Chapter 755: The Bakery and Senior Ying Shiqian, Who I Haven’t Seen in a Long Time
The market event for the opening ceremony will last for a while, and while wandering around, I also encountered some of the sisters I met in the laboratory.
If I hadn’t known them, who would have guessed that the seniors and even the teaching assistants we rarely see would be manning stalls at such an unremarkable market?
Unfortunately, when I rummaged through my storage equipment, I found I didn’t have anything to sell.
Otherwise, I would have liked to set up a small stall next to them and sell something random; that would surely be fun.
It’s not that I lack money; what I lack is this wonderful experience and the feeling of having friends around.
Leaving the market, I continued down the path guided for new students.
New students, armed with their admission letters, regardless of how they arrived—after passing through the barrier of the Witch Academy—would enter a place utterly different from the Magic Capital.
And this is the Witch Academy.
Perhaps for many of them arriving in the Magic Capital for the first time, it might not be of use, but that’s fine; as long as they are within the academy’s dominion, holding the admission letter, they will enter the academy in the next moment.
Once in the academy, the Wanlian Main Network Tree would guide the new students to report for enrollment, making it exceptionally convenient.
I remembered when I enrolled, it was Sister Bai who guided me, and due to the process being a bit disorganized at the time, some students hadn’t completed their enrollment procedures and needed the club’s assistance to find their way within the academy.
Caring for and locating new students scattered throughout the Witch Academy was why, after the new students finished enrolling, the Earth Vein Operating System became cluttered.
Of course, from my perspective, the main reason many new students couldn’t complete their enrollment process on time… might still be those overly eager seniors.
As I passed through the crowd of new students, watching their faces full of enthusiasm and longing, I couldn’t help but feel a bit nostalgic.
Even someone like me has become a senior in their eyes.
My clones were tirelessly bustling about.
However, I didn’t plan to compete with my clones for work; today is a day for new students’ enrollment. My clones are guiding the new students along the main pathways and nodes of the enrollment process. Though the number of new students has increased, the work has become simpler.
The flow of the crowd and the guiding markers created by the root network naturally help the new students know where to go, and those hundreds of clones act as volunteers, answering the new students’ basic questions.
“Wow~ Another Sister Xiao Han.”
“Hello~” I responded to the group of girls who were with me, three or four of them gathering together.
“Really?! Are you also Sister Xiao Han?” One girl, surprised by my response, immediately asked.
“Yeah.”
“Speaking of which, how many Sister Xiao Hans are there in the Witch Academy? I feel like I’ve bumped into several just coming this way, and I’ve checked in with each one.”
“I heard from a senior that completing the check-in with all the Sister Xiao Hans is equivalent to finishing the enrollment process. Is that true?”
“Who spread that rumor?”
Hearing them say this, I immediately realized they had been tricked by some senior; what a bunch of naive new students!
“Eh? Isn’t it true?”
“Of course not; my clones are just here to guide you. After registering for enrollment, just ask casually, and you’ll know what to do next after enrolling.”
“Oh… that’s too bad. I even specially prepared a notebook to check in with all the Sister Xiao Hans. Wait! Does that mean… there won’t be much to do after enrollment? Can I continue looking for Sister Xiao Han to check in?”
“If you insist, it’s naturally fine.” I replied, playing along with her statement, “Alright~ I have to go that way now, goodbye~”
“Wait! Wait! Sister Xiao Han! We haven’t checked in yet!”
“Right, Sister Xiao Han, where are you going? Aren’t you guiding the new students?”
“Guiding your enrollment is what my clone is supposed to do.” I laughed and took the notebook from the girl who wanted to check in with me, and there were already several instances of “Sister Xiao Han” written inside. I quickly signed “Yang Yuelan.”
“My main body needs to enjoy some rare leisure time~ So I’m planning to go check out the club recruitment area.”
“Eh? Main body?!” The girl who took back her notebook looked shocked at me, glancing at the signature in her notebook.
When they wanted to say something again, they found the figure in front of them had vanished, leaving only the moving crowd.
“Ah! That… that couldn’t have really been the true form of Sister Xiao Han, right?”
“Wow… it’s the full signature of Sister Xiao Han! It might really be that legendary senior!”
“Even the name signed is different—Yang Yuelan… it shines with golden light!”
As the girls gasped, they again resumed their enrollment process. For the new students, coincidences and adventures in the extraordinary world are probably just like this.
“Hey~ After we finish enrolling, let’s go check out the club recruitment that Sister Xiao Han mentioned; maybe we’ll run into her again!”
“I want to see what the clubs at the Extraordinary Academy are like; it should be pretty interesting!”
“Isn’t it… how long would that take? By the time we finish, maybe Sister Xiao Han would have already left?”
“What if? What if, right~ Let’s go see!”
“I’ll pass; I still want to keep collecting Sister Xiao Han’s signature check-ins!”
Their cheerful voices gradually melted into the crowd, while I arrived at the club recruitment area.
I came here hoping to see if I could find someone I knew.
Moreover… to meet Store Manager Shali.
Although my feelings towards this store manager are quite ordinary and I also hold some prejudiced notions, she is still one of the few people I know.
I had a pretty nice daily life working part-time there; if it weren’t for the many twists afterwards, I might have felt that studying, living, and working part-time here until graduation could have also been a decent choice.
But many things change too quickly.
Now, as I go to see her, I don’t even know what to say. Perhaps just meeting her is the meaning in itself.
Besides, when I went to pick up my cheap younger brother to enroll in the Witch Academy, I found that Manager Shali had also gone there. Although she eventually left in anger due to Yang Yunhan, she brought that special red velvet cake, which shows she valued the event.
After all, last year, it was only the top scholar Tan Han who received such treatment.
I should at least go apologize to my cheap brother; that counts as a lame but sufficient reason.
When I arrived at the club recruitment area, it was already bustling with a lot of people.
The crowd gathered here isn’t all new students; there are also some students from other grades looking to switch clubs or trying to join a new club. In short, this rare moment of gathering clubs is indeed an opportunity.
After all, clubs essentially serve as a platform for new students, a launchpad that helps them take off in their early student lives. If one only wants to spend a mundane academy life, they could choose clubs focused on interests.
However… after circling the venue, I found that the clubs gathered here were mostly those not very well-known.
Clubs like the All-Purpose Association and the Witch Secret Realm Association are rarely seen, or rather, many slots in such clubs may have already been predetermined from the start.
If they choose to play that way, then let them.
I walked to a more marginal area and found a familiar figure, along with a familiar club zone.
In the area marked “Bakery,” there were only some simple tables and chairs. A figure was lazily sprawled on the table, beside which seemed to be a basket and some cookies that hadn’t been handed out yet.
As I stood there, my figure blocked the sunlight streaming in.
“Hmm… Who is it? Here to see our bakery?” Ying Shiqian rubbed her eyes, speaking in a somewhat drowsy manner.
“Senior Ying Shiqian~ It’s me~”
“Hmm?”
Hearing that familiar voice, Ying Shiqian let out a surprised “Hmm?” as if her brain hadn’t quite clicked yet, raising her head.
Her still somewhat hazy eyes gradually regained their sparkle, and her gaze began to focus.
“Xiao Han?! Ah? How could you be here!”
“You gave me quite the scare, Senior Ying Shiqian! Are you slacking off again?” I leaned on the table she was napping on, smiling at this person I hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Xiao Han… what a surprise…” Ying Shiqian had completely woken up at this point, and upon seeing me, she wore a mix of shock and joy. “You can’t be a clone, right? It’s the main body? Recently I’ve noticed there are so many of your clones outside…”
“Of course it’s the main body that came to see you~ It looks like not many people come here, huh?” I laughed, moving aside to pull out an empty chair and sat down.
“Of course, who has the free time to come to the Extraordinary Academy just to learn baking? Sigh~” Ying Shiqian sighed after finishing her words, “But Xiao Han, I rarely see you around. Did you come here for a specific reason?”
“Just to take a break for myself. I don’t know many people at the Witch Academy, and the ones at the bakery are already quite familiar to me.”
“Wow~ Being said like this, I’m quite flattered.”
“Senior Ying Shiqian has actually become humble; that’s not quite the same as the one I used to know. I wouldn’t mind if you bragged about our relationship to others~” I chatted cheerfully with Senior Ying Shiqian.
This feeling is somewhat like when I first started my part-time job, yet there’s a distinct distance. I know it’s hard for me to return to that former relationship now.
After chatting about some casual topics, we also talked about other things.
“By the way, did you come here alone for recruitment again, Senior Ying Shiqian? How is Senior Tang Yihan doing now?” I picked up a club application form that was heavily pressed down beside us, all new and none filled out.
Next to it were a few folded sheets that appeared to be mangled by Ying Shiqian’s origami attempts.
“It’s tough like this, huh~” Ying Shiqian sighed, but there was no sense of complaint in her tone, and she even seemed to take pleasure in it; perhaps after graduating from the Witch Academy, she has lived the retirement life she wished for?
“That guy Tang Yihan didn’t want to come accompany me. As for the store manager… speaking of the store manager, she… that…”
“What’s wrong with the store manager?” I asked out of curiosity.
“It’s about your brother, Yang Yunhan. You should still remember him, right? The manager went there too, but after coming back, she seemed… really angry. I don’t know how she is now.”
“Oh, I roughly know about that. My cheap brother hasn’t faced the harshness of society and angered the manager. I was thinking of coming over to apologize or something.” I explained.
“Come on~ What’s there to apologize for? It’s been so long; the anger has long passed. Besides… I heard that you somehow brought your brother to the Witch Academy?”
“Yeah, I want him to experience some hardship at the Witch Academy. That guy hasn’t learned anything good since childhood from his parents.”
“Indeed, I heard he even said things like it was good that you died or something; I don’t know if that’s true. If it is… I’d really want to go over and give him a good spanking!”
“Well, that would be fine—just a lesson would suffice. He is ultimately just a minor child; his innocent words shouldn’t be taken to heart. I don’t mind too much as long as he can recognize right from wrong now. Life at the Extraordinary Academy is also a turning point for him, a chance to say goodbye to the past and change himself.”
“You’re quite open-minded about it, Xiao Han.” Ying Shiqian said, smiling, “But seriously, during the holiday period, rumors were spreading throughout the academy that you had died; that really scared me.”
“Eh~ It’s really fine, yes~ Just don’t listen to the rumors circulating online about the academy.” I said with a smile, “By the way, I’m curious, where is the store manager now?”
“The store manager… how should I put it? She should be dealing with things related to Tan Han.” Ying Shiqian pondered for a moment, then hesitantly said.
“Hmm? With Tan Han? What matters?” I asked curiously.
“What else could it be? Ever since the manager gave her that treasure, she’s been busy over this matter ever since.”
“Oh, I see.” As Ying Shiqian explained, I remembered that the store manager, as the holder of the largest fragment of Extraordinary Knowledge, would indeed be plagued with trouble continuously.
Even if she turned that Crown into a sealing magic wand and gave it to Tan Han, she would probably still face many problems.
The All-Purpose Association was the first to trouble the store manager, but in the end, nothing came of it.
Maybe it has something to do with me also acquiring a Heart of Cold Wave?
After all, without me, Extraordinary Knowledge would still be incomplete.
But… I now possess two Hearts of Cold Wave.
“Xiao Han, the Extraordinary Knowledge the store manager has must relate to some very important matters, right?” Ying Shiqian asked curiously.
Although she roughly knew what that was, she didn’t know the deeper layers of understanding, such as what the Great Spellbook shaped using Extraordinary Knowledge would be like.
“Sort of… Even the Extraordinary Mentors can’t ignore it.”
“Extraordinary Mentors would compete for it? No wonder…”
“What’s wrong? Did an actual mentor take action against it?” I asked out of curiosity.
After all, this Extraordinary Knowledge seemed connected to fortune, and the mentors shouldn’t be meddling too much with it, right?
Or… do other Extraordinary Academies have their sights set on this?
“Not exactly; mainly… too many people covet this thing. Ever since Tan Han got the wand made from that Crown—called the Absolute Cold Wand, if I’m not mistaken—she has been challenged continuously and even faced attempted violent thefts. Even when I only hear the store manager vent, I can feel the hardship Tan Han faces every day.”
“Challenges?”
“Yeah, right over at the Arena. I sometimes watch Tan Han fight over there; I have to say, with the Absolute Cold Wand, she’s really strong! I heard she can even match up evenly in unrestricted duels against a teaching assistant!”
“Is that so?” Upon hearing this news, a hint of surprise flashed in my eyes. It seems that after so much time, I’m not the only one making progress.
