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

As night fell completely, only the chirping of insects fluttering their wings remained outside the cabin.

Miye sorted and organized the herbs she had collected that day.

The snail shell was wrapped in old newspaper and stuffed into the storage cabinet. The hemostatic herb and golden tear mushroom were spread out on the windowsill to dry. The remaining plants whose medicinal properties had not yet been confirmed were placed aside, and I planned to ask Bie Chenye about them when he returned at night.

Then she had nothing left to do.

She flipped through the practice questions twice and then closed them again. She had already reviewed the contents of the seventeen chapters three times. She could recite the three fundamental laws and twelve taboos of flesh and blood magic with her eyes closed.

The tentacles were hidden in the sleeves and rested quietly on the wrists, occasionally twitching to indicate that they were still awake.

Miya rested her chin on the table and stared blankly at the doorway.

Bie Chenye said she would be back in about two or three days. Today is the second day. According to her habit, she will most likely appear at the door before the last bell rings, covered in the smell of herbs and ink stains. She will pretend to be very calm, nod, and say that she hasn't gone to sleep yet, but in fact, she can't hide the smile on her face.

Miya replayed the scene in her mind several times, finding it increasingly amusing.

She lifted her chin from the table and glanced at the moon outside the window.

The moon is very round tonight, and its light shines through the wooden window onto the table, making the words on the open practice exam paper clear.

She stood up, poured herself a glass of water, drank it, sat back down, let her tentacles crawl around the table twice, and then retracted them.

Then she went to the corner of the kitchen, opened the lid of the old thermos, and checked that the milk inside was still warm.

In the middle of the night, the door finally rang.

The key was inserted into the lock and turned two and a half times before the door was pushed open, and Bie Chenye stood in the doorway.

She was still wearing that dark blue robe, her long black hair was casually draped over her shoulders, and the bright red flower on her head was still blooming vividly.

But Mi Ye could tell at a glance that she was exhausted; her shoulders were slumped, there were faint dark circles under her eyes, and the hem of her robe was covered with a thin layer of dust.

"You're still not asleep?"

After saying this, Bie Chenye closed the door, her tone casual, exactly as she had anticipated.

Mi Ye did not expose her.

She simply jumped off the chair, turned around and walked to the corner of the kitchen, poured the warm milk from the thermos into a cup, and presented it to Bie Chenye with both hands.

"Teacher, thank you for your hard work. Would you like some milk?"

After finishing speaking, Miya walked back to the center of the wooden house, sat down on the cushioned bench, and patted her thigh.

Bie Chenye paused for a moment, holding the milk cup, his deep purple eyes gleaming in the moonlight, as if trying to understand the meaning of Mi Ye's words.

But she was so tired that her mind was working much slower than usual. By the time she realized what was happening, she had already walked to the bench with her cup and was looking down at Mi Ye.

"Can I lie down here?"

Mi Ye patted her thigh and tilted her head as she spoke.

Don't go to sleep. Finish your milk, put the cup on the table, and then squat down in front of the bench.

She hesitated for a while before finally taking off her dusty outer robe, lying down on her side, and gently resting the back of her head on Mi Ye's lap.

Miya took out a small ear pick from her waist bag. She had bought it on a whim when she went to the Central Market last time. At the time, she thought she wouldn't need it, but now she realized it was a wise purchase.

"Have you not been sleeping well these past few days?"

Miya gathered her long hair to one side, revealing her ear.

"Going to sleep."

Bie Chenye muttered something.

"How long did you sleep?"

"...It takes about four hours in total."

Mi Ye sighed and inserted the ear pick into Bie Chenye's ear.

Bie Chenye's body stiffened at first, then slowly relaxed, her shoulders sinking into the soft cushions.

"Teacher, what did you tell me before you went out? It was just setting questions, and you'd be back soon. You've ended up looking so exhausted."

Miya spoke softly as she rummaged through her belongings.

"I did some practical testing in the back mountain these past few days, clearing out all the monsters on the perimeter, and my tentacles have evolved to two."

Bie Chenye closed his eyes, but the corners of his mouth moved as if he were smiling.

"I also encountered a really, really big bear."

Miya said.

"It looked like it came from the middle section. It was taller than me when it stood up, and it bit me."

Bie Chenye suddenly opened her eyes, her body reflexively trying to sit up, but Mi Ye gently pressed her shoulder with her elbow and pushed her back onto her thighs.

"It's okay, it just broke a tooth."

Mi Ye's tone carried a hint of barely concealed smugness.

"It couldn't bite me, so I was swallowed by it."

Bie Chenye didn't speak. After a while, she suddenly rubbed against the inside of Miye's thigh, buried her face in the back of her knee, and mumbled three words.

"That's amazing."

Then he started talking about his own story.

"Those old fogies in the question-setting team argued for two whole days. And let me tell you, the guy mainly in charge of setting the martial arts exam questions this time is no ordinary person..."

Her speech became faster and faster, and her voice was filled with grievance.

Miya bit her lower lip, trying hard not to laugh out loud.

She continued cleaning Bie Chenye's ears, gently scraping the edge of his ear with the ear pick. She could feel Bie Chenye's body trembling slightly, like a kitten being stroked on the chin.

"They even started fighting."

Don't say it in the dead of night.

"...They started fighting?"

"The Elemental Magic major and the Alchemy major were vying for a certain percentage of exam questions. The old lady who taught Elemental Magic slammed her hand on the table, and the Alchemy major just slapped the previous year's graduate employment rate data right in his face."

"Then the summoning teacher sitting in the back row suddenly stood up and said, 'If you can fight, then stop arguing.' I didn't see how the fight started after that."

Miya couldn't help but burst out laughing this time.

Bie Chenye rubbed against her leg in dissatisfaction, as if in protest.

"Alright, alright, I won't laugh at you anymore."

Mi Ye put the ear pick away and into her waist pouch, then gently rubbed Bie Chenye's temples with her fingertips.

Are you scared when they argue?

"……Afraid."

Bie Chenye's voice was already a little slurred, and his eyelids began to droop.

"They speak so loudly and have such poor logic. When they can't win an argument, they start bringing up old grievances. I just keep looking at the daffodil on the windowsill and imagining that I'm chatting with my lingzhi mushroom."

Miya didn't say anything more.

Her fingers slid from Bie Chenye's temples to his forehead, then slowly combed back along his hairline, her fingertips threading through his long, black hair, again and again.

Bie Chenye's breathing gradually became even and long.

Her cheek rested against Miya's knee, and the red flower swayed gently in the moonlight, as if it were moving in rhythm with her breathing.

Once asleep, she didn't look like a powerful witch in charge of teaching at all; she looked more like a little girl who had finally made it to vacation after a long exam week.

Mi Ye watched her quietly for a while, then gently lifted Bie Chenye's upper body, slid off the bench to stand, put one arm around her shoulder, and put the other arm under her knees to carry her horizontally.

Bie Chenye stirred in his sleep, instinctively pressing his face against Mi Ye's chest, and mumbled something indistinctly.

Mi Ye carried her into the inner bedroom, gently placed her on the bed, and pulled the blanket over her.

Bie Chenye's hair lay scattered on the pillow, like a small black foxtail grass stem.

Miya reached out and tucked the stray hairs from her forehead behind her ear, then stepped out and closed the door behind her.

The moon outside the window had somehow moved to the other side of the window frame.

Miya walked to the folding recliner in the corner, unfolded it, spread out a blanket, lay down and tried the angle, and thought it was okay.

She took her phone out of her pocket, connected her earphones, and opened MikuFans.

Little Ghost's live stream is still lit up.

At this point in time, there were only a few viewers, and the comments scrolled very slowly.

She was singing a song that Mi Ye had never heard before; the melody was slow, like a lullaby.

Mi Ye placed her phone against her chest, the earphone wire coming out from her collar, and the music flowed into her ears along the wire.

When Little Ghost finished singing the last line, two or three "goodnight" messages appeared in the live chat.

Mi Ye typed a message and sent it: "Goodnight," then locked the screen, flipped her phone over, and placed it face down next to her pillow.

Moonlight filtered through the cracks in the window, falling precisely on the floor next to the recliner and drawing a thin silver line.

When Mi Ye closed her eyes, she thought about tomorrow's written and martial arts exams and the lively scene. She thought she would probably feel a little socially anxious, but she could overcome it. There was no need to be nervous, since she had already passed the exams. She could just treat this as an opportunity to broaden her horizons.

The song was still swirling in my mind, going around and around, wrapping up all those messy thoughts and putting them aside.

Tomorrow is the entrance exam.

Miya closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.