Chapter 269 – Actions Speak Louder Than Words

“If you’re willing, you can ask your Guardian Headmistress after class to teleport you back to the lesson’s task location to continue your assignments,” Amisha said. “Try to go when you don’t have other classes, so any injuries won’t affect your coursework for the day.”

“Got it!” the young witches answered, their eyes drifting toward Mo Lan and her group.

Though they’d resolved to catch up to Mo Lan and the others in their coursework, that was a matter for later. Right now, their stomachs were growling, saliva flooding their mouths, their eyes fixed solely on the food.

How could the cold, raw prey they’d brought back compare to what Mo Lan had prepared!

Amisha took note, and after copying the recorded instructional videos for them, she departed along with the other Guardian Headmistresses.

The moment the Headmistresses left, Mo Lan hurried to call out to the young witches: “You must be starving! Come eat!”

The young witches sprinted over and dug in with gusto. “Mmm~ This is amazing!”

Mo Lan and Sylph sat together rubbing their bellies to aid digestion. Watching the young witches eat so happily made her happy too.

“Mo Lan, do you think next time I could bring a pot of Screaming Wind Chime Flowers into the forest? Would the Headmistress allow it?” Sylph asked.

Mo Lan’s mind conjured an image of Sylph walking through the woods carrying a Screaming Wind Chime Flower, every beast in her path collapsing from the noise. She replied hesitantly:

“It should be fine, right? It’s a product of your Manifested Gift! I can use my cards however I want, after all.

Now that you mention it, I kind of want to grow a pot too. I wouldn’t even need to practice the confusion spell or the Swamp Spell anymore—just plug my own ears and let the Wind Chime Flower let loose a shriek in the valley, and every wild boar on that mountainside would pass out, ripe for the taking.”

Vasida perked up when she heard them talking: “Then couldn’t I use a Wind Chime Flower to knock out that giant ant colony and get revenge for being swarmed today?”

The other young witches pricked up their ears.

After all, Sylph had given each of them a Screaming Wind Chime Flower seed!

And Sylph had even discounted the magic needed to grow Screaming Wind Chime Flowers for them—a fantastic deal.

If Wind Chime Flowers could really be used against beasts, wouldn’t they be able to dominate the mountain forests?

Unfortunately, before they could even confirm with the Headmistress, a Guardian Headmistress’s voice appeared, snuffing out their fantasies:

“Sylph may use them. The rest of you may not.”

Sylph’s eyes lit up. The other young witches heaved a collective sigh.

They didn’t need to ask—they already knew why.

Although Sorceress Magic could boost their abilities, it was ultimately magic exclusive to Sorceresses, not power they truly possessed themselves.

Sorceress Magic was essentially external assistance. During the learning phase, it was best avoided whenever possible.

Even Mo Lan felt a twinge of regret at not being able to use the Screaming Wind Chime Flowers.

Mastering two spells to a higher level was far more troublesome than growing a single flower.

“Even for you, Sylph, I wouldn’t recommend using them. You’ve already mastered the cultivation of Wind Chime Flowers—what you lack now is magical learning and wilderness survival knowledge. Once you leave the Academy, you’ll rarely have such a safe environment to train in.”

Sylph’s joy cooled at these words. After careful thought, she realized it was true: “I understand. Until I can navigate the Inner Region with ease using Witch Magic alone, I won’t use mutant plants to lower the difficulty for myself.”

A soft laugh drifted through the air—Lady Amisha was clearly quite pleased.

Sylph broke character in a second, burying her face in the crook of Mo Lan’s neck and mumbling quietly: “Ugh! I still have to keep dealing with those beasts!”

Mo Lan comforted her: “Learning to challenge yourself is a good thing, but there’s no need to let it slow down the development of your Manifested Gift. Using mutant Wind Chime Flowers to protect the plants you’re cultivating later on will still save you a lot of trouble.”

“That’s true! I can place a pot of Screaming Wind Chime Flowers around each side of my plantation—once they mature, they’ll be able to precisely shriek enemies unconscious!” At this thought, Sylph cheered up again.

She didn’t mind fighting beasts herself through hard work. As long as her precious plants had a safe place to grow properly, that was enough.

“I need to explore the Inner Region more often and find a suitable spot to establish a plantation soon. I’ve already got three mutant plant seeds saved up that haven’t been planted yet.”

“I’ve already found a great spot for building a home!” Mo Lan said with a smile.

“That fast? Where?” Vasida asked between bites.

Sylph looked at her curiously too.

“That wild boar pack’s territory!” Mo Lan said. “Once I deal with them, I’ll claim that valley. Then I can take advantage of the terrain and carve a stone chamber into the cliff face by the waterfall—safe and hassle-free.

The valley has fertile soil, perfect for growing crops too.

I just don’t know how far that valley is from the core area. I still have several sets of Mo-Pic books I haven’t read, and I’m not sure if I can finish them this year. If it’s too far, commuting back and forth to the Academy Castle would be inconvenient.”

She looked at the Academy map’s Inner Region—it was still shrouded in fog.

The area they’d traversed during class hadn’t appeared on it either.

“Um… will our next wilderness survival lesson be in the same place as today?” Sylph asked, puzzled.

“Probably not—Lady Amisha said next time would be new terrain… New terrain?!”

Mo Lan froze. “Oh no! What if I can’t find that valley again?!”

She hurriedly asked No. 69 Lady Amisha whether she could be teleported to Wild Boar Valley when she explored the Inner Region on her own later.

The answer she received was a merciless two words: “You cannot.”

Now it was Mo Lan’s turn to sigh.

And she’d been planning to prioritize learning the confusion spell, improve her Swamp Spell, and go deal with that wild boar pack!

But now she probably couldn’t even find where Wild Boar Valley was.

Unless she could explore the entire Inner Region.

“Maybe while you’re exploring the Inner Region later, you’ll discover an even better place than Wild Boar Valley! There’s no need to settle on a spot so quickly,” Sylph consoled her.

“Exactly! The Inner Region is huge—mountains everywhere, and plenty of valleys to choose from!” Vasida added.

“Wait! There’s another way to find it!” Mo Lan suddenly looked up.

“What way?” Vasida and Sylph asked curiously.

“The Spell!” Mo Lan said. “The Apprentice-level Spell can only point out cardinal directions, but the Beginner-level Spell can divine specific locations. The divination range can’t be too far and there are some limitations, but it should be enough to find a place I’ve been to before within the Inner Region!

And if I can reach Intermediate level, finding ingredients for alchemy would be so much easier too!”

Her mind was made up—she’d put Curse Magic on hold for now and focus on Prophecy Magic and Mind Magic first.

These two schools of magic would be far more useful for exploring the Inner Region.

Vasida and Sylph: “That’s so like you, Mo Lan!”

“Do you two want to learn it? Prophecy Magic is way more useful than other magic when it comes to finding things and clues,” Mo Lan said.

“Yes!”

Actions speak louder than words—that phrase described Sylph and Vasida perfectly.