"I Became a Witch, but Now Everyone's in Love with Me!"

Chapter 80: Witches Are Not a Kind Race

“This is your first time here, so let me tell you some basic exploration precautions.”
Once the mission officially began, Daisy’s expression sharpened.
Her voice dropped half a tone, not just a change of attitude, but a shift of presence itself.
From within her body, a surge of magical authority rippled outward—an unspoken pressure that told everyone present:
The existence powerful enough to destroy worlds had grown serious.

“It’s always necessary to prepare before accepting a commission.”
Jiang Cha answered with a gentle smile. Her tone was casual, almost lighthearted, but beneath it lingered a faint edge of coldness.
“Don’t worry, senior. I’m not some little sister who needs to be coddled.”

“Oh?”
Daisy arched a brow, amusement flickering in her eyes. “Perhaps I should remind you that mistakes during work result in salary deductions?”
“No problem at all.”

The black-haired girl stepped forward, her movements smooth and unhurried. The witches around her shifted automatically, sliding into their basic formation with the ease of veterans.
Daisy and Misa, both front-line attackers, flanked Jiang Cha at a distance of five steps. Kelly drifted behind them, scattering glittering silver motes through the air—her mechanical familiars, quietly probing for danger.
In a witch’s expedition, it was always the versatile witch who walked in front.
She was the first to gather information, the first to analyze it, the first to issue commands or report to the commander.
As a hired foreign aid, Jiang Cha’s twenty-percent cut was no gift. She was here to bear the responsibility of breaking the path open.

By witch custom, forty to fifty percent of relic spoils went to the discoverer. The team leader then claimed another twenty, and the rest was divided among the remaining members. Hiring an outsider meant the team’s share shrank further, split evenly among them.
That Jiang Cha still walked away with twenty percent—more than any of the team’s own members besides the discoverer—was proof of her value.
And as the witches often said: the greater the profit, the heavier the burden.

“Fifth-category arcane tower,” Daisy declared. “Exploration Rule Twenty-One applies.”
“I get the fifth-category part… but what’s Rule Twenty-One?” Misa frowned, tilting her head. She had never heard of such a guideline among explorer witches. The debris zones were far too chaotic for any handbook to cover.
“The fifth category refers to arcane elven magic. Rule Twenty-One… is my master’s experience, summarized into one sentence.” Jiang Cha’s lips curved.

“Enter the village quietly—don’t shoot.”
“Got it.”
Misa nodded. Even if Jiang Cha hadn’t said it, she would have preferred the conservative approach.

The ruins of the third level were nothing the three combat witches couldn’t crush… but these were heritage ruins, designed to test potential heirs of the tower’s master. Who could say if they had self-destruction triggers, or hidden contingencies ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ left behind by their creator?
After all, a third-level heritage relic meant its owner had been at least a fourth- or fifth-level powerhouse.
For reference—Daisy herself had only just stepped into the realm of Great Witch, gathering one or two personal traits of combat power. That was what counted as fifth-level in witch terms.

“It’s confirmed as an arcane mage tower…” Jiang Cha murmured as they reached the colossal door. Her crimson eyes swept the construction and the subtle patterns of magic flowing through it. “Any of you practice the School of Creation?”
The School of Creation was a reformation of arcane magic. Those who studied arcane magic might not know Creation, but witches of Creation had to understand arcane principles.
“No.” Daisy shook her head. “I’m Evocation. Kelly’s Psychic. Misa’s Transfiguration.”

“…Your team is seriously just built for violence!?” Jiang Cha nearly laughed aloud. Except for Kelly, every branch here was battle-specialized.
What kind of staffing philosophy was this?
“My next branch will be Creation,” Daisy admitted with a helpless shrug. “But I haven’t started yet.”
“Then it’s on me. I know a bit of Creation.”

Jiang Cha sighed inwardly. Lucky for them she was a true all-rounder.
“Wait. Aren’t you Psychic and Evocation?” Daisy’s brows drew together. She had seen Jiang Cha fight only two months ago, and at that time, there hadn’t been a hint of Creation magic.
“I take everything, okay?” The girl tilted her head, smiling impishly.

“My time in Creation was short, but I’ve at least reached the level of a low-tier spellcaster.”
She spread her pale hand. Azure arcane light blossomed in her palm, swirling in mysterious currents.
“…She’s cleared every secondary class and every faction, and she’s still above average for her grade…” Misa muttered, then glanced at Daisy. “Captain, you’re pathetic.”

“You dare say that to me!?” Daisy’s temper flared instantly.
We’re both combat witches of the same school—why does this brat make me look bad!?
“And isn’t this supposed to be Kelly’s job?” Daisy rounded on their rear guard.

Kelly, responsible for logistics, simply turned her head away and ignored her captain’s outburst.
Compared to the little monster named Jiang Cha, how could anyone feel normal?
Maybe she’d inherited a handful of sage-level traits. Otherwise, how else could she break the supposed limits of witches?
“…Enough.”

The moment Jiang Cha channeled the arcane energy into the ancient circle etched into the mage tower’s gate, she felt the entire magical atmosphere stir.
The long-slumbering array responded instantly, as if recognizing a forgotten key.
“The subject of magical circles is a third-year elective, right? Senior sisters, you…”

“I know this one!” Misa cut in quickly, eager for a chance to be useful.
Daisy gave her a sidelong look but said nothing. Competence mattered more than competition.
“Elf design,” Jiang Cha observed softly, tracing the flowing lines of the circle. “Not sure if it’s dark elf or another branch.”

“Dark elves, huh? If we can nab one or two, the value would be sky-high!” Misa’s pink eyes sparkled—literally. One iris glowed with a heart, the other with a spinning gold coin.
“Misa-senpai… please calm down.” Jiang Cha instinctively took a step back.
Dark elves were unlike their surface cousins. Like witches, they reproduced parthenogenetically—their entire race a tribe of statuesque, black-skinned beauties with figures far more voluptuous than ordinary elves.

Many witches fancied keeping one as a pet, or at the very least, indulging in them when visiting the red-light district. Their price on the black market was astronomical.
Of course, officially, witch society banned slave trade. It was a matter of social order—punishable by three days of detention and a fine of no less than five hundred gold coins.
But as for whether powerful magical civilizations would see the capture of their kin as provocation?

The Council of Sages’ stance was simple:
Let them. If they dare protest, we’ll happily make it war.