passed, the battleship finally arrived above the Magic Capital.
The Witch Academy's curtain wall opened a massive entry channel for the battleship with high-specification ceremony. The last time such a fuss was made for an opening was when the Never-Landing Life Floating Tree of Arfhemi Academy arrived for the exchange competition.
Such a massive commotion undoubtedly drew the curiosity of countless students in the academy, who flocked to welcome us.
The United Club hadn't synchronized a public live stream of the blitzkrieg on the Vampire Affiliated Academy, so many students weren't fully aware of what had happened. They simply thought the Witch Academy's floating battleship had officially entered active service and came to watch.
But when they reached the landing zone, they were stunned. The club presidents who were usually hard to see and numerous core representatives of the United Club were all gathered there eagerly, as if waiting for a triumphant return.
"Wow... this... has this battleship finally started its combat testing?"
"I don't know. Wasn't it said the battleship was still at the port for final adjustments? How is it flying already?"
"Wait, shouldn't you be paying attention to the people gathered here? Look, the President of the Jack-of-all-trades Club! and that one from the Spell Research Society—she's the genius who's won the academy's Spell Cup multiple times!"
"What on earth is happening? I just heard a rumor that our Witch Academy blitzed the Vampire Academy. Do any of you know about this?"
"Huh? Sister, where did you hear that? That's a wild source. That sounds way too far-fetched."
While the gossip-hungry witches were watching the spectacle, the battleship's landing bay slowly opened. Then, a large group of girls in uniform styles walked off the ship, looking as if they were returning from a satisfying field trip.
"Wait... even the News Agency is here. With such a big setup, what exactly happened?"
"That... those look like the uniforms of the United Club's No. 0 Special Combat Sequence, right? Eh?"
"You can recognize that?"
"How could I not? The person leading that combat sequence is Teaching Assistant Xiao Han~ The badge on their chests is the Baking House logo. The Witch Academy's strongest teaching assistant is no joke!"
In the crowd, girls who knew a bit of the inside story showed off their knowledge. Meanwhile, the members of the United Club, having finished their emergency meeting, immediately arranged the most grand welcoming ceremony.
During the wait, they had already drafted the heavy-hitting content the United Club would release to the public. Interviews with the News Agency were already standard procedure.
Inside the battleship, the witch sisters had all departed. Only Bai Yu, Dinah, and I remained on the bridge.
"I can see that Xiao Han really isn't good at socializing. According to my analysis..."
"Alright~ Sister Dinah, stop showing off your psychology knowledge. I might not understand psychology, but I understand Heart Sense. My 'lack of social skills' is just a lack of desire to play along with social pretenses. After all, the moment someone opens their mouth, I already know what they're trying to say."
"Hiss... that's just cheating. No wonder when I saw you bickering with that big vampire bat, you poked right through his lies."
"Envious? Want to learn?"
"No, no, I can't take the hardship of Body Cultivation. Let me just be a useless witch surrounded by cats." Dinah shook her head repeatedly, shamelessly admitting her true nature. "The ship has stopped, right? Then I should be going~ Remember our agreement!"
"Mhm. Take care, Sister Dinah~"
I nodded and saw off the cat-obsessed witch.
Dinah had come this time mainly for Fool's Dream. Of course, she didn't know the extent of my progress in the Dream State Life Experiment; she mainly wanted to "borrow" some more Fool's Dream spirits.
The witch branch academy in the Expansion Realm had been built, but the witch cat cafe there still hadn't introduced Fool's Dream spirits or Fool's Dream drinks. Without them, the cafe felt like it had lost its unique charm.
The witch cat cafe itself was a platform for witches to engage in "fated socializing"—a role-playing social game between cat-petting guests and hostess cat-girls. However, with the addition of Fool's Dream, it had attracted even more witches and gradually became a signature feature.
I promised to ask the spirits in the Land of Fool's Dream to see if any were willing to go to reality. I couldn't force them, after all. According to Dinah, the interaction between the spirits and the guests had been very high lately; some guests had even made off with the spirits working at the cafe!
For the witch cat cafe, that was a massive loss!
Thinking of this reminded me of a certain Rebel Witch who had made off with Yu Cha and then came to brag in front of me.
However, I maintained a tolerant attitude toward this. No matter what choice a Fool's Dream spirit made, the Land of Fool's Dream would always be their sturdiest harbor. If anyone dared to betray or deceive a spirit, I would definitely settle the score once I had the strength!
Still, seeing the spirits being accepted by the witches was something I was happy to see at this stage.
After saying goodbye to Dinah, Sister Bai accompanied me out of the floating battleship.
When I stepped out and saw the scale of the reception, I was indeed surprised, but I quickly accepted it.
My identity had now completely shifted. From the moment I walked out of the battleship to face so many students, it was the moment I officially began to enjoy the treatment this status deserved.
It was as if I had completely shed my former closed-off shell and truly stepped out in front of everyone.
And just as I appeared, the United Club simultaneously released an official announcement on the academy network, unreservedly publicizing my deeds to build momentum.