Miss Witch, even if we're poor, we can't sell ourselves!

Miya held the teacup in her hand, the warmth of the cup's walls seeping through the ceramic to her fingertips.

She looked down at her reflection swaying in the tea, Meredith's words echoing repeatedly in her mind.

In your mind's eye there are lanterns, fireworks, and an entire city.

Has she ever seen her own sea of ​​consciousness?

Maybe not.

She seemed to have only entered her own mental space, but that wasn't her sea of ​​consciousness. All she knew was that her stats were terrible, so terrible that she was forced to drop out of magic academy after only one year.

But now someone is telling her that there has always been a crack in the door that she thought was welded shut.

Miya put down her teacup, looked up, her eyes sparkling, and then reached out and grabbed Meredith's sleeve.

"Teacher, could you tell me about magic? I mean, what is the system of magic? I only knew before that the higher the magic power, the more powerful you are, but you just said that flesh magic doesn't rely on magic power... I don't quite understand."

Meredith looked down at the cuff she was clutching and gave a bright smile that ignited a passion for academic pursuits.

She straightened up from the edge of the desk, pulled a thick leather-covered notebook from the bookshelf next to her, turned to a blank page, picked up the pen she had used to annotate the paper, and drew a large circle in the center of the page.

"Okay, I'll tell you."

She turned the notebook towards Miya, the pen tip touching the center of the circle.

"Magic is like a tree."

"All magic originates from the same thing, which we call 'magic power'."

"It is one of the most fundamental forms of energy in this world."

"Like a tree, it absorbs nutrients from its roots and transports them through the trunk to every branch and every leaf."

The pen tip extends outward from the center, drawing several thick main branches, each branch branching into countless smaller branches. Under her pen, a tree growing upside down gradually takes shape, with its roots anchored in the center and its branches and leaves stretching outward, covering the entire sheet of paper.

"These main branches are the major disciplines that are now recognized in the field of magic education."

She used the tip of her pen to tap each of the main branches in turn.

"The thickest one is elemental magic: fire, water, wind, earth, lightning, and ice. Most witches follow this path because elemental magic has a relatively low talent threshold; as long as the magic concentration meets the standard, one can get started."

"This is alchemy—the study of the transformation and equivalent exchange of matter, which requires precise control of magic and a deep understanding of materials science."

"This is a summoning spell—summoning familiars or spirits from another world, which requires a high level of mental strength."

"This is mechanical magic—carving magic circles onto mechanical structures to give machines magical capabilities, a popular trend in recent years."

"This is a necromancy technique—it deals with the dead, remnants of souls, and memories, requiring a special perceptive talent."

Miya's gaze followed the movement of the pen tip, looking at each branch one by one. Each branch was neatly labeled with a name and small annotations. Although Meredith's handwriting was hastily written, its structure and logic were as clear as a textbook.

Her gaze finally settled on the outermost branch.

The branch was drawn very thin, appearing particularly frail compared to the other thick main branches, but Meredith drew a small asterisk next to it.

"Flesh and Blood Magic"

Meredith's pen stopped on that branch.

"It is also a branch on this tree, and like all the other branches, it comes from the same root, but it has one fundamental difference."

"What's the difference?"

"All other branches are powered by magic. The higher the concentration of magic, the stronger the magic. This is an ironclad rule."

"But flesh magic is different; it replaces magic with life force."

Meredith put down his pen, folded his hands on his knees, and his expression became more serious.

"Life force is something completely different from magic."

"Magic is external. You absorb magical elements from the air, convert them into magical power within your body, and then release them."

"If you overdraw your magic, it will damage your spirit, which can be recovered in a few days. But your life force is part of your body. If you overdraw your life force, you may really die."

She deliberately emphasized the last few words, then paused for a moment, letting the sentence settle fully in Mi Ye's mind.

She watched Mi Ye's reaction, her deep blue eyes carefully observing every expression of the little girl in front of her through the lenses of her gold-rimmed glasses.

"The reason why flesh and blood magic is unpopular is not because it is weak; on the contrary, it is very strong."

"At the same level, flesh magic's combat effectiveness far surpasses most mainstream disciplines, but it has two fatal hurdles."

"First, it has extremely high requirements for talent. One must have a very high concentration of life force and physical attributes to even begin, while most witches are born with abundant magic power but have mediocre physical qualities, which do not meet the requirements at all."

"Secondly, and most importantly, its risks are uncontrollable."

"If you fail with elemental magic, you can simply extinguish it with a fireball and create another one. But if you fail with flesh magic, you may permanently lose a portion of your life force, which no healing magic can restore."

Meredith closed the notebook, leaned forward slightly, and gently took Miya's hands in his.

Her hands were cold; the calluses on her fingertips brushed against the back of Miya's hand, feeling rough yet warm.

"Miya, I'm telling you this not to scare you, but because you really might end up on this path."

"I have examined your consciousness and talent; you are highly compatible with flesh and blood magic."

"But I must make the risks clear: this path is not easy; it is more difficult than any mainstream road."

"If you choose a conventional path, such as learning a craft that doesn't require magic, you can still do very well with your intelligence and hard work."

"So, I want you to think this through carefully—"

She tightened her grip on Mi Ye's hand slightly, her gaze fixed directly into those honey-colored eyes.

"Do you dare to take this gamble?"

Mi Ye did not bow her head.

Her hand was slightly sweaty from Meredith's grip, but instead of pulling her fingers away, she turned them over and intertwined them with Meredith's fingertips.

She didn't think before she did it, and it wasn't until her palm touched the other person's cool skin that she realized what she had done.

She remembered many things.

I remember that night in the rented room when I squatted in the corner, hugging my knees and crying.

She recalled the helplessness and fear she felt when Reminal blocked her way, as if she were easily held in someone's palm.

I remember running desperately forward in the alley when I was being chased by two strange witches, the wind whistling in my ears and my heart pounding as if it were about to explode.

She remembered Flores touching her head, Korika sending her emojis, and the warmth of being seen when she laughed and joked with a group of complete strangers on MikuFans at four in the morning.

She didn't want to go back to being someone who couldn't even fight back.

I want to give it a try.

The sound wasn't loud or particularly loud, but it came from the deepest part of my heart.

"Teacher, I want to become stronger. I want to be able to stand on my own two feet no matter what happens in the future, so that I won't be chased anymore, I won't be a burden to others, and I won't have to let others shield me from the front anymore."

She paused here, seemingly realizing that what she said was a bit childish, then swallowed hard, raised her head, and gave a smile that was different from before.

"I want to be a witch who can stand on her own."

Meredith looked at the smile and remained silent for a long time.

Outside the lab window, the morning light was already at its brightest.

Golden light streamed in through the arched window, falling on Mi Ye's fluffy short hair, making each of her upright strands appear white.

Those honey-colored eyes looked exceptionally bright in the light, like two stars just taken from the boiling night sky.

Meredith pushed up the gold-rimmed glasses that had slipped down her nose with her fingertips. The pity in her eyes, which were always bloodshot, turned into relief.

"it is good."

Meredith stood up, pushed the notebook to the corner of the table, pulled a blank application form from the desk drawer, slapped it on the table, and tapped the pen tip next to the name column.

"Since you dare to do it, then I have nothing to be afraid of."

"Perfect timing. The Flesh and Blood Magic major in Moon Forest has been vacant for several years, with only one teacher. She's an old acquaintance of mine, and her level is definitely not a problem. I'll write a recommendation letter right away and get you in."

"However, you'd better prepare well. With your talent, as long as you boost your attributes, no one in the entire Moon Forest will dare to gossip about you."

Looking at Meredith's smiling face, Miya took a deep breath.

An inexplicable urge to cry welled up from the bottom of my heart.

She bowed deeply.

"Thank you, Ms. Meredith."