"...Go to hell... you bastard..."
Hermione Granger's fingers were like shackles, clamped tight around the neck of the man beneath her. His face had turned a deep, purplish-red, his bloodshot eyes bulging from their sockets as a desperate, gurgling sound escaped his throat. He clawed weakly at her arms, carving gruesome, bloody lines into her skin.
Hermione couldn't feel the pain. Or rather, such a superficial wound was nothing compared to the agony she was currently enduring. A vicious, searing heat was spreading uncontrollably upward from her lower body. Everywhere it passed, her veins felt like they were rupturing, her organs corroding and melting away.
This man, the boyfriend she once thought she could trust with her life, had used the most despicable, cowardly method to betray her when she was at her most vulnerable. He had coated his penis in a lethal, exotic poison.
"If I'm... going down... I'm taking... you with me..." she hissed through clenched teeth, summoning the last ounce of her strength to tighten her grip.
The man's struggles ceased abruptly. His pupils dilated, and the light in his eyes vanished completely.
A grim, satisfied smile twisted Hermione's lips. The monumental hatred that had consumed her was finally released, followed by an overwhelming tsunami of pain and darkness. Her eyelids felt as heavy as lead as they slowly drifted shut.
...
Suddenly, an unbearable heat assaulted her from all directions, baking her skin as if trying to set her ablaze.
Is this... the deepest circle of hell?
Hermione's consciousness was still hazy. She thought she must have truly descended into hell to face eternal torment. The poison's insidious burn still seemed to linger inside her, echoing the external flames and plunging her into misery.
Just then, a wave of chaotic, shrill, and malicious shouts flooded her confused mind.
"Burn her! Burn the witch!" "She is an agent of the devil! She will bring us ruin!" "Purify her soul with holy fire!"
What is going on? Hermione summoned all her might to force her eyes open.
The blinding glare of fire made her squint. As her vision adjusted, the scene before her left her utterly stunned.
She was bound tightly to a wooden stake with coarse rope, unable to move. Below her, a massive pile of dry wood had just roared to life, flames leaping up to lick at her ankles. A sharp, searing pain shot through her entire body.
Surrounding the pyre was a mob of men and women dressed in the rough, medieval-style clothing of peasants. They glared at her with pure hatred, brandishing crude farm tools and crosses while screaming curses, as if she were a demon crawled up from the abyss.
"Fuck!" Hermione swore internally, her mind going completely blank.
Damn it, did I get reincarnated? But why is the game starting in hell mode? Am I going to die all over again? Her mind reeled with disbelief. She hadn't even had a moment to process the fact that she was alive again, and now she was already facing another execution.
Just as the flames were about to engulf her, just as Hermione had braced herself to die once more, something impossible happened.
Without warning, the sky went dark.
The clear daylight was instantly blotted out by thick, ominous clouds. A heart-pounding, oppressive feeling fell over the entire square. Everyone stared up at the sky in shock.
There, in the heart of the clouds, a giant fireball ripped through the heavens and descended with thunderous force, aimed directly at the center of the square.
"What... what is that?" "It's divine punishment! The gods are angry!"
Terrified screams erupted from the crowd. The same villagers who had been clamoring for her death moments before were now scared witless, scrambling for their lives. But the meteor was far too fast. There was no time to escape.
Hermione, too, was frozen in shock by the apocalyptic sight, instinctively shutting her eyes.
BOOM—!!!
A deafening explosion rocked the ground. The square before Hermione was instantly replaced by a massive crater. The people who had been screaming for her death were vaporized by the heat and shockwave before they could even cry out, their bodies turned to ash.
She stood there, dumbfounded, in the middle of the wreckage, staring at the crater that was dozens of meters across, her mind a complete blank.
"Let's go! What are you waiting for!"
A sharp voice cut through the ringing in her ears. Before Hermione could react, someone sliced through the ropes binding her. A hand grabbed her wrist, and she turned to see a woman in a black nun's habit, her face mostly hidden by a deep hood, pulling her away from the scene.
"Who are you...?" Hermione asked instinctively.
"No time to explain! The guards will be here any second!" The nun gave her no chance to ask more questions, dragging her forcefully out of the town.
Hermione's body was still weak, and she stumbled, nearly falling several times as she was pulled along. But the instinct to survive made her grit her teeth and do her best to keep up.
They ran without looking back, sticking to secluded alleys and dense woods.
After what felt like an eternity, their lungs burning as if they would explode, the two of them finally stopped, hiding deep in a forest to catch their breath.
"Okay, we're safe here for now," the nun said, letting out a long sigh of relief.
Hermione leaned against a large tree, feeling like every bone in her body was about to fall apart. She looked the mysterious woman who had saved her up and down. "Who are you? Why did you save me? And that... explosion back there, was that you?"
The nun pulled back her hood, revealing a sharp, resolute face. She looked to be in her early twenties, with a practical bob of black hair and eyes as calm as still water.
"My name is Anna," she introduced herself simply. "We're the same kind. Of course I had to save you. As for that magic, it wasn't me. I'm not that powerful. I used the last magic scroll the Academy had left."
"'Same kind?' 'Magic?'" Hermione latched onto the keywords. "What do you mean?"
Anna looked at her and stated calmly, "We are both witches... feared and despised by the world."
Witch?
Hermione froze. She looked down at her own hands, then thought back to the world-shattering explosion and the fact that she had survived it completely unscathed. A storm of shock and confusion raged within her.
"Come with me," Anna said without further explanation, turning to walk deeper into the forest.
Hermione hesitated for a moment but ultimately followed. She was a stranger in this world with no one to turn to and not a penny to her name. Being branded a "witch," following Anna, who claimed to be one of her own, seemed like the only option.
After another long trek, night began to fall. Anna led Hermione to a dilapidated church hidden deep in a mountain valley. Its walls were covered in vines, and several of its stained-glass windows were broken. It looked like it had been abandoned for a very long time.
Anna pushed open the heavy wooden doors, releasing a wave of damp, musty air. The inside was even more spartan, practically empty except for a few rows of pews and an altar coated in a thick layer of dust.
"This is our... sanctuary," Anna said, a hint of resignation in her voice.
Over the next few days, Hermione settled into the ruined church. Through conversations with Anna, she began to understand the world and their situation.
This was a world similar to medieval Europe, but with magic and divine power. Women like them, who could wield magic, were branded "witches" by the church and the general populace. They were seen as evil and unlucky, and if discovered, their fate was the pyre.
The "Witch's Alliance" Anna spoke of was really just a loose mutual aid society. Its members were all witches who had managed to survive the constant persecution. They shared information and provided shelter for one another, banding together to survive in this cruel world.
This decrepit church was one of their few safehouses.
However, the reality of their "sanctuary" was brutally bleak. Their living conditions were beyond spartan. Every meal consisted of stale black bread and a watery vegetable broth, without a drop of oil in sight. At night, they slept on the cold stone floor with only a scattering of hay for a bed.
For Hermione, who was used to a life of magical exploration and intellectual pursuit, this was torture. She could endure hardship for a little while, but she couldn't stand the thought of living like this forever, constantly on the brink of starvation.
One day, when Anna once again brought her a bowl of vegetable soup so thin you could see your reflection in it, Hermione finally snapped.
"I've had enough!" She shoved the wooden bowl away, spilling its contents on the floor. "Anna, I'm not blaming you. You saved my life, and I'm grateful. But I can't live like this for one more day! I'm leaving!"
Anna's expression didn't change. She knelt and began to silently clean up the mess. "Leave?" she said in a low voice. "Where would you go? The church's spies and witch hunters are everywhere. The second you're found, you're dead."
"That's better than starving to death or dying of misery here!" Hermione was resolute. "I have my own two hands. I can find a way to survive. Anything is better than hiding in this godforsaken place for the rest of my life, living like a rat!"
"But... we're sisters! We're supposed to help each other, to fight against this world together!" Anna looked up, her voice dropping to a near-whisper. "Hermione, don't go. Please, stay. I need you..."
Seeing Anna like this, Hermione felt a pang of sympathy. But the thought of a future filled with nothing but black bread and vegetable soup filled her with despair.
"I'm sorry, Anna." She hardened her heart and turned away, refusing to meet Anna's eyes. "My mind is made up."
With that, she walked toward the church door without a backward glance.
The moment her hand was about to touch the handle, a cold, emotionless, mechanical voice echoed in her mind.
[Ding! The Ultimate Magic Academy System has been officially activated!]
[Host: Hermione Granger]
[Newbie Quest Issued: Find the Lost Witches. Within one year, find three witches besides Anna and convince them to join your academy. Mission completion will grant a mysterious grand prize.]
[Penalty for Failure: Obliteration of Host!]
Hermione stopped in her tracks.
System? Obliteration? She thought she was hallucinating and scoffed internally. Heh, what is this now? Trying to scare me? I've already died once, you think I'm afraid of it again?
She ignored the voice in her head and reached for the door again.
[Warning! Warning! This system is not a joke! If the host ignores the quest, the obliteration protocol will be executed in one year!]
The voice in her head seemed to have become more urgent.
Hermione remained unmoved.
Seeing that its host was completely deaf to reason, the system seemed to panic and quickly changed its tune.
[Ahem... Host, please wait! If you complete the mission, the system will also provide an additional reward of... one hundred million in cash!]
Clack.
Hermione's hand flew back from the door.
"One hundred million? In what currency? It's not Zimbabwean dollars, is it?"
[Standard gold coins of this world! A fortune sufficient to purchase ten major cities!]
[Furthermore! To assist the host in completing the mission, the system will grant one Newbie Lottery draw! You can win mysterious magic, rare items... and all sorts of other prizes!]
The system's voice was dripping with temptation.
Hermione's eyes lit up.
Wealth and the chance to explore unknown magic! Wasn't this exactly what she had been yearning for?
"You've got a deal!" she shouted out loud in her excitement.
[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for accepting the quest! Granting the Host one lottery draw!]
[Initiate the Newbie Lottery System now?]
Before her very eyes, a shimmering, rainbow-colored virtual wheel materialized, visible only to her. The wheel was divided into countless slots, each one glowing with a different light, representing a different prize.
"Start the lottery now!"
Hermione rubbed her hands together, her eyes gleaming as she stared at the giant wheel, her heart filled with boundless anticipation.
With a thought, the wheel began to spin at a dizzying speed.
The pointer flew past a dazzling array of prizes. Where would it finally land?