Chapter 173: Klisa’s Witch Hat

Her faint voice carried a tremor.

It was a sadness forged by the past.

A past she dared not face and did not want to see.

Following the witch's first instance of opposition, Xu Xi witnessed her first instance of hatred in the real world.

The object of her hatred was "white hair," something difficult for ordinary people to understand.

“It’s okay, Klisa, it’s just some snow.” A warm, broad palm meticulously stroked the top of the witch’s head, soothing her uneasy heart.

Xu Xi's voice was very soft and gentle.

The trauma of the soul could only be slowly stitched back together with threads of care.

Xu Xi understood.

In the second simulation, he had died of old age right before her eyes, dealing her a massive spiritual blow that still affected her today.

That missing void.

In truth, after reuniting with Xu Xi, it had mostly been repaired.

However, the witch still felt fear toward such scenes, subconsciously reacting the moment she saw them, which had led to the previous situation.

“Don’t worry, I’m right here, I’ve always been here…”

His palm stroked her long, gray-silver hair.

With each gentle stroke, the witch’s expression gradually calmed, and her eyes returned to the hollow look Xu Xi knew so well.

“Sorry, Mentor…”

Klisa lowered her head, almost burying it in her chest, the dimness in her eyes clearly visible.

She felt that she had caused trouble for Xu Xi.

Even though to Xu Xi, this so-called trouble was minuscule, not even worth mentioning.

But the witch felt otherwise.

As an object, affecting her master was an unforgivable mistake in itself.

“There’s no need to apologize to me, Klisa. You didn’t do anything wrong.” The wind and snow ceased, the world fell quiet, leaving only Xu Xi’s voice echoing.

“But I…”

“You did very well, didn’t you? You’ve been working hard to think of me.”

His warm and comforting voice dispelled the winter chill, blowing away the unease in the witch’s heart.

“Let’s go, we’re going home.” Xu Xi took Klisa’s hand, grasping her slender, trembling fingers and gently enveloping them. He led the dazed witch down the path toward home.

Without the influence of Klisa’s Supreme power.

Before long.

A fine dusting of snow began to drift down onto the road home once more.

This time, the clever witch had learned to take precautions. An invisible spatial barrier covered the air above them, swallowing every snowflake that fell toward their heads.

The sounds of pedestrians’ uncertainty and suspicion echoed in their ears.

“This snow is just too weird.”

“Yeah, stopping and starting so suddenly—it’s harder to understand than a woman’s heart.”

“Go, go, go, let’s move faster, or it’ll pick up again soon.”

Voices of urging and urgency.

People worried the storm would worsen again quickened their pace, rushing toward their respective destinations; some even sprinted through the snow.

Xu Xi and the witch’s figures were unremarkable in the crowd. They walked side by side at a slow, steady pace, leaving uniform footprints on the road.

“Yanshan City in winter does have its own unique charm.”

As they walked.

Xu Xi looked toward both sides of the street.

A city in winter possesses a beauty all its own. The heavens and earth were a vast expanse of white, and the silver-clad world was lit up by individual “sparks.”

Those were the lights of the cold night, warmly illuminating the streets.

Those were the horns in the quiet, their rumble shaking loose layers of accumulated snow.

Amidst the silence and purity, people scurrying to stock up for the New Year added the final piece to the winter landscape—the clamor known as “humanity.”

“What is it, Klisa?”

They turned a corner.

There was still some distance to the Courtyard.

Xu Xi paused his steps. It wasn't because of anything he wanted to do, but because the witch walking beside him had suddenly stopped, her eyes fixed on a shop by the roadside.

Following the witch’s gaze.

Xu Xi saw a hat shop.

In the bitter cold of winter, the quiet hat shop appeared even more empty and desolate. Very few pedestrians entered.

However, the hats displayed at the shop entrance were rather novel and interesting.

Xu Xi glanced over; there were not only traditional styles but also some “Chuunibyou Hats” specially made to cater to young people.

Some were bizarre and comical in design.

Some were paired with supernatural elements for a cool look.

And some were replicas of hats worn by characters in games and anime.

What the witch was staring at were precisely those strangely shaped “Chuunibyou Hats.”

Her gaze swept left and right with a sense of daze and confusion, finally resting on a triangular hat.

Xu Xi recognized that kind of hat.

“A Western fantasy-style Witch Hat?”

Xu Xi thought to himself. Having achieved the Supreme rank, Klisa could easily understand the essence of any object she saw.

That must be why.

As a witch herself, Klisa was drawn to the Witch Hat in the shop.

Even though the “witch” represented by the two was not the same thing.

“Klisa, do you want to try it on?”

The snowflakes dancing across the sky were like butterflies out of control.

Mingling with the sound of the wind, they filled the world with noise.

Facing Xu Xi’s question, Klisa first nodded, then shook her head.

“Mentor, I don’t need it.”

The witch spoke her true thoughts. She was merely curious about the hat, not that she actually wanted it. There was no need to waste time on it.

“Give it a try. Maybe you’ll really like it?”

Xu Xi said with a smile. There weren't many things that could pique Klisa’s interest.

He took the hand of the dazed and hesitant witch.

And walked toward the hat shop.

Amidst the shopkeeper’s enthusiastic introduction, Xu Xi took down the triangular Witch Hat. He turned it over in his hands to inspect it, then looked at the top of Klisa’s head.

“Klisa, want to try it?”

“…Okay.”

The witch really did seem interested in the hat.

As Xu Xi held the hat, her gaze followed its every movement.

“Klisa, lower your head a bit.”

Klisa was very obedient, lowering her head cutely. Xu Xi then gently placed the oversized Witch Hat on the girl’s head.

This special type of hat was quite large.

Much larger than an ordinary hat.

The design with the triangular point and round brim also made it feel somewhat heavier.

But it had to be said, this triangular Witch Hat looked very suitable for the gray-silver haired witch.

“…Mentor?”

In the silent world of wind and snow, Klisa stood in place, wearing her black and white dress and the light black Witch Hat, her delicate face filled with daze.

She didn't know.

Whether her current self.

Looked good or not. The girl cared quite a bit about Xu Xi’s opinion.

“Klisa, can you spin around once?” Xu Xi observed. He thought the front view was good, but he didn't know how it looked from other angles.

So, Xu Xi asked Klisa to spin around in place.

“…Yes, Mentor.”

The witch nodded.

She found that her overly long dress made it inconvenient to move.

So, the witch lightly lifted her dress with one hand while pressing down on the wide brim of the hat with the other. She spun around once amidst the dancing snowflakes, showing her full appearance to Xu Xi.