Chapter 33: Cat Doesn

Senior! Senior!

While having dessert after dinner, digesting and scrolling on my phone chatting idly, the junior suddenly slammed the table with an excited expression, thrusting her phone toward the Witch Miss,

Hey, look! On the school forum right now, all the trending tags are about you!

Hmm…?

Taking the phone from the junior's excited, trembling hand, the Witch Miss received it.

On the screen, the school forum's daily hot search list.

Scrolling down from top to bottom…

#Third-year aloof senior, ruthless and taciturn solo devil test#

#Are you all like that in the Magic Class? #

#"Know Nothing About Strength" video#

#Does the Physics Class really have a future? #

#Magic Class senior: No, only she is like that#

#Want to be the senior's dog, but the senior only likes black cats#

#Begging for the method to join Bai Yan's fan club#

#Third-year rumor: Bai Yan is the class's bottom? #

……

Cough cough, well… after all, I passed the test, so being noticed is normal.

The Witch Miss, with a calm expression, returned the phone to the junior, and then, under the cover of the table, furtively pulled out her own phone.

Although it's just the campus forum, an entire page is about me!

Fortunately, I carefully groomed my image today; in these candid photos I look so cool! I really have the aura of an elegant mage!

Image overhaul, success!

Who would think that such a rising magic star's day job is actually an assassin!

But… wouldn't having a finishing move make battles look cooler?

For example, simply strike a pose, then narrow your eyes with an arrogant expression and chant: "Destruction~"

Ah… that sounds like something worth considering.

After all, transformation and chanting ultimate skills should be standard for magical girls, right?

Moreover, it might increase its spread?

Otherwise, when her story is spread by word of mouth, it'd be embarrassing if all they said was she drew a dragon with her left hand and hung a rainbow with her right.

Of course, when facing the junior, the Witch Miss remains as composed as a paralyzed face.

Through the Symbiotic Contract, feeling the Witch Miss's vast emotions and seeing her unperturbed expression, Cat couldn't help but give her a thumbs up in his heart.

You're pretending, aren't you!

Cat admires!

If he could hide his emotions that well, the earlier incident of secretly hiding the doll whose heart was torn out by a black cat wouldn't have been exposed.

"Senior, I'm truly impressed by this about you."

Junior, what you said is absolutely right.

Cat now also holds her in great esteem.

While listening to their chat, Cat kept adding lines in his heart, sentence by sentence.

There's no helping it; back when he could still go online, Cat was a chatterbox.

Now this situation of staying silent outwardly while chattering wildly inside is all too familiar to him.

Huh…?

Once Pikachu can talk in the future, should we set up a local network to communicate via brain waves?

That would facilitate their small-channel communication while also giving his complaints a bit of response.

After all…

It seems Cat can't get a word in edgewise here with the Witch Miss.

Now the Witch Miss and the junior's topic has circled back to the school test.

"Say, senior, do you know the inside scoop on this test?"

"Inside…?"

The Witch Miss tilted her head, slightly curious about the topic the junior suddenly brought up.

"Hmph!"

"Now let me, this little gossip expert, explain it to you, senior!"

After the junior finally found a strength, her arms-crossed proud stance made Cat feel like he was seeing his earlier self with a raised tail.

I see; that old thing could hold back from giving me two strikes, and it's really not easy to roar.

"Although outwardly they say the extra Teaching Group test is arranged to judge students' abilities and thus ensure their safety when exploring dungeons,"

but in fact, oh, it's simply an ungraded yet important separate test."

"Although some students didn't sign up for the dungeon due to their own ability issues, during this period they were all called in by the homeroom teacher and temporarily formed into test groups."

"Senior, just look at the newly announced test group schedule and you'll see."

"Why have such a test?"

Recalling the seemingly quite long 'test schedule for each group', the Witch Miss continued asking curiously.

"Because outside, there's no way to monitor the dungeon, whether by magic or technology,"

and using recording stones or sending a teacher to accompany the team still can't avoid cheating, unfairness, concealment, etc.

But each major university still needs a relatively fair method from all aspects to evaluate each student's ability with a test, which is why this was arranged.

After hearing the explanation, Witch Miss thoughtfully nodded, then raised a question.

"I see, but if that's the concern, why not just include this test as an exam item?"

That was also what Cat wanted to ask.

"It's probably due to multiple comprehensive factors,"

Managers tend to prefer secret scoring and investigation, since everyday performance better reveals a person's true nature.

Moreover, dungeon exploration is the ultimate destination for us awakened ones; using high scores as rewards is more persuasive than faculty's subjective grading.

By combining the team's collective score with each member's role and strength during the test, they can easily infer who played the key role in this dungeon test.

After a long speech, the junior, eyes fixed intensely on Witch Miss and Cat, nervously took a sip of ice water.

"I don't know any more than that!"

"However, one thing I can be sure of is

Senior, because of your excellent grades and performance, your personal school record and this test's photos and evaluation may already be on the desks of the Magic Association, Eastern Alliance top universities, and other leaders~"

"..."

This test is essentially an internal selection.

Cat understood.

And Witch Miss became a bit nervous because of the junior's teasing.

So... does this mean it's time for the university 'interview' selection?

Honestly, she's not ready yet!

Had she known this test was so important, would she need to meticulously design the battle steps, magical performance, skill combos, and so on?

Ah... is a hasty wrap‑up really okay?

"By the way, senior, which university are you planning to attend?"

The junior's question interrupted Witch Miss's nervous rambling; in the confusion, she instinctively answered honestly.

"Hmm... I haven't thought it over carefully yet.

My previous thought was just to give it my all and see which university's admission criteria I meet?"

"..."

Hearing Witch Miss's answer, the junior was genuinely speechless.

"Senior, has anyone ever said you're really good at Versailles?"

"... Actually, no one has."

While answering, Witch Miss even modestly scratched her head.

"..."

Seeing Witch Miss like that, Cat helplessly sighed and turned her head toward the window.

Witch Miss's cultivation is a heavy and long road...

At times like this, one must say, "Then we'll see which school is worthy of me!"

Or, "Whichever school offers the most enticing admission terms, that's where I'll go!"

Daughter, what you need is arrogance! Arrogance!

The junior thought Witch Miss's remark was a Versailles move, but Cat knew it came from the heart.

She will still retain some old inferiority and self‑doubt.

Sigh... but she can't rush either.

Just like the wrap‑up of today's final test, Cat could clearly sense Witch Miss's shift in mindset.

Sure enough, the Daily Task of letting oneself go cannot stop!

Right.

Willful Cat decided to temporarily add this task to Witch Miss via the system right now.

Demon Peak, Proud World, as long as I, Bai Yan, exist, there is heaven!

Repeat this sentence twenty times today!

o(´^｀)o

"Although they're all rated as top schools, the resource gap is significant; senior, you should study these matters carefully."

While Cat painfully reflected on her inadequate supervision as an old father, Witch Miss continued discussing university matters with the junior.

"I see, thank you for the reminder."

Junior: ⁄(⁄⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄⁄)⁄

"Oh dear, who's who between us, Bai senior!"

Don't be formal with me; ask any question, I'm fairly knowledgeable about this!

Seeing the junior's confident face, Bai Yan was even a bit surprised,

"You're only a sophomore, and you're already making university plans?"

"Not exactly; I used to study in the Imperial Capital, so I was immersed in it."

Besides, I have an older brother; when the elders nagged them, I overheard some things.

"Alright! After I finish the dungeon exam, let's set a private time, and I'll trouble you to explain these details to me."

"I... I promise to speak all I know and say everything! Senior!!"

Seeing Witch Miss's look of 'please do it', the junior almost threw her head back.

Heavens! My deity actually came to beg me, to rely on me!

Seeing the junior clutching her chest, almost as if needing oxygen, Cat turned her head aside again.

Here, there's another late‑stage case that's almost beyond rescue.

He silently promised to give her a grass cat; is that really the right thing to do?

Is it really okay to let her be friends with Witch Miss?

Will Witch Miss really not be led astray by her???

Thinking of Witch Miss possibly making that expression later, Cat felt a chill down their spine.

Little kitten mom, kiss!

Ah~ my god~ my little kitten is actually this cute!

mua, mua, mua.

Heaven! My god, my little kitten is just too cute!

…

That's not right…

Feeling the imagined scene match reality without any gap, Cat suddenly realized a very serious matter.

Essentially, there's no difference between these two people!!

As the ancestors said, like attracts like, people group by kind!

￥￥￥￥￥

Because Witch Miss suddenly discovered she had many extra daily task trainings to do, after dinner she only briefly strolled a few rounds with her junior schoolmate before going home.

After parting with Witch Miss, the junior schoolmate watched her retreating back, walked over to a black sedan that had been silently following from afar, opened its door and got in.

Back home, the junior schoolmate just sat on the sofa, hadn't had time to sip hot tea, when an angry voice came from behind her.

"Su Ya!"

Turning around, she saw that the magical video call showed her angry old father.

"Hey, Dad, why did you think to call me so early? And why are you in such a bad mood? Did you eat something wrong today?"

Seeing his daughter with a lazy expression, the middle‑aged man's eyebrows furrowed even deeper.

"Are you kidding? You skipped class without reason today, and the teacher has already reported it!"

"Your butler‑grandpa answered the phone for you; if this reaches me, my old face will be trampled under your foot!"

Seeing her dad still babbling nonstop, the junior schoolmate crossed her hands, and with a confident face answered her own dad,

"Dad, you really shouldn't say that, skipping that class was worth it!"

"You rebel son! Are you trying to make me die of anger!"

On the other side of the screen, the middle‑aged man's image began to blur.

It's obvious he's furious, raging helplessly.

Rebel Son, skipping class and still so brazen.

Is there any justice left? Any law left?!

Just as the middle‑aged man was contemplating whether to beat this Rebel Son through the phone line, the Rebel Son opened his mouth to explain,

"Dad, don't get angry yet, listen to me."

"I've recently met a third‑year senior."

"Is that the senior who took you to skip class?"

"…"

"Ah, Dad, how can you generalize the issue like that!"

"This is a fact."

"…"

"Fine, fine, seems we can't get through, just look at this first."

Saying that, Su Ya didn't continue any explanation and directly played the test footage she had recorded.

Witch Miss completed the test in a very short time, taking only two minutes forty‑five seconds.

This also includes over forty seconds at the start when the doll was allowed to run freely.

The video finished quickly, and the middle‑aged man, who had just been fuming, regained his calm.

Seeing that his father had already successfully rebooted, Su Ya seized the moment to start explaining,

"I went today to see the senior's test."

"Because the senior was just too handsome, I also ate a meal with her, bought bread and chocolate together, and even exchanged a keychain!"

"…"

On the video side, watching his somewhat dazed daughter, the middle‑aged man slowly said,

"Next time… if you have dinner with that senior, Dad will reimburse you."

"Yay!!"

ヾ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ

"What is this senior's name?"

"The senior is named Bai Yan."

"Where does she live?"

"Why are you asking for her address! I won't tell you, hm! I haven't even been to her house yet, so I won't tell you."

"However~~~ the senior said she doesn't have a definite university yet~~~"

"Dad, give me some perks, I'm not unwilling to try hard for you~~"

"Still need you to help me work hard? I, a distinguished student of the Imperial Capital's Wen Yue University…"

"Don't be ridiculous!"

Watching the video of the man with a smug, arrogant look, Su Ya gave him no respect and tore him down,

"My senior looks like a combat specialist at first glance. Where she'll go in the future is obvious.

There's no way she'll go to that research university of yours?

With a talent like my senior, could you let her waste time doing frivolous research?!

"Don't worry, I'll strongly recommend my senior to Imperial Capital VV University!"

"Rebel Son! You rebel son!"

"Ah~ what should I do, I'm in a rebellious puberty!"

"And my dear father, you're so busy! You big busy person!"

"Are you now also at school, unable to even go home?"

"Come at me! If you have the skill, duel me offline!"

"Rebel Son! You rebel son!! If you have the skill…"

"I have the skill to not go home for the New Year!!"

"No way! Your mother would kill me!"

After the two almost simultaneously shouted the same line, the chaotic scene suddenly became somewhat controllable.

The father and daughter stared at each other, then, with tacit understanding, abandoned the discussion about the 'mother' topic, and at this point the video chat neared its end,

"Ah, right, don't forget to reimburse the meal expenses! Dear Principal!"

"Rebel Son! What are you doing now? You want to hang up!"

"I turned against you! I haven't even held you accountable for skipping class…"

The butler beside, watching the call video darken, let out a slightly headache‑inducing sigh,

"Miss, if you hang up like this, your father might again…"

Ding—ding—!

As the butler expected, the phone indeed rang.

"Please hang up, thank you!"

"…"

On the other end, the middle‑aged man, after seeing countless hung‑up calls, slammed his phone aside.

I'm furious!

This little girl's single‑character name 'Ya' was chosen hoping she would differ from those rascals and become a quiet lady.

Result!!

From childhood she was wayward and disobedient; after graduating middle school she even threatened his secretary to transfer her to a corner high school.

(angry face) This rebellious Rebel Son!

But…

She, at last, met someone she both respects and admires.

Bai Yan.

Bai…

Bai family?

No, if it's related to that person and has such high magical talent, they should be brought back to Imperial Capital for him to personally educate.

Moreover, this slow‑boiling frog method differs from the Bai family's usual high‑profile, crushing style.

However, the Bai family's ancestral mansion inevitably raises doubts about the connection.

"Bai Yan…"

The man silently muttered the name, scrolling through countless privileges, watching the test video just uploaded to the campus intranet, and fell into prolonged contemplation.

The Bai family people are too odd, too prone to extremes.

The current head, Bai, is a monster among monsters.

If possible, he doesn't want his daughter to have any contact with such a tainted monster, but…

Sigh, never mind.

Why think about this? Even if I say it, would that Rebel Son listen? Would he distance himself from the senior she admires?

No.

Then why bother?

If she loses her only friend…

Then… the whole roof of this house might be ripped off by her.

And the Rakshasa at home might even draw a sword to discuss with him the years and deeds of my life in the martial world.

Descendants have their own blessings; if he stops caring, that's fine!

Give up!

Right! If there's anything, go find his dad! He's a useless person!

Obviously, Su Ya's rebellious nature means this seemingly dignified and proper father must bear full responsibility.

￥￥￥￥￥

Just back home, opening the bedroom door, Witch Miss stared at the house filled with 'bodies strewn everywhere' and was at a loss.

"Eh eh eh? Cat, you placed so many Pikachu in my room?"

Cat: Σ(⊙▽⊙「

Ah… forgot to tidy the room.

At this moment, Cat's mood was like causing chaos at home all day yet forgetting to clean up before Mom came home.

The somewhat cramped, nowhere-to-set-foot Witch Miss twitched the corner of her mouth and sighed,

"Then I'll change clothes and go out; you can just play by yourself in the house."

"Meow~"

So, under Cat's gaze, Witch Miss deftly took off her school uniform, and while retrieving the sportswear from the wardrobe she even, with ease, bent down and patted the cat's head.

"I'm leaving; you can take your time playing in the house."

"But don't forget to clean the house before meals! I have to study when I get back!!"

After saying that, Witch Miss finally put on a sports bra, a short‑sleeve top and shorts, then pushed the door open and left.

Remaining in the room and staring toward the doorway was only Cat, whose eyes were wide and drenched in cold sweat.

That's why I said it!!

One misstep leads to another misstep!

This... how can he even open his mouth to speak!!

Ah!!!!!!!

"Meow!!!!!!!"

Cat doesn't know, nor does it want to know.

The slacking Cat can only employ the 'drag' technique to meekly dodge the issue.

After rolling on the ground for a long time, finally tossing the turbulent and smooth image from its mind, Cat got up and surveyed the room filled with dead, sprawled Pikachu.

"Eh...?"

At that moment, Cat saw the Unit-1 Pikachu standing motionless in front of the bookshelf.

He... what is this... doing?