Chapter 391 – Shana’s Origins

Mo Lan began by drawing on the tactics used by cults and pyramid schemes on Earth to grow and expand, writing a book that combined strategies with case studies.

Because Sorceress Magic wasnt like cults or pyramid schemes—fake things built on lies—but something that could genuinely benefit Contractors, she gave the book the title 《Propaganda Strategies and Case Studies》.

It was purely for the sake of secrecy, safety, and efficiency—really not for deceiving people!

She had Lilith, Vasida, and Sylph each make a copy, then instructed them: “Study this carefully! We can use all the methods in here later!”

The three of them received the book as though it were a priceless treasure.

While they went off to read, Mo Lan turned her mind to figuring out how to integrate the Sorceress Magic of all four of them into the internal advancement system of the Contractor organization.

This advancement system was critically important—it would determine whether the Contractor organization could function properly.

Before she could sort it all out, Mo Lan received a reply from Mama Shana.

The contents of the letter surprised her somewhat.

It was true that Dayla, the current leader of the Governing Mage Council in the Duchy of Lance, was Grandma Dayla.

Clara Lance had taken up long-term residence in the mage tower, leaving nearly all of the duchy’s affairs to Grandma Dayla.

It could practically be considered a duchy ruled by a witch.

But what Mo Lan hadn’t expected was that Mama Shana had spent her young witch years, before the age of thirteen, in the Duchy of Lance.

Back then, the previous Grand Duke was still alive.

Grandma Dayla had served as mentor, mother figure, and friend to three successive Grand Dukes of the Lance family.

Under the governance of Grandma Dayla and Grand Duke Lance, the Duchy of Lance finally weathered its difficult early years and became peaceful and prosperous.

At the time, there was a Beginner mage named Carlo Sanchez in the Grand Duke Lance’s mage tower.

When he was promoted to Intermediate mage and granted the title of Viscount, at the investiture ceremony, he publicly declared his love for Grandma Dayla.

The country was on track and Grandma Dayla had time on her hands, so with a “why not give it a try” attitude, she accepted him.

Their feelings intensified rapidly during the relationship, and in less than a year, they were married.

A prosperous nation, a sincere lover, supportive friends—it was under these circumstances that Grandma Dayla conceived Mama Shana.

The environment was too wonderful, and she couldn’t bear to leave, so she made the decision to give birth to her little witch in the capital of the Duchy of Lance.

And indeed, Mama Shana was born safely and without incident.

She grew up practically smothered in affection from both the Lance family and the Sanchez family, the jewel of the entire duchy.

They were only waiting for her magic rank to rise before granting her a noble title.

Mama Shana had originally planned to return to the Duchy of Lance after graduating from the Witch Academy—there were people who loved her there, family and friends.

But when she actually graduated and returned to the Duchy of Lance…

She happened to use mind-reading magic and heard that her father—the man who had called her “little sweetheart” and “the little princess of the Sanchez family” all those years—was actually thinking about his mistress and son in his count’s territory.

Her father’s love for her mother had been a lie.

His courtship back then was only because he knew that with his talent, becoming an Intermediate mage was his ceiling—there was no chance of advancing to Advanced mage before the age of fifty.

Her father’s love for her had been a lie too.

His son’s magical talent was even worse than his own, so he had schemed to have his son follow the same path—pursue a witch and gain access to the resources that witches controlled.

That witch was her—Mama Shana.

Mama Shana was utterly revolted. She told Grandma Dayla everything.

Grandma Dayla divorced Carlo Sanchez.

Mama Shana used mind-reading magic to examine all the people around her, people she’d known since childhood.

Aside from Grandma Dayla and Clara Lance—who at that time had not yet inherited the title of Grand Duke—none of them were who she had once believed them to be.

Among those who had been kind to her, some acted out of fear of power, some for personal gain, and others harbored ill intentions.

The loving “homeland” that Mama Shana had once longed to return to was in reality filled with pragmatism and scheming.

She exposed these people, but in the end, she also lost any desire to remain in the Duchy of Lance. Like an ordinary witch, she set out on a journey into the unknown.

It wasn’t until last year, when Carlo Sanchez passed away and the Sanchez count title was reclaimed, that Mama Shana made a trip to the Duchy of Lance on her way out of the Wilds to visit Grandma Dayla.

But she didn’t stay long, and was now near the capital of the Mage Empire.

In her letter, Mama Shana warned her: if she planned to visit the Duchy of Lance and anyone from the Sanchez family approached her, she must absolutely ignore them.

The Sanchez family now consisted only of that illegitimate son and his descendants.

That illegitimate son was still just an ordinary baron to this day, without even a fief to his name.

Grandma Dayla hadn’t killed them outright for revenge, but merely by cutting ties with them, the people eager to curry favor with Grandma Dayla had taken turns making the Sanchez family’s life miserable, driving them further and further into ruin.

They were probably at their most desperate right now, and Mama Shana worried that Mo Lan might not know the full story and get deceived if she went there.

After all, although Mo Lan knew Psychic Magic, she wasn’t like Mama Shana—burned so badly by betrayal that she kept mind-reading magic active around people at all times.

Now Mo Lan understood why Mama Shana had never once mentioned her grandfather.

She had assumed Grandma Dayla’s situation was similar to Mama Shana’s—the type who played the field, wanting children but not a partner.

She hadn’t expected it to be a case of being deceived by a human man.

Thank goodness Mama Shana was a Mind Witch. Thank goodness Grandma Dayla was the type who could pick herself up and move on, decisive in cutting her losses. Otherwise, this whole affair would have been truly devastating.

Since she was going to the capital of the Duchy of Lance anyway, Mo Lan still intended to visit Grandma Dayla.

But after deciding to pursue the downstream recruitment strategy, she no longer planned to ask Grandma Dayla for help.

Now it seemed best to just contact her and visit discreetly.

If the Contractor organization’s activities were ever traced back to the Duchy of Lance, Grandma Dayla’s involvement would actually work against her.

Grandma Dayla’s ties to the Duchy of Lance ran too deep—the entire country was the product of her life’s work. Unlike them, she couldn’t just pull out at any moment.

Having made her decision, Mo Lan wrote a letter to Grandma Dayla as well, letting her know that she and her companions would soon be visiting the Duchy of Lance under disguised identities, and asking about precautions for posing as mages.

Grandma Dayla understood her meaning immediately. Not only did she refrain from suggesting they come find her in the capital, she also sent a golden bird parcel.

The parcel was filled with mage meditation methods and magic notes.

“Did Lady Dayla send these for us to study?” Lilith asked.

Mo Lan nodded. “Grandma Dayla says that the magical fluctuations on mages are somewhat different from the energy aura on us.

Although non-witches can’t see our energy aura either, we still need to fake the magical fluctuations of mages.

We’re Sorceresses—our unlimited All-Element Magic aptitude doesn’t just mean unlimited aptitude for Witch Magic. It applies equally to all other forms of magic involving energy.

We can learn all of this.”