Magical Journey: The Other Shore Blooms on the Other Shore

"Huh? Someone actually completed my request?" A short girl wearing a tricorn hat looked at the magic apprentice who brought her a jar of green slime with some surprise.

“Teacher Karma, it’s true…” the girl, who was a head taller than Karma, nodded and said.

This is truly something I've never seen before... There really are suckers these days. She posted this request back when she was still an apprentice witch. Back then, she was simply too lazy to do the homework assigned by her teacher, so she just posted this kind of request in the request section.

At the time, she wanted to conduct some kind of magical experiment, and all the magical materials were actually prepared by professionals, so she really didn't know much about the prices of magical materials.

If the price of a commissioned transaction is far below the market price, of course no one will place that order.

As for what happened next...

Later, she just got too lazy to withdraw the commission. It was that simple... After all, she figured no one would do it anyway, so what difference did it make whether she withdrew it or not?

If it weren't for her student suddenly bringing her a jar of slime, Karma would have almost forgotten the embarrassing incident she caused years ago when she didn't know anything about prices. Her teacher had laughed at her for half a year after finding out.

Just as she was using her spying magic to check the situation on the commission board again, she was surprised to find that most of the commissions had been cleared out. Where did this workaholic come from?

After a moment of surprise, a sense of dissatisfaction quickly welled up inside him.

She dislikes people like that.

In fact, such a person would be disliked by almost everyone in Roberta. What are you doing? What's so interesting about it? You're setting a bad example.

In this country that values ​​freedom and laxity, involution is a heinous crime.

This reminded Karma of an apprentice witch who had once wanted to become her apprentice.

With her elegant gray hair and glass-like eyes, it's hard to forget her adorable appearance.

But that alone is not enough to make such a deep impression on a witch.

The main reason I was so impressed was that this gray-haired apprentice witch was so young. She had become an apprentice witch before she even reached adulthood, and was only a step away from becoming a full-fledged witch by apprenticing and gaining the approval of her witch teacher.

In this world, the biggest obstacle preventing people from becoming witches is becoming an apprentice witch.

The selection process for the Apprentice Witch is so terrifying that only those who have participated can truly understand it; it's even more grueling than the fierce competition of crossing a single-plank bridge.

She became an apprentice witch at such a young age.

If she successfully becomes an apprentice, given her magical talent, she will become a formal witch around the time she reaches adulthood.

This made Karma even more jealous. She would become an apprentice witch around the age of twenty-five.

At that time, she was already an outstanding person. Becoming an apprentice witch at her age was already a legendary achievement for Roberta.

After all, the people here believe in "following the natural way," and they do everything according to their hearts and in accordance with the natural order, without deliberately trying to fight or struggle.

But then, an anomaly emerged.

Elena… she wouldn’t forget this magical prodigy who stood out from the crowd from a young age. While her companions slept, she was learning magic; while her companions played, she was learning magic… she had no idea what she was churning up.

Karma genuinely disliked such people, so when Elena asked to become her apprentice, Karma righteously refused.

She couldn't accept that a student much younger than herself had become a formal witch.

Karma never regretted her choice. In fact, the witches of Roberta genuinely disliked such a freak. Just look at the countless witches who refused to take her as their apprentice.

It seems that all the witches of Roberta rejected this student from the intense competition.

In this world, talent reigns supreme; effort is secondary. This is the consequence of not adapting to the national context.

Since Elena, Roberta hadn't seen such an outlier in a long time. Even travelers who had passed through would gradually adapt to the local customs. The appearance of the zither was like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples.

A person who is out of place will inevitably suffer unexpected backlash.

……

Qin hesitated when he saw the next request: "Swordsmanship instruction..." It wasn't that he didn't understand swordsmanship, but rather that he didn't know how to teach it.

After all, the swordsmanship he learned was acquired through life-and-death battles with demons, and many of his skills had long been ingrained in his very being.

Although magic is revered in this world, witches hold an exceptionally high status.

However, witches are not invincible; there have been instances in history where people without magic have defeated witches. Some renowned swordsmen from various kingdoms possess strength comparable to witches, but such instances are extremely rare.

Although Qin has never formally fought a witch, based on the information he has gathered so far, he feels that... witches outside his homeland are no match for him when he gets serious.

Even without magic, defeating these high and mighty witches shouldn't be too difficult for him.

If he were to actually use magic, I doubt any normal person could withstand a single blow; it would likely be a one-hit kill.

He arrived at a small house as promised to serve as a short-term swordsmanship instructor. He had been in Roberta for almost half a month, spending most of his time running around the streets and alleys of Roberta, except for occasionally going out to kill a few monsters for quests.

It can be said that the average standard of living here is exceptionally high.

To be fair, this is a nice place to retreat to a secluded, idyllic life.

For those who have lost their ambition, this is a wonderful haven of peace and happiness.

Therefore, families who ask Qin to be their swordsmanship instructors also appear to be exceptionally grand.

If a traveler is visiting Roberta for the first time and is unfamiliar with the local customs, they might think this is the courtyard of a very wealthy person. In fact, it is just a cozy little home of a family with a middle-to-upper standard of living.

When Qin arrived at the house, it was already dinnertime. The dimly lit street, faintly illuminated by the magic oil lamps, made Qin, dressed in tattered clothes, stand out even more as she stood at the door.

Even those Roberta who are so nonchalant and indifferent to the affairs of others might glance at the lyre as they pass by.

After all, they had never seen anyone so poor that they wore so few clothes in winter; he looked like a homeless person.

Qin stood at the door until the family had finished their dinner before the homeowner opened the door for her.

"You're the swordsmanship instructor who took on the commission?" The overwhelming smell of alcohol nearly made Qin drunk.

"Yes." Qin didn't like to say too much; she was sparing with her words.

"With your small frame, can you withstand one of my punches? My son is a genius, don't ruin him," the man said.

You only spent one silver coin to hire someone for three days. Who do you think you could hire?

One silver coin is only enough for ten loaves of bread, okay?

Three days, ten loaves of bread... Anyone with a sound mind wouldn't take on such a terrible job. But Qin needed to kill time that was meaningless to him.

While we're at it, let's go find the route the teacher mentioned.

Traveling among people to take on commissions is the best shortcut to experiencing the myriad aspects of society.

However, judging from the male homeowner's condescending attitude, it seemed that she was being looked down upon...

Hmm, this must be contempt. So this is what it feels like to be looked down upon. I'll write this down.

So, what should I do next? Should I punch my sugar daddy and then kick him to prove I'm good? Alice-sensei doesn't seem to teach that…

"How is your swordsmanship?" the male host asked, looking at the motionless zither.

“It’s very high.” Qin nodded.

"Tch—then you give it a try. If you can't teach me well, you'll have to pay me a silver coin!"

Qin noticed a hint of disgust in his eyes. It seemed he only considered doing the job himself because no one else wanted to. Oh well, it didn't really matter anyway.

Qin officially stepped into this home, and the warmth inside melted the snow off her body.