Ch. 100 - A Grand, Official Opening Day

After the third roommate moved into the villa, my life finally returned to something resembling normal.

I’d already had my fill of running around over the past few days. Compared to chasing people all over campus, kneading dough at the bakery was far more enjoyable.

That said, even though I had officially paused my work guiding new students, I still made a point of looking for my fourth roommate. She had vanished as if she’d disappeared into thin air. If I still couldn’t find her, I would have had no choice but to report it.

After all, if someone could disappear without explanation and the academy didn’t take it seriously, then there was something fundamentally wrong with this place.

Of course, considering this was the School of Transcendence, that explanation almost felt reasonable.

Somehow, it made it more terrifying.

I really didn’t want to wake up one day and find that I’d been quietly erased from existence.

After that incident, Dongli Yiren also returned to her part-time job. She seemed to be deliberately keeping it from me. After the first time I offered to go check on her at work—and was firmly turned down—I never brought it up again.

Running into someone you knew at work was awkward, after all.

And besides, she herself was a classic tsundere.

She probably hadn’t realized it yet, but unfortunately for her, tsunderes were already outdated in my book.

I figured I’d give her a surprise another time. I was still hoping to get my flight license before the semester officially started.

As for our other roommate, Guan Qiuling, she adapted remarkably well to her current life. At least for now, she didn’t seem to be short on money.

To be honest, neither was I.

But not because I had a part-time job—rather, I suddenly remembered the subsidy the academy had promised for admitting a male student.

I planned to bring it up with both of them when I got the chance. Dongli Yiren got up earlier than I did and came back later every night.

Working that hard, she really shouldn’t have been pushed any further. At that rate, I almost worried she’d end up getting sold off somewhere.

Time passed day by day.

Until the official opening day of the Witch School finally arrived.

That day, I deliberately went to the freshman reception area just to take in the vibe.

If I hadn’t arrived on campus early, this would probably have been my first impression of the place.

Massive Earthvein constructs now covered the once bare and utilitarian registration square. From a distance, the iconic Welcome, New Students lettering was already visible.

Girls stepped into the grounds with anticipation written all over their faces. From the moment they entered the Dome, guidance lined the entire route leading to registration.

The seniors responsible for orientation had changed into standardized uniforms, no longer wearing the crude, temporary outfits from before. They guided the freshmen through the process in organized batches.

Meanwhile, I stood at the edge of the street, quietly admiring the Earthvein flow that enveloped the entire academy.

Yes, Earthvein flow constructs.

Over the past few days, I have learned a bit about Earthvein energy. At its core, it was a vast energy network flowing beneath the ground, threading through the entire world.

And the Witch School took advantage of that distribution, systematically channeling Earthvein energy into every corner of the campus.

For opening day, even the arrows on the ground were made of Earthvein energy—semi-transparent and intangible, like three-dimensional holograms suspended in midair.

When I passed my fingers through them, ripples of energy spread outward. The manifestation was so clear that I didn’t even need Psi-vision to see it.

Interacting with them triggered floating text, telling new students exactly what they needed to do and where each path led.

And that was only the most basic application.

The massive illusory structure used for registration was also composed entirely of Earthvein energy. Once the enrollment period ended, this place would revert to a wide, open plaza.

In the end, all this grandeur was little more than spectacle—like the ceremonial fountains in my previous life that only came alive during major events.

Still, the fact that something so extravagant could be created with a simple gesture, at virtually no real cost, was undeniably impressive.

More importantly, it left the new students with a perfect first impression.

This was the world of transcendence.

But I knew better.

I knew that what lay ahead for the School of Transcendence was hell.

They just didn’t realize it yet.

And truthfully,

Neither did I.

But transcendence could never remain this peaceful and beautiful forever.

On the day of registration, my phone finally received an official notification from the academy.

First came the standard welcome message, ‘Congratulations on enrolling in the Witch School,’ that sort of thing.

Then followed the formal announcement outlining the enrollment procedures.

And finally, the part that actually mattered: freshman class assignments.

I was very “honored” to be placed in Class 14.

Officially, the numbering wasn’t based on grades or evaluations—it was supposedly random.

I didn’t buy it for a second.

After all, I knew Tan Han personally. The way teachers had fought over her was nothing short of brutal. Random assignment was clearly for filler students like me.

I’d arrived early and lingered around the freshman entrance, purely to see if any other guys would show up.

Today was the unified enrollment day, after all. No guy would willingly enroll in the Witch School on his own, right?

At least, I hadn’t seen a single one so far.

But if today really was the official intake day, then the competition for new students should have been even more intense than before.

So where were all those seniors?

Had they been pulled elsewhere to avoid scaring the newcomers?

“Yuehan, what are you doing here?” The sudden voice snapped me out of my thoughts. After a brief pause, recognition hit instantly.

I knew that voice far too well.

“Bai Yu!”

I turned around and saw her—someone I hadn’t seen in ages—and the joy that surged up was impossible to hide.

“Mm, Yuehan. Miss me?”

“I did! A lot!” I said without hesitation. “You said you’d only be gone for a few days, and then you vanished for ages. No messages, no updates, nothing.”

I lunged forward and hugged Bai Yu without a second thought.

The old me never would have dared to do that.

The current me… didn’t really care anymore.

Bai Yu definitely wouldn’t mind.

And if she did, I could just apologize on the spot. Around her, I had a little room to be reckless.

“Sorry, Yuehan,” Bai Yu said. “I misjudged how long things would take. But I’m back now, aren’t I?”

She didn’t comment on the hug, only reached out and gently patted my head, her expression indulgent.

Somehow, ever since I’d become a girl, my relationship with Bai Yu felt closer, like we’d shifted from close friends to something more like best girlfriends.

It felt… nice.

“By the way, Bai Yu,” I asked, looking up at her, “how did you find me here?”

“I went to the bakery where you work,” she replied. “They told me you had the day off and that you might be here. I figured I’d try my luck—and I did find you.”

“Oh, the seniors told you?” I laughed. “They guessed really well. I didn’t even tell them for sure I was coming. How long did you look for me?”

“If you’re asking from the sky,” Bai Yu said with a smile, “just one glance.”

As she spoke, she pointed ahead and guided me toward the crowd.

“So? Doesn’t this feel different from when you enrolled early?”

“It really does,” I said. “Everything feels so… grand.”

“Then how about I walk you through the process again?” Bai Yu asked, smiling as she took my hand. “Every student only gets one welcome ceremony, after all.”

“Okay~”

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