Chapter 328 – The Deviation of Prophecy

“Senior! You’ve learned the Headmistress’s Magic Waterbed?” Anna asked.

“Mm. It’s a magic the Headmistress brought back from the Well of the Sky. Exclusive rights—just like Sorceress Magic, you have to purchase the magical knowledge with permanent Mana to learn it.

But this magic requires very high aptitude in water magic to practice, and it also takes a great deal of time.

If you’re interested in it, I’d recommend buying the Headmistress’s card {Magic Waterbed} instead.” Mo Lan said.

The three young witches nodded.

The Magic Waterbed had healed some of their injuries and restored a bit of their stamina. Their spirits immediately lifted, and they all transformed into bundles of curiosity.

Anna: “Moira, how come you’re out here?”

Annie: “Senior, what kind of magic is this barrier that blocks out the rain, fog, and lightning?”

Bertha: “Moira, what are the Purple Night Grasslands you just mentioned?”

The three spoke in unison, each asking a different question.

“Don’t rush—I’ll answer one at a time.” Mo Lan said:

“My dwelling is in this direction. I was on my way to the castle library to transcribe some books.

This barrier isn’t magic—it’s a new card I designed, the {Lightning Shield}, specifically made for surviving Thunder Night. It’s available in the card shop, though you won’t be able to buy it until after you graduate.

As for the Purple Night Grasslands, it’s a dangerous forbidden zone on the Continent of Valen, just like the Greengrass Plains.

But there’s already a method for avoiding the nighttime thunderstorms. It’s mentioned in the latest third-year edition oferta《The Valen Complete Travel Guide》, and Madam Amisha should cover it in the continental travel guidance class as well.”

The three young witches hurriedly summoned their Grimoires and flipped to the page for《The Valen Complete Travel Guide》, searching for information about the Purple Night Grasslands.

Annie’s eyes lit up with understanding: “So that’s how it is! You have to dig a hole to take shelter—I knew the Academy wouldn’t design an impossible challenge!”

“Well, actually, before last year, the Greengrass Plains, Green Marsh, and even Lone Peak Forest were all considered challenges that young witches were advised not to enter—especially the Greengrass Plains and Green Marsh.” Mo Lan said.

The mention of Green Marsh stirred painful memories for Bertha: “Senior! After your enrollment ceremony ended, you all flew north, so we assumed you all lived up in the north!

So after the Inner Region opened up, most of us chose to explore northward to find habitable land. The result? We all ended up reuniting in the infirmary.”

“That was just a coincidence—most of us actually live in the south and east.” Mo Lan said:

“The poisonous fog and venomous insects in Green Marsh—you should have realized something was wrong the moment you entered! You went deeper in just because you saw us heading that way?”

Bertha, Anna, and Annie all nodded.

Mo Lan thought about what that scene must have looked like, cast them a sympathetic glance, and offered some comfort:

“It’s alright. Supplies are gone, but you can always gather more—there’s still time! Besides, you managed to knock out this many cattle and sheep by evening. That kind of fighting ability is more than enough for you to hunt and survive in the mountain forests of the Inner Region.”

“Senior! Speaking of mountain forests, just how big is this Greengrass Plains anyway? When will we finally reach the forests?” Anna asked.

“If you push hard tomorrow, you might be able to fly out before dark.” Mo Lan said: “But there aren’t many suitable habitable spots in the mountain forests beyond the Greengrass Plains. Currently only five witches live there—the other witches all live in the mountain forests beyond the Yellow Sands to the east.”

Just as Lilith, Renée, and the other seniors had done, she gave a general overview of the Inner Region’s environment to the junior witches who were beginning their exploration this year, along with some suggestions for choosing a dwelling.

Even with a method for safely surviving Thunder Night, the climate in the mountain forests beyond the Greengrass Plains wasn’t suitable for habitation. Only in the mountain forests just outside Lone Peak Forest, near the Greengrass Plains, were both the distance and climate appropriate.

Mo Lan and the others had already scouted these areas thoroughly. Apart from the place where Renée had lived the previous year, there were no other particularly habitable spots.

The moment she said this, Mo Lan noticed both Anna and Annie looking toward Bertha.

“What is it?” Mo Lan asked, puzzled.

Bertha’s face reddened as she explained: “After our disastrous retreat from Green Marsh, I made a prophecy. It said that if we headed south from where we had our Wilderness Survival Class, the three of us could all find ideal places to live. That’s why I brought Anna and Annie along with me.

On the first day before we even entered, I casually used the Fortune-Telling Spell before setting up camp to divine what the night would be like. It came up as an ominous reading—but one that would turn auspicious if we persevered for a while.

Fortunately, I used the Clairvoyance Spell and caught a glimpse of how to get through the danger, which is why we caught all these cattle and sheep… It’s possible that this time, the later part of my prophecy was accurate, but the first prophecy I made had another deviation.”

Now Mo Lan finally understood how they had managed to come up with such an effective—yet enormously risky—method of shelter despite clearly not knowing much about the Purple Night Grasslands.

One look told her the three juniors had been regularly using their {Dietary Fortification Cards}—otherwise, with cattle and sheep this heavy piled on top of them, they would have been crushed to death long ago.

“Maybe it wasn’t a deviation.” Mo Lan thought for a moment and said: “A prophecy can only become shrouded in fog when it exceeds one’s abilities—it won’t lead to incorrect results within one’s capability range. As long as a prophecy succeeds, its content will definitely come to pass. Sometimes it’s not the prophecy’s content that deviated, but rather your interpretation of the prophecy that deviated—or perhaps you simply haven’t reached the prophecy’s final moment yet.”

She had also seriously studied Divination Magic. She had finished reading even the Advanced-stage《The Prophecy Witch’s Spellbook》, and her Prophecy Magic had reached the Beginner level across all aspects.

On this subject, she did have a certain degree of insight.

Bertha mulled over Mo Lan’s words carefully: “My interpretation deviated? Haven’t reached the prophecy’s final moment?”

“Perhaps there are habitable spots in the southern mountain forests that I didn’t discover.

Perhaps there are places I thought were unsuitable for habitation that you three would find perfectly fine.

Or perhaps you won’t find three unclaimed habitable spots in the southern forests—but you might set your eyes on ones that are already claimed!”

Mo Lan said: “Setting everything else aside, the location of my dwelling is absolutely one of the finest spots in the entire Inner Region.

Sylph and Vasida’s dwellings are quite nice too. Cheryl’s is a bit farther away, but it makes up for it in safety.

You could also choose to keep exploring in this direction. Maybe in the end, the results from your prophecy will come true after all! It was a good prophecy, wasn’t it?”

Bertha felt somewhat tempted and looked toward her two companions.

“We’ve come all this way! Of course we’re going to see it through to the end!” Annie said.

“Exactly!” Anna said: “Besides, didn’t you say that the place where Renée used to live is still vacant, Senior?”

“If you decide to keep going, you’re welcome to come visit our dwellings later!” Mo Lan told the three of them the locations of all the witches’ dwellings in the southern mountain forests.