Chapter 95: It’s Normal to Get a Surprise from a Blind Box, Right?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 95: It’s Normal to Get a Surprise from a Blind Box, Right?
This trip had already netted me another Mana Source. It was a handsome harvest, though I still wasn't entirely sure just how valuable a Mana Source actually was. Senior Sister Deng Xiaonan had handed it over so readily that it felt almost too easy.
Besides, it seemed like the Mana Sources the seniors used to guide the new students were their own.
If these things were truly expensive, wouldn't they be sacrificing a portion of their own strength just to receive a single freshman?
But that wasn't for me to worry about. Sister Bai had mentioned before that freshmen don't have much need for Mana Sources anyway; some don't even realize you can possess multiple sources until halfway through the first semester.
While that might be due to a lack of information, it also suggested that trading Mana Sources wasn't very common. Freshmen likely didn't even have the channels to acquire them early on.
Regardless, for me, the more Mana Sources, the better. They accelerated the Witchification process and increased the limit of my mana bar.
I was now a person with two spells and several alchemy items. Asking for a few more Mana Sources wasn't asking too much, right?
And so, I began a carpet search of the area.
It was only when I actually started using the tracking feature in the academy system that I understood why the seniors hated this mandatory activity.
Senior Sister Deng Xiaonan was even willing to part with a Mana Source just to dump the task on someone else.
I had expected the positioning to be pinpoint accurate, but once I zoomed in on the academy map, it turned into a "find them yourself within this zone" kind of deal.
I stood on the sidewalk, staring at the bustling street, lost in thought.
No matter how I looked at it, this didn't seem like the kind of place where you'd find "fallen girls"—wait, no, I meant freshmen who hadn't finished their registration.
Clearly, my experience with Quan Xiuzhu had left too deep an impression, making me subconsciously assume that every target I was looking for would be in a similar predicament.
In reality, the people I was looking for might just be wandering the streets, aimlessly buying snacks and window shopping.
After all, they were people, not vagrants. They knew to buy food when hungry and find a place to sleep at night. They might ask a senior for help if they ran into trouble, but they wouldn't actively come looking for me.
I wandered around for half the day, shamelessly asking several people before I finally identified my target.
This girl had arrived at the academy early. Like the others I’d met, her guiding senior had ditched her halfway through. She had only completed her entry registration, receiving a phone and a room card, but hadn't processed her student card or collected her Witch Four-Piece Set.
When I found her, she was shocked. She also "snitched" on several other freshmen in the same boat, allowing me to complete my task far beyond the requirements in one go.
To be honest, I was a bit disappointed. The freshmen I was looking for shouldn't be like this. I was in dire need of those weak, pitiful, and helpless little cuties!
Ideally, the kind curled up in a corner waiting for me to find them.
After helping those students, I just felt exhausted. It was like opening a blind box; I knew I probably wouldn't find the target I wanted, yet I kept hoping for that kind of encounter.
So, I locked onto one last target. It was the closest one to me. I’d make this the final one for the day. Even the senior who registered me had praised me for being the most proactive one.
However, when the GPS navigated me to the front of a villa, I fell silent.
I’d lost the gamble again...
If they were already staying in a villa, there probably wasn't much of the process left to finish, right?
I stood politely at the door and rang the bell. It took several consecutive rings before I heard any movement inside.
If I didn't value privacy so much, I would have activated Spirit Vision just to see what the person inside was doing. How could you stay so peacefully in a villa when your enrollment process wasn't even finished?
As the door swung open, an impatient voice drifted out.
"Who is it? I don't have a magazine subscription! If it's a package, just leave it in the box!"
I stared at the older girl who walked out. Her clothes were thrown on in a hurry—just a top, leaving her pale, slender legs completely exposed to the air. I subconsciously swallowed hard.
That aura, that sense of pressure, and the terrifying amount of Mana Source pressure radiating from within her... This was a Senior Sister!
"Um... I'm responsible for guiding freshmen to complete their process..." I forced myself to speak, feeling like I’d get a beatdown if I didn't have a good reason for being there. As I spoke, I even double-checked the location on my phone. The center of the zone was definitely right here... Could a freshman be living with a senior?
"Huh? You actually managed to find this place? You're a freshman too, aren't you?" After hearing me, the senior's expression shifted. At the very least, that impatient look vanished. She looked me up and down before speaking again.
"Y-yes. Excuse me, Senior Sister, do you know where the freshman who hasn't finished her process is?" I finally mustered the courage to ask. From her tone, it seemed she knew. If she was willing to tell me, I’d be incredibly grateful.
"She's right here with me. Honestly... I'll go call her." The senior scratched her head, casually tugging down the hem of her shirt where it had caught on her panties, then turned and walked back inside.
"Really? Thank you so much, Senior! Sorry for the trouble." I was thrilled by how cooperative she was. I’d half-expected her to pull rank and tell me to mind my own business.
As I watched her head upstairs, I took a quick look at the layout of the first floor. It was similar to my place, but there was a faint scent of aromatherapy in the air.
I didn't understand it before, but now I realized this aromatherapy actually had some meditation incense effects, though they were quite mild.
A moment later, the senior came back downstairs carrying a figure over her shoulder. She walked straight up to me.
"Here, the person you wanted." She gave the petite figure a shove toward me, and I hurriedly caught her in my arms.
At that moment, "shocked" didn't even begin to describe it. This petite girl was wearing what could only be described as a suggestive halter-neck bodysuit.
Calling it "suggestive" was an understatement. With that semi-transparent black silk gauze and the massive amount of exposed skin on her back, was this even meant to be worn in public?
Furthermore, the girl seemed to have lost consciousness. She slumped against me, her delicate skin brushing against my neck, sending a wave of goosebumps down my spine.
"Se... Senior Sister, what... what's going on here?"
My eyes were wide with shock. I could only look helplessly at the senior in front of me.
"Oh, she was originally a guy. Had no clothes to wear," the senior said with a relaxed smile. "Coincidentally, I didn't have anything unworn either. The only thing I hadn't worn was the piece she's in now."
"Then... what about her original clothes?"
"Oh, she couldn't accept the situation at first and shredded them."
She spoke with such a casual tone, as if she were discussing something utterly trivial.
"Then... sorry to bother you, Senior. I'll be going now..." Feeling the mounting pressure, I hurriedly said my goodbyes, preparing to bolt. This senior was too terrifying. I couldn't stay a second longer, or I might end up being "kept" here too.
I shifted my grip to a bridal carry, ready to run with the unconscious girl.
"Hey! Wait, I'm not finished." The senior's words brought me to a dead halt. "You're a sensible person. For a boy, this kind of thing is naturally hard to accept. I only disciplined her for a few days; she should be very well-behaved now. If she wakes up and does anything extreme, you can come find me. Here's my business card."
"Th-thank you. I won't trouble you further." I took the exquisite business card she handed over, my heart hammering against my ribs.
Once I had it, I made my escape, carrying the petite girl away in my arms.
As for where to go? The nearest women's clothing store, obviously. Why a women's clothing store? Because there were no men in the Witch Academy, and certainly no men's clothes.