Early morning, the crisp and melodious chirping of birds drifted through the window.
When Aiden woke up, he instinctively glanced at the bed in front of him—Celes’s figure was no longer there, and the blanket had been neatly folded in a corner.
He still maintained the uncomfortable posture from the previous night, leaning against the chair with his hand supporting his head.
At some unknown moment, someone had carefully covered him with a soft and warm thin blanket.
“Hmm~”
Aiden rubbed his slightly sore eyes, slowly stood up, stretched a big, lazy yawn, and moved his limbs, which felt especially stiff from holding that poor posture all night.
His overall energy was not great—he felt groggy and lethargic, as if he couldn’t fully wake up.
But Aiden had a remedy for this.
He took out a system item, the Elemental Bottle, and drank a sip.
A gentle yet pure energy quickly coursed through his body, dispelling all fatigue and discomfort.
Instantly, he felt refreshed and full of vigor.
The stuff from the gacha really was useful.
Aiden stepped out of Celes’s bedroom and heard the sizzling sound of something frying in the kitchen.
The air was filled with an enticing aroma of food.
“Good morning.”
He walked to the kitchen doorway and saw Celes, wearing an apron, focused on frying eggs at the stove.
Clearing his throat, he greeted her.
“Aiden, you’re awake? Breakfast will be ready soon, just wait a little longer.”
Hearing Aiden’s voice, Celes turned around and gave him a shy smile.
Remembering last night’s events, her cheeks flushed slightly.
Aiden nodded, not wanting to disturb her, and first went to the bathroom to splash some cold water on his face to wake himself up a bit.
When he returned to the living room, Celes had already placed two beautifully plated breakfasts—fried eggs, ham, toasted bread, and some fruit—on the dining table.
Celes’s overall demeanor seemed quite good.
Her eyes were bright, her movements light, and from time to time, a faint smile would naturally lift the corners of her mouth, making her look in a good mood.
However, when she mentioned last night, a hint of apology appeared on her face, and her voice grew softer.
“Um… I’m really sorry about last night… Because of my stubbornness and fear, you had to keep that awkward posture all night… It must have been really uncomfortable to sleep like that, right?”
“It’s fine, I slept pretty well. Besides—”
Aiden picked up a piece of bread, shook his head, and reassured her in a relaxed tone.
“If I’m really tired during the day, I can just catch some naps in class.”
“Speaking of which, I really envy you, Aiden… Even though you usually zone out or slack off in class, you seem to know all the knowledge the teacher talks about, and you can even say many things that aren’t in the textbooks, stuff we don’t know… I really don’t know how you do it.”
Celes ate a small bite of her fried egg, her eyes showing genuine admiration, softly sighing.
“Ahaha… It’s nothing special. When I was a kid, I was a bit introverted and didn’t fit in well. I just liked to spend time alone in the Library or at home reading all sorts of random stuff.”
Aiden chuckled, his gaze drifting slightly.
Naturally, he couldn’t reveal that he had the Ruby of the Otherworld Encyclopedia, so he brushed it off with a half-truth.
At this, Celes thoughtfully didn’t press further; everyone probably has a past they don’t want to talk about.
The two quietly and quickly finished breakfast, tidied up the dishes, grabbed their bags, and prepared to leave.
Before stepping out, Celes stood in front of the dressing mirror by the entrance, carefully examining her reflection.
She still felt a little uneasy.
The upcoming situation weighed heavily on her heart like a massive stone.
“Hu…”
She took a deep breath, trying to calm her nervousness, but her slightly trembling fingers betrayed her inner turmoil.
“It’s okay, relax. Follow the plan, and everything will go smoothly. Trust me.”
Aiden noticed Celes’s anxiety and walked up beside her, his voice steady and reassuring.
“Mm.”
Celes turned to meet Aiden’s determined gaze, nodding firmly as if drawing strength from it.
Her eyes landed on Aiden’s tie, noticing the knot was a little crooked.
Almost instinctively, she reached out and carefully adjusted it, smoothing and straightening the tie.
Aiden was somewhat surprised, his body slightly stiffening, feeling unexpectedly flattered.
Focused on fixing it, Celes suddenly had a thought flash through her mind—this was just like a wife naturally straightening her husband’s clothes before he leaves.
This thought instantly flushed the girl’s cheeks a deep red, her heart skipping a beat.
She quickly lowered her head, avoiding Aiden’s eyes, and hurriedly withdrew her fingers.
“Thank you.”
Aiden, unaware of the rich inner drama, only felt the tie was much more comfortable and nodded in thanks naturally.
The two left home together, walking through the quiet early morning streets toward Saint Dias Magic Academy.
As the grand and solemn academy gates gradually came into view, a number of students in the same uniform were already passing by in small groups.
At this moment, Celes’s steps involuntarily slowed, her breathing became slightly rapid.
She was clearly nervous again, her eyes revealing a trace of timidity.
“Go on. From now on, it’s mostly up to you. Remember the plan, keep calm, trust me.”
Aiden keenly noticed this.
He slowed his pace and gave Celes a firm, encouraging look, lightly patting her shoulder.
Feeling the warmth from Aiden’s palm, as if it carried a reassuring strength, Celes took a deep breath, nodded firmly, summoned all her courage, and stepped forward toward the academy’s gates that seemed to swallow everything whole.
(Aiden is here with me, watching not far away… There’s nothing to be afraid of… I just need to strictly follow Aiden’s instructions and not think about anything else…)
The girl kept telling herself this in her mind.
Sure enough, the moment Celes appeared at the academy gate, a rustle of whispered gossip erupted, mixed with openly pointed fingers.
“How dare she still come to the academy?”
“Look! It’s her!”
“Witch!”
Sharp voices were clearly audible everywhere.
“I’m not… I’m not a witch… Please don’t say that about me anymore…”
Celes’s heart clenched sharply, but she remembered Aiden’s plan and forced herself to appear panicked and deeply unsettled.
She kept her head low, her voice trembling with sobs as she muttered repeatedly.
Like she couldn’t bear those gazes and murmurs, she covered her face with her arms and quickly ran into the academy.
As more students gathered around, the looks cast at Celes grew more complex—curiosity, fear, but mostly disgust.
In response, Celes’s “performance” became even more intense.
Her shoulders trembled slightly, and she even forced out a few tears of grievance and fear.
To any onlooker, she looked as if she had suffered a serious blow and was on the verge of collapse.
She ran into her assigned Class.
Her classmates seemed to have already seen the widely circulated, maliciously edited Blackening Video.
The moment Celes rushed into the classroom, the previously noisy room fell into a brief silence, which then erupted into even more suppressed whispers.
Like avoiding a plague, the students subconsciously cleared a path for Celes to her seat.
Suspicious and rejecting eyes focused on her, and the murmurs continued—Celes appeared as a dangerous outcast who shouldn’t be here.
“I’m not a witch… I really’m not… Please don’t say that…”
Celes sank weakly into her chair, her shoulders twitching slightly as she wiped the tears streaming down with the back of her hand.
Her voice was mechanical, sobbing as she repeated herself.
Her fragile and helpless appearance slightly dampened some of the whispers, but the suspicious, scrutinizing gazes did not lessen.
Aiden followed Celes, entering the classroom a step later.
Walking through the academy corridor and outside the classroom, the unreserved gossip confirmed for him that the maliciously edited Blackening Video had indeed spread completely, its momentum even faster than expected.
Now, the pressure Celes was bearing had reached its peak—this was the perfect time to execute the next step of the plan.
Under all eyes, Aiden walked through the classroom filled with the tense atmosphere as if nothing was wrong.
He came to his seat next to Celes and even smiled at the “crying” girl as if completely unaware of the surrounding abnormality, greeting her in a very relaxed, natural tone.
“Good morning, Celes.”
Aiden’s unexpected move shocked the classmates, who all cast incredulous glances at him.
Many muttered in their hearts:
(This transfer student really isn’t picky?)
(He’s a perfect example of judging everything by appearance—no matter if she’s a witch in hiding, as long as she’s pretty and has a good figure, it’s fine?)
(Is he crazy?)
(Has the little head taken control of the big head?)
Celes wiped her tears and turned her head toward Aiden.
Just as she turned, facing away from the other classmates for a moment, she quickly winked at Aiden, her eyes filled with a mischievous expression, as if saying the plan was going smoothly.
Though her face still bore traces of tears and sorrow, because she cleverly turned her back to the others, no one saw this subtle change in expression.
Aiden subtly nodded, casually took a slip of paper, and quickly wrote “Well done” on it.
When no one was paying attention, he pushed it toward Celes.
Celes wrote back a question on the paper and quietly pushed it back:
“What should I do next?”
Seeing the note, a slow smile crept onto Aiden’s lips, as if everything was firmly in control.
In a low, calm voice, he told Celes:
“The stage is almost set… Now it’s time for the ‘main character’ of our play to make their appearance.”