Chapter 446: The Shortcut to Becoming a Teaching Assistant
Upon arriving at the main gate of the Witch Academy, I realized that the actual teaching area of the academy is not very large. The surrounding residential area is also encompassed within the Witch Academy, contributing to the vast size of the academy’s grounds.
I vaguely remember that the Witch Academy is layered above the outside world, known as the “Magic Capital,” and that admission notice was my first one-way ticket to enter the academy.
When I first entered, I was shocked by this situation; back then, my control over Spirit Vision was not as adept as it is now. Looking around, I could still see the overlapping architecture between the Witch Academy and the Magic Capital of the outside world.
Now, everything has become accustomed to me.
Initially, it was Sister Bai who brought me into the Witch Academy, and now I am standing here waiting for her return.
I have been waiting for several hours; the Academy Head did not specify a precise time for my wait, and it could be because I arrived too early.
I didn’t meet any new teachers at the Witch Academy, but a few senior students did show up.
“Oh? I didn’t expect someone to arrive this early. What are you wearing?”
I turned my gaze towards the senior who spoke. I originally intended to ignore them, thinking they were just passing by, but they stopped here.
“I didn’t provoke you, did I? Can’t you show a bit of decency with your words?”
“With that head of dyed white hair and those colored contact lenses, are you part of Xiao Han’s support group? I really don’t understand what’s wrong with you people; dyeing your hair white makes you look like you want to get into a coffin sooner.”
“That’s none of your business.” I said calmly, but my gaze instinctively flicked toward a figure soaring high above the academy. That was the Wei Ji Team’s silhouette. Unfortunately, it’s better not to provoke anyone at the Witch Academy; even if a confrontation occurs, it’s best to hold the moral high ground.
“Not our business? Coming here at this hour, don’t you think we have similar intentions? Do you really believe the new teacher would notice you? With your flashy looks, be careful not to leave a bad impression right away.”
“…” Upon hearing what they said, I fell silent because I realized their intentions seemed to be similar to mine—are they also here to become a teaching assistant?
But I came here to welcome Sister Bai; what are they here for?
It can’t be to leave a good impression on the new teachers, right?
I personally think that’s unnecessary.
“Do you want to be teaching assistants?” I assessed them again and ultimately decided to ask directly, as I was too lazy to speculate about their motives.
“Tch—aren’t you?”
“I naturally want to too; everyone can rely on their own abilities, no need to belittle others, making it seem like you are superior.”
“We just hope someone has some self-awareness. I don’t know where you got your information, but waiting here for so long? Tch—”
“…”
At this point, I stopped the conversation because I realized it was a waste of my time. Moreover, if this information from the Academy Head is considered gossip, then theirs must be worthless too.
However, this made me start to pay attention because their presence made me feel the difficulty of competing for the teaching assistant qualification.
From what I learned from the Academy Head, every instructor at the Witch Academy can have one teaching assistant as long as they teach regular classes, whether they are fixed courses or irregular paid courses, though they can also choose not to have one.
The Academy Head told me that most instructors rarely accept teaching assistants, so the chances of those instructors currently in the academy accepting a teaching assistant are quite low and have essentially been determined.
So, it’s easy to conclude that only the new instructors would have the intention of bringing on a teaching assistant to help alleviate some early challenges upon arriving to adapt to the new environment.
As time went on, a few more senior students arrived, adding a bit of pressure on me, as the quantity of magic sources inside these seniors reached several thousand, and they had a lot of spellbooks as well, making them seem rather intimidating if they decided to take action.
But once I thought about the fact that I wasn’t competing against them, this pressure dissipated immediately.
At this moment, I reflect on the fact that those confident enough to compete for teaching assistant qualifications are all the cream of the crop in the Witch Academy. There’s no classification by grade; only distinction based on personal ability and quality.
Clearly, they are no longer satisfied with just being students; perhaps they want to reach a certain level of authority among the academy’s teachers, or maybe they simply want to secure a teaching assistant title for easier access to becoming a teacher later after graduation.
But it’s certain that they each have their own reasons.
Meanwhile…
“Follow me; many of you are probably visiting the main world for the first time. Some information about the main world has already been sent to you. Remember to take some time to understand it in detail. I just sent you mobile phones that work in the main world, powered by magic, so just don’t break them. Once you enter the Witch Academy, you need to register with the Academy Head. They should have planned your arrangements already; as for anything else, feel free to manage it yourselves.”
At this moment, this group of witches followed the witch leading them and had already arrived at the Magic Capital; soon, they would be able to directly enter the Witch Academy.
Among this group of witches, quite a number are visiting the main world for the first time, but after arriving, what they felt about the main world was not as stunning as they had imagined, and instead gave off a sense of suppression. This was due to the effects of the Great Weakening Spell, a technique the Academy Head of the Witch Academy had a hand in; this is knowledge they had previously been briefed on.
“Oh? Can we really do anything here?”
“You can operate within the rules and their unwritten implications. Of course, some things you can do, but please also think about the consequences of doing them. This is the main world, and you all shouldn’t indulge yourselves too much here. Ahead is the Magic Capital, and the location of the Witch Academy overlaps with the Magic Capital as another layer of space, entirely blocked off by a curtain wall.”
With this explanation, many witches began to take note of this aspect.
And among them, a few witches, upon seeing this scene, flashed with a hint of nostalgia or familiarity, indicating that they were likely graduated seniors who had once ventured out to the main world.
“By the way, when you enter the Witch Academy, you may first encounter students welcoming you.”
“Huh? There are students waiting for us? That’s quite surprising—there’s no need for such a grand welcome, right?” A witch expressed her surprise upon hearing about the welcome.
“No, you’re misreading the situation. I’m not sure how many will be there, but it shouldn’t be many. They aren’t just here to welcome you; they are eyeing the one teaching assistant position you have. Of course, you don’t have to ignore them entirely—at least they can greet you, showing that they have some ambition. However, you’re not obligated to choose a teaching assistant from among these students.” After this introduction about the basic situation by the witch, many witches revealed a strange smile, not expecting that even before entering the Witch Academy, students were already eyeing the teaching assistant position they held.
Naturally, many witches expressed disdain regarding this; they didn’t need any teaching assistant.
However, some were indeed very interested.
At this moment, among the group of extraordinary witches, a young-looking witch showed a hint of intrigue.
This witch was, of course, Bai Yu.
Beside Bai Yu were two other extraordinary young witches, and purely based on their appearance, one couldn’t discern how old they were. However, they were currently chatting casually beside Bai Yu, one on either side.
These two are acquaintances of Bai Yu from after she left the main world. It’s not entirely coincidental; after all, a batch of witches wants to enter the main world every so often, and some cannot bear to leave. However, the number of extraordinary beings in the main world maintains a dynamic balance, so the quotas for entering the main world are limited, which must also be allocated among other extraordinary races.
On one such occasion, these two discovered this girl who graduated from the Witch Academy in the main world and approached her out of curiosity about the main world, which is how they learned her name is Bai Yu.
Although detailed information about the main world would eventually be provided to them, having a “local” to share firsthand information is surely more credible.
In fact, there were quite a few witches that got close to Bai Yu back then, but only these two managed to secure a qualification to enter the main world.
Coincidentally, these two are also twins, one named Miao and the other He. Their names are just a single character each; rather than calling them by names, it’s better to refer to them by code. Bai Yu only learned afterward that they were graduates from the Witch Academy in other worlds in the Void and had graduated some time ago.
This chance allowed Bai Yu to notice the huge gap between witch academies across worlds, which was so vast that the only commonality was the name of the academy.
Thus, these two endured significant hardships to rise to become extraordinary witches in that predatory Witch Academy. After leaving their original world, they felt adrift and aimless, with no clear goals to strive towards.
Ultimately, after a series of twists and turns, they learned about a position as a mentor in a Witch Academy in another world. This opportunity allowed them to experience another side of being a witch.
They are the kind of individuals who underwent substantial trials to become extraordinary witches before they could escape from that academy. It was only after becoming extraordinary witches that they began to comprehend just how significant the differences between witch academies truly are.
After drawing comparisons, they eventually chose this Witch Academy in the main world as their long-term refuge; they truly wished to experience the comfortable atmosphere of a peaceful world’s witch academy.
The friendship between Miao, He, and Bai Yu naturally began from such a coincidence.
Initially, their relationship with Bai Yu was merely casual acquaintances, but once Bai Yu presented the letter of recommendation from the Academy Head of the Witch Academy in the main world, they realized that this was no ordinary person but someone with strong connections!
Who could obtain such a letter without some tie?
Upon encountering such a great connection, they made sure to hold on tightly. Moreover, as time passed, many others were eliminated, leaving them as the ones who became relatively close to Bai Yu.
Thus, at this moment, among the unfamiliar witches, the three of them formed a fragile friendship.
This batch of witches is also divided into different tiers: Some are highly regarded scholarly witches, entering the main world to showcase their skills; some possess a specialty and are here to teach and keep themselves occupied; and others are simply here to change their lives and experience a different lifestyle.
“Little Bai—when we meet those students, will you consider taking one as your assistant?” Miao asked.
“Me?” Bai Yu was taken aback by the sudden question. “I might take an assistant, but not necessarily from here. By the way, you two should avoid making hasty decisions.”
“No worries; it’s just about helping out with some trivial matters. Even if we find out that student isn’t up to par, we can always switch to another.”
“Exactly! I’ll pick someone beautiful, at least someone nice to look at.”
“Then I wish you both the best in selecting to your liking.”
“Alright, but Little Bai, what’s up with you? You’re not getting sentimental seeing these sights, are you? I haven’t heard you say much; you should be the most familiar with this place.”
“I’m indeed very familiar; I’ve spent many years here.” Bai Yu nodded.
“Then when the time comes, we’ll be relying on you, alright?”
At this moment, inside the Witch Academy.
With an abnormal fluctuation of the curtain wall, the anomaly startled the students who had been waiting here for a long time.
I was no exception.
In fact, I had already looked beyond the curtain wall and space, seeing the group of witches gathered outside the wall. Among them, I finally spotted that familiar silhouette, at which point I fully relaxed.
Sister Bai has finally returned… I have been waiting for this moment for so long!
With another wave in the space, a figure walked out directly from the gateway opened by the curtain wall. She glanced at the students waiting here for a long time, said nothing; after all, she had seen such scenes before since the academy did not prohibit students from self-recommending themselves as teaching assistants to new instructors.
However, the choice of teaching assistants by instructors is not a simple matter of just selecting someone; the assistant must undergo a qualification assessment relative to the instructor to see if they are fit for the position.
So, rather than seeking to become teaching assistants, these students were more like trying to find a shortcut for qualifying for assistant positions.
Most of the students self-recommending here are confident individuals.
The assessment for teaching assistants is divided into two parts: an assessment of the assistant’s personal abilities and the instructor’s willingness. If the instructor is determined to have this assistant, it means they already have one foot in the door for the assistant position, which significantly reduces the difficulty for passing the qualification assessment.
But at the base of all this, it requires the individual’s capabilities to pass; otherwise, the academy wouldn’t allow an instructor to support a mere decorative teaching assistant. Otherwise, the meaning of that is already quite apparent, and the academy would not encourage such a mindset of unearned gains among students.
As several new instructors walked through that gate, the nearby students swarmed over, but they also didn’t dare to be overly enthusiastic since all those here are intelligent people who understand what attitude fits what occasion; otherwise, all efforts would be counterproductive.
In contrast, I, who remained motionless, became the odd one out.
I did not rush forward because my target was very clear, waiting for a silhouette I recognized to emerge from the gate above the curtain wall.
At this moment, my anxious heart rose to my throat.
I suppressed this inner throb and stepped forward steadily, wanting to reach that figure ahead.
And at that moment, she directed her gaze towards me among the many figures.
I stood frozen in place, until Bai Yu’s lips curled into a slight arc; Sister Bai was smiling at me.
At that moment, the last trace of worry in my heart completely vanished because Sister Bai had not changed from the beginning to the end…
