novelraw Chapter 21
Chapter 21
21. I Will Always Wait for You to Come Home
"All right..."
Hearing Meng Lian's answer, a look of regret flitted across Shen Ning's small face.
Just then, several people called Shen Ning's name from the doorway. They were girls who had already successfully undergone Witch Transformation. Shen Ning responded with a shout and bid Meng Lian farewell.
"Well, bye-bye, Meng Lian! Come hang out at the Witch House when you're free, okay? I'll give you a discount~"
"Mhm, bye."
Meng Lian watched Shen Ning's retreating figure, the smile on her face gradually fading.
The Witch House, huh...
By now, most of the students had left the classroom, leaving it feeling somewhat desolate.
Meng Lian sat at her desk, her small hand cupping her cheek as she stared blankly at the scenery outside the window, lost in thought.
Truth be told, she did want to visit the Witch House, if only to experience the allure of frontline witches for herself.
Unfortunately, she wasn't in the mood.
Although she put on a facade of normalcy, acting as if the earlier events hadn't affected her at all...
...her heart was still made of flesh and blood. How could she not care about what had happened?
It was merely reason that compelled her to act this way, dictating that she must appear perfectly normal.
But now, alone, the emotions she had suppressed in the depths of her heart surged back up.
She was an undercover agent, a mole for the Alliance. She couldn't possibly forget that.
Even though she was now a witch, and might remain one for the rest of her life, that didn't mean she could just forget about the Alliance.
Her family, her emotional anchors, were all in the Alliance. How could she forget?
"Little Zi..."
Meng Lian whispered her sister's name in her thoughts, and her sister's adorable smile surfaced in her mind.
She was an orphan, and her only tether to this world was her younger sister.
She had raised her sister all by herself, acting as both mother and father. Her sister had long ago claimed a massive place in her heart.
But Meng Lian didn't know if her sister would accept her as she was now.
She didn't want to leave her sister, but Chen Li was right. Someone had to do this. Someone had to scout the path ahead for those who would follow.
So when her superiors assigned her this undercover mission, she had agreed without a second thought.
Meng Lian recalled the day before she left. She had cooked her sister's favorite dishes and asked her a question.
"Little Zi, if I went somewhere very, very far away, and might not be able to stay by your side for a long, long time, what would you do?"
"What else could I do?" Meng Zi flashed a smile. "I'd just wait for you to come home, of course, you dummy brother!"
I'll always wait for you to come home...
Tears glimmered at the corners of Meng Lian's eyes. She took a deep breath and calmed the surging emotions within her.
She would likely have to break that promise.
Meng Lian knew clearly that once she became a witch, the hope of ever returning to the Alliance was slim.
This was an ending Meng Lian had long understood. All she could do now was hide herself with all her might and wait for an opportunity, one sufficient to turn the tide of the war for the Alliance.
However...
Her thoughts churned, and Meng Lian's gaze grew heavy.
Chen Li's discovery was too bizarre, and Anmir's high-profile behavior was far too abnormal.
It felt as if Anmir were setting a trap, just waiting for the prey to walk right in.
And the bait was Chen Li.
All these signs made Meng Lian realize that something might have gone wrong inside the Alliance.
This wasn't baseless speculation; it was something Meng Lian keenly felt. The most crucial piece of evidence was that she had lost contact with her handler.
No, to put it another way, she never had a handler to begin with.
Before coming to enroll in the Witch Academy, her superior had only told her that once she infiltrated the witches' inner circle, she was to bide her time and wait for the right moment.
As for other details, she knew nothing.
One could say that right now, she was like a lone boat drifting with the waves in a vast ocean, with no idea which direction was the right one.
She had noticed these anomalies before, but with so much happening these past few days, she hadn't dwelled on them. But now, with Chen Li's capture and Anmir's provocative declarations, Meng Lian had a bad feeling.
The problem this time lay with the Alliance.
Of course, there was another explanation: she had been abandoned, becoming a discarded pawn of the Alliance.
However, Meng Lian dismissed this thought in an instant.
How was that possible? How could she have been abandoned?
That was simply too absurd.
Meng Lian shook her head and cast the thought aside.
But regardless of what had happened to the Alliance, she was powerless to intervene at the moment.
She could only do her best to complete the mission smoothly.
But how could she reestablish contact with the Alliance?
Meng Lian suddenly realized that, in the end, everything circled back to Chen Li.
This captured undercover senior seemed to be the trigger for all the problems, the core of everything that had happened.
If she wanted to regain contact with the Alliance, she had no choice but to approach Chen Li.
But Meng Lian also knew deep down that Chen Li was currently nothing more than bait. If she got involved with Chen Li now, her fate would be certain death.
No solution... ah...
Meng Lian took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. It seemed every problem had led to a dead end.
To break the deadlock, Chen Li was the key.
That much was undeniable. But she couldn't rush. She could only wait, wait for an opportunity.
As for this opportunity...
Meng Lian's gaze deepened. She didn't know when, or if, this so-called opportunity would ever come.
So after thinking it over for ages, the only answer she could find was "wait."
Meng Lian scoffed at herself internally. What else could she do now but wait?
"Alright, thinking too much just adds to the trouble. I'm a witch now, and witches don't dwell on things like this."
Meng Lian shook her head, straightened her dress, and left the classroom, heading toward the Witch Academy.
Just moments ago, Modu had messaged her to come pick up her clothes.
Looking on the bright side, it wasn't as if she hadn't gained anything. Her "Big Sister" persona would soon have a home, wouldn't she!
"Meng Lian..."
Gabriel, standing behind her, had been keeping an eye on Meng Lian. Seeing her stare blankly out the window, a worried look crossed her face.
Phoeby, however, hadn't noticed any of this. She was still wondering what to eat for lunch.
"Lili, do you think we should have chicken wings or steak for lunch today? Lili?"
"Huh? I don't care, whatever you want."
Gabriel snapped back to reality at Phoeby's call and hurriedly replied.
"What's wrong with you, Lili? Why have you been so absent-minded these past few days?"
Phoeby, dense as she was, still noticed something was off. She followed Gabriel's previous gaze and happened to catch sight of Meng Lian's golden figure walking away.
"Oh~ Lili, you don't have a crush on our Benefactor, do you?"
"Phoeby! Don't... don't spout nonsense!"
Phoeby's blunt question threw Gabriel into a panic, and a blush crept onto her cheeks.
"I... I'm just classmates with Meng Lian. Mhm, just classmates. Don't get the wrong idea!"
Gabriel spoke incoherently, but her tone remained stubborn.
How could I like Meng Lian? Meng Lian was just a bit bigger, a bit prettier, had a slightly better personality, and slightly better talent... that's all. H-how could I... be qualified to like her...
At this thought, Gabriel felt a bit depressed, an inexplicable sense of inferiority washing over her.
"I get it, I get it."
It seemed as if Phoeby's brain had suddenly been taken over by intelligence. She keenly caught the shift in Gabriel's emotions, a sly smile appearing on her face.
"Lili, don't think so much. There's no right or wrong in liking someone. If you like her, go chase her. It's no big deal."
"I told you, I don't..."
"Tsk tsk, I can help you chase her~"
"Eh? R-really?"