“My biggest rival? Then I really need to see this.”
Hearing Olivia say that, Tunzuo’s head snapped up instantly, her gaze cutting through the bustling crowd of witches and shooting straight toward the main entrance of the Capital Arena.
Following the fine tradition of knowing your enemy and knowing yourself to win a hundred battles, Tunzuo had to find out just how much substance this witch who earned the title of “biggest rival” from Olivia actually had.
As the Capital Arena’s gates thundered open, the surrounding cheers grew even more fervent.
Under these circumstances, even the sunlight seemed to transform into a dedicated spotlight, allowing seven figures to stride into the Capital Arena lobby, bathed in light, walking with swaggering, unrivaled steps.
The seven figures varied in build and appearance, and on top of that, they were all sorts of colors.
All seven witches wore sunglasses that covered most of their faces, radiating unparalleled arrogance.
Combined with their utterly obnoxious walking posture, Tunzuo couldn’t help but mentally cue up the BGM of “Rebel Stars of a Chaotic Era” for them.
“Seriously, pervert dragon, which academy’s team is this? Such a big show? So punchable.”
Watching the academy team’s sudden entrance, Tunzuo’s mouth twitched as she turned to Olivia beside her.
This entrance style, practically branding “born protagonist” onto their very beings, made it hard for any witch to resist the urge to roast them.
Yet faced with Tunzuo’s curiosity, Olivia simply smiled without speaking, her golden vertical pupils narrowing slightly.
The meaning was obvious: guess.
Looking at Olivia’s equally punchable expression, Tunzuo drew in a sharp breath.
The familiar recipe, the familiar feeling, made a guess vaguely surface in Tunzuo’s mind.
“Wait, Capital Academy? Principal Andersen’s direct line is this wild?”
“Capital Academy, as the host, naturally needs a grander entrance. It’s also Principal Andersen’s firm requirement. After all, we have to live up to the golden reputation of the number one academy, right?”
Olivia smiled softly, seemingly long accustomed to this.
As she spoke, she scooped up a large spoonful of ice cream and elegantly brought it to her mouth.
The next second, Olivia’s confident expression instantly crumbled.
Her elegant face cycled through several colors before she frantically tossed the ice cream aside.
Tunzuo glanced at the failed show-off Olivia beside her, then looked at the Capital Academy team radiating glory and dominance at the arena entrance, and couldn’t help raising a hand to cover her mouth, thinking to herself.
Could it be…
Olivia is actually a good girl at heart?
Besides being a bit of a pervert, all her other weird traits were corrupted by Capital Academy’s bizarre school culture?
Just as Tunzuo was sinking deep into this profound philosophical question, the Capital Academy team that had entered the arena didn’t head to the resting area.
Instead, they walked straight to the center of the floor.
Then, Tunzuo witnessed a scene that left her dumbfounded.
The witches of Capital Academy were introducing themselves in public, and the way they did it was… quite unorthodox.
“The pure light of faith, the maiden walking the path of destiny, the Angel Witch, Meryl Ravenna, reporting in!”
Standing at the very center of the formation, a pure-white witch with four snowy wings on her back and a holy halo floating above her head raised both arms and shouted out first.
Her voice was cool yet full of passion.
By the looks of it, she should be the Capital Academy captain.
“The burning flames of hell, the challenger who conquers sin, the Inferno Witch, Thatcher Caesar, reporting in!”
A witch with horns on her head flickering like molten lava and red-and-black hair wore a sinister smile, her right fist pressed against her hip while her left arm extended straight out, striking an utterly stylish pose facing the left.
“The undying wings of glory, the paladin charging boldly forward, the Pegasus Witch, Maris Holyglow, reporting in!”
Wearing half-plate armor, a tall and gracefully built blonde witch whose handsome features carried a hint of tenderness smiled and struck the exact same pose as the Inferno Witch, but facing right, forming a perfect mirrored image.
“The agile mechanical heart, the great doll of endless transformations, the Doll Witch, Lily White, reporting in!”
Dressed in a black-and-white maid outfit, the silver-haired, blue-eyed witch wore an expressionless face, yet her voice was full of passion.
Her pose was rigidly precise, angles measured to the millimeter, perfectly executing a preset program.
“The rigorous art of alchemy, the machinist of flawless precision, the Eight-Eyed Spider Witch, Vera Agnecli, reporting in!”
With a neat black bob haircut and six tiny compound eyes neatly arranged around her purple pupils, the witch subtly adjusted her position and angle with her peripheral vision while posing, calculating to achieve the most perfectly harmonious composition for the group.
“The falling rain of gloom, the ferryman guiding lost souls, the Drizzle Witch, Jiang, reporting in!”
A witch with black medium-length hair and red eyes, though her left eye was pure white, struck an extremely perfunctory pose, radiating the heavy aura of a wage slave being forced to work overtime.
“The playful mischievous heart, the troublemaking cat that darts around, the Nekomata Witch, Guocha Acropolis, reporting in!”
A cat-eared witch with white hair and heterochromatic amber-and-sky-blue eyes flashed a lively peace sign, her two fluffy tails swinging excitedly behind her.
She even added a cute meow at the end.
As Guocha finished her introduction, the seven witches shouted in unison as if rehearsed.
“We are, the Capital Elite Team!”
The moment the words landed, a loud bang echoed as colorful smoke exploded harmlessly behind the seven witches.
Seeing this, the surrounding spectators erupted in cheers and applause, clearly approving of Capital Academy’s entrance ceremony.
It seemed to be a tradition of sorts.
“Pfft—!”
Tunzuo clamped her hand over her mouth, but it was useless.
After hearing the Capital Elite Team’s entrance lines, even Tunzuo, a master of keeping a straight face, completely lost it on the spot.
“Hahahaha! How, how do they announce themselves like that? Capital Academy is that entertaining?”
Tunzuo laughed so hard she was shaking, barely able to catch her breath, clearly tickled by the overwhelming visual impact.
“Hahahaha! Forget the Capital Elite Team, just call them the Capital Seven Freaks! So much déjà vu!”
“Oh man, I can’t, I’m dying laughing!”
Because Tunzuo was laughing so violently while kneeling on the couch, she lost her balance and tumbled straight off, hitting the floor with a thud.
Even so, the nearly breathless Tunzuo still couldn’t recover.
Lying on the ground, she continued clutching her stomach in laughter while her legs unconsciously pedaled an invisible bicycle in the air.
Watching this, Olivia gave a helpless smile at Tunzuo rolling around on the floor laughing.
She pulled Tunzuo up while explaining.
“Hey, come on, Little Ghost. They’re my juniors after all, show some respect. What can I do? Principal Andersen loves tokusatsu, and thinks dramatic roll calls are full of romance and camaraderie that perfectly embody Capital Academy’s spirit. So she came up with roll call lines for every contestant representing Capital Academy. We can’t let the principal down, right?”
“Okay, okay, I get it, romance and camaraderie…”
Tunzuo gasped for air, barely suppressing her laughter as she grabbed Olivia’s hand and climbed to her feet.
But the moment she stood up, she froze, sharply catching a keyword from Olivia’s words.
Wait, we?
A sudden chill made Olivia shudder involuntarily.
She instinctively turned her head to see Tunzuo raising both eyebrows repeatedly with an utterly ridiculous expression, staring at her with ill intent.
“Ooh, pervert dragon, I just realized~”
Tunzuo rubbed her hands together like a fly, wearing a sly grin, slowly closing in on Olivia.
“You’ve represented Capital Academy in so many Academy Championship tournaments. As their former ace, Principal Andersen must have written you an awesome roll call line too, right? Come on, don’t hold back, show me! I want to hear it! Now, immediately, right this second!”
Tunzuo extended both hands, making a demanding gesture toward Olivia, her cunning and malice gleaming undisguised in her emerald-green eyes.
Olivia’s face instantly flushed red, memories of embarrassing times flooding back.
She hastily waved her hands, trying to deflect.
“Th-this, let’s skip it, no need. The magic web should have videos of past competitions. Little Ghost, you can just search for them yourself later. No need for me to perform personally…”
“No! The witch in question is right here, I want the live version! Videos don’t have the same soul as live! You stingy thing, if you won’t perform for me, then there’s no love between us! Our feelings were ultimately misplaced!”
Tunzuo feigned grievance while wiping fake crocodile tears, leaving Olivia flustered and frantic.
“No, that’s not it! It’s just that doing it in front of everyone is too embarrassing!”
“Liar! You’ve done it in public plenty of times! Why didn’t you say it was embarrassing then?!”
“Th-then, there were other witches with me. Together, it was fine…”
Just as Tunzuo and Olivia were tangled up in their back-and-forth, Tunzuo’s unrestrained laughter moments ago, along with the commotion of their struggle, naturally drew the attention of the Capital Elite Team, who had just finished their introductions.
The seven witches’ gazes all snapped toward the source of the noise, quickly spotting Tunzuo and Olivia tangled together on the couch.
Seeing a familiar witch displaying a side of herself completely different from their impression of her, the seven witches were somewhat surprised.
After exchanging a round of glances, they prepared to greet their runaway senior.
After all, as juniors, how could they not care about their senior’s personal life~?
“Long time no see, Senior Olivia. I didn’t expect to see you so soon.”
Meryl spoke first, the chuuni demeanor from her introduction completely gone, her voice filled with respect and nostalgia for Olivia.
“Ah, long time no see, Meryl.”
Seeing the Capital Academy witches approaching, Olivia set aside her struggle with Tunzuo and quickly stood up, re-fixing that signature elegant, confident smile on her face.
“I figured you’d be leading this year’s team. Your entrance earlier had great spirit. I’m sure under your command, Capital Academy will achieve excellent results again this year.”
Looking at the Capital Elite Team standing before her, Olivia beamed and exchanged pleasantries with Meryl.
But before she could get more than a few words in, Thatcher suddenly chimed into the conversation.
“Hey, senior, let’s not talk about the competition for now. Who’s this beside you? Why aren’t you introducing us?”
Thatcher’s eyes burned with blazing gossip, clearly intrigued by the affectionate interaction between Tunzuo and Olivia moments ago.
“If I’m not mistaken, this should be the mysterious black-haired witch who made a huge stir on the magic web and fought you to a draw, right? What a pleasure to meet her here. A great honor.”
Before Olivia could respond, Maris had already recognized Tunzuo’s identity and gracefully performed a standard knight’s salute.
Seeing her identity recognized, Tunzuo floated out from behind Olivia, tidied herself up briefly, and prepared to greet Olivia’s juniors.
But at that moment, Olivia moved faster than a witch’s reflexes.
She shifted slightly, pulling Tunzuo in front of her and completing the introduction herself.
“This is Tunzuo, the Ghost Witch, currently studying at the Witch Academy of the Vast Sea City. And also—”
Olivia paused briefly, then a sweet smile curved at the corners of her mouth.
“She’s the lover I intend to spend my life with. How about it, did I introduce her right, Little Ghost?”
Olivia pressed her advantage, claiming her territory while landing a counterattack, pressing Tunzuo back under her control and reclaiming the upper hand.
Hearing this, the seven witches all covered their mouths, eyes wide as saucers, staring at the floating Tunzuo with extremely shocked and gossipy expressions.
Under Olivia’s direct confession and seven pairs of burning gazes, Tunzuo’s pretty face flushed crimson, instantly crumbling in defeat.
Her arrogance completely vanished.
“Wh-whatever you say!”
Tunzuo’s eyes darted around, refusing to meet Olivia’s gaze.
She then transformed into a wisp of black mist, slipped into the shadows, and drifted off to play with Hai Lanyue, absolutely refusing to participate in Olivia’s little reunion with her juniors.
Seeing this, six heads of the Capital Elite Team immediately huddled together, whispering among themselves.
“Oh my god, I can’t believe the rumor that Senior Olivia transferred schools for love is actually true!”
“Gotta hand it to Senior Olivia, daring to love and hate. That kind of conviction is way better than some glowing white-feathered chicken.”
“Shut up, Thatcher. No one thinks you’re mute if you don’t speak.”
“Wahh, so romantic. A noble young lady lowering herself to chase after love, a commoner witch. Absolutely divine fanfiction material, I ship it so hard!”
“No, the program in my brain is telling me I should start writing.”
“No way, Lily. If you fry your brain circuits writing your little stories again, I’m not fixing you!”
“Ah… so noisy. When will this end.”
Guocha, who seemed curious about everything, wasn’t participating in the discussion.
Instead, she was looking around in every direction.
Olivia looked at Guocha suspiciously, asking curiously, “Who is this child? I don’t recall seeing her at the academy before. Is she a new student this year?”
Olivia was about to ask Meryl about Guocha’s real information when Shirley’s voice suddenly came from the registration counter.
“Registration’s done! You three, come over here. Time to head in!”
Hearing this, Olivia could only swallow her questions about Guocha for now, waving goodbye to the Capital Elite Team before leading Tunzuo, who had emerged from the shadows, and the spectacle-loving Hai Lanyue toward the counter.
However, Tunzuo, following behind Olivia, was staring intently at a certain pervert dragon’s back, her eyes filled with resentment.
“That damned pervert dragon, daring to scheme against me in public. No, I need to get my revenge.”
The petty Tunzuo’s eyes rolled around slyly as a flash of inspiration struck her.
Having thought up a wicked idea, she quietly pulled aside the spaced-out Hai Lanyue, lowered her voice, and whispered instructions into her ear:
“Hai Lanyue, when the time comes, cooperate with me. We’ll do this, then this…”
“Oh, oh okay, got it, Tunzuo.”
The naive Hai Lanyue blinked her pure, innocent eyes, successfully dragged into murky waters.