So I Became a Witch and Started Doing Daily Quests

Chapter 153: Displaying Value

Outside the secret realm, in the Mercury World.

Above the vortex, scenes of apprentice battles flashed rapidly across the Water Mirror Witchcraft, but ultimately, everyone's gaze fixated on the gray-white world that closely resembled the Mercury World.

"Could that be... an interdimensional space?"

Due to the positioning function of the Nameplate, as long as the apprentices inside the secret realm carried a Nameplate, their movement data would be captured and projected onto the Water Mirror Witchcraft.

However, for confidentiality reasons, these images were currently only viewable by the present official wizards; other apprentices who had been eliminated were not authorized to watch.

"And it’s even the Mirror Layer Domain—"

With just one glance, Gushan-Rav recognized the interdimensional space projected on the Water Mirror. Then, his gaze subtly shifted toward the Hundred-Eyed Specter that had been floating beside Janna.

"To be this young and already able to master so many forms of witchcraft—and each one with a fairly high level of proficiency—heh, Anthony, looks like you’ve had quite the stroke of luck these past few years. White Coral Academy really found a promising talent."

At those words, Anthony-Rook, who was also watching Janna closely, nodded in agreement.

"Truly an unexpected surprise."

Ever since the "Purge the Darksun Apostles" mission, Anthony-Rook, who suffered from face blindness, had been deeply impressed by Janna.

Beyond her A-level talent, Janna’s exceptional overall qualities had greatly surprised Anthony-Rook.

It was for this reason he gifted her the treasured "Ancient God Contract" he had kept for many years, and included her in the list of apprentice candidates for the Dordogne White Tower Trial, giving her special attention.

"So it was her—"

Seeing Janna return from the Mirror Layer Domain to the secret realm, Lucia Heigel, who hadn’t paid much attention before, suddenly furrowed her brows.

That face beneath the Wizard Hood overlapped with the female apprentice she had encountered last time in the Shadow Realm.

"No wonder Anthony brought her along back then."

To be able to deploy so many tactics at just the apprentice stage, and as only a Second Tier Wizard Apprentice—Janna was truly a rare prodigy.

However, what truly made Lucia Heigel take notice of Janna was the boy standing beside her—Maro Heigel.

"Quite fortunate. Let’s see how long you can hold out in there."

Her eyes flashed slightly, and as she looked at the figure gradually walking away in the Water Mirror, a subtle, ambiguous smile curled at the corner of Lucia Heigel’s lips.

"Miss Janna—this is your Nameplate."

As they exited the Mirror Layer Domain, Janna took the Nameplate Maro Heigel handed her with a calm nod, and stored it with her own.

"This time, my survival in the secret realm is truly thanks to you—"

Seeing Janna put the Nameplate away, Maro Heigel bowed respectfully.

Due to her heavy spellcasting, Janna had consumed a significant amount of Magic Power.

She simply nodded in response, then spread the Emerald Butterfly Wings on her back once again.

"Miss Janna—"

As Janna prepared to leave, Maro Heigel called out in haste.

"The first wave of the [Contamination Curse] is about to strike. Only by heading to the central region of the secret realm can one avoid the curse’s effects—and I can serve as your guide, Miss Janna."

Seeing the hopeful look in Maro Heigel’s eyes, Janna, who clearly understood the implication behind his words, did not respond immediately. Instead, she looked at him with a calmness he had never seen before.

That simple, calm gaze alone suddenly filled Maro Heigel with an indescribable pressure, making his emotions grow increasingly tense.

"You know I have the means to purify curses."

Though Janna’s words weren’t explicit, Maro Heigel clearly grasped her subtext.

In summary, he had shown too little value at the time—so little that Janna didn’t believe he qualified to be her teammate.

After all, while White Tower apprentices advocated teamwork, it didn’t mean the strong should endlessly coddle the weak and play the role of a "healer."

So, unless someone displayed enough value, Janna preferred to team up with her "Contract Summoned Creature."

"I know... but please allow me to say one last thing!"

As he spoke, Maro Heigel lightly touched his Nameplate. In an instant, more than thirty pinkish Marsh Arrow Frog tongues appeared in his hand.

"I’m familiar with the entire terrain layout of the Marsh Secret Realm, and my [Water Manipulation] talent allows me to sense the presence of all water sources within it. If Miss Janna doesn’t believe me, I can temporarily entrust these frog tongues to you until we locate the Marsh Arrow Frogs."

As though he had made a resolute decision, Maro Heigel, who had been hunted by Blackbone Grove apprentices since entering the secret realm, was eager to break free from his current predicament.

Janna’s appearance was his only hope of doing so.

Whoosh—a gust of wind blew through, carrying heavy dampness and rustling the bushes.

Now having laid all his cards on the table, Maro Heigel grew even more anxious as Janna remained silent, his breath coming more quickly.

"Then let’s have a fruitful partnership."

Bright eyes, blooming smile.

Seeing the sudden "friendly" smile bloom on Janna’s face, Maro Heigel, who hadn’t dared to breathe loudly, finally let out a long sigh of relief after a moment of daze.

The dark clouds weighing on his heart also dispersed in that instant.

"Please accept these Marsh Arrow Frog tongues as well, Miss Janna."

"There’s no need, Mr. Heigel. Since we’ve already agreed to cooperate, I do have that bit of trust."

At her words, Maro Heigel—who had already heard much about Janna’s character through word of mouth—stopped insisting. After storing the frog tongues back into his Nameplate, he moved ahead to lead the way.

"Silver Mirror, continue using illusions to cover us."

"At your command, Master~"

"Aph, continue purifying the curse for me every thirty minutes. As for the rest, you don’t need to worry."

"Yes, Master."

Due to the Celestial Finch’s limited Magic Power, Janna had to prioritize her own safety in this curse-saturated secret realm.

As for Maro Heigel—unless she saw true value in him, Janna would not interfere in his efforts to "overcome" the various trials.

"The harvest isn’t bad."

Under Maro Heigel’s guidance, they indeed came upon a small body of water beside a bush-covered wetland.

After over two hours of continuous collection, Janna had controlled more than fifty Marsh Arrow Frogs using [Siren Chanting], then stunned them with [Soul Scream] to harvest points.

Maro Heigel, for the most part, didn’t act. He merely stood quietly beside Janna, occasionally dealing with a few frogs that escaped [Siren Chanting] and handing their tongues to her.

"Mr. Heigel, since you harvested these few Marsh Arrow Frog tongues, you should keep them yourself..."

Having just finished harvesting the fifty-fifth Marsh Arrow Frog, Janna did not accept the three frog tongues Maro Heigel handed to her—