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

Chapter 49: The Upcoming Spring Break
 
A week isn’t exactly short, but it’s long enough for the girls at Aislyn’s Witch Academy to feel the holiday spirit creeping in.

The school’s break schedule is unusual. Instead of lots of small holidays scattered through the year, there are just three extended vacations.
First is the “War Break”—nicknamed winter break by students—which begins about a month before the end of the year and runs through January. It originally existed so that witches fighting on the front lines could return home, handle their affairs, and rest after a year of combat. Since the front can’t be abandoned, senior students are sometimes asked to fill in—a kind of battlefield internship. Some more combat-oriented colleges still follow this tradition, but at academic-focused schools like Aislyn, it's become nothing more than a holiday.
Next is the “Academic Break,” or summer vacation, typically held between August and September. This one coincides with major talent competitions hosted by the science cities across the multiverse.

And finally, there’s spring break—the one Jiang Cha is about to enjoy. Unlike the others, this one has no practical roots. It was established purely to “enjoy spring,” the season of renewal and life. Never mind that seasons barely exist across the multiverse, and spring is more a symbolic idea than a real one. In truth, the holiday only exists because the Academy once refused time off and the faculty went on strike.
But no one cared why it existed—only that it did.
As spring break approached, the academy was filled with cheerful chatter as little witches buzzed about their plans.

"Speaking of which, I’ve been so buried in study I never even asked—what are you doing for break, Qinbao?" Lina skipped along the sunny gravel path, the trees rustling above. Her golden curls bounced, and she practically sparkled with giddy spring energy.
For once, she actually looked like a sweet little girl instead of the dorm’s resident gremlin.
"Wanna come visit my place? My sister’s coming home—I could introduce you!"

He «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» Qin, walking beside her, shook her head gently. "Sorry, Lina-chan. I’ll have to work over the break. The store manager said orders suddenly spiked after the front lines discovered a new civilization."
"A war?" Jiang Cha raised an eyebrow.
"It’s said they encountered a mechanical intelligence species. And you know how we feel about those kinds," He Qin replied.

Mechanical civilizations—artificially intelligent societies—were rare but always problematic. Usually born from organic species that pushed AI development too far, they often held a deep disdain for biological life, deeming it inferior. When they clashed with witches, it was always all-out war.
Though witches often triumphed, machines advanced terrifyingly fast. Their firepower and technological breadth made them dangerous. Worse, they could flood battlefields with hordes of high-level drones—expendable, efficient, and perfect cannon fodder.
Puppeteers, like He Qin, became indispensable in such wars. Unlike other servant armies that risked being hacked, magical puppets operated on wholly different systems, making them immune to most machine corruption.

No wonder the shop was swamped.
Still, Jiang Cha had her suspicions. “Are you sure the shopkeeper isn’t just using this as an excuse to summon you back?”
He Qin smiled but said nothing.
"What about you, Chabao?" Lina turned to her. "You free? I’ve got a full-size dueling arena at home!"

"Uh..." Jiang Cha hesitated. “My master said she’s taking me to a fragmented world. So... yeah.”
"EH!? So you’re getting secret training!?" Lina gasped.
She might act silly most of the time, but her mind was sharp when it counted.

"You’re already grinding me into the dirt during school, and now you’re doing it over break too!?"
"I just want to relax..." she sighed dramatically. "Spring break only comes like seven times in a witch’s life! Can’t we all just go out and play like normal girls?"
Jiang Cha and He Qin exchanged glances, then shared a smile. They weren’t trying to "grind" anyone—but when someone’s pushing you from behind, you don’t always have a choice.

“There’s always next time,” He Qin said gently, patting Lina on the head. “Maybe we can go to Science City during summer break?”
"Don’t think I don’t see through you!" Lina huffed. "You’re just gonna drag me into more training! I’d be the only one not making progress!"
"That's not—"

"You can't even enter the competitions in first year," He Qin offered weakly. "It’s not like we’d be doing that much."
"I don’t believe a word you say!" Lina pouted, cheeks puffed like dumplings.
Still, her mood turned in a flash. She waved her hand with a grin. "Ah, forget it. I’ll just go home and let Mom drill me instead."

Then she looked at Jiang Cha with mock menace. "But you’d better watch out, Chabao. When we get back, I’m gonna pin you down and rub you into the ground!"
"Just don’t rub my face."
Jiang Cha gave her a crooked smile, slipping in one of her usual offhand jokes.

"That’s not the kind of rubbing I meant!" Lina snapped. Then grinned. "But hey, if you want me to rub your face into the sheets after a duel at night..."
"Not in public," He Qin scolded, tapping Lina’s forehead.
"We can say it back in the dorm, right?" Lina’s starry eyes sparkled with mischief.

But while her words weren’t cute, her expression definitely was.
"No! Jiang Cha-chan, stop saying stuff like that too!" He Qin puffed her cheeks, but she looked more flustered than angry.
"I know~ Mother Qin~" the two girls chorused in unison, pitch-perfect.

"You two...!" He Qin was practically steaming.
The bun on her head was still bigger than her temper.