The Cornflower Witch

Book 2: Chapter 84: The New Garrison's Name

Vol 2 Chapter 84: The New Garrison's Name

The cornflower, a cornflower with light blue petals. Its flower petals resemble funnel shapes with serrated edges, while the base of the flower is covered by a deeper-colored floral tube. Multiple flowers are arranged in a radial pattern, presenting a more beautiful overall flower shape.

Holding this blooming cornflower, Sylutia gently pressed it against her chest, feeling a sense of intimate attachment.

This feeling was like a key, unlocking the gate of memories. Many scenes from her childhood slowly surfaced.

She remembered now, the place where she grew up.

Her name should be Sylutia Meizhalansi, the only daughter of the current family head, the 'Aster Sorceress' Xuelin Meizhalansi.

The Meizhalansi family, a prestigious family of the First Continent, a poetic family that participated in the compilation of the dynasty's first code. The family ancestors had earned many honors such as 'Crowned Poet', 'Duke of Flowers', 'The One Who Traveled the Seven Continents', and 'The One Favored by Fairies'.

Over the course of nearly a thousand years, the Meizhalansi family had experienced multiple declines and resurgences. To this day, the family had become one of the symbols and part of the history of the dynasty, one of the current Sun Dynasty's Four Great Royal Dukes, and maintained close relations with the Dragon Blood royal family.

When her mother was growing up, the Meizhalansi family was in a period of decline. Although the family's noble title remained, the various branches acted independently without unity. It was only after her mother came of age and displayed astonishing talent that the Meizhalansi family was reunified, becoming one of the dynasty's four truly renowned great families.

However, she couldn't remember exactly what happened later that caused her to end up drifting outside.It seemed she still needed to continue improving her strength to recall more things.

Lying in bed, Sylutia recalled the experiences of her childhood in this life—the seemingly endless, maze-like family mansion she could never walk to the end of, and her childhood playmate, the princess of the Dragon Blood royal family, Ilythia.

Speaking of Ilythia, Sylutia felt a faint sense of anger and affection. The anger stemmed from how the other often teased her when they were young, and she couldn't beat her. The affection came from the fact that, despite frequently fighting, their relationship wasn't actually bad. Whenever Ilythia came across something good, she would always find Sylutia first to go play and try it together.

However, after she was about ten years old, the two rarely clashed anymore. Probably because they had matured a lot by then and both had begun to be taught etiquette and manners by their elders.

As a member of the royal family inheriting the Corona Dragon's bloodline, Ilythia had awakened part of the power of the 'Dragon Eye' Aspect from a young age. This caused many peers to be unconsciously suppressed by her, feeling fearful and trembling. Only a small number of children with similarly special bloodlines could play with her.

After finishing her reminiscence, Sylutia lay in bed and slowly fell asleep. In her dream, she returned to that familiar mansion garden and saw many faces she had known in childhood.

Because her mother was the model of a lady among the nobility at that time, many great nobles would send their daughters to the Meizhalansi family to learn etiquette and affairs. She had met quite a few people back then. It was just a pity that she only remembered their appearances at the time, and had long since forgotten all about those girls' backgrounds.

The next day, Sylutia woke from her dream. Although she had only slept for one night, it felt as if a long time had passed, giving her a sense of dreamlike disorientation.

Better not think about things too far away for now. The young girl shook her head, setting aside the many memories for the time being.

What she needed to do now was return to the garrison in the Darkmist Mountains, deal with the issues that had accumulated over this period, and properly improve her strength. Only then could she travel across the sea of clouds in the future and return to her homeland on the First Continent for a visit.

After packing her luggage and bundles, Sylutia loaded the materials obtained from this adventure onto the horse's back, set off once more, and galloped towards the Darkmist Mountains.

Three days later, she returned to the garrison in the Darkmist Mountains once again.

"Senior Apprentice Sister Tia, you're back." Several apprentices guarding the garrison's gate greeted her.

"Yes. Has anything happened recently?"

"Nothing major. It's just that people from several other nearby garrisons came over, inquired about our situation, and left some lists, hoping we could help them resolve them."

"Alright, I understand."

Sylutia led the horse to the stable, unloaded the things, then returned to the office area. Several people were already waiting for her there.

"Tell me the situation." She went behind the desk and flipped through the documents and reports placed on it.

"Let me speak first." Elton stepped forward. Like Sylutia, he was a Second Tier gardener and the leader managing the greenhouse in this young girl's absence.

"The potatoes planted a month ago are now growing well and are expected to reach 'Excellent' quality at harvest."

"Approximately how many Jin can be produced?" Sylutia inquired carefully.

"Each Mu can yield 800 Jin. Currently, we have a total of 35 Mu of greenhouse land, with 30 Mu planted with potatoes. The final yield should be roughly 24,000 Jin of potatoes."

"I understand." Sylutia calculated in her mind.

The yield of potatoes was far higher than that of wheat. This wasn't to say wheat was inferior to potatoes, merely because potatoes had higher water content. If the potatoes were sliced and sun-dried, the actual weight difference between the two might not be so great.

If the water content was removed, the nutrition of 800 Jin of potatoes would roughly be equivalent to 150 Jin of wheat. That meant 24,000 Jin of potatoes was roughly equivalent to 4,500 Jin of wheat.

Still not quite enough, she thought silently. It seemed she would need to think of other methods later to increase yield.

After dealing with the issues concerning food crops, Grant, representing the scholars, stepped forward next to report on recent matters.

"We continued to reinforce the city walls and buildings within the garrison, and inscribed corresponding 'Castle' Magic Arrays inside each building. This can greatly improve resistance to erosion."

"If the previous construction was rushed to save time, then this garrison can now be considered truly stable."

"Many apprentices are discussing what name to give the garrison. I wonder if Senior Apprentice Sister Sylutia has a definite idea."

"Has it already come time for naming?" Sylutia realized this belatedly.

Come to think of it, this garrison had been under construction for almost four months now. It was indeed time to give it a name. Otherwise, the association and others wouldn't know how to refer to it. And because she led the construction of this garrison, she enjoyed considerable autonomy regarding the naming rights. As long as it wasn't too outrageous, the association would agree.

Choosing a name? This really stumped her. The young girl sat in the chair behind the desk, lost in deep thought. Seeing her look so troubled, the others nearby also found it particularly amusing.

Unable to think of an appropriate name for the moment, Sylutia happened to look up and see the octagonal lantern placed on the desk. Suddenly, she had an idea.

"How about... 'Lantern Town'? It's not very big at the moment, so calling it a fortress or something wouldn't be suitable."

"It's situated right in a corner of the Darkmist Mountains, a dim and lightless place. Presumably, many people traveling here would hope to see some light and warmth. The imagery of a lantern should be quite fitting." She began to explain, feeling this idea seemed particularly good.

Seeing Sylutia had made up her mind, the other three also thought the name was good. Although quite simple and unadorned, it was also particularly appropriate.

"In that case, we'll use the name Lantern Town to refer to the garrison from now on!" Grant responded with a touch of excitement, then solemnly wrote down this name in the notebook in his hand.

"I also agree. Lady Sylutia's wisdom is astonishing." Elton offered a little flattery.

"The name is quite good, though it is indeed a bit plain. I thought being in the howling winds of the Darkmist Mountains, calling it Stormwind City would be more suitable." The knight girl Rachel quipped from the side.

"That name... is too grand. It's not suitable for now." Sylutia shook her head helplessly, vetoing that name so familiar from a past life.

"Giggle, so it seems Tia isn't opposed to it? In the future, if it develops and expands to a certain extent, I strongly suggest changing it to 'Stormwind City'!" Rachel raised her hand, enthusiastically recommending the name she had come up with.

"And then Tia would be the first Stormwind Queen recorded in history. See, doesn't that name sound much more domineering?" The more she spoke, the more excited she became, even infecting Grant and Elton beside her, who began to waver.

Calling it 'Stormwind City'... it really did sound very domineering.