"I Became a Witch, but Now Everyone's in Love with Me!"

Chapter 16: Chabao Hates Being Bullied
 

Basic magic class is fun.
Of course, Jiang Cha doesn’t mean the spell model itself is fun. Learning, in any world, goes against instinct. Laziness is natural across all species. Even researchers only enjoy breakthroughs and rewards—not the painful process of trial and error.
What made this class fun was their instructor: Carol, a passionate, tan-skinned witch with a curvaceous figure. She wore little more than hot pants and a distressed denim belt around her chest, exposing much of her body without shame.

"Hey! Little ones, did you miss me?!"
Carol flopped lazily onto the podium. From Jiang Cha’s angle, she could even see her raised rear. Her voice was loud and cheerful, her presence overwhelming.
"Today’s lesson! The second-level spell: Fireball. Lina, don’t roll your eyes at me! I know your inherent magic is chain fireballs, but you still need to learn this one. By the end of class, anyone who can’t cast it better be ready for consequences!"

Carol didn’t act like a teacher—more like a loud, unruly older sister with a violent streak. The kind who cuddled you one moment and broke your bones the next.
"Just a fireball, no big deal."
Fireball was stronger and more mana-intensive than Lightning Arrow, and its spell model was far more complicated. To the untrained eye, it looked like a web of meaningless geometric patterns.

But Jiang Cha knew they weren’t decorative—they were inscriptions, magical formulas derived from mathematical modeling.
In ancient times, most spells came from mimicking witches' inherent magic. Only in the late 20th century did witches crack the logic behind spell construction, turning magic into a modifiable science.
While other students struggled to sketch the complex model, Carol laughed:

"Fireball's configuration is the simplest among second-level spells. Just wait until you get to third level and beyond—you’ll go bald trying to memorize them!"
A more efficient method was to understand the meaning behind each inscription, then memorize the configuration based on that logic.
Naturally, Carol didn’t do that.

She assigned the theory as homework on the first day. Pure laziness.
As for Lina... She hadn’t done it at all.
She wasn’t planning to craft her own magic, so she skipped the theory and brute-forced the memorization.

"Chabao, Chabao, do you get it?"
Who could say no to Lina’s wide, sparkly eyes?
Jiang Cha explained patiently: "Following the first and third configuration rules, the Fireball model can be divided into four parts. The outermost ring is the first."
She drew the full model on paper, then highlighted the structure in four colored blocks.

"According to rule eight, the edge inscriptions stabilize the spell. The first rune means [round]."
"[Round]?!" He Qin perked up, suddenly interested.
"Then comes [blazing], [ionic], and finally [explosive]. That’s the core."

It was like solving a cloze test mixed with a physics equation: apply the formula, fill in the logic.
"Chabao, you’ll make a great teacher someday! Love you~ Mwah!"
Lina kissed her cheek, then conjured a flame in # Nоvеlight # her palm and grinned at Carol.

"Anything to say, teach?"
Carol raised an eyebrow. Lina memorizing the full spell in twenty minutes was clearly impossible without help. Her eyes landed on Jiang Cha and the diagram.
"Jiang Cha, right?"

"Yes, Master."
"Can you perform the Fireball spell at full potential before class ends?"
'Full potential' meant perfect spell form with one or more casting enhancements: [Enhanced Casting], [Multi-link Casting], or [Instant Casting].

Jiang Cha hesitated.
"Chabao can’t multi-cast yet, Teacher Carol."
Lina tried to shield her, knowing that Jiang Cha had only managed four lightning arrows earlier—not true multi-casting.

"Did I ask you?"
Bang!
Carol slapped Lina ten meters into the wall.

She knew Lina could take it—that tiny body was tougher than it looked.
"Gulp."
Jiang Cha stood straight.

"I can usually cast thirty spells. My current limit is about eighty."
"Joined the Battle Club, huh?"
Carol didn’t hit her. Her tone even softened.

"Y-Yes. But I want to pursue a secondary track too, so—"
"Come see me at the Battle Club this weekend."
Carol didn’t wait for more. She turned and shouted to the class:

"What are you staring at?! Memorized the model yet?! If not, I’ll mount all of you on the wall next!"
Jiang Cha: "...."
"Are you okay?"

He Qin looked concerned. "Teacher Carol’s harsh, but she’s reasonable. If you don’t want to—"
"No, it’s not that bad."
Jiang Cha sighed.

She didn’t actually hate fighting. Knowing how dangerous the multiverse was, she wanted enough power to explore it freely.
"I just...
...I hate being bullied."

—Fried fish is the worst.