Chapter 3: Her Excellency the Witch
The viewers were very familiar with this hand—it was Witch Shanshan’s hand.
“Is the main character finally making an appearance?”
“Is she going to explain her impersonation?”
“How is Shanshan going to justify herself?!”
“There’s no way you’re a real witch!”
“Get ready to be burned!”
“Unforgivable!!!”
“Impersonating a witch! Even a thousand deaths wouldn’t be enough!”
As the audience grew increasingly excited, Witch Shanshan, holding the spider, sat down in front of the camera.
The viewers had a lot to say, but at that moment, the barrage of comments suddenly stopped.
The reason was simple: today’s Shanshan was different from the past.
In the past, Shanshan only showed her hands, but today she sat right in front of the camera.
Her large pointed hat was adorned with mysterious symbols, and eerie red flowers bloomed on one side of the brim, seemingly unfurling slowly.
Her black robe had wide sleeves and a loose fit, with a few gray knots, appearing ancient and solemn.
The owner of the robe sat casually with her head lowered, the hat too large to see her face, revealing only a section of her snow-white neck.
She gently stroked the spider in her hand, as if soothing it, and the terrifying spider really stayed still, seemingly out of fear or obedience.
“Caw caw—” The sound of a crow’s call echoed, and then a pitch-black crow landed on the witch’s shoulder.
“Go play,” the witch’s cool voice commanded, and the crow cawed again before flying away.
The room was dimly lit, and this person, dressed mysteriously and accompanied by creatures like spiders and crows, was an enigma.
This…
“?? Suddenly, she doesn’t seem so fake…”
“I don’t know why, but her outfit matches my imagination of a witch.”
“Yeah, although I don’t know what a witch should look like, at this moment, it feels like a witch should look just like this.”
The two investigators from the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation also found it a bit strange.
“This Shanshan… doesn’t seem as fake anymore.”
“Let’s watch a bit more…”
“It’s really frustrating. We’ve never seen a real witch, so how can we determine if she’s fake or not…”
Su Mu knew that this wasn’t enough on its own. However, if she revealed too much today, what would she do in future live streams?
She had to think ten steps ahead.
Su Mu picked up the “magic wand” she had prepared earlier and gently tapped it on the table, her tone ambiguous: “I’ve heard that many people suspect I’m a fake witch recently?”
With the build-up from earlier, even this light and ambiguous statement significantly reduced the number of skeptical comments.
After all, no one wanted to offend a witch.
“Heh.” Su Mu let out a cold laugh and said abruptly, “I don’t like to see blood.”
The audience froze.
The previously noisy live stream instantly fell silent.
Su Mu didn’t continue that line of thought. She put down the wand and relaxed into her chair.
“Let me tell you a story about witches.”
With that, she sang a low, eerie tune.
The audience couldn’t make out a single word of the lyrics, but the haunting melody made their skin crawl.
Just listening to the tune, they could tell it wasn’t a pleasant story.
Combining this with the witch’s earlier threat, they could guess that the lyrics likely described the fate of those who dared to offend a witch…
The little witch finished her song and laughed to herself: “I told you, I have a bad temper. It’s best not to provoke me.”
The barrage of comments paused.
Most of the audience was intimidated.
After all, she was a witch, a legendary witch. Who dared to question her authenticity?
No one could prove that all witches were benevolent, right?
“Uh, Shanshan, don’t be mad!”
“I think Shanshan is a real witch!”
“Her outfit and the atmosphere here feel very real…”
“So… are we really watching a witch’s live stream?”
“Ahhh! Shanshan is showing herself for the first time. Even if we can’t see her face, I have to take a screenshot!”
“Shanshan, can you give me a blessing? I have an exam coming up!”
“Your Excellency the Witch, please forgive my offense.”
“Can you tell me, can witches really communicate with ghosts and gods?”
“Shanshan, what are you holding in your hand? Is it used for casting spells?”
“Sister Witch, what do witches usually do?”
Su Mu didn’t look at the camera. She glanced down at the comments on her phone and picked a few to answer:
“A banquet? Not interested.”
“A magical blessing? I don’t want to give one.”
“Don’t try to investigate me.”
“What I’m holding is a wand.”
“…”
In the Bureau of Paranormal Investigation, the two investigators were silent.
The eerie tune seemed to still linger in their ears.
“Is this… a fake witch?” one hesitated.
“Doesn’t seem like it,” the other shook his head. “My gut tells me it’s best not to investigate her—at any time, offending a witch is not a good choice.”
“Then let’s leave it for now.”
…
Su Mu answered a few more questions and then signaled Xiao Ding to end the live stream.
After the stream ended, she let out a deep sigh of relief.
Although she appeared relaxed and composed, this kind of situation was precarious; any misstep could be fatal.
She didn’t feel at ease deep down.
“Shanshan, you’re my hero!” Xiao Ding said excitedly, clutching his phone. “Most people online don’t doubt you anymore!”
“Only for now,” Su Mu said, taking off the black robe.
Once people realized that the props she used were all items that could be bought in the real world, they would become even more suspicious of her identity.
She had no choice; after all, time was too tight. She was able to muddle through tonight’s live stream solely because these people knew nothing about witches.
Su Mu needed to come up with something new for the next live stream to dispel people’s doubts once again.
The original owner live streamed twice a week, once on Monday and once on Friday, so Su Mu had a few days left.
She believed that after her warning tonight, those people wouldn’t dare to investigate her recklessly, even if they suspected her.
“Sister Shanshan, how did you think of buying these things?”
Su Mu replied indifferently, “Just a coincidence.”
Xiao Ding pouted.
It was already ten-thirty, and the school’s curfew was at eleven. After Xiao Ding left, she didn’t plan to go back; instead, she was going to rest in the rental apartment for the night.
Just as Su Mu was about to ponder why she had transmigrated into a book, a cold electronic voice sounded in her mind:
“Host, the Witch Development System is at your service.”
Witch Development?
Su Mu asked, “Is it because of you that I came here?”
“Host,” the system didn’t answer her question, “do you want to start the newbie gift package?”
“Open it.”
A brilliant red gift box appeared in front of Su Mu, emitting a golden glow. Before Su Mu could do anything, it opened by itself.
An ancient-looking yellow book leaped out. The book’s cover shimmered with golden light, giving it a mysterious appearance.
Su Mu took the book: “The Witch’s Code?”
