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🕑 Added 2025-07-13 16:25:31 +0000 UTCChapter 201: Witch Gathering
Emma opened her eyes and found herself lying in a strange bed, staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling.
"You're awake?"
A soft, young girl's voice came from beside her. Emma turned her head and looked at the speaker.
It was a girl with blonde hair and an innocent-looking face.
"Who are you? Where am I?"
Emma was surprisingly calm. She knew she'd been snatched and brought to a strange place. Freaking out wouldn't do any good right now. Figuring out what was going on was the most important thing.
"This is Boston. We're all at Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies. It's a full-time boarding school specifically for, well, you know?"
Emma totally got it. It was for newly awakened little witches!
"Were you also brought here against your will?"
Emma noticed the blonde girl's somewhat gloomy expression and guessed that her experience might be similar.
"Yeah, I was just brought to this school a few days ago myself. My name is Zoe Benson. What's yours?"
"Emma, Emma Black."
The blonde girl, Zoe, nodded and then stood up.
"Now that you're awake, I'll go tell the headmistress."
Zoe left the room, leaving Emma alone on the bed to think.
After a little while, the dorm room door slowly creaked open.
Emma thought it was the headmistress Zoe had mentioned coming to see her, but instead, three weirdos in black robes and bird-like masks walked in.
This strange getup instinctively made Emma feel scared, so she started to use her powers.
But as soon as Emma tried to use her powers, one of the three figures let out a shriek.
"Watch out, she's gonna attack us!"
No sooner had the words left their mouth than the person started convulsing and fell to the floor. At the same time, another one of them used their powers and threw Emma off the bed.
But this person also got a taste of Emma's power and, just like the first one, started twitching and collapsed on the ground.
Only the third person was completely fine because Emma's powers were interrupted when she was thrown.
"You guys okay?"
The third person in the black robes took off their mask and helped up their friends. It was a somewhat chubby black girl.
"Madison, Nan, you alright?"
"Queenie, we're fine, just a little dizzy."
Emma's mental abilities were definitely strong, but she was still just a newly awakened little witch, and her targets were two witches much older than her. So, the witches called Madison and Nan quickly got back on their feet.
The one called Madison was a beautiful girl with blonde hair, and the one called Nan was a short, plump white girl.
The three of them were actually students at Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies and could be considered Emma's upperclassmen. Their little stunt was just their special welcoming ritual.
But these kinds of pranks can easily go wrong, just like this time.
Madison was the ringleader of the trio and had a bit of a hot temper. After getting hit by Emma's mental attack, she immediately wanted revenge.
"That little bitch—how is she just a kid?"
Emma had been under the covers, and Madison and the others were wearing masks, so they hadn't gotten a good look at her.
It wasn't until Madison stood up that she realized the person she'd thrown was just an eight-year-old girl.
At this point, Emma was lying on the floor, clutching her butt and stubbornly glaring at Madison and the others.
It looked like that fall had made Emma's injury a little worse.
Even though Madison was the type to hold a grudge, she felt weird about actually going after a little kid.
"Madison, what do we do?"
Queenie and Nan on the side didn't know what the right move was either. They instinctively looked at Emma.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the dorm room was super awkward.
Just then, Cordelia walked in with Zoe.
"What are you doing in here? And why are you still dressed like that?"
Madison looked at Cordelia without a hint of fear.
"Ms. Fox, we heard there was a new student, so we just wanted to say hi. But it looks like the new girl might have gotten the wrong idea."
Madison smoothly downplayed the whole thing. Cordelia didn't say much; she was kind of a pushover anyway.
"Emma is a little special. She's only eight years old this year, so don't you dare bully her."
Madison raised an eyebrow, giving a fake sweet smile.
"Oh, please! I absolutely adore cute little girls like her!"
Queenie and Nan next to her quickly chimed in, agreeing with Madison.
Cordelia looked at Madison. She knew what the blonde girl was like, but because of her own personality, she didn't want to get too involved.
"Alright, you can leave now! Zoe, help Emma onto the bed. Her butt is hurt."
"Yes, Ms. Fox."
Madison rolled her eyes and left the dorm room with her two sidekicks.
Zoe walked over to Emma, who was still on the floor, helped her up, and onto the bed.
"Okay, Zoe, you can head out too."
Zoe nodded and obediently left the dorm room, leaving only Cordelia and Emma inside.
"Emma, now that you're here at Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies, you just need to stay put. Once you graduate, you can naturally leave. Don't even think about running away. We've put a spell on you. If you get too far from the school, we'll know. And then you'll face serious consequences!"
Emma looked at Cordelia with a cold stare.
"What exactly counts as graduating?"
"You need to be at least 21 years old and have been enrolled for no less than three years."
Emma quickly did the math and realized she'd have to stay at this school for thirteen years.
Thinking about it, waking up your powers early might not be so great after all. If you woke up later, you'd only have to stay for three years to leave.
"That's all I have to say. Here's a bottle of magic potion for external injuries. Put it on your wound; it'll help the injury on your butt heal up fast."
Cordelia handed Emma a bottle of light green liquid in a clear glass vial and then left the dorm room.
Emma held the medicine bottle in her hand, still thinking about what Cordelia had said.
Seriously, is there really no way to escape this place?
Will Brother Roy come to save me?
Emma didn't want to stay at some academy for exceptional young ladies. She just wanted to go back to Falls Church and go back to her old life.
Gritting her teeth, Emma twisted open the cap of the green potion and smeared the liquid on her butt.
Even if she was planning an escape, Emma needed to heal the injury on her butt first. Otherwise, she wouldn't even be able to run, so how could she get out of here?
The green liquid gave Emma a really cool sensation when she put it on the hurt spot. The intense pain from the hard fall just moments ago practically vanished instantly.
This stuff was way better than the over-the-counter ointment Emma had been using for days.
Emma curiously picked up the green potion and looked at it closely.
"Could this really be a magic potion brewed by witches?"
In stories, you always see witches with a big cauldron in their house, brewing all sorts of weird concoctions with strange ingredients.
If the witch school had this kind of amazing magic potion, was there a chance it could help her dad recover from his vegetative state and become normal again?
After Emma's Leviathan bloodline was sealed by Roy and her mind went back to normal, the thing she regretted the most was causing her father to become a vegetable.
If it was possible, Emma would definitely heal her father, even if it meant paying a price.
Could she maybe lay low in the school for a while?
Emma started to hesitate.
She wasn't sure how much time had passed when someone knocked on the door. Then, Zoe came into the room carrying some food.
"Emma, you're not asleep, are you?"
Emma was lying on the bed and couldn't really tell if she had drifted off or not.
"Nope."
"I brought you dinner."
Zoe placed the tray on the bedside table. Dinner was mashed potatoes, fried chicken nuggets, and some vegetable salad.
"Do you need me to feed you?"
Zoe was pretty nice, which made Emma feel a little fond of her.
"No, I can eat myself."
After putting on the magic potion, Emma's injury felt much better, and she was able to sit up and eat.
Hearing this, Zoe looked like she wanted to say something but then stopped herself. Emma noticed her expression.
"Is there something you wanted to say?"
"Well, Madison is actually not a bad person. She just likes to play pranks sometimes. When I first got here, they messed with me a little too, but they took care of me later. I just hope you won't be mad at them."
Emma, now that her mind was clear, wasn't that easily angered. But she still appreciated Zoe's kindness; after all, the other girl was the first person to show her any goodwill.
In a strange environment, this kind of kindness was really valuable to Emma.
"Thank you, Sister Zoe!"
Being called "sister" made Zoe really happy. Who doesn't love it when a cute little kid sweetly calls them "sister"?
Emma had been out of it for a whole day, and her stomach was growling. She grabbed the tray from the bedside table and started eating.
With her mouth full, Emma didn't forget to ask Zoe about the witch school.
"Sister Zoe, can you tell me about what it's like at school?"
Zoe didn't refuse.
"Even though I've only been here for a few days, there aren't actually that many students. I can tell you a little bit about them."
Right now, there were a total of thirteen witches at Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies. Besides Emma, who was the youngest at eight, the next youngest student was twelve.
The oldest student was Madison. She looked young, but she was actually twenty years old and almost ready to graduate.
Plus, Madison had been a child star. She'd started filming movies really early on and spent several years messing around in Hollywood before her powers woke up and she got sent to this school.
That's why Madison's personality was a little rough around the edges.
"It's because Madison's parents totally exploited her after she became famous, which made her personality kind of bad. But she's actually a really good person deep down."
Emma kind of understood. She was only eight years old and hadn't really been exposed to the darker side of life yet, so she didn't really know about the sad experiences of child stars.
American child stars are known for having it rough. Unless their parents are already in the business, they usually face crazy exploitation from them.
A lot of child stars go down the wrong path because of that.
And even though the Lolita Express scandal started in 1998, America's history of child exploitation didn't start then. Child stars who make it to Hollywood might not always escape it.
And child stars' parents often like to push their kids into bad situations for their own benefit.
"Besides Madison, the other little witches are pretty okay. Their situations are actually pretty similar to yours and mine. They all came to this school unwillingly. The ones you really need to watch out for are Maria and Carrie."
Emma looked at Zoe curiously. The other girl's expression was really serious, clearly showing that this girl named Maria was trouble.
"What's the deal with those two?"
"I heard that after Maria's powers woke up, she killed a bunch of people before the Witch Council found her!"
Even though a witch's awakening can often hurt other people—like how Zoe herself accidentally killed her first boyfriend when her powers came—it's still pretty rare for a young witch like Maria to intentionally kill people.
But Emma had killed people before, so she wasn't too scared after hearing what Zoe said.
"And she's your roommate! You really need to be careful!"
This made Emma's expression a little more serious. There were three beds in the dorm room, and one of them must belong to this Maria.
"And what's Carrie's story?"
"I heard Madison say that Carrie's situation is even worse than Maria's. She's a demon witch, and there's even a demon attached to her! When they found her, she had killed all the students at a school party!"
This really shocked Emma.
Unless it's a witch school like Robichaux's, most schools have at least a hundred students. This witch named Carrie was seriously terrifying!
But then Emma thought about it. She also had demon blood in her. If Roy hadn't sealed that part of her bloodline, maybe Emma would have ended up like Carrie in the future.
"That's so awful!"
"You should probably brace yourself. Carrie is your other roommate."
Emma: ???
Is my dorm room just a revolving door of people?
"They, uh, they probably won't be that violent at school, right?"
Just as Zoe was about to answer, the dorm room door was pushed open.
Standing there was a girl with long black hair and a really beautiful face. Even though Emma had seen beauties like Jennifer, she had to admit that this girl had a charm that was just as captivating.
It was just a shame that such a pretty face wore a cold expression, and her eyes looked at everyone as if they owed her money.
As soon as Zoe saw who it was, she quickly said hello.
"Maria, you're here?"
Maria nodded slightly and then looked at Zoe with sharp eyes, as if asking why she was in her dorm room.
Zoe quickly explained.
"The new little witch isn't feeling too well, so I came to bring her dinner!"
You could tell that Zoe was really scared of this Maria.
After hearing Zoe's explanation, Maria stopped paying attention to her and sat down on her own bed, starting to silently read a book.
Seeing this, Zoe let out a small sigh of relief. She always felt an invisible pressure around Maria, like the rumored aura of a killer, which made her feel instinctively afraid. She really didn't want to be in the same room as Maria.
By this time, Emma had pretty much finished her dinner. Zoe quickly picked up the tray.
"Emma, you're all done eating, right? I'll take your dishes to the kitchen for you!"
Emma opened her mouth, wanting to say that she wanted to eat a little more, but seeing the pleading look in Zoe's eyes, she decided to just nod.
And so, Zoe quickly made her escape from Emma's dorm room.
Watching Zoe's retreating figure, Emma had a feeling that her time at the witch school might not be so easy.
Zoe (Taissa Farmiga)
Chapter 202: The Supreme Witch
Roy successfully managed to keep the plane from sinking completely as it slid into the ocean.
When the plane hit the water, it broke apart due to the high speed. Luckily, the main body of the fuselage was intact, only the wings had snapped off.
However, while Roy was successful in keeping it afloat, the impact of the plane hitting the ocean also slammed him down into the seabed.
The force of the impact knocked Roy unconscious almost instantly. The fact that he was still in his demon form when he was thrown into the sea is what saved his life, thanks to the powerful physical defense of his demon skin.
When Roy finally came to, he found himself being pushed to the surface by a dolphin.
"Thanks, dolphin," he said.
The dolphin made a cheerful sound and then swam off into the distance.
It was already night. Roy scanned the darkness for the plane and saw a large number of ships and rescue helicopters in the distance.
They must have reported their location to the airline before the crash, and the ocean where they went down wasn't too far from the East Coast cities, so the rescue arrived pretty quickly.
Roy tried to move his body and found that his muscles were severely damaged from the strain of holding up the plane. Right now, even wiggling was incredibly painful, let alone swimming.
With no other option, Roy just floated on the surface, letting his body try to repair itself. But since he didn't have any food in his stomach, the healing process was pretty slow.
In the darkness, the rescue team over by the plane hadn't noticed a person floating silently in the distant ocean.
It was a calm night with no wind, but for some reason, Roy felt a sudden chill.
Then, Roy realized he was being watched by a shark.
It was pretty strange for a shark to be this close to the shoreline. But this one probably hadn't tasted human flesh before, so after getting a whiff of Roy, it decided to see what he tasted like. It swam over and bit down on his body.
Even though Roy couldn't move his body, his mind was still working. The moment the shark bit him, he instantly activated Dark Touch.
Four jet-black tentacles shot out from Roy's back and pierced the shark's body. Only then did the shark realize it had bitten into something like steel. It quickly let go, trying to escape.
But it was too late. The four tentacles pinned the shark in place, frantically sucking the flesh and blood from its body. This was then converted into life energy to repair Roy's injuries.
Soon, all that was left of the shark was its skin. Thanks to the shark's life energy healing him, Roy was finally able to swim.
Even though swimming was still incredibly painful, at least he didn't have to keep playing the role of a plastic bottle out in the ocean.
Looking towards the plane in the distance, it would probably still take some time for the rescue to be completed. He wondered how Claire was doing.
Roy had done everything he could to save the plane. If something still happened to Claire, then it was just bad luck.
Instead of heading towards the plane, Roy decided to just swim to shore.
His expert-level swimming skills came in handy at this moment. Even though his whole body ached, the skill kept his swimming form perfect, allowing him to swim towards the coastline as fast as possible.
Several hours later, Roy finally made it to the shore, completely exhausted.
Once he was on land, Roy lay there for a while before immediately pulling out some clean clothes from his inventory and changing.
Even though it was the middle of the night, Roy didn't want to be wandering around with a wet suit on.
The annoying thing was that Roy had forgotten to put his phone and wallet back into his inventory. They had disappeared along with his clothes when he transformed.
This meant Roy couldn't make any calls, and he didn't have his credit cards or driver's license to prove his identity.
If he ran into the cops, he might end up spending a few days in jail.
Luckily, he still had the bonus Wade had given him in his inventory, so at least he wasn't short on cash.
"First, I need to figure out where I am, and then I need to get some food!"
Recovering his body required a lot of energy, and that energy wouldn't just appear out of nowhere, so he needed to eat.
Ever since his physique had gotten stronger and stronger, Roy had rarely suffered such serious injuries. The last time he was hurt this badly was when he encountered the eerie Slender Man.
Right now, Roy was so hungry he could eat a horse.
Fortunately, the East Coast of America is very densely populated, and there are cities along almost the entire coastline.
Roy hadn't walked far before he entered a city area. Then he saw the famous statue that stays lit even during a blackout (the Statue of Liberty), so it seemed he had crashed in the waters near New York.
After that, Roy found a fast-food restaurant and started to chow down.
The TV in the fast-food place was showing a live report about the plane crash.
"...The federal government is actively conducting rescue operations. So far, no fatalities have been found. It has to be said, this is a great miracle..."
No fatalities found? Then Claire should still be safe.
Roy breathed a sigh of relief and continued to eat with gusto.
To the shock of the restaurant staff, Roy single-handedly devoured enough food for twenty people.
While America is known for its competitive eaters, those guys are usually massive. Roy's build was only slightly more muscular than the average American, yet he could eat so much. It was truly astonishing.
Once he was full, Roy went and bought a new phone and SIM card, then called Waterfall Town to let them know his new number.
As a result, Roy heard some news from Jennifer that left him speechless.
"Roy, your car is gone!"
"You said what?"
After deciding to fly to Boston, Roy had left his Chevrolet Camaro with Jennifer and Needy to use. But not even a day later, Jennifer was telling him the car was gone.
Jennifer quickly explained.
"I parked the car in front of the house after school this afternoon. When I went back to my room after dinner tonight, the car wasn't there anymore!"
Could something like that really happen?
America has a lot of car thieves, which was why Roy hadn't driven the car to Austin. Who knew where his car would be when he got back? Maybe it would have had several new owners.
But Roy never imagined his car would disappear while parked in Waterfall Town. This made him really angry.
"Jennifer, tomorrow go ask Chief Hughes if any car thieves have come into town. I can't deal with this right now!"
"Okay!"
After hanging up, Roy called all the friends he knew to let them know about his new number, so they could reach him if they needed anything urgently.
After doing all that, Roy found a hotel in New York to stay in for the night. His current physical condition wasn't suitable for causing trouble for the Witch Council. He should get his strength back first.
Emma spent her first night at Miss Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies, and it was tougher than she'd expected.
Since Emma had slept all day, she wasn't very sleepy at night. Maria and Carrie were both the silent type, not saying a single word all night, which made the atmosphere in the dorm room as cold as ice.
Here, it's worth mentioning Emma's first impression of Carrie.
Carrie was a sweet-looking girl with no apparent aggression, and her temperament was very similar to Needy's.
They were the kind of girls who would either go unnoticed at school or be bullied.
It even made Emma feel like Carrie's reputation was undeserved, not at all like a demon witch who could kill hundreds of people.
However, the occasional fierce glint in Carrie's eyes still told Emma that this girl wasn't as weak as she looked.
This time was really dragging!
Maria was able to read, while Carrie just stared at a mirror, as if her mind was miles away.
So, Emma, unable to sleep, could only lie on her stomach and start counting sheep. She counted thousands of sheep before finally falling asleep just before dawn.
But she hadn't been asleep for long when someone woke her up.
"Emma, wake up!"
It was Zoe again, here to bring Emma breakfast.
Emma rubbed her eyes and noticed that Maria and Carrie were no longer in the room. It was already broad daylight outside the window.
"Is it morning already?"
"Yes! Emma, how did you sleep last night?"
Emma didn't answer. It wasn't easy to fall asleep in an unfamiliar environment.
But Zoe could understand Emma's feelings.
"It's okay. I had insomnia every day for the first few days I was here. I only started sleeping better in the last couple of days. Eat your breakfast first!"
Breakfast was a glass of whole milk, egg toast, and bacon. Not bad.
"Emma, I have to go to class. You can leave your breakfast on the bedside table when you're done, and I'll come back to get it after class. The headmistress said you're injured, so you don't have to go to class today, but starting tomorrow, you'll have to start attending."
After applying the green potion last night, Emma felt that the injury on her butt had healed for the most part. She figured that applying it twice more today should completely heal it, and she should be able to attend classes normally tomorrow.
However, Emma was a little curious about what kind of classes they had at a witch school.
"Sister Zoe, what do you guys learn in class?"
Zoe shrugged.
"Most of the courses are actually similar to regular schools: literature, math, history, that kind of thing. But every day there's a witch class where they teach us to control our talents and learn some witch abilities."
"Do they teach us how to brew potions?"
This was what Emma was most concerned about.
Zoe nodded.
"Yes, the headmistress teaches that class herself. She's very good at brewing potions."
Emma had a thoughtful expression on her face.
Zoe quickly left the dorm room to go to class, while Emma slowly ate her breakfast.
The food at Miss Robichaux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies was pretty good. Emma had really enjoyed dinner last night.
The school seemed quite wealthy. Not only were the dorm rooms luxurious, but the food was also quite exquisite. The entire school was located inside a huge manor-style building.
As she was eating, Emma suddenly felt a gaze. She turned her head and saw an old woman with an extraordinary aura standing at the door.
The old woman was looking at Emma with a strange expression, making the little girl feel a little uneasy.
"Do you know who I am?"
Emma shook her head.
"I am Fiona Goode, the Supreme Witch of the Witch Council. You can call me Ms. Fiona."
The title "Supreme Witch" sounded very powerful. Emma quickly greeted her.
"Hello, Ms. Fiona."
Hearing this, Fiona gave a kind smile, but Emma could feel the coldness behind the woman's smile.
"Such a well-behaved child."
Fiona walked behind Emma and stroked her hair like a kind elder.
Emma didn't dare to resist at all. Not just because of the difference in their witchcraft levels, but the sheer size difference between them meant she had no way to resist.
Then, Emma felt Fiona's hand release some kind of energy into her body.
It turned out that Fiona's real purpose in stroking Emma's hair was to check Emma's aptitude.
The energy Fiona released quickly retreated after touching Roy's seal. Then Fiona looked at Emma in surprise.
"How do you have a seal in your body?"
Emma didn't want to talk about this, so she just shook her head, pretending not to know.
But this kind of behavior couldn't fool the Supreme Witch. Fiona snapped her fingers, and Emma instantly felt dazed.
"Tell me, where did the seal in your body come from?"
Fiona asked again. This time, Emma honestly answered her.
"Big Brother Roy set the seal for me."
"Why did he put a seal on you?"
"Big Brother Roy said there's demon blood in my body, and the demon bloodline must be sealed so that my mind won't be affected."
"Demon bloodline?"
Fiona looked at Emma in surprise, then examined Emma's body even more carefully.
Emma remained in a daze, completely unaware of what Fiona was doing.
After a moment, Fiona looked at Emma with a troubled expression.
"Indeed, it's the bloodline of the King of Envy! Damn it, why do all these little witches with such great talent have demon bloodlines? This Emma does, and that Carrie does too! One is the King of Envy, and the other is the King of Wrath!"
Fiona cursed for a while, then calmed down and continued to ask Emma.
"What's the full name of the Big Brother Roy you mentioned?"
"Roy Black."
"Roy Black? That name sounds familiar."
Fiona thought for a moment and remembered that her daughter Cordelia had mentioned this name before. He was apparently a junior agent at the FEA.
"For a junior agent to know such profound sealing magic, his background must be quite extraordinary. Could he be a witch that the FEA themselves cultivated?"
The federal government had always wanted to control supernatural power. In a way, the FEA was created for this very reason.
The idea was to solve supernatural events through the FEA and analyze and research methods from these events that ordinary people could use to harness supernatural power.
This was obviously not that easy, so so far Fiona hadn't discovered that the FEA had mastered supernatural power.
Fiona definitely didn't want the federal government to control supernatural power. All supernatural organizations probably felt the same way, otherwise, how would they continue to take advantage of the federal government?
"It seems I need to keep an eye on the FEA's situation."
After thinking for a moment, Fiona remembered that Emma was still under her hypnotic spell, so she snapped her fingers again to release the witchcraft.
Emma suddenly came back to her senses, only to find that Fiona was no longer by her side.
What just happened? Did I say something?
Emma tried to recall, but it seemed like a part of her memory was missing.
This made Emma realize how terrifying witches could be. Those powerful witches could crush her just like Roy could.
Being careful and cautious is definitely the right thing to do!
Maria (India Eisley)
Chapter 203: Look Around When You Talk
On the third day at the Robichaud Academy for Gifted Girls, Emma's butt finally healed completely, and she could get out of bed and move around normally.
This morning, Emma got up and went to the dining hall for breakfast, just like the other witches.
The dining hall at the witch school was the largest room in the entire building. It had an exceptionally long table that could seat forty or fifty people at once.
But at this moment, only a dozen or so people were sitting at this long table. Twelve of them were teenage girls, and the rest were middle-aged or older women.
Cardilia and Fiona, whom Emma had met before, were among them.
The dining hall was very quiet. Everyone sat up straight, and no one spoke.
In this atmosphere, Emma, who had originally wanted to chat with Zoe, gave up on the idea.
"Is everyone here? Then let's begin breakfast."
Supreme Witch Fiona was the most important person present. She tapped a bell with a spoon to announce the start of breakfast.
Immediately, servants brought food to the table.
Today's breakfast was milk, cereal, pancakes, and some ham – quite a spread.
While eating breakfast, Emma observed the environment at the table. She noticed that the other young witches seemed just as curious as she was, while the adult witches all looked distracted.
There were a few people who stood out.
One was Maria, who seemed indifferent to everything. She ate her breakfast elegantly, with the manners of a noble.
Another was Carrie. This girl was staring blankly with a fork and knife in her hands, looking lost in thought and not eating anything.
Finally, there was Fiona. She ate the food on her plate slowly and deliberately, cutting the ham into tiny pieces before eating them. It was hard to tell if she was even hungry.
About half an hour later, even Carrie, the slowest eater, had finished breakfast. But no one left the table. They all watched Fiona.
As if just snapping out of a daze, Fiona suddenly put down her knife and fork.
"Has everyone finished eating? Then I have an announcement to make. Because there have been quite a few incidents at the witch academy recently, I've decided to return to the academy and personally guide you for a while."
Fiona's sharp gaze swept across the young witches at the table.
Emma noticed that many of the young witches showed expressions of fear, but some of them, like Madison, were bolder.
That girl even rolled her eyes. She seemed like a rebellious teenager.
"I hope that during my time back at the academy, everyone can behave themselves a little better. Alright, that's all I have to say. You can go to your classes now."
The young witches at the table got up from their seats one after another, and Emma followed them out.
Once in the hallway, Emma pulled Zoe's hand and asked, "What did that woman mean just now?"
Zoe whispered to Emma, "I don't know either! I've only been here a month longer than you. I haven't even seen that woman before!"
At this moment, Nan, the chubby white girl who had pranked Emma before, came over to explain.
"She's the Supreme Witch, the highest leader of the Witch Federation!"
Emma looked at Nan in surprise. "How did you eavesdrop on us?"
Nan shrugged. "Sorry, I wasn't eavesdropping. I can just hear people's thoughts. It's a passive ability, and I can't help it."
Emma was shocked. She hadn't expected such mind-reading abilities. No wonder Nan knew beforehand that she was going to attack the other day.
"So, can you know what everyone is thinking?"
"It's not that simple. Nan's ability isn't strong enough. She can only hear the thoughts of ordinary people. Witches can block her out with a little concentration."
Madison approached Emma at some point, carefully sizing up the little girl.
"Hi, Madison. My name is Emma."
Emma took the initiative to greet Madison, which seemed to please her.
Madison seemed to really enjoy the feeling of being the big sister. This might have something to do with her Hollywood experience, where she always had a bunch of followers around her.
"Since you called me Madison, I'll explain things to you. The Supreme Witch is the most powerful witch in the Witch Federation. She rarely appears at the witch school. Her daughter, Cardilia, usually manages things here. But whenever she shows up at the witch school, it's never anything good!"
It was clear that Madison didn't like Fiona very much, maybe even disliked her.
Zoe looked at Madison curiously. "What will happen?"
Madison scoffed. "When she comes, the school gets super serious. Just like you saw just now, no one dares to talk during meals, and we definitely can't sneak out at night!"
Emma looked at Madison in surprise. Judging by her tone, it sounded like she often sneaked out.
Suddenly, a shadow loomed over Emma's head. Then, Madison grabbed her own neck as if something was stuck in her throat.
"Talking about people behind their backs isn't a good habit, Madison."
It turned out that Fiona had just walked by and overheard Madison's comments, so she took action to teach her a lesson.
Madison's two followers, Queenie and Nan, quickly patted Madison's back, and then Madison lowered her head and vomited up a live frog the size of a fist.
This was clearly some kind of witchcraft Fiona had used.
"Next time you speak, remember to take a good look around."
Fiona continued walking forward without even glancing at Madison. This made the rebellious teenager very angry.
Someone like Madison, who had been a child star and was used to being the center of attention, had a warped sense of values and couldn't stand this kind of treatment.
However, Madison wasn't stupid enough to confront Fiona directly. She waited until Fiona was far away before spitting angrily.
"Ptooey, old hag!"
The first class in the morning was cultural studies. The witch academy hired some regular teachers to teach the young witches some general education courses. This was to prevent these young witches from being unable to integrate into normal society after graduating from the witch academy and ending up turning to crime.
This was one of the important reasons why the federal government tolerated the existence of the Witch Federation. Since the witch academy was established, the number of supernatural events related to witches in the federation had decreased significantly.
Emma paid close attention in class. She had always been a top student. Some of the young witches from less privileged backgrounds also listened attentively.
Only Madison showed no interest in the class and spent the whole time chatting quietly with her two followers in the corner.
The teacher giving the lecture completely ignored this and just continued teaching.
The morning classes ended quickly, and Emma felt a little disappointed.
This morning had been all cultural studies – one history class and one math class, both very basic. Even Emma, with her elementary school level, could keep up.
However, Emma borrowed the class schedule from Zoe during lunch and learned that the first class in the afternoon was Cardilia's potions class.
Fiona didn't appear in the dining hall during lunch, and the atmosphere was noticeably different.
The girls chatted with each other about gossip and interesting things that had happened to them, their silver bell-like laughter ringing out from time to time.
This felt more like a normal school lunch. It was nothing like the serious atmosphere during breakfast, which had felt like a prison.
Emma began to understand why Madison disliked Fiona.
Not many kids would like someone so strict and focused on discipline.
After lunch, Emma was strolling through the academy's hallway when she inadvertently saw Madison pull Zoe into a corner to talk.
Curiosity drove Emma to secretly follow them.
"Zoe, I heard there's a party at a nearby nightclub tonight. There will be a lot of handsome college guys there. Do you want to go with me?"
Hearing this, Zoe's eyes lit up. This girl only looked like a goody-two-shoes; deep down, she craved some excitement.
However, Zoe was still a little worried about getting in trouble. "Wouldn't that be bad? What about Ms. Fiona...?"
"Don't worry. That old woman never stays overnight at the academy. She has no idea what we do at night. Cardilia never cares about these things either. I've already calculated it. That nightclub is just within the range of witchcraft tracking! We'll go late at night and come back before dawn. No one will ever know!"
Clearly, this wasn't the first time Madison had done this. She was very experienced.
Thinking about it, how could a child star who was used to the extravagant lifestyle of Hollywood stay obediently in a boarding school?
Even a relatively quiet kid like Emma found it very boring here. There were no entertainment activities at all, maybe just watching TV at most.
You could probably convince someone it was a religious school.
Suddenly, Emma's shoulder was grabbed. It was Maria.
It turned out that Maria had also seen Emma eavesdropping in the corner and had followed her. However, this girl was much bigger than Emma and was instantly spotted by Madison.
Well, after being taught a lesson by Fiona, Madison was indeed paying attention to her surroundings when she spoke.
"Who's there!"
Upon seeing Maria and Emma, Madison frowned.
Emma quickly explained, "I was just passing by!"
Madison didn't care about Emma at all. What could an eight-year-old girl do? Her attention was mainly focused on Maria.
Emma: An eight-year-old girl can be very mischievous!
"What do you mean?"
Maria smiled for the first time ever, as far as Emma had seen in her three days at the witch academy.
"Nothing much. I'm just interested in your activities tonight. Can I join you?"
Hearing this, Madison's eyes brightened, but she still put on a very reluctant expression.
"You want to join too? Fine, considering we're classmates, I can take you, but you have to listen to me!"
Madison was indeed very eager to be the boss and was recruiting followers everywhere.
"Okay."
"Come with me. Let's go somewhere else and discuss the plan properly!"
Madison ignored Emma and pulled Zoe and Maria to another place to continue their discussion.
Emma was a bit speechless. At her young age, she couldn't understand Madison and the others' enthusiasm for parties.
The lunch break ended, and Emma excitedly arrived at the classroom, but it wasn't Cardilia, as Zoe had said, who came in to teach. It was the Supreme Witch Fiona.
"Cardilia isn't feeling well, so I'll be substituting for her in this class. Everyone, please follow me outside. This afternoon's class will be held outdoors."
The young witches' eyes lit up. Taking classes outdoors was much more interesting than in the classroom. Only Madison rolled her eyes.
Emma took the opportunity to walk over to Madison while Fiona was walking out and asked, "Madison, you don't seem to want to leave the classroom for class?"
Madison carefully looked around before answering Emma. "Duh! That old woman does this every year at the beginning of the year. She's actually just going to the neighboring town of Salem to learn about the history of the witch trials back then. I've already been through this three times!"
Looking at it this way, Madison had been here for three years. Emma suddenly felt a little sorry for her.
Sure enough, after leaving the classroom, Emma saw a small bus parked at the door. After all the young witches got on, the small bus drove north of Boston.
Salem Town is located about 30 kilometers northeast of Boston. The Robichaud Academy for Gifted Girls is actually in the suburbs of Boston, so Emma and the others arrived at the old site of the Salem witch trials in about half an hour.
This place had clearly become a cultural tourist attraction, with a large number of tourists coming every year.
The official town of Salem also widely publicized the suffering of the witches and built many related cultural tourism projects.
"Do you see this? These are the things that once happened to us witches. Three hundred years ago, the witches united together to fight against the power of the church, and that's why you have the happy lives you have now."
In front of the gravestones of the victims of the Salem witch trials, Fiona gave a long speech about remembering the hardships of the past and appreciating the present.
There was actually nothing wrong with this content. After all, this was the reason why the Witch Federation continued to exist.
The young witches who were hearing this story for the first time were quite serious, but Madison, who had heard it several times, was a bit disdainful.
However, Madison didn't dare to contradict Fiona and just kept rolling her eyes.
"Alright, you can now move freely in this area and learn about the details of the witch trials back then. Tomorrow, I want to see your reflections, with no fewer than 1000 words."
There's even homework? Emma was taken aback.
Neither of the two cultural studies classes in the morning had assigned homework. Emma had thought that the witch school had no homework, but she didn't expect Fiona to assign homework in the afternoon.
However, just writing reflections wasn't difficult for Emma, but someone's eyes almost rolled out of their head.
That's right, I'm talking about you, Madison.
During free time, Nan suddenly tugged on Madison's sleeve. "Madison, I think I heard a strange sound coming from this grave!"
"Don't talk nonsense, Nan! The witches in the grave have been dead for who knows how many years. How could there be a sound? Let's go take a look over there."
"Is that so?"
The speaker didn't mean much by it, but the listener took it to heart.
Nan quickly forgot about it, but Fiona, who happened to be passing by, looked at the grave with a thoughtful expression.
Carrie (Chloe Grace Moretz)
(End of this chapter)
