Miss Witch Doesn't Want to be a Diva

The final night of the Winter Festival tournament. As the closing ceremony of this day, there were no battles to fight, but rather performances by the academies in turn. This was meant to ease the previously highly intense atmosphere and also give students who couldn't compete on stage an opportunity to shine. They were also talented; they just weren't standing at the very top. During the intermission, the organizers invited the ten most attention-grabbing participants of the competition to take the stage for a brief interview and exchange. They sat by a round table, discussing their usual hobbies, life, as well as sharing some of their growth experiences from the past. "What does Sevia La love to eat the most in her everyday life?" The host for tonight was a young woman with a light chestnut bob haircut, dressed in simple yet fashionable attire. "I don't have any particular favorites, I usually go by the nutritional plan given by the academy's dietitian, but sometimes when I have spare time, I like to eat green peaches, slightly sour and crisp," Sevia La, wearing a rare formal evening gown tonight, lacked her usual fierce demeanor. "Oh, does this have to do with some experience?" asked the host, brimming with curiosity. "It might be added by childhood memories, I suppose. Actually, there are many choices of fruits now, but the city where I used to live when I was young happened to have a botanical garden that planted various kinds of peach trees, so we could buy peaches at a relatively low cost. My father would occasionally bring a bag home when he finished work," Sevia La recalled slowly. "Sevia La, judging by your appearance, you seem to have some Elf Bloodline. Do you also like to grow flowers and plants normally?" "That, not really, I don't grow flowers or plants at all," she shook her head. "Why is that? Haven't thought about it, or do you not like it?" "I haven't thought about it, and I also don't have the time. Most of my time is spent on studying and training. If I were to grow flowers and plants, it would require additional effort and attention. Actually, I'm not really against flowers and plants; when I was little, my mother used to grow Rin plants, and I even took pictures and kept a diary specifically for them." "No wonder Sevia La is so outstanding, it seems she works very hard normally," the host then turned to other people. "Seraphiel, I heard that Lelisa Academy usually doesn't allow students to play with personal terminals. After you finish studying and training, how do you usually spend your free time and entertain yourself?" "It's true that the academy restricts the use of personal terminals, but we have a library within the academy where you can access the latest various materials and topics. Occasionally, we can also use it to watch movies and TV shows, so it's not that dull," Seraphiel explained on behalf of her academy during the program. "But my favorite is taking walks after school in the afternoon. There's a river on the way from my dormitory apartment to the teaching hall. In the evening, the warm sunset light shines on the riverbank. My classmates and I would walk together on the slope by the riverbank. During the early summer, flowers bloom along the bank. It's also very comfortable to take a nap there, lying amid the flowers and grass up to my calves, watching the white clouds drift across the azure sky." Seraphiel's description of Lelisa Academy's secluded and serenely beautiful life made many suddenly understand why, despite its conservative style, Lelisa Academy still attracted many people to choose it, often with a sense of legacy. For instance, Seraphiel's parents were also students of Lelisa Academy. They had experienced the pure and beautiful life that is rare in today's society. Even after graduation, they cherished those times, which is why they also sent Seraphiel to the same academy when she grew up. "Levito made a sensational debut in this Winter Festival tournament, surprising and astonishing everyone, but before this, we rarely heard Levito's name. Is there some story behind this?" "Well," Levito said, propping his head with an arm and leaning back in his seat, looking relaxed. "It's not that I was low-profile or intentional about it, actually, I also wanted to stand out. However, during the most critical year of improving my strength, my master dragged me to the Mineral Star 'Trace-876' for special training." "That's a planet with sandstorms everywhere, poor surface conditions, and low oxygen content. The good thing is I could use my abilities to their fullest, awakening and exerting my Talent." "In my master's words, 'Here, you can freely cause destruction, release your personality, without any concerns," Levito said, stroking his chin as he reminisced. "After all, there are ground reasons at the academy, and there are other students around, so you can't be too carefree." With his level of destructiveness, Thunder Edge Academy would probably face a huge expense in daily repairs to the grounds. ``` "Ordinarily, when I wasn't training, I'd go to a nearby mining site to watch those colossal machines swinging their drill heads to mine ores. I really loved the scene of controlling immense power and freely shaking the earth." "Somehow, I gradually became stronger, and by the time I returned to school two months ago, I found no one could beat me anymore. At that time, Sweitevi even told me that I was sure to become the champion this year since he himself was the runner-up last year, and his competitors had already graduated." "If I could easily defeat him, a favorite for the championship, then securing the championship must also be a sure thing. I believed him at the time, ahahaha." The audience at the venue couldn't help but laugh along with his hearty laughter. In the end, the host turned to Tilan, the most dazzling student of this competition and the newest songstress officially registered by the Federation. "Tilan, now you stand in the champion's spot of the Winter Festival competition, just like your sister did. Did you achieve this because you wanted to emulate your sister, and have you always been working hard with that goal?" "I've thought about it, but it's a very small part. Actually, I have rather complicated feelings towards my sister Temisia," the girl paused to ponder in front of the camera. "As a child, I was very clingy to my sister. But things slowly changed after she entered junior high. Later, when she went to high school, we barely communicated." "Even so, I still admired her very much at that time. Although she was my real sister, to me, Temisia was like an insurmountable mountain that I probably could never catch up to in my lifetime." "Unlike my sister, my life in elementary and junior high was very ordinary, with no particularly dazzling aspects. After my sister passed away, I didn't want to talk about it with my classmates, and I was like a transparent person without presence in class." "Looking back, that time was quite oppressive and uncomfortable, but fortunately, I gradually moved forward." "It was not until I finished junior high that I gradually discovered my talent, leading to my unexpected admission into Edith Academy, followed by everything that came after." Listening to Tilan recounting her past memories, although not directly describing the scenarios and events she encountered, the audience could still guess some of them and felt a touch of sorrow for her. "Although the process wasn't perfect and there are many regrets in life, I still don't want people to feel pity and sadness for me." As her eyelashes fluttered, the girl looked tenderly into the camera with her blue eyes. "I hope when people see me, they remember some happy and light-hearted things instead of being surrounded by gloomy and sorrowful emotions." "I will continue to work hard as a songstress in the future, bringing happiness and comfort to everyone." Soon after, applause echoed throughout the venue. Then the host chatted with them about many things, from hobbies to life details, allowing the audience to gradually see another side of these dazzling talents, making their images more concrete and vivid. For example, Sevia La used to fight with boys when she was young because one of them said her eyebrows were ugly. Sweitevi mentioned that since he became the runner-up last year, he has received hundreds of love letters and confessions from all over Star Domain every day. Klentchin once got so engrossed in research that he forgot to eat, waking his roommate in the middle of the night to go out for barbecue. Sitasia's mother teased her for dressing too conservatively. Maidi was ridiculed by her younger brother for singing like a duck when she was little, which disheartened her for a while. Seraphiel was admired by many younger female students as the 'big sister' in the academy. Tilan said that the first time she tried to cook fish, she didn't even scrape the scales because she always bought them processed. Levito mentioned that when training on Mineral Star, he'd occasionally help the mining company blast veins for extra money, splitting the profits with his master thirty to seventy. In the end, Tilan and a few others went on stage to receive their awards, and then there was the grand chorus participated by all the students, as this year's Winter Festival competition finally drew to a slow close. ```