Chapter 138: Yan Lin

The newcomer was a young girl, standing in the light and shadow of the corridor.

Her fiery red hair cascaded down to the backs of her knees, the tips fading into a warm orange gradient.

A stubborn strand of hair stood up on her head, sticking out at an inappropriate angle.

She wore a faded, pilled blue-and-white jacket that reminded Su Ling of a school uniform from Earth.

The collar hung loosely, the cuffs were frayed, and below she wore plain blue trousers.

Her features were bright and beautiful, and her pupils held tiny golden sun-ray patterns.

Yet her face showed no hint of a smile, a stark contrast to her fiery appearance.

The contrast left Su Ling and Tian Tian momentarily stunned.

As for Lilith and Qing Luan, those two were too busy pressuring that unlucky guy to look over here.

“Hello, welcome! We have some lovely young ladies today~ What kind of service are you looking for? We have everything here.”

Tian Tian immediately switched into work mode.

“Y-you… hello… My name is Yan Lin. I, I’m here to…”

The girl was very nervous, not daring to meet Tian Tian’s eyes.

Especially Su Ling, who stood nearby.

She had only glanced at Su Ling’s figure before hurriedly lowering her head.

‘S-so beautiful…’

‘Especially those heterochromatic eyes, they’re really gorgeous…’

She was momentarily dazed, even forgetting why she had come here.

“Haha, don’t be nervous. Is this your first time? The young ladies here are all very gentle. They’re seniors from Mei Academy, so they’ll definitely take good care of you.”

Tian Tian licked her lips.

‘Every day’s customers are little lolis. Finally, a girl with such a contrast; those hungry witches will be overjoyed.’

Yan Lin stammered, her face turning bright red.

“Y-you might have misunderstood. I, I’m here to commission…”

The Witch’s Hut also offered commission services.

But most people commissioned them online.

Offline visitors almost all came for… er… private matters.

At any rate, Tian Tian had never seen anyone come in person for a commission.

After all, most tasks commissioned to the Witch’s Hut were unsavory.

Besides the Witch’s Hut, there were also legitimate commission agencies.

“Sure, go ahead and state your…”

“Ahem, I’m a temporary worker at the Witch’s Hut. You can commission me,” Su Ling interjected.

Tian Tian was taken aback.

‘What the hell?’

‘Stealing my thunder?’

‘Or undermining me?’

Just then, her phone vibrated.

“Uniform Pay: 10,000 Moni received.”

The sender was Su Ling.

The message read: “Oh my, I’m very interested in her. Why don’t you let me have her? Besides, didn’t you invite me earlier to be a temporary worker at your Witch’s Hut? I agree. Please register me first.”

Tian Tian raised an eyebrow.

Su Ling winked at her, her heterochromatic eyes full of sly mischief.

Tian Tian said nothing.

The Witch’s Hut was already short-staffed.

Lilith and Qing Luan were slacking off, and her temporary workers at Hut 07 had either left or jumped ship.

Su Ling joining now was exactly what she wanted.

And on top of that, she got 10,000 Moni for free… Hehe, profit, profit.

‘What? You’re asking if she has to turn it in?’

‘Come on, isn’t Su Ling a temporary worker for her Hut 07?’

‘Isn’t it normal to take a commission?’

‘What 10,000 Moni?’

Tian Tian didn’t know.

“C-can I?”

Yan Lin blinked.

Seeing Tian Tian nod, Yan Lin lowered her head, her face flushed red, even the tips of her ears turning red.

Seeing this, Su Ling enthusiastically took Yan Lin’s wrist.

“This isn’t a good place to talk. Let’s find somewhere quieter.”

Yan Lin felt her mind go blank.

‘Sh-she’s holding my hand!’

Su Ling led Yan Lin to a random café.

She ordered two cups of coffee and bought some paper and a pen.

Yan Lin was extremely nervous, not daring to meet her eyes, and even afraid to take a sip of the coffee in front of her.

Su Ling guessed something at that moment.

‘Looks like she has social anxiety.’

“Don’t be nervous. Tell me about your commission. By the way, are you a Transcendent Witch?”

Su Ling rested her chin on her small hand.

‘This is the real reason I asked.’

“Mmm, I’m a Transcendent…”

Yan Lin nodded slightly.

Hearing this, the corners of Su Ling’s mouth curled up.

“Go ahead, I’ll record your commission.”

At these words, Yan Lin slowly raised her head, glanced at Su Ling, then quickly lowered it again.

As if recalling something unpleasant, her expression turned melancholy.

…

Yan Lin was a second-year student at Shiyan Academy. She and her older sister had both been admitted to the Witch Academy.

Her family was very poor, you could say destitute.

Thankfully, they had no debts, and her mother and mom were very loving; the family was fairly harmonious.

Although the government subsidized 80% of tuition and housing costs, the remaining 20% still put a heavy financial strain on their family.

Moreover, both she and her sister had been admitted at the same time.

But she and her sister didn’t give up.

After entering the Academy, they worked part-time jobs, delivered food orders—they didn’t earn much, but at least they wouldn’t starve.

She was very frugal; even the clothes she wore were still her old school uniform.

She hadn’t bought a new phone, and she couldn’t even bear to pay for internet, which meant she hardly ever went online.

When she needed to find a commission, she only came in person.

Both she and her sister focused all their energy on cultivation, advancing further along the Sequence and breaking through to Transcendent.

For that, she and her sister even received a scholarship from the Academy.

Back then, they used that scholarship money to buy a lot of clothes and food for their mother and mom.

Unfortunately, good times never last.

Her sister offended someone.

A trust fund kid.

That trust fund kid’s mom was on the Company Board of Directors, and the wealth under her control could even buy an entire Witch Academy.

The reason for the conflict was simple.

The person the trust fund kid was pursuing fell for her sister instead.

Even though her sister repeatedly rejected him, it still aroused the trust fund kid’s jealousy.

For that, the trust fund kid often caused trouble for her sister.

Her sister endured it.

But…

“Yesterday, she drove a sports car and ran over my sister, seriously injuring her.”

Yan Lin bit her lip hard, her shoulders trembling.

That sports car was moving at a hundred times the speed of sound.

Even though her sister was a Transcendent Witch, she nearly had her body disintegrate and died on the spot.

Su Ling fell silent upon hearing this.

She could already guess what happened next.

Sure enough, last night, the trust fund kid brazenly admitted that she did it on purpose.

She even said she would pay for her sister’s medical expenses, but told her to forget about the person she liked.

Although her sister, after waking up, repeatedly warned her not to stir up more trouble, to endure it.

“B-but, I just can’t take it anymore…”

Yan Lin’s crimson eyes flashed with killing intent, but it disappeared quickly.

“So your commission is for me to kill that trust fund kid?”

“No!”

Unexpected.

Yan Lin looked up, but quickly lowered her head again.

“What I want to commission is… can you take care of my sister… at least… until she…”

Su Ling raised an eyebrow.

“What do you plan to do?”

Su Ling could almost guess.

“…”

Yan Lin clenched her small hands and said nothing.

“I can accept your commission.”

“But you need to think clearly. Once you do it, chances are…”

“Haven’t you thought about what will happen to your sister?”

Su Ling stared at Yan Lin.

She felt sympathy for Yan Lin.

“But I don’t want to endure anymore!”

“I’ve been listening to my sister all this time, enduring again and again!”

“But those people keep pushing!”

“This time that bastard ran over my sister and seriously injured her. Next time? The time after that?”

“That bastard definitely knows the addresses of my mother and mom…”

Yan Lin roared.

The commotion drew the attention of others in the café.

Su Ling was moved.

“I’m not telling you to endure,” Su Ling said softly.

“I’m just saying you need to think about the consequences. If you fail, your sister and your family will definitely be retaliated against.”

“Unless… you have help.”

Yan Lin shuddered.

She raised her head in surprise, looked at Su Ling’s heterochromatic eyes, then quickly lowered it again.

“I, I don’t have extra Moni…”

“Your commission is to take care of your sister—I accept.”

“As for the rest, that’s my own idea.”

Su Ling smiled.

Reason told her not to meddle.

After all, that trust fund kid certainly had money and power, and her own family was still at the Academy.

“I have some escape methods… I won’t interfere with what you plan to do, but I can promise to get you out of there.”

‘To hell with reason.’

Besides, those life-saving tricks of hers belonged to Long Ying.

If she ever gets found out…

‘Hehe, who would know it was me?’

(At that moment, in the hotel, Long Ying, who was struggling to get out of bed, suddenly stumbled and fell to the floor.)

“…”

“Why?”

Yan Lin bit her lip, full of confusion.

“I also have a mother, and I have a younger sister too… I’ve been bullied before… The feeling of being bullied is really awful.”

Su Ling shrugged.

“Now just tell me, what are your odds of success?”

Yan Lin looked deeply at Su Ling.

Such a matter shouldn’t be shared with someone she had only known for a few hours.

But for some reason, she inexplicably felt a sense of trust toward the person in front of her.

“Ninety percent.”

“Pfft!”

‘How much?’

Su Ling spat out a mouthful of coffee.

That trust fund kid definitely had a bunch of powerful bodyguards; even a Great Witch at her side wasn’t certain.

But Yan Lin very confidently said she had a ninety percent chance.

This made Su Ling’s eyes widen.

At the same time, a surge of joy welled up in her heart.

‘I’ve found a treasure!’