Witch World Line

The sunlight outside the window was warm.

Jiang Han stood frozen beside the bed, finally recognizing the truth: she hadn't gone crazy.

The 'magic' inside her, always ready to burst out, told her she was perfectly normal—normal as a freshly turned eighteen-year-old little witch, brimming with magic and eager to blast off fifty or sixty fireballs.

She'd learned that 'magic' was a thing from her diary. The 'year' too.

Having confirmed that she'd been reborn and turned into a witch, Jiang Han stared blankly at the mirror. The face looking back at her was unfamiliar, brimming with the youthful energy of a girl who'd just turned eighteen.

One glance was enough to make Jiang Han's skin crawl. Was she really going to have to live in this body from now on?

Besides the bed, the room held a desk and a vast, overwhelming number of books that nearly swallowed up the space. A diary sat on the desk, and it was pink, too. In the remaining open space stood a broom rack and a fireplace. A Latin inscription had been drawn above the fireplace to keep flames from escaping and setting the books alight. A wardrobe was built into the wall beside it. Without magic, the whole room would surely have burned down.

Jiang Han looked back at the mirror and studied herself carefully.

She had long black hair, the ends streaked with an icy hue, and ice-blue eyes.

She was pretty, with a slender neck and pale skin through which faint blue veins could be seen.

She wore a black court dress.

She had a very witch-like face, a very witch-like outfit, and a very witch-like aura.

"All right, I'm a witch. Phew. A witch."

Jiang Han hadn't fully accepted the fact that she was a witch, but she had no intention of jumping out a window to prove she'd "rather die than be a witch." Besides, jumping out a window might not even kill a witch...

Click—

The lock clicked, and the door swung open. A lively, pretty girl walked in, dressed in a robe and holding a witch's hat. When her younger sister, Jiang Zhenling, saw her, she asked in a sweet voice, "Sis, weren't you going to buy a pet today?"

Sis... Just hearing that made Jiang Han's head ache. She had no idea what was going on with buying a pet, either. Clearly, the memories of her eighteen years as a witch hadn't stayed in her body, leaving her at a loss. All she could do was say as little as possible, so she wouldn't make a mistake. "...Yeah."

Jiang Zhenling gave her a strange look and asked, sounding a little puzzled, "Sis, are you feeling unwell? You don't look very energetic today."

Looks like the me in this world isn't much different from the me in my old one... Jiang Han shook her head. "No."

"Mm, good. As long as you're all right." Her sister nodded and said with great maturity, "If you feel unwell, you have to say so right away. This is one of the bad things about us witches: when we're sick, it's often hard to tell. By the time we notice, it's already too late, and we have to go to the hospital for an outpatient appointment."

Just like her sister in the other world, Jiang Zhenling in this one was mature, too. She just didn't know if she'd still get into Southern University in this life. After all, witches in this world represented force... Jiang Han silently nodded, and that only made Jiang Zhenling look at her more suspiciously.

"You're really okay?" Her sister planted one hand on her hip and furrowed her brows, looking rather like their mother back when she used to pin Jiang Han down and scold her. "No, I'm coming with you today. If you're sick, I can take you to the doctor."

Jiang Han couldn't have been happier to have her sister take her out. She didn't know a thing yet, and in this world, so full of witches, she was like a little child. Looking at her sister's serious expression, she nodded as hard as she could.

Her sister tilted her head. Her furrowed brows relaxed, and she smiled again. "Then let's get ready. We'll go downstairs, grab something to eat, and head out."

She turned around and headed downstairs, carrying the witch's hat.

The house hadn't changed much, apart from a few more Western-style furnishings and books. Even beneath the stair rail, books were stacked up, most of them with Latin and English titles on their covers. Fortunately, although the person inhabiting Jiang Han's body had changed, some knowledge had remained. The words were difficult for her to read, but she could understand them.

The first floor had a strange layout, half Eastern and half Western. A lucky-cat figurine sat on the round dining table, but it was a black cat, and very thin. It didn't look festive at all.

Their mother, Ye Keshu, wore a witch's robe that looked wrong no matter how Jiang Han looked at it. Standing by the stove, she stirred a cauldron with a huge wooden spoon. She looked much younger than in Jiang Han's memories—so young she could almost have been Jiang Han and her sister's older sister. Perhaps witches' average lifespan was longer than that of humans in the other world, making her seem so youthful.

Ye Keshu glanced at the sisters and said, as if out of habit, "You're both so grown up, and you still cling to your sister?"

Her tone was so familiar, her manner so natural, that it nearly broke Jiang Han's heart.

It seemed the eldest child in this Jiang family—eldest daughter, that was—had little authority and low standing at home. Though it hadn't been much different in the parallel world; the younger sister had ranked quite a bit higher than her older brother or sister.

Ye Keshu poured the mysterious green liquid from the cauldron into a bowl, then sprinkled on scallions and pickled mustard greens in thoroughly Chinese fashion. She carried it to the table and called loudly into the hall, "Jiang Xuan, lunch is ready!"

Jiang Han thought she must have misheard. Her mother had probably called "Jiang Xuan"—her father's name—but she couldn't shake a sense of foreboding.

Once she and her sister had sat down, a woman Jiang Han didn't recognize at all walked into the dining room.

She had black hair, a cute face, and a short stature. She wore a short robe and looked a little shabby and plainly dressed, but she was quite cute. She obediently sat down at the table and naturally muttered, "I was reading the newspaper..."

Ye Keshu heard her mutter and planted one hand on her hip, smiling dangerously. "Well, well, Jiang Xuan. You've learned to talk back?"

The plain, cute woman immediately shut her mouth. Looking a little aggrieved, she lowered her head and obediently took a spoonful of the green liquid.

Jiang Han lowered her head and copied her, taking a spoonful of the green liquid. It tasted all right, a little like savory corn and scallop congee, and the pickled mustard greens were pleasantly crunchy. As she looked thoughtfully at the green porridge or soup, she realized her family had always been a family of witches.

Even her father had been adjusted to the version of the world line where he was a second mother...

Her sister ate a couple of mouthfuls, picked up a napkin to wipe her lips, and said, "I'm going out with Sis later to buy a pet."

Ye Keshu also put down her spoon and mused, "Xiao Han is old enough to have a pet now. A witch's pet needs to be chosen carefully. There's a lot to consider, whether you want to boost your combat power or strengthen your magic. How about an otter? It'd give you a swimming check, and it's smart enough to serve as half a spellcasting assistant."

"An otter? Mom, you already have one. Isn't another one a bit much?" Her sister immediately objected. "I think a blue-ringed octopus would be good. Lots of witches taking the A3 exam have been raising octopuses lately. They're both powerful and useful."

Witches tended to get excited when they discussed things, and even Jiang Xuan joined in. "What about a giant deer? You don't have to do anything with it most of the time, and you can grind its antlers into powder to use as spellcasting material..."

Jiang Han stayed quiet and listened, secretly soaking up the common knowledge of the witch world.