Chapter 456: Those Competing for the Teaching Assistant Position are Naturally Ruthless
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 456: Those Competing for the Teaching Assistant Position are Naturally Ruthless
Early submission was permitted for this written test, and I took full advantage of that—though, to be fair, most of the senior sisters here did the same.
At first glance, I felt like I had this in the bag, but wouldn't those seniors feel exactly the same way?
Before this exam even began, they had put in many times more effort than I had. They could finish most of these questions with a single glance; only the difficult extension questions at the end could even hope to slow their pace.
Consequently, I wasn't the first one to turn in my paper.
The series of questions started with the basics, almost exactly following the knowledge points Sister Bai had organized for me. Only the extension questions at the end posed any real challenge, and even then, it wasn't much.
By the time I walked out of the classroom, I was the fifth person to leave.
The moment I stepped out, everything inside the room was severed from the outside world. A complex integrated spell enveloped the entire testing hall, ensuring that not a single sound or image could leak through.
Just as I was about to head off, I noticed that of the four seniors who had submitted early, two were still lingering outside the hall. They were huddled together, seemingly discussing something—likely the questions from the exam.
"Hey, Junior~ want to come compare answers with us?"
As I passed behind them, one of the seniors suddenly called out to me.
"Are you talking to me, Senior?" I asked, pointing at myself while playing dumb.
"Of course~ do you see any other juniors around?" They turned around with smiles on their faces, the meaning behind their words quite clear.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Fu Xinglan, and this is Tracy. Here's my business card." The one calling herself Fu Xinglan handed over a card, smiling as she introduced both herself and her companion.
"I'm Yang Yuehan," I replied, taking the card. It was a bit different from the ones I'd seen before; after all, it was a symbol of one's identity.
Fu Xinglan's card bore the words "Jack-of-all-trades Club." She had even labeled her club affiliation. Jack-of-all-trades... I felt like I'd seen the name in passing, but I knew nothing about them.
"We know your name is Yang Yuehan—Xiao Han, right? Your name was already well-known among the seniors back during the school opening week. But why the sudden change in hair color?"
"It's not dyed. It was... well, let's call it an accident," I explained, twirling a lock of hair around my finger before tucking her card away. "Also, here is my business card. Would you like one, Senior?"
"If Xiao Han is giving it, of course I'll take it. Hmm? The card is an alchemy item? How extravagant."
"Yeah, I know a bit of alchemy, so I made them myself," I said casually.
At that moment, the other senior spoke up, her tone tinged with a hint of playfulness and resentment.
"Xinglan, aren't you being a bit too sly? You didn't even give me a chance to introduce myself." She turned her gaze toward me. "I wonder if I can trade my card for one of yours, Xiao Han? My status isn't any lower than that 'Jack-of-all-trades' girl, you know?"
"Oh, certainly." I had refined quite a few cards. Although they contained a summoning ritual, I didn't necessarily have to tell them that. They could be used as ordinary business cards. The most expensive part was the material itself, and even that was just cheap stuff you could buy with money—at most, it was just a bit more durable.
"Looking at your confused expression regarding the Jack-of-all-trades Club, you probably don't realize their status in the academy, do you?" Tracy looked delighted to receive my card, though she quickly returned a resentful look toward Fu Xinglan.
"I really don't," I admitted truthfully. However, looking at Tracy's card, I was surprised to find that she was a member of the Witch Secret Realm Club!
"The Jack-of-all-trades is just a small club~ we just have some cooperation with the academy system's task zone," Fu Xinglan said modestly.
"Just that? If the Jack-of-all-trades is a small club, then there are no large clubs left in the Witch Academy. Have you heard of the four streets of the Witch Academy? One of them is Black Market Street..."
"Don't talk nonsense, Tracy! Black Market Street has nothing to do with our Jack-of-all-trades!" she interrupted hastily.
"Fine, fine~ nothing to do with it. My mistake." Tracy chuckled. Even though Fu Xinglan denied it, the denial felt completely hollow.
To run into such heavyweight contenders right off the bat... this teaching assistant assessment was terrifying.
But on second thought... it made perfect sense.
If those clubs and organizations wanted to grow powerful within the Witch Academy, they either needed a background like the Witch Cat Cafe—which was backed directly by Transcendent Witches—or they had to find another way. But the cafe was an outlier; it wasn't even a club. For student-led clubs or self-organized groups, becoming a teaching assistant was the best path forward.
After all, a teaching assistant wasn't necessarily a Transcendent Witch, yet they enjoyed some of the rights and interests of the faculty. For a student, this was the best path aside from ascending to become a Transcendent Witch.
Even if a teaching assistant couldn't show blatant favoritism, the "extra care" they could provide was a powerful deterrent.
Once I realized this, I felt much more at ease. As for that weirdo who had tried to cause trouble for me earlier—well, it was a relief that there was only one of her.
After chatting with the two seniors for a bit to build some rapport, they sandwiched me between them and got down to business.
The "business," of course, was comparing answers. While the written exam scores would be out quickly—likely by tomorrow—who could resist estimating their grade today?
As geniuses, the two seniors had naturally memorized most of the questions while taking the test. However, because they had submitted early, they hadn't been able to memorize every single detail while filling in their answers.
They had already used the whiteboards on their portable Ley Line systems to write down the earlier questions from memory.
"Seniors, use mine," I said, speaking up just as they were debating the details of a specific question.
A moment later, they felt a ripple of magical fluctuations. A screen flickered into existence before their eyes, perfectly replicating every detail of the exam paper.
"Whoa~ is this an illusion?" Fu Xinglan was the first to react, recognizing the nature of the spell.
"An Illusion Imaging spellbook? That's a rare one," Tracy added from the side, her voice carrying a hint of envy.
"Something like that," I shrugged, not offering much detail. The two seniors were tactful enough not to pry, though they were secretly shocked.
This illusion had caught them instantly. They had only felt the magical fluctuation but hadn't been able to identify it as an illusion immediately.
Naturally, I wouldn't reveal anything about the Tree of Knowledge. Since they had mistaken it for an Illusion Imaging spellbook, then that's what it was.
"Wow... you remembered every single question? Using this type of spell requires a very deep cognitive understanding of the subject, doesn't it? Are these the answers you wrote, Xiao Han?"
"Yes, those are my answers. I'll have to ask you two to help me see if I got anything wrong."
"Of course~" Tracy said quickly. Having such a spell was far more convenient than fumbling with the clunky Ley Line system, and with the questions so clear, they could compare them to their memories at a glance.
"Here's a matching pen for writing and taking notes." With a wave of my hand, a pen appeared.
"Thanks, this is really handy."
"It's an illusion, after all. It makes things a lot easier."
The two seniors quickly went through the answers. So far, there were no disagreements; our answers were largely identical.
One had to keep in mind that for such an important written exam, there were no multiple-choice or true/false questions. Every point earned was a result of one's own accumulated knowledge. There wasn't a shred of luck involved, making the results highly prestigious.
"Are you three comparing answers? Mind if I join?"
By now, more people were trickling out of the exam hall. Upon seeing our strange trio, they gathered around to watch.
I didn't mind. As time passed, the crowd grew, with some joining in and others just watching out of curiosity.
"Xiao Han, your foundation is so solid! If I remember correctly, you're only a first-year, right? Did you just learn three years' worth of curriculum and knowledge points all at once?" Fu Xinglan and Tracy couldn't help but marvel after finishing the comparison.
The realization made their skin crawl. They had almost treated the girl in front of them as someone on their own level. Thinking back to their own first year... weren't they still struggling just to avoid failing?
After the scene that idiot had caused before the exam, even those who weren't in the loop had some impression of me—specifically, that I was a freshman. That moron from earlier had tried to use that to provoke me; she had basically walked right into a trap.
"The answers seem mostly the same. We only have some slight differences in the extension questions at the end, but I think your answers are actually better, Xiao Han. You're looking at a perfect score!" Fu Xinglan immediately began to heap praise on me, making me feel a bit embarrassed.
"Junior Xiao Han is so amazing. It looks like I'll have to start calling you 'Teacher Xiao Han' from now on~" Tracy teased, drawing light laughter from the surrounding seniors.
Fortunately, the area was soundproofed; otherwise, the proctors inside would have likely come out to chase away this noisy crowd.
After all, why linger at the door after submitting early?
Once the answers were compared, the gathered seniors began to disperse. However, quite a few came forward to offer their business cards, wanting to strike up a friendship. I didn't refuse.
Demonstrating one's value could eliminate a great deal of trouble in life. Not everyone had to become a close friend, but simply knowing them could provide many conveniences.
Though there were only a few dozen people taking this exam, every single one of them had a significant "background" in the Witch Academy; otherwise, they wouldn't have even passed the initial screening. For instance, I met members from one of the largest clubs responsible for organizing auctions, and another that managed the academy's popular arenas... I even encountered several people who had sent me letters in the past. Unfortunately, most of those letters were still gathering dust in my storage equipment...
In short, everyone was looking out for their own interests, but in this world, there was nothing more reliable than a relationship built on mutual benefit.
"Xiao Han, the rumors about you on the Academy Network these past two days have been getting really out of hand. Aren't you going to do something?"
Fu Xinglan and Tracy, who hadn't left yet, were still chatting with me about recent events.
"I only have one mouth. I can't out-talk a bunch of morons."
"Well said. The Academy Network has been a mess lately. Even with real-name registration, people are still spreading rumors like crazy. Those guys from the Tan Han Fan Club have been putting in a lot of work, haven't they?"
"Mhm~" I nodded, confirming her suspicion.
The fact that these two seniors assumed the posts were rumors meant they were already on my side.
"So, did you really steal all of Tan Han's spellbooks? I'm just curious, since you and Tan Han were once the 'Twin Stars'~ you both have a 'Han' in your names."
"I did take the spellbooks, but Tan Han gave them to me voluntarily. Actually, she gave them to me once before, and during the recent monthly exam, I gave them back as part of a bet. She lost them to me again."
"Oh? The plot thickens?" The two seniors were clearly interested in the gossip. Who could resist hearing the story directly from the source?
"Mhm."
"Then... doesn't that mean you have three Over-consumption... oh, I'm talking too much~" Tracy started to say something but quickly pressed a finger to her lips and stopped.
"It's fine. But you guessed wrong on that point. I still only have two Over-consumption Spellbooks." I looked at Tracy. She was from the Witch Secret Realm Club. The last person I'd met from that club was Renata, wasn't it?
"Eh? Why?"
"Because after Tan Han left, her supporters came to find me. As for what they said to me... Seniors, do you want to see something 'good'?"
"Yes, yes!"
Seeing my mischievous expression, they agreed immediately. Who could turn down a bit of entertainment?
Besides, my simple sentence carried a massive amount of information. This kind of intel was far too interesting!
And it was drama involving Tan Han! Who was Tan Han? The most popular figure among the freshmen and the so-called "First Child of Destiny." Though the title was arrogant, Tan Han had proven her foundation with her own strength.
With a wave of my hand, the images recorded by the Tree of Knowledge appeared before them. Since it was an illusion, only those I permitted could see it.
As the scenes played out, the expressions of the two seniors gradually soured as they watched the two girls in the recording.
"They just... took the spellbook away like that?" they asked tentatively after the recording finished.
"Mhm~ don't you think it's interesting?" I said.
"But that was an Over-consumption Spellbook."
"I'm not lacking in those. Compared to that, I'm more curious to see which 'lucky' person ends up using it. And... if Tan Han sees this, her expression is bound to be spectacular..."
"I suppose so." Seeing how little I cared, the two seniors didn't say much more, choosing to treat it as a joke.
But even as they enjoyed the drama, they still felt a headache coming on. That was an Over-consumption Spellbook!
There were only a handful of them in the entire academy, and Xiao Han had used one just to set up a joke...
But honestly, it was a good joke.
Soon, the whole school would be laughing at the farce between Tan Han and her supporters.
Over the last two days, Tan Han's supporters had created such a stir that even Tan Han's own posts on the Academy Network were drowned out. The comments were full of people mocking her. Tan Han was on the verge of being consumed by the very backlash her own followers had created.
"By the way, is your relationship with Tan Han really that bad? To do this to her?"
"Relationship? We're about average friends, I guess."
"Then you're truly ruthless."
"Am I being ruthless to her? Personally, I think I'm helping her. She hasn't realized yet that she can't control those supporters. If she doesn't learn that, she'll only suffer a worse backlash in the future. If she can't handle this, at least she can save herself. But if she survives this ordeal, then she will truly become the absolute core of the Tan Han Fan Club."
"True enough. Your methods are just a bit... intense. Is that why you never respond to your own fan club, Xiao Han?"
"Mhm~"
"I have to say, that's a very rational choice. It's getting late... we should probably head out. If you can't settle this matter yourself, Xiao Han, feel free to contact me. I have some influence in the academy," Fu Xinglan said, bidding me farewell.
"Me too~ you're always welcome to come play at the Witch Secret Realm Club. I'll help out with the stuff on the Academy Network, too—no strings attached!" Tracy added.
It was clear that while she and Fu Xinglan were on good terms, they were also competitors.