She Is Not a Witch

In the tranquil afternoon, sunlight streamed through the round window of the attic, with occasional dust motes floating in the air.

Soft, soothing piano notes filled the attic, just loud enough to be clearly heard within the room.

A young woman sat at the piano, her slender fingers nimbly dancing across the keys. The simple melody repeated, starting a bit awkwardly, then gradually becoming more fluid, until she was fully immersed, playing it over and over, releasing a gentle joy and serenity from within.

After a long while, her fingers slowly came to rest. As the final note was pressed, the lingering sound of the piano strings echoed through the room, slowly fading away.

“That was beautiful, Lacey.” Light applause rang out as a girl with shoulder-length golden hair stood up from the sofa and walked to the piano, bending down to look at the sheet music in front of the silver-haired girl.

“Did you write this, Lacey?”

“No, I found it in an old book,” the girl shook her head.

“It sounds wonderful. Even I thought it was really, really good,” Laniel made an expansive gesture to express her feelings.

“Does it have a name?” Lady Philia, also sitting on the sofa, asked the girl at the piano.

“Yes, it’s called ‘Prelude’,” the silver-haired girl replied.

“A lovely name. It’s like butterflies dancing under the summer shade, bringing back memories of my childhood.”

“What was Lady Philia like as a child? Did you have musical talent from a young age?” Laniel ran over to ask curiously.

“Not at all. Back then, I often fought with boys and didn’t like singing at all. I even made Helan cry once when we were little, though he always tells me not to mention it because it’s embarrassing, hehe~” Remembering this, Lady Philia couldn’t help but laugh. Unfortunately, Master Helan had already left Hopland that night, taking most of the White Orchid Cross Sword members to join the Frost Rose.

“Then how did you become a songstress, teacher?” Lingxin, standing nearby, was also curious.

“Because it looked good,” Lady Philia recalled, then continued.

“My family wasn’t very well-off when I was young. Seeing those songstresses on stage in their gorgeous long dresses, I was incredibly envious. As it happened, the Wind Flower Opera Troupe was performing in Hopland. I snuck over and asked a staff member if I could become a songstress.”

“The bearded man smiled and asked me to sing a few lines. I did, and he said I sang well, but not well enough. He gave me a small booklet and told me to practice, saying they’d be back next year.”

“So you practiced every day and then amazed that man?” Laniel guessed.

“Not at all. How could I be that diligent? I looked at the boring practice methods in the booklet, tried for half a day, and then gave up.”

“Eh? I thought you were very hardworking as a child, teacher.”

“I was hardworking, but that came later. At first, I was quite lazy.”

“What changed later?” Lingxin was particularly interested in this point.

“Later, the church formed a choir, and girls who sang could earn 10 silver coins. That was a huge sum for me at the time.”

“So I picked up practicing again. The choir pastor often praised me, which motivated me to study more. Gradually, practicing singing every day became a habit, until I eventually joined the Wind Flower Opera Troupe and gained more fame.”

“Hmm… I thought you just soared to success on pure talent, teacher,” Laniel mumbled, a bit disappointed.

“There’s no such thing, Laniel. If you don’t work hard now, you might be surpassed by your classmates and have to repeat a year.”

Lady Philia admonished Laniel, who was trying to find excuses for laziness.

“I know, I know~ I’m in the top 50 of my year. I won’t embarrass myself by repeating a year. Don’t underestimate me, Lady Philia.”

“Yes, yes, if only you were as well-behaved as Lingxin.”

“Wow, teacher, you’re praising someone else right in front of me. That’s a taboo for students. I’m going to tell the academy principal.”

“Go ahead and tell. It’s vacation now. See if the principal cares.”

At this point, Lady Philia walked over to Loranhil and looked at the sheet music, asking:

“Are you going to sing this song at the festival, Lacey?”

“No, this piece is more suitable for solo performance when there are fewer people. For the festival, I want something more lively and uplifting.”

“Good, I believe you’ll definitely come up with something everyone will love.”

“Yes, I will,” Loranhil nodded, a vague idea forming in her mind. The most important purpose of music is to convey emotions, to express feelings, beliefs, and thoughts from the heart. One must first move oneself before moving others.

What did she most want to express? In her past life and this one, over all these years, what did she want to convey to others?

This question had been circling in her mind for the past few days. Though it was a bit hazy at first, it had gradually become clearer.

“It’s getting late, Lacey, Lingxin. We should get going,” Laniel said to Lady Philia, looking at the sun outside the window.

“Then we’ll be off now, Lady Philia~”

“Alright, be careful on your way, and don’t scare those little children.”

“I won’t. Why do you always worry about me, teacher?” Laniel pouted, a bit unhappy.

“Teacher, we’ll be going now,” Loranhil and Lingxin also said goodbye before leaving.

On the afternoon streets, the three girls sat in a carriage containing several insulated boxes filled with freshly baked bread and pastries. Their destination was the newly opened orphanage in Hopland.

The orphanage would care for children who had lost their parents or came from extremely poor families. This was a new policy of the alliance, with funding provided by the alliance council, proposed by Loranhil.

In addition to the orphanage, there were also schools. Previously, schools in Vegar were expensive and privately run, mostly teaching arithmetic, writing, and some regulations. But the newly established schools were different. The council would bear most of the costs, and the subjects taught were very comprehensive, including mathematics, language, philosophy, law, and commerce. Students would also receive regular training to develop good discipline and basic military skills.

Loranhil consistently believed that education could truly change a person, even a nation or country, leading them towards a better direction.

“We’re here,” Laniel said, looking at the gate outside the carriage window, then opened the door and stepped out carrying a box.

Loranhil and Lingxin carried boxes down together. Lady Philia had told them earlier not to use supernatural powers, as it would frighten the children and might cause some unpleasant incidents.

“One at a time, don’t push~”

Laniel was surrounded by children, while Lingxin prepared to go over and help distribute the soft bread.

Loranhil sat on a wooden chair under the shade of a tree, watching the children chattering and chasing each other playfully. Memories of the past surfaced in her mind, gradually recalling her childhood dreams.

So innocent and pure.