Chapter Four

-Yu Shaohan-

So how exactly did things turn out this way?

I stared at Xiao Lan, my face weary—you must know! The flying vehicle not only cost her the spirit stones she earned from three missions, but also the spirit stones I earned from three missions!

Damn it, damn it, damn it... I'll remember you, Gojo Satoru!

Xiao Lan seemed a little embarrassed by my gaze, and silently looked at Gojo Satoru before changing the subject: "So we're going to take... the entrance exam now, right?"

"Huh?" I was taken aback. No one had mentioned this before. "An entrance exam?"

"Huh? Didn't I just say that?" Gojou Satoru, who had snatched the phone from the burly man next to him and opened the translation app, put his finger to his lips, looking extremely puzzled. "I remember saying that, didn't I?"

I complained, "No, they just didn't say that."

"No, no, no." Xiao Lan shook his head, looking like he was saying, "Why don't you listen properly?" He did say it, "Why don't you listen properly when people are talking? He said it when we were in the driver's seat."

"...No, I wasn't in the driver's seat at the time either."

In short, regarding the entrance exam, in the end, it was that burly man who gave Wu Tiao Wu and Xiao Lan a flick on the forehead each, and then explained it to me—

"It's basically an interview with me, and then I'll determine if you're qualified for admission."

oh oh.

I see.

That's easy... I can do it effortlessly...

It's not simple at all!

Xiao Lan and I started our assessments at the same time. The principal's office—or rather, the principal's office…anyway, it was incredibly dark! They weren't using lamps for lighting, but candles—you know, even in our outdated cultivation world, lamps are used for illumination these days!

It was called a face-to-face meeting, but in reality, that burly man [yes, he's the principal] summoned a bunch of ugly dolls [I probably couldn't sell these on the street] and had them beat us up.

Xiao Lan is alright, at least she's a sword cultivator... but, but!

I'm just a weak talisman cultivator!

"Shaohan, behind you!"

In the midst of the chaos, I heard Xiao Lan's terrified voice. Before my brain could react, my body instinctively took a step back. In that instant, Xiao Lan swung her Instant Sword, pinning the doll to the wall, and then kicked away the two dolls beside her.

"Are you alright?" Xiao Lan asked, panting heavily. She did a backflip and landed back-to-back with me. With her left hand, she skillfully took out a pill from her storage bag, ate one herself, and handed one to me.

This is a tacit understanding that belongs only to us, a tacit understanding that has gone through countless life and death experiences.

Why did you join the Spellcasting Academy?

Finally, the burly, sadistic principal who had been watching us get beaten up [Although I was also shocked that such a strong principal was a sadist... but, to do something like watching us get beaten up like that... he definitely must be a sadist!!!] finally spoke. Suspecting some kind of trap, before I could answer, I heard Xiao Lan blink and innocently raise her hand, answering earnestly, "To have enough to eat!"

I think I heard Gojo Satoru chuckle softly.

If I'm not mistaken, a small crossroads appeared on the principal's forehead. "Zero points!" the principal roared. "A sorcerer doesn't die fearlessly—when you die, will you still think that way? Won't you resent all of this?"

"I won't die!" Xiao Lan shouted back. "I'm super strong! Shao Han won't die either. Even though she's weak, I'll protect her—why complain about all this? I never regret the decisions I make!"

Hey, hey, hey.

My lips twitched: Is it really okay to call someone trash in front of them? And who needs your protection?! Shouldn't you be sincerely saying "I was wrong" and spouting some righteous words at a time like this? Get into the school first!

"Can you guarantee that even if you encounter a powerful cursed spirit there, you won't regret or resent your decision today when you're on your deathbed?"

"I promise! It's not like I haven't been near death before..." Realizing he had misspoke, Xiao Lan's voice trailed off, but he quickly changed the subject, "I never regret the decisions I make—I joined your Cursed Arts Academy to fill my stomach. It's an equal exchange; you provide us with food, and we kill... Cursed Spirits, is that what you mean?"

"It's an equal exchange!"

Xiao Lan spoke firmly, punching another doll into the wall, repeating his statement with unwavering conviction.

The sadistic principal's expression went blank for a moment before he answered Xiao Lan with some complicated emotion: "You've been accepted."

Me: ...Wait a minute, Principal Sadist, didn't you forget to say "you all"? It should be "You've all been accepted," right? Xiao Lan, don't leave me all alone!!!

Well, it seems the heavens didn't understand what I meant. With Xiao Lan leaving the stage, the sadistic principal removed two of the puppets, leaving only one ugly puppet on the field.

...But even if there's only one left...without a talisman, I'm just a weakling, I can't handle even one!

I looked at Gojo Satoru with a pleading gaze, but he turned away, trying not to laugh, indicating he didn't understand. I looked at Xiao Lan again, who winked at me, then suddenly realized and pulled a stack of talismans from his storage bag…

Wait, a stack?

That talisman looked strangely familiar to me—wasn't that the one I gave Xiao Lan?! Damn it! How come this guy still has such a stack of talismans! If I had known earlier, would I still have needed to hide like this?

"Excuse me!" Xiao Lan raised her hand seriously. "Hello examiner, it's time for a break. Let me hand Shao Han her things first."

It doesn't really matter whether the sadistic principal approves it or not, since Xiao Lan handed the talisman to me as soon as he finished speaking.

I held a stack of talismans high in my right hand, and laughed heartily with my left hand on my hip.

Hahaha, I, Hu Hansan, am back again!!!

From my angle, I can see it very clearly. Not only the sadistic principal, but Xiao Lan, and even Gojo Satoru, all fell into a strange silence for a moment.

The sadistic principal asked me the exact same question that Xiao Lan had just asked me.

With the life-saving tool [talisman], I wasn't flustered at all. I first calmly found a talisman to immobilize the doll, and then quickly stuck it on the doll's forehead when it attacked me. Only then did I have the interest to answer the sadistic principal's question.

"Let me state this first," I said, "My strength is actually not bad at all. Although I can't compare to Xiao Lan, I still have the basic ability to protect myself."

"As for why I joined the Spellcasting Academy..." I crossed my arms, tapping my index finger idly. After a moment's thought, I gave an answer—after all, I couldn't be as simple-minded as Xiao Lan, could I? "I'm not a traditional good person, and I'm not particularly interested in people haunted by cursed spirits, mainly because it has nothing to do with me. However, since Xiao Lan has already decided to join the Spellcasting Academy, of course I'll go with her."

I glanced at Xiao Lan's seat next to me. Ah, just as I expected, Xiao Lan's eyes were brimming with tears, and she looked like she was about to cry from being so moved.

To be honest, I could imagine what the sadistic principal would say next without him even saying a word. It would be something like, "Sorcerers don't die without fear. When you're on the verge of death, will you resent Xiao Lan?"

"Hmm...maybe." I shrugged—in fact, this is a difficult question to answer. I'm not some simple-minded person who never goes back on their decisions. "Maybe they'll resent the other person for bringing me here, maybe they'll regret the decision they made today, but..."

I looked up and gave the sadistic principal a bright smile: "At least I don't regret it now."

"As long as I don't regret it now, isn't that enough? Who cares about whether I'll regret it later? Besides, I don't think any cursed spirit can drive Xiao Lan and me to a dead end!"

-

In the end, I passed the test and joined the Spellcasting Academy.

Starting today, we are first-year students at the High School of Spellcasting.

For some reason, Gojo Satoru was unusually excited and eagerly dragged Xiao Lan and me to meet our new classmates.

"No way!" I crossed my arms and refused to leave the dorm. "Hey, what's the difference between me and a beggar in these clothes? You know, first impressions are important when meeting new classmates!" I tried to reason with them: "Do you want Xiao Lan and me to be remembered by our new classmates as 'Oh, that dirty beggar' on our first day?"

Xiao Lan is one thing, but to appear in front of new classmates in this kind of image—I absolutely, positively refuse to accept it!

Hearing me say that, Xiao Lan also realized her clothes were filthy. Always one to plead, she immediately clasped her hands together and begged Gojou to take us to buy new clothes: "Please, Gojou-sensei! Take us to buy clothes! You're the kindest person in the world!"

"Hmm! Since the cute students have said so, then I'll take you to the mall! But it'll be 'Gojo-sensei,' not 'Go-sensei,' okay?"

"Okay, Teacher Wu! I understand, Teacher Wu!"

This is exactly the same as before. There are too many things to complain about, I can't even begin to describe them all. But the fact that Gojo Satoru actually planned to take us shopping for new clothes is great. He got us into his "car," and we went to the mall together.

My eyes almost popped out – I've never seen so many clothes before.

Xiao Lan doesn't care much about clothes. She likes solid colors, so her clothes are usually either white or black. She also particularly likes the modern Chinese style—but where can she find modern Chinese style clothes to choose from in a shopping mall? In the end, she only bought a black jacket, a matching white jacquard stand-collar long-sleeved shirt, and a pair of plain black suit pants.

As for me—hmph, a fashion queen is certainly different from ordinary mortals like her. I spent ages putting together an outfit, so long that Xiao Lan and Wu Tiao Wu were almost so impatient they wanted to sit down in the clothing store and play cards together before I finally made a choice.

"Ta-da!" I showed them, "A black bodysuit paired with a white cropped jacket, and ripped, loose-fitting black jeans! But it would be even better with a metal necklace around the neck. Shall we go to the jewelry store later?"

"...Well, I have no problem with going to a jewelry store, but could we pay first and then talk about these things after we finish eating? We've been waiting for you for ages... Don't you want to look at the time? It's already dark outside!"