Witch House

Jiang Han wandered around the market for a while before returning to the meeting point Cen Jing had mentioned before leaving; it was a tavern that operated even during the day.

Looking at the sign above the tavern that read "Witch House," Jiang Han felt the thick scent of alcohol and various perfumes in the air, and she couldn't help but harbor some doubts about her mentor, Cen Jing:

You told a student to meet at a place like this...

Jiang Han sighed, reached out with her left hand to push open the door, and walked inside.

However, the scene inside was not at all like the tavern Jiang Han had imagined.

The interior of "Witch House" was a cylindrical space. One-quarter of it was the bar counter, two-quarters consisted of curved bookshelves and reading tables, and the remaining quarter was a stage. On the stage sat two beautiful, tall witches, one wearing a slightly translucent blue qipao and the other a red one, sitting on high-backed sofas and playing the erhu. The witches in the audience sat in small groups, whispering to each other and occasionally standing up to applaud during the climax of a piece.

Jiang Han paused, staring at the erhu in the hands of the two beauties in qipao; they were even using Spell Hand to help them play.

The spell Spell Hand possessed programming functions. One could input special sequences like "fingering" or "technique" in advance, modify them into a spell model, pour it into a potion, and drink it to register the variant Spell Hand into one's own spell library—her younger sister Jiang Zhenling had a modified Spell Hand used specifically for chopping vegetables.

Although it was still morning, the Witch House was unexpectedly crowded, but Jiang Han thought about it and realized it was normal:

"For witches, the morning is equivalent to the middle of the night for humans; it's exactly the time when things are at their most lively."

At this moment, neither Li Li nor Cen Jing had appeared in the tavern yet; they were probably still shopping or attending to their own business.

Jiang Han curiously looked around the tavern and found herself walking up to the bar counter before she knew it. Behind the counter sat waitresses wearing similar qipaos, using sweet or charming voices to entice witches into spending money on drinks.

They looked like nothing more than amateur barmaids.

Yet, there was also a side to them that thirsted for culture and craved knowledge, as they revealed their desire to obtain more profound knowledge during their chats with customers.

Although they weren't professional barmaids, their cute and exquisite appearances made people willing to purchase extra drinks.

"This young lady, would you like to buy a drink? Whether it's Drunken Immortal Brew or wine from Peach Blossom Land, we have it all here~" Suddenly, a witch appeared beside her wearing gorgeous attire and a hat with a brim much wider than the average witch's hat. She wore a standard professional smile and held a European-style feather fan inlaid with silver and blue gemstones.

Buy a drink? Jiang Han was stunned again, pointing at herself in surprise—you want me, someone who is 1.46 meters tall and looks like a middle schooler in every aspect except for my chest, to buy alcohol? Are you looking for trouble?

No matter which Earth you were on, this kind of thing wouldn't happen, at least—not unless they were actively pushing alcoholic beverages toward a woman who looked more like a middle schooler, unless they wanted to buy it themselves.

Therefore, she asked back in a polite tone that implied "Are you an idiot?":

"Buy a drink?"

The lady smiled reservedly and said:

"Then how about selling drinks? I think you have the aptitude for it."

Sell drinks? Jiang Han's expression stiffened. She turned toward the qipao-wearing witches at the bar and then turned back, pointing at herself in astonishment—Miss, I'm warning you, you are about to walk down a criminal path.

Letting a girl who looks like a middle schooler sell alcohol; perhaps only the French could pull off such a thing on either Earth.

Therefore, she took half a step back, looked at the lady with an "I'm going to call the police" expression, and tentatively asked:

"Sell drinks?"

"Yes." The lady revealed a wicked smile, "I can see your desire, and I can see your aptitude clearly."

Could it be that she can tell I'm broke? Jiang Han gave her a wary look and didn't respond. If it weren't for the fact that Cen Jing said to meet here, she would have turned and left long ago.

"Work starts at twelve every night. You can work just six hours; it counts as an A-class work contract. You can earn a weekly salary with thirty hours a week, which means two days off a week. The weekly salary is 1000 yuan, including one meal, plus a 10% commission on alcohol sales."

The lady continued to introduce the job on her own:

"There are also Witch House points, 50 points per week."

1000 a week, that's a base salary of 4000 a month, which is a pretty good wage. Plus the 10% commission on alcohol, the monthly income could be over 6000, which is almost enough to buy a Tier 2 rare spell... Jiang Han pretended not to care, but she muttered to herself that this job was both safe and simple.

Perhaps her expression caused the lady to misunderstand, as the other party gently fanned herself and introduced:

"Money is something that witches can always earn one way or another, even if they are in debt, they can still live well. But there are other things that cannot be obtained by money alone: Witch House points. Although we are only part of the beverage service industry, we have accumulated a lot of profound magical knowledge and... rare spells. Witch House points allow witches who thirst for this knowledge to exchange for the learning they desire."

Rare spells and unique magical knowledge.

Jiang Han immediately understood why the barmaids at the counter looked so unprofessional; they were "temp workers." Witches who were beautiful and wanted unique spells would come to this bar or its chain bars to work as barmaids, exchanging their labor for knowledge.

This was a bit like how in games, a faction's reputation exchange table would have unique equipment, which could pique the curiosity of players.

Moreover, rare spells and unique magical knowledge were inherently expensive things.

Just as this witch said, no matter how poor a witch was, there were ways to make money, but knowledge was extremely precious or extremely expensive.

It seemed that the way to obtain them lay within these kinds of places.

Jiang Han also remembered an advertisement she had seen earlier for a pharmacy hiring employees. Because the salary was only 300 a week, she had only glanced at it and walked away. Now that she thought about it, perhaps the salary was so low because one could learn extra spells and knowledge from the witches at the pharmacy.

Seeing her look of sudden realization, the witch smiled and nodded, took a business card out of her pocket, and placed it on the table:

"When you want this job, bring this and come here to find me... Oh, right, our salary is settled weekly. If you don't want to work anymore, just say so; you can rest at any time, though of course, there is no pay for rest. Thank you very much for your patience, Miss Witch."

The witch stood up and used her feather fan to flirtatiously brush against Jiang Han's long hair.

What a flirtatious person... Jiang Han lowered her head to look at the business card, which had the name "Qin Shunying" written on it. After hesitating for a long time, she decided to keep the card.

Perhaps because the witch named Qin Shunying had come over to chat, the barmaid at the counter gave her a glass of fruit juice for free...

Jiang Han could finally experience the feeling of drinking fruit juice in a tavern, reading a magazine while sipping her drink.

After about half an hour, Cen Jing arrived, carrying a bag of materials of unknown origin.

Jiang Han handed over the space bag she had finished shopping with. "Everything is bought. Do you need the receipts?"

"No need." The witch wore a charming smile. "Miss Jiang Han, you can go home first. Meet me at the tutoring center lobby at the same time tomorrow; we will be starting our second lesson soon."

"...Hmm?" Jiang Han glanced at the wall clock, a look of astonishment appearing on her face.

Damn it, it's already five in the afternoon? Where did the time go?

Women, your shopping trips are nothing but time magic! Jiang Han clearly sensed the amusement in Cen Jing's eyes.

This witch affectionately draped an arm over her shoulder and said, "I'm waiting for Ms. Li Li here, and having a drink while I'm at it."

Jiang Han nodded—I get it, you're having a drink here, and waiting for Li Li while you're at it, right?

Draining the rest of her juice in one gulp, Jiang Han walked out of the tavern.

After leaving the Witch House, Jiang Han first went to the passenger area, bought a box of lemon cake at the nearby dessert shop to share with her younger sister when she got back, and then hailed a Griffin Taxi to return to the floating island where her home was located.