WITCH OF THE END

The evening sun had dipped below the horizon, leaving a serene, amber glow that seeped through the tall glass windows of the principal's spacious office. The room was enveloped in a warm, inviting light, with the reddish wood paneling on the walls reflecting a rich, golden sheen. A plush, soft brown carpet covered the floor, adding a touch of comfort to the otherwise formal setting.

At the far end of the room, grand windows framed a view of the twilight sky, while a meticulously polished mahogany table dominated the space with its deep, lustrous finish. It was perhaps the most exquisite piece of wood Luna had ever encountered, its surface gleaming with an almost magical sheen.

Sitting at the table was a young man whose presence seemed to fill the room. His brown hair was tousled with deliberate carelessness, and his striking green eyes were fixed on Luna with an intensity that bordered on the palpable. His features were sharply defined, his skin olive. And a face dotted with a scattering of freckles that only enhanced his allure. Each glance he cast was laden with an unspoken curiosity, making him not just intriguing but almost mesmerizing in the twilight glow.

.

Luna had never seen a man this beautiful before. He was more feminine, just like the webtoons depicted him. She always thought the artists were simply obsessed with keeping a consistent art style. After all, characters in most webtoons were already devilishly good-looking. Eye candy for the readers, as she might call it.

Were men even supposed to be like this?

"When I heard a Feng was going to join our institution I thought…"

The pale girl exhaled softly, her disappointment masked by a veneer of practiced composure. Her mind raced with potential identities.

"Jin Feng, Lena Feng, Shin…?"

The list could go on. But those were her top contestants for who he was going to say. There were so many young and formidable ascenders in her family, especially Lena who was already proving her worth to the world.

The man turned his gaze away from her to the open file in front of him.

There was a brief silence between them as he flipped the pages while reading about Luna's information.

And when he was done, he leaned back in his chair with her file in his hand.

"Well, I expected one of those if I am honest. Tsk…I knew it was too good to be true." He let out a sharp hiss and continued.

"But Feng is still a Feng. You are still the daughter of The Master of Calamity and Flame of Winter. The school will greatly benefit from that either way."

The man didn't bother to mask his disappointment. And that somehow disturbed Luna.

What stopped her from hurling this table out the window like a paperweight?

Well…much as she wanted to, Luna didn't throw a rage. She was used to this, anyway. This man just didn't understand how much worth she was.

'Jin relies too much on his Aura. I could beat him with ease. Shin's slow; a swift reaction is all it takes to surpass his Aura. Lena could be challenging, but her movements are rife with openings. Did you know that?'

Of course he didn't. The public's perception of House Feng was that of flawless perfection. It was almost tragic.

…the peak of human evolution, they claimed.

Luna was used to this type of misconception humans had for the Great Houses and Ascenders.

Unfortunately, Luna herself had grown too comfortable in this false image people had created about her that she no longer wanted to explain. To most, zenshi was everything and not having it as a person from a Great House meant that you're as mundane as they come. Luna, however, wasn't mundane at all. She was very confident in her physical abilities and the combat skills she inherited and developed to fit her small body.

The illusion of her being weak always gave her the element of surprise which was a great tool to have when facing an enemy.

When the young man noted her silence, he continued, indifferent to her internal struggle.

"Most students here possess zenshi, and the top students have Auras at about level 2 Mastery. You will be our new Martial Combat professor, as your file emphasizes that you have an A-grade in Martial Arts. We also already needed a replacement for the fourth-year class anyway."

"What happened to the previous professor?" Luna asked, her tone neutral but her curiosity piqued.

"The students of that year are…what should I say? Troublesome." He hesitated, his voice laced with apprehension. "They are around your age and proud brats who won't accept being taught but someone weaker than their leader…."

"…Those savages."He added with a mix of pity and amusement, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"But the school pays a lot for your services. Not forgetting the privileges professors hold, no matter what Tier. We expect you to reflect your clan's might."

"I will. Thank you, Principle Lukan."

With that, she inclined her head slightly, stood, and made her way to the door. She needed to leave before she could be further drawn into his dispassionate gaze.

To be honest, money was the least of Luna's problems. She earned enough credits from live gaming and sponsorships from companies who hired her to advertise various products.

By now, she had about a total of ten thousand credits since she became a serious gamer two years ago.

'I can't believe I dropped my successful life for this.'

Luna still had that bitterness she felt from when she switched off her computer and left her room in silence.

It was a bittersweet goodbye to say.

"At least they pay well. Even for a lower tier."

Yes, the academy's professors' privileges and income were based on what they referred to as "Tiers". The tiers worked as a simple description of a professor's quality and how valuable they were to the academy.

They were divided into three: Upper tier, Middle tier, and lower tier. Under normal circumstances, Luna would've been put in the upper tier since she was a Feng.

However, the circumstances were not normal and she wanted to keep some of her secrets to herself like the special blood in her veins and the special abilities that came with it.

Hence why she shared the same rank as a mundane professor.

The elevator door opened, revealing the beautiful corridor which led to the professor's quarters. Upper-tier professors had houses, while middle tiers had suites. Meanwhile, the lower tier had decent-looking apartments—which were fine. Despite the class division, the academy still had an image to uphold as one of the best academies in the world.

They couldn't do that by treating their professors poorly because it was a source of bad press.

Luna dragged her small suitcase across the floor and finally found her room. After the system identified her through the small camera, she was able to twist the knob and walk into her new place.

The room was well-lit with state-of-the-art lamps. It was spacious enough to look like a suite with fancy woolen couches with a small wooden table in the sitting room. A refrigerator in a fully furnished kitchen with a high-spec cooker. The professors of her tier didn't have access to the academy's chefs and would therefore have to make their meals when outside working hours.

The apartment had three more rooms aside from the kitchen and sitting room. One was the training room for combat professors like herself, and the other was her bedroom and a guest room. Both were equipped with bathrooms.

"How fantastic. A guest room I may never use."

When she was done exploring the apartment, she switched to her house shoes and stretched—it had been a long day. So long that some parts of it felt like a blur.

After making herself a cup of coffee and settling everything, Luna sat on one of her fancy couches while reading through a webtoon.

The webtoon was based on Hansho Academy and while reading it, Luna couldn't help but cringe and laugh at some points in the story. But that didn't stop her from reading it, the cringy factors made the story juicier.

The webtoon's main character was none other than Lukan in his younger days when he was just a young ascender from a prestigious family.

His Aura in the story was [Space]. with it, Lukan was capable of phasing through physical objects and teleportation.

Even here, in the real world, Lukan's Aura was indeed [Space] and had inherited it from his parents who were both ascenders, making him of the Special Blood Type.

Luna knew everything about Auras. It was part of the special education she had received as a member of a high-blood clan.

In their world, Auras were weaker manifestations of concepts through zenshi, which connected ascenders with the world—and were unlocked after attaining a second gate.

How do they use it? Well, that was up to the ascender to decide.

If it was Space, your powers were connected to space manipulation; if it was [Mind], your powers were connected to the mind, whether telekinesis, telepathy, or something entirely different.

So, in general, a person's Aura always gives an idea of the ascender's abilities.

For that reason, Luna was going to learn about every student's aura.

Even if it took the whole weekend.