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

After finishing their hotpot, Mi Ye and Bie Chenye stood at the door for quite a while longer.

The rain has stopped, and the streets, washed clean by the rain, are glistening with moisture, reflecting the red lanterns hanging in front of the shops and the streetlights that are gradually coming on.

The air was filled with the unique crispness after the rain, mixed with the aroma of chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns lingering at the entrance of the hot pot restaurant.

Mi Ye took out her phone, opened WW, and handed the QR code business card to Bie Chenye.

"Teacher, let's add each other as friends! That way I can ask you questions directly in the future without having to come to Moon Forest every time. Although it's nice to make the trip, what if you're chatting with the Ganoderma lucidum in the back mountain again?"

Bie Chenye was amused by her and took out his phone from his robe pocket. The phone case had a hand-drawn red flower printed on it, exactly the same as the one in his hair.

Scan the QR code, add me as a friend, and type in the nickname: "Teacher Bie Chenye".

"Be careful on the road."

Bie Chenye put his phone back in his pocket, reached out and smoothed Mi Ye's bangs, which were wet from the rain, his fingertips lingering on her forehead for a moment.

"Message me when you arrive."

"Okay! Teacher, please be careful on your way back, the mountain roads are slippery."

Miya waved and turned to walk towards the subway station.

After walking a few steps, he looked back again and saw that Bie Chenye was still standing under the red lantern at the entrance of the hot pot restaurant. His dark blue robe swayed gently in the night wind after the rain, and the red flower on his head was made particularly bright by the light of the lantern.

Her figure appeared thin and frail against the light and darkness, but it was quite different from the lonely silhouette she had shown when she waved goodbye at the cabin door that afternoon.

Miya waved vigorously at her, then turned around and quickened her pace.

It was past 10 p.m. when we got back to Nightingale's Nest.

A sign indicating "Closed" hung on the carved wooden door of the bar, but the lights inside were on, and colorful spots of light shone through the glass windows onto the street, accompanied by bursts of noisy electronic sound effects and familiar shouts.

"Left, left, left! Behind that box! Ouch—!!"

"Don't feel pressured, it was just that you threw your cigarette at the wrong spot!"

"Damn it, I used smoke grenades to block the road, and you rushed in to your death and now you're blaming me?"

Miya pushed open the door and saw a large portable projector on a round table in the center of the hall. The screen showed a hail of bullets and several small figures frantically firing at each other in the ruins.

Zimi sat cross-legged on the sofa, holding a game controller in her hand, with three pieces of paper stuck to her face, each with the word "vegetable" written on it in a different handwriting.

Korika lay sprawled on the sofa armrest, head down, her short, light green hair almost touching the floor, the controller held above her face, her fingers clicking loudly.

Flores sat behind the bar, holding a glass of red wine. On the screen, her character was crouching in a corner, calmly sniping people, taking them down with each shot. Her kill count in the upper right corner was far ahead of the others.

Several opened bags of potato chips, a half-empty bottle of cola, and a score sheet covered in scribbles were scattered on the table.

Zimi Lu's character was shot in the head, and the words "Dead" popped up on the screen.

She let out a wail and fell backward, just in time to see Mi Ye standing at the door. He immediately pointed at her as if grasping at a straw.

"You're back! Help me! The manager's gone berserk, I can't even fit all the clothes on my face!"

When Mi Ye got closer, she saw that the three notes on Zi Mi Lu's face were already a conservative estimate; there was another one stuck to her chin.

Flores put down the handle, picked up her wine glass, took a sip, and smiled at her.

"You're back? Did you enjoy the hot pot?"

"I'm so happy!"

Mi Ye was hopping and skipping around.

"By the way, why aren't you open today? Didn't you just get three A's a few days ago? Wouldn't you make even more money if you opened while the hype was still high?"

"It's because it's so popular."

Flores walked around from behind the bar and stood in front of Miya, still holding the glass of red wine in her hand, the wine forming a pale red arc on the glass.

"The live broadcast of the Witch Association's surprise inspection caused such a big stir. If we open today, the store will be packed. New customers will come, but my old customers who have been with me for years won't even have a place to sit."

"Instead of driving away our old customers, we should take a break for a few days and wait for the hype to die down naturally."

She looked down at Mi Ye, her eyes slightly raised, and her voice carried a faint hint of amusement.

"Besides, you've all been exhausted these past few days, especially you. You were caught in a surprise inspection and followed, and you even traveled such a long distance today. Take a few days off and recharge."

Korika rolled over on the sofa armrest, her short, light green hair swinging in a cheerful arc as she waved at her.

"Hey, Hey! Come play some games! Flores can wipe out both of us by herself, we need a new teammate!"

"I can't do it today. I walked so much, my legs are about to break."

Miya raised her hands in surrender.

"How about I play with you again tomorrow?"

Korika pouted, but was quickly drawn to the new battle on the screen, and continued fighting while hanging upside down on the sofa armrest.

Miya said goodnight to the three of them, climbed the stairs, and the wooden steps made a familiar creaking sound under her feet.

I pushed open the door, turned on the desk lamp, and a warm yellow halo spread across the desk, reflecting the dim light off the laptop screen.

She didn't even change her clothes. She took two steps forward, then lunged forward and fell face-first into the blankets.

The mattress caught her, and the pillow smelled of laundry detergent. Compared to the neatly folded blankets she had made before leaving this morning, Korika had secretly placed a plush bunny on the bed.

The rabbit was gray with long ears and a tiny bow around its neck, probably left there while cleaning during my shift.

Miya buried her face in the pillow, chuckled softly, then rolled over, lay on her back, and took her phone out of her pocket.

She opened WW and clicked on the newly added profile picture.

Bie Chenye's profile picture was drawn by herself: a small red flower with some messy pencil lines around the petals, probably scribbled on a boring afternoon.

Miya picked a cat lying down emoji from the emoji collection and sent it over with the caption.

[Arrived home!]

The other party replied a few seconds later.

Biechenye sent a meme of a little person crawling into bed, the blanket pulled up to their chin, only revealing a pair of closed eyes and a small red flower on their head.

Mi Ye stared at the emoji for a while, imagining Bie Chenye drawing a little blanket emoji for herself in her wooden house full of herb jars, and found it both funny and heartwarming.

She nudged the other person, then put the phone next to her pillow and opened MikuFans.

Today's timeline is replaying rapidly in my mind.

She started her live stream in the early morning, drew a doujinshi of Reminal and Mebius, and was suddenly spotted by Reminal herself. Her live stream was banned, but she gained more than 2,000 followers.

Then, after going out, he got lost in the Moon Forest and was taken into Meredith's sea of ​​consciousness where he discovered the compatibility of flesh and blood magic. He was then carried to the back mountain, where he met Bie Chenye, felt the heartbeat of an eight-hundred-year-old oak tree, and finally ate hot pot.

In a single day, she gained two more teachers, a brand new magical path, and an increasingly clear direction.

She silently thanked Meredith and Bie Chenye in her heart.

Her fingers unconsciously swiped across the screen. The homepage recommendation algorithm had been trained to be obedient by her viewing history, and it recommended several virtual streamer live streams to her.

She discovered the singing little witch she had been following in the early hours of the morning, and when she clicked on her profile, a welcome message automatically popped up.

[flos] Enter the live stream room.

The little witch's chibi-style figure was drinking water when she saw the notification and almost choked. She quickly put down the cup, her voice filled with surprise.

"Oh, you're here, miss! Welcome, welcome!"

Her tone was completely different from when she was in the early morning; it was as if Mi Ye was already a long-time audience member.

Miya leaned against the headboard, held her phone in front of her, tilted her head, and typed in the chat box.

Good evening! Just got home, came to listen to you sing~

As she sent the message, she suddenly remembered that this little V had followed her back last time, and was now her first and only mutual friend.

Watching the simple yet meticulously crafted chibi-style character on the screen earnestly singing into the microphone, she inexplicably felt a bit better.

After the little witch finished singing a slow song, she was drinking water to moisten her throat when a few scattered comments of praise floated by in the live chat.

As Mi Ye listened, her thoughts drifted away from the live stream and she began to mentally assess her own financial situation.

After buying the laptop, I still had 3,000 Loren left. Although my live stream early this morning was banned, the gift income from that hour and a half, after deducting the platform's share, I got about 5,000. Plus, I spent a little over 100 on hot pot for dinner.

She closed her eyes, mumbled a calculation to herself, and then suddenly opened them, her pupils dilating slightly.

Approximately eight thousand Loren.

God!

Just over a week ago, she was eating takeout in her rented apartment, owing Reminal tens of thousands of Loren. When Flores took her in, all she had was five hundred dollars of her own savings hidden in her card.

Now her savings can be counted on her fingers as eight thousand.

Although she didn't become rich overnight, she could feel her life steadily improving.

Once she pays off her debts, she'll be free. Maybe then she can continue working here, learning magic while livestreaming, and perhaps she can actually get into Moon Forest once her stats are high enough.

The Little Witch's song switched to another one, a slow, lyrical ballad, her voice clear and gentle, echoing softly in the quiet room.

Miya leaned her phone against her pillow, lying on her side, watching the simple but cute chibi-style figure on the screen singing earnestly with its eyes closed, and reached out to open the gift section.

She chose a gift that was slightly more expensive than the Starry Sky Milk Tea, about two hundred Loren, and paused her finger on the confirm button for a moment.

Eight thousand Loren, spending two hundred to tip a favorite song, no problem.

She clicked it.

A soft light effect floated across the screen, and a notification popped up asking if someone wanted to send a gift.

The little witch saw the gift notification halfway through her song, and her voice visibly trembled. The Live2D model also shook, but she didn't stop. Her ears just turned slightly red, and she insisted on finishing the last few lines of the lyrics before putting down the microphone.

Then she cupped her slightly flushed cheeks in her hands, speaking softly.

"...Thank you so much. You also gave me milk tea last time. You've given me the most gifts I've ever received. I'm so incredibly happy."

Mi Ye typed a few words in the bullet comment box.

[That sounds amazing! The host's voice is so beautiful, keep it up!]

The little witch looked at the comment, poked the little flos icon on the screen with her finger, and said to it earnestly.

"I will keep trying, thank you for always listening to me sing."

Miya smiled, placed her phone next to her pillow, and didn't leave the live stream, letting the little witch's singing continue to flow in the room.

The magical streetlights outside the window cast soft, warm light through the curtains onto the ceiling. She closed her eyes as she listened to the song, feeling as if she was beginning to understand the vitality that Bie Chenye had spoken of.

The fact that witches who are complete strangers keep each other company in the dead of night is itself a kind of vitality.