Li Li, the Ruthless Fox

After showering, Jiang Han returned the borrowed sportswear to her younger sister, Jiang Zhenling.

Because of the running and squats earlier, the sportswear was soaked with sweat. Jiang Han felt quite embarrassed, but her sister accepted the clothes with great understanding.

"A bit of lavender essential oil will get it clean." Jiang Zhenling tossed the sportswear and pants her sister had worn into the laundry basket.

"Then I'll leave it to you." Jiang Han replied with a sincere smile.

Just as she was about to turn and leave, Jiang Zhenling called out to her:

"Oh, right, Han-mei."

"Hmm?" Jiang Han turned back and saw her sister wearing a rather serious expression.

"Do you have time tonight? It's been a long time since we went out for barbecue together." Zhenling said, her eyes flickering slightly.

Barbecue... In Jiang Han's mind, that specific Korean-style barbecue appeared involuntarily. It was as if the fragrant, scorching aroma had already wafted over. She wanted to eat, but she had work tonight. So, she let out a sigh of regret and looked at her sister with a pitiful expression:

"I have to work tonight."

"..." Jiang Zhenling crossed her arms and bared her teeth in an unreadable expression, "Tuesday?"

If it were Tuesday, she had already made plans to go out with Cen Jing. Jiang Han shook her head: "I have plans with someone on Tuesday."

"Wednesday?"

"...Uh, well, I have plans with someone on Wednesday, too." Jiang Han lowered her head, unable to meet her sister's eyes; she had made plans with Cen Jing for both days.

After a long silence, Jiang Zhenling's voice sounded in her ears:

"Then let's talk about it another time when you're free."

After chatting with her sister about when she might be free next week, Jiang Han went back to her room to nap for a while. She then got up, changed her clothes, and headed out to the tutoring center while yawning.

The fishing village in the morning seemed somewhat desolate. Jiang Han felt more and more that Cen Jing was simply the best Witch... or was it witch? she had ever met. Working from 12:00 AM to 6:00 AM, then heading to the tutoring center at 8:00 AM, and staying until school let out in the afternoon—this combination of life was almost crushing her.

It had left her with a sore back and aching waist lately...

Cen Jing was right; she should learn to slack off reasonably. Witches had such long lifespans, so why was she working as hard as a human!

Jiang Han wailed internally for a moment, then remembered that 'Witches do not deny that they are humans'... That made things very awkward.

On Monday, even the tutors seemed a bit lazy. Usually, Jiang Han would see Cheng Yu reading a book in the lobby waiting for her, but today, the tall Witch tutor was nowhere to be seen.

Jiang Han walked into the lobby, saw the Fox Witch Li Li, and after greeting her, sat down beside her. "Morning, Li Li."

The other party stared straight ahead, showing no reaction.

"Ahem, Ms. Li Li? Ms. Fox?" Jiang Han raised her voice a little, drawing the gazes of the other Witches sitting in the lobby.

She gave an apologetic gesture to the other Witches and then frowned as she looked at Li Li.

This Fox Witch was like a vegetable, staring blankly ahead.

Jiang Han had to lean in closer. Just as she was about to call Li Li's name again, she suddenly heard soft music and singing:

[...It's too foolish to hold onto your promise...]

...Where was the music coming from? Jiang Han's expression stiffened.

At this moment, Li Li noticed Jiang Han beside her and turned to look at her, and the music stopped accordingly.

This Witch had an inexplicably serious expression. She looked at Jiang Han, and after a moment of silence, asked:

"What is it?"

"The music..." Jiang Han shook her head, asking with curiosity and confusion: "Just now, was there music next to you?"

How did it come about? Jiang Han thought of three possibilities.

The first was a modification of the 1st-circle Illusion School's Illusion Sound Spell.

The second was a modification of the 1st-circle Transmutation School's Message Spell.

The third was the 2nd-circle Abjuration School's Magic Alarm; that spell could record sound. There was a fable about a Witch from the East who rode an ox that could chant Buddhist scriptures to scam people out of food and drink, but she was later discovered by other Witches to have simply modified a Magic Alarm with an attachment spell...

While she was lost in her wild thoughts, Ms. Li Li nodded and replied: "So you were curious about that."

Jiang Han also nodded, indicating that she was indeed very curious.

Then, Ms. Li Li raised her hands, placed them on her blonde hair, moved them twice, and took off that pair of furry fox ears.

She took them off.

She took them off.

They could actually be taken off!?

Looking at the furry fox ears that were still twitching after being removed, Jiang Han was stunned into silence for two seconds. She tilted her head to the left, then to the right, looked at Li Li's blonde hair again, and pondered for a moment before saying:

"Headphones?"

"Mm, headphones." Li Li replied after a slight delay.

...What the hell, headphones! Jiang Han almost screamed. She looked at the fox ears in Li Li's hands with an incredulous expression, and then she stammered:

"So... um, um, what did you make these headphones out of?"

In fact, Jiang Han's brain was already in chaos, and she was speaking incoherently.

After she asked this question, Miss Li Li's expression froze for a moment, and she answered in a perfectly normal tone: "My ears."

Oh oh, so you made a pair of headphones out of your own ears... uh huh... uh!? What? Made out of what?

Jiang Han's eyes widened, her mouth half-open as she tried to organize her words, only to find she couldn't say anything at all.

"Look." Li Li leaned in a bit closer, brushed aside her golden hair, and showed the spot where human ears would normally be—there was soft fur and a heat-dissipating organ that stuck out a bit like a human ear.

Then, Li Li pointed at the pair of fox ears in her left hand with her right finger:

"These are my ears." She held one in each hand and reinstalled the pair... 'ear'phones? on her head.

Jiang Han was so shocked she nearly peed herself, and the witches in the hall who were sneaking peeks over all wore expressions of 'WTF' and 'What the hell' as they watched, staring at Miss Li Li stroking her own fox ears.

"At first, I wanted to try making a pair using my paternal grandmother's ears..." Li Li promoted enthusiastically: "But she wouldn't let me, so I had to use my own ears. How about it? Want me to make you a pair too?"

...What did you say? Jiang Han took a deep breath, then covered her chest with one hand and asked calmly:

"What if the experiment fails? Your ears would be gone, right?"

Miss Li Li gave Miss Jiang Han a strange look and said very naturally: "Of course they'd be gone. What else?"

What else!? Screw your what else... Jiang Han breathed rapidly, not even having accepted this concept yet.

Miss Li Li added:

"They can grow back quickly with magic. It's just that cutting them hurts a bit—you need to drink two jin of baijiu."

Hiss... two jin.

Jiang Han didn't know what to say again, nor if she should envy the regenerative power of fox ears.

She thought seriously for a moment: ordinary witches can take out witch eggs to sell, so Fox Witches taking out fox ears to sell—isn't that just natural and normal?

Like hell it is!

I can't accept it! I definitely can't accept it! Jiang Han made an X with her hands, rejecting the suggestion to buy a pair of cute fox ears.

At that moment, Cheng Yu, dressed in strange clothes, walked in from the cram school door.

This very tall witch puzzledly scanned the silent hall, then looked at her two students, and bit her lower lip in confusion again.

"Sorry, I'm a bit late today. What happened here?" Miss Cheng Yu asked after walking over.

Due to her height, even when Jiang Han stood up, she had to tilt her head back to see her face.

"Nothing." Jiang Han answered.

"Yeah, I don't think it's anything either." Miss Li Li answered very naturally.