Chapter 25: Confusion and Choice
That night, Dorothy was packing her luggage in her room.
If it were in her previous life, this would have been a painful physical task, but now, she had to admit that magic was truly a good civilization.
The lazy Witch simply lay languidly on the soft bed, lost in thought, while two self-regulating Magician's Hands in the room diligently packed and stored items needed for travel, finally stuffing them into the open small leather suitcase, which also had a spatial extension spell cast inside.
The interior of this storage suitcase was divided into multiple folding layers, and after spatial expansion, each layer had its own independent sections, such as a dedicated Potion layer, a Library layer, a Wardrobe area, an Equipment room, a Miscellaneous area, and so on, truly resembling a small warehouse.
Furthermore, if the suitcase were upgraded and enchanted with a living creature storage spell, and a living area was added, it could even serve as a mobile house, allowing one to directly live in it when no lodging was found during wilderness adventures, which was very convenient.
Therefore, this item was quite popular in the Witch World, an essential tool that everyone possessed.
Dorothy's suitcase was a birthday gift from her father a few years ago, a limited edition piece handcrafted by a renowned Refinement Master, a definite high-end item. Not only could it store living creatures, but its internal storage space was also quite vast, with a total of thirteen expansion layers that could be arranged according to the client's preference.
Even the exterior design of the suitcase, besides its initial handbag shape, offered dozens of different skins such as backpack, shoulder bag, office bag, tote bag, and so on, to suit different clothing styles for various occasions. It was truly the dream bag every Little Witch longed for.
Of course, such a beautiful creation also came with a beautiful price. Even though her father was a high-level Mage with a considerable income in Haiyue City, considered middle-class by Witch standards, this suitcase still drained almost a year and a half of his entire income, leading to a severe scolding from her stepmother.
Even Dorothy, a homebody who rarely went out and had no real need for a suitcase, was very happy after receiving this gift, as she could use the box as a secret base.
No boy could refuse the temptation of such a secret base that belonged only to them, not even a former boy.
Now, the space inside the box had been arranged by Dorothy. The uppermost layer served as a living area for mobile housing, and below that, in order, were the Library, Alchemy room, Potion room, Equipment storage, Training ground, Breeding area, Plantation, and finally, five layers of various storage areas.
If one were to stand in front of this open handbag now and look inside, it would be almost like looking at an exquisitely miniature children's dollhouse. Though small, it was fully equipped; you could not only see various furniture, instruments, and collectibles inside, but also rare birds and beasts living in the miniature ecosystem of the Breeding area, and a miniature garden filled with various flowers and exotic trees in the Plantation.
Even though Dorothy had owned this magic box for many years, whenever she saw such a scene, besides pride in the world she had painstakingly created within the box over the years, there was also longing and admiration for the great power of the Apex Witch.
Such an item, which might be hailed as a divine treasure like a 'pot-in-the-sky' or 'world-in-the-palm' in other worlds, was merely a plaything that could be easily bought with a little money in the Witch World.
Witchcraft, truly awe-inspiring.
It was no wonder that the indigenous people of many worlds conquered by Demonesses would worship them like gods. In the eyes of those weaker races, what difference was there between a Witch with such power and a god from mythology?
However, as soon as she thought that this magic handbag was a gift from her father, Dorothy's expression immediately became a bit awkward, though she couldn't feel awkward in that way anymore.
The farce from earlier that day was not yet over. Faced with her absurd background, Dorothyfound it difficult to make a decision immediately. She needed some time alone.
Her parents did not force her to make a choice on the spot. The domineering Dragon Witch finally rose gracefully and bid farewell. She said she would visit again tomorrow, and Dorothy could calm down tonight before making her choice.
But how was she supposed to choose this thing? How could it be so easy to choose?
Originally, she thought her mother was a scumbag who abandoned her husband and daughter, so she always harbored resentment towards her mother. But now that the misunderstanding was cleared, she discovered that the scumbag was actually her biological father who raised her. Yet, Dorothy couldn't bring herself to hate her father.
After all, over ten years of kinship were there; how could she just hate him? Adam, apart from concealing and deceiving her about her mother, was a competent, even perfect, father in all other aspects, fulfilling all of Dorothy's fantasies as a former orphan about the role of a father. Their father-daughter relationship had always been very good.
Moreover, Dorothy, who was also human in her previous life, could somewhat understand her father's thoughts. Which human parent in the world would wish for their children to become ruthless invaders and warmongers in the future?
In this regard, Dorothy's thoughts were actually quite consistent with her father's. Her previous unwillingness to become an Armed Witch, besides her mother's influence, was more because she disliked killing. In her previous life, she was just an ordinary homebody, not some retired special forces king or anything. She had never even killed a chicken before, so it was impossible for her to suddenly become decisive and ruthless now.
However, the ferocity of the Witch was etched in their genes. As a War-faring race that had fought for hundreds of thousands of years, their warlike and combative nature, accustomed to slaughter and destruction, was already ingrained in the Witch's DNA.
Dorothy, who inherited the Witch's blood, sometimes even got startled by her own Witch instincts. For example, she could now dissect experimental creatures without batting an eye, and not only did she not feel disgusted by the bloody scenes, but she would gradually become excited by the smell of blood. There was also her fanaticism for battle; even if she still didn't want to be an Armed Witch in her heart, as soon as she heard someone was dueling, she would immediately run over excitedly to watch the show.
Perhaps, just as her father said, such was the nature of the Witch, not to mention that what she inherited was the blood of the Dragon Witch, who were among the most warlike types even among the Demonesses.
Dorothy lay on the bed, reaching her hand towards the ceiling. She quietly looked at her seemingly fair and delicate hand, then exerted a slight force.
The next moment, layers of illusory scales appeared on her fair and smooth arm, like natural armguards. Her exquisite, slender fingers, which looked perfect for playing the piano, instantly mutated into five sharp, pointed Dragon Claws, their tips shimmering with a chilling, daunting light.
She seemed to be born for slaughter and conquest; this was her innate talent.
Looking at this hideous and terrifying natural weapon, Dorothy fell into deep thought.
Previously, out of resentment towards her mother, she had deliberately ignored this aspect of her talent, but what about now? With the misunderstanding resolved, she seemed to have no reason to continue wasting her talent.
"Meow?"
Beside the troubled Witch, the recently born kitten opened its eyes and looked at its owner with some confusion. Being telepathically connected to her owner, she sensed her owner's distress, so she thoughtfully climbed onto her owner's chest and then licked her owner's face.
"Hehe, Buster, that tickles, stop it."
Dorothy, whose face was tickled by the young cat's barbed tongue, dispelled the abnormality on her hand. She reached out, picked up the tiny kitten, and held her up high.
"Buster, what do you think I should choose?"
"Meow?"
The little kitten, still with low intelligence, tilted her head, looking at her owner blankly.
"Tsk, you really are a useless little rascal."
Reaching out to scratch the kitten's chin, making the little cat purr, Dorothy's troubles dissipated considerably.
Cats are indeed creatures that bring joy to people.
"Come in, stop standing foolishly at the door. You've been standing for half an hour, Alice."
Hugging the little cat, Dorothy sat up from the bed. She called out towards the door.
Then, the door opened, and a cautious Little Witch appeared at the doorway. She looked at the Magician's Hands that were packing things into the suitcase, and tears immediately streamed down her face.
"Sister, don't leave, I can't bear to part with you."
The Little Witch immediately threw herself into Dorothy's arms, her flat chest impacting the little kitten who was already in her owner's arms quite hard. Fortunately, her owner's soft cushion saved her cat life.
"Meow!"
After a sharp cry, the kitten struggled to break free.
However, the ruthless Little Witch clearly couldn't be bothered with the weak, pathetic, and helpless little cat. She just hugged her sister tightly, fearing that if she let go, her sister would disappear.
Dorothy was a bit helpless about this. She reached out and patted her sister's head, rubbing her soft golden hair into a bird's nest.
"What are you thinking? Why would I leave? This is just preparation for going to school tomorrow for registration."
She had almost made up her mind.