Chapter 1072 – Mo Lan’s Headmistress Daily Life 4

On the widened mountain road, magical street lamps cast a soft, warm glow, stretching the little witches’ shadows into long, slender lines. The new students formed a winding procession, chattering excitedly about all things new as they walked.

Each first-year little witch was accompanied by a second-year upperclassman, who would escort her junior to the dormitory district — another longstanding tradition of the Academy.

At first, the atmosphere was relaxed enough, until the upperclassmen began introducing the layout of the dormitory districts.

“Our Academy has three dormitory districts, all surrounding Crescent Moon Lake.” The leading upperclassman pointed toward the shimmering lake at the base of the mountain. “The East District is the closest — just head down the mountain and you’re there. The North District is a bit farther — you have to walk along the lakeside greenway for a while, passing the East District dormitories and a stretch of Breadfruit Grove. The West District is the farthest…”

She paused, her tone carrying the knowing weight of experience: “You have to pass through the East District, the North District, and… two stretches of Breadfruit Grove.”

A small stir rippled through the procession.

“So how do we choose our dormitories?” Tessa asked curiously.

“By stamina,” the upperclassman said with a slight smile. “Everyone just keeps walking. When you truly can’t walk any further, you can check into the nearest available dormitory. Unless you’ve already reached the farthest available dormitory, the doors won’t open even if you pass empty ones along the way.”

“In other words…” Sylvia quickly grasped the key point. “If you want to live closer, you should burn through your stamina faster?”

“Clever.” The upperclassman gave her an approving look.

“Then how long does it take to walk from the castle to the farthest dormitory in the West District?” Sylvia pressed.

The upperclassman looked up at the mountain road ahead, then glanced down at the little witches’ slender legs, her smile deepening: “At your current pace… probably until dawn.”

“!!!”

The little witches’ eyes went wide in unison.

Evelyn, in a rare burst of rapid speech, grabbed the upperclassman’s arm to confirm: “But most of our theory classes are up in the castle, right? It says so on the schedule!”

“That’s right!” The upperclassman winked, a hint of mischief in her voice. “So… run to your heart’s content! The sooner you run out of stamina, the sooner you can settle into a dormitory!”

Before she even finished speaking, witches at the front of the procession had already caught on.

The next second, the long, snaking procession surged forward, the mountain road erupting with overlapping shrieks and the clatter of frantic footsteps.

Under the moonlight, a swarm of small figures in black witch robes launched into an unspoken “stamina competition.”

High in the sky, four Sorceresses watched it all in silence.

Sylph turned her head toward Mo Lan. “Celia mentioned that ten years ago, you were the one who proposed assigning dormitories by stamina?”

The corners of Mo Lan’s lips curved upward slightly. She didn’t deny it.

“And for that, you shaved the western and northern faces of Academy Mountain into sheer cliffs and relocated them between the laboratories and the West District dormitories, completely cutting them off?” Sylph continued. “Originally, there was more than one path down the mountain, and getting to the West District didn’t require going all the way around the lake from the east side.”

Lilith and Vasida both looked at Mo Lan in surprise.

They had only known that this tradition — the one that struck terror into little witches’ hearts — had been implemented during Celia’s tenure as Headmistress. They had no idea Mo Lan was the mastermind behind it.

“Your idea?” Lilith’s tone was tinged with disbelief.

Mo Lan smiled and nodded, her gaze still resting on those small running figures on the mountain road. “The Witch Council’s nurturing subsidies for young witches include the Dietary Fortification Card, which can be used at least once a week. Some witch mothers even give their children extra supplementation on the side — keeping them on a steady supply of Dietary Fortification Cards from a young age.

Today’s little witches are in far better physical shape than we were back then. That original stretch of mountain road was just a leisurely stroll for them — nowhere near enough exercise.

With this dormitory selection system, every child ends up living in a location that matches her stamina level, and through their daily commute, they naturally and continuously build their physical fitness.”

“That may be true, but…” Lilith gazed down at the small figures gasping for breath on the mountain below, a trace of sympathy in her voice. “Having to run until they drop just to get a room on the very first day — isn’t that a bit cruel?”

Vasida nodded in deep agreement. “Thank goodness I graduated several hundred years ago. If I were enrolling now, I’d probably faint halfway down Academy Mountain before I even reached the bottom.”

Mo Lan raised her chin slightly, gesturing toward the base of the mountain. “Look carefully — along both sides of the mountain road and by the greenway, Breadfruit trees have been planted. The little witches will naturally prioritize picking roadside Breadfruit for emergency sustenance.”

Vasida followed her gaze, studied the landscape for a moment, and was suddenly at a loss for words.

Those Breadfruit trees appeared at regular intervals along the road, their canopies dense and heavy with fruit.

Her stamina had actually been quite strong back in the day — she just got hungry extremely fast. With supply stations like these… she could indeed have run all the way to the farthest dormitory in the West District without feeling tired.

Lilith suddenly recalled Mo Lan’s sweeping overhaul of the Academy’s educational system, and silently broke into a cold sweat on behalf of the newly enrolled little witches.

“The Headmistress’s Golden Chalice’s ability to alter the avatar’s appearance…” she murmured. “…is truly invaluable.”

Celia had merely adopted this one suggestion from Mo Lan — changing the new student housing tradition — and the little witches had already dubbed her “the strictest Headmistress in history.”

And the educational system that Mo Lan had personally designed, which the four of them would be jointly implementing, was going to be far more “challenging” for the little witches than simply “choosing dormitories by stamina.”

She absolutely could not imagine what terrifying reputation they would earn if they stood at the podium in their true forms.

Mo Lan had clearly thought of this too. She withdrew her gaze from the mountain below and turned solemnly to her three friends, her tone carrying the utmost gravity:

“So we absolutely must maintain a unified public image for the Headmistress and never let our true identities be exposed!”

She paused, then added — as if to reassure them, or perhaps to reassure herself:

“Once the little witches grow up, they’ll understand our good intentions. Celia told me that many witches who graduated years ago have written letters thanking her for her strict guidance back then!”

Lilith, Vasida, and Sylph exchanged glances, momentarily at a loss for words.

The race down the mountain road continued, the magical street lamps gently illuminating that long, winding path.

The Sorceress Headmistresses watched those small silhouettes receding into the distance, fell into a moment of shared silence, and then each quietly reinforced the persona of their public-facing avatar in their minds.

From this day forward, the Witch Academy’s Headmistress would have one fixed appearance, and only one title — Headmistress.

As for names… unspeakable!

“Whatever the Headmistress does has nothing to do with me — Mo Lan / Lilith / Vasida / Sylph!”

The four shared a knowing smile, then returned to the Headmistress’s Lounge. Borrowing the perspectives of the Guardian Headmistresses, they continued observing the little witches’ reactions. (End of Chapter)