The Cornflower Witch

Book 2: Chapter 154: Lion and Girl

Vol 2 Chapter 154 Lion and Girl

The battle was over.

Sylutia rode the vulture-lion back down to the earth. So much had happened tonight that, by the time everything finally ended, the first light of dawn was already beginning to tint the horizon.

Beside her, Princess Mursa stared at the land, finally calm again, her mind full of thoughts but unsure how to speak.

Where would she go from here? What would become of the Kingdom of Regas? For now, she could only wait for the arrangements of the girl at her side.

Would she become a puppet princess? Or would she depart, go to foreign lands, and live in seclusion?

Right—she still didn’t know the girl’s name. The girl had saved her and saved Regas. She could not repay that debt, but at the very least she should remember her name.

Elsewhere, Sylutia was still digesting the scenes she had seen through that otherworldly crack.

Alien star, other world, memories of a previous life, everything in this life—like scattered stars—were finally connecting into a continuous spectrum. The pieces of a once-ripped self were slowly closing within a single frame.

A fresh joy flowed through her heart, the same elation she felt as a child when suddenly discovering a new toy, a brand-new comic, or an unusually fun game.She blinked, and a seven-colored picture book that only she could see appeared before her. Opening it, the first page showed a gray, black-and-white illustration, its neat lines dividing out the scene that left the deepest impression from her past life.

[Page One · Sealed Past]

‘This is your sealed and hard-to-find past. There lies a civilization that entered industrialization and informationization. As a member of it, you deeply experienced the conveniences brought by technological progress. Sixteen years of exam-based education poured vast amounts of knowledge into you, building a systematic knowledge framework. Maybe at that time it seemed ordinary, but with those knowledge systems in a new world, you can adapt quickly and comprehend and learn. This is an invisible treasure and ability.’

-Effect [Modern Education Framework]: Enables you to understand knowledge and organize information with speed and depth far beyond ordinary people, and often draw inspirations and ideas ahead of your era from experiences in your past life.

‘In the picture you flip through all sorts of wondrous and surprising stories and novels. Nearby an unshut game console, computer, and television. As someone from the information age, you encountered countless novel stories born from myriad imaginative minds and worldviews—rich and wildly varied concepts that always refresh the senses.’

-Effect [Myriad Fantasies]: Because you grew up consuming many different worldviews and works, you can easily handle completely different concepts and understand skill sets and legends that conflict with one another. This keeps your mind open to possibilities and lets you learn many different disciplines.

‘Since childhood you had keen observational skills, letting you easily sense others’ feelings and empathize, but this also became a burden. You would unconsciously follow certain moral rules and only truly relax when alone.’

-Effect [Keen Insight]: Skilled at understanding others’ moods and situations, but you need regular solitude to restore your energy.

After finishing this page, Sylutia felt a shameful exposure, as if someone had seen through her. Did this book reflect her inner self so bluntly? Even events from her childhood were drawn in the picture book.

She hurriedly turned the page.

This page used especially ornate lines and colors to sketch gardens, pavilions, luxurious buildings, an entourage of maids, and ubiquitous pale blue cornflowers.

[Page Two · The Meizhalansi Family’s Princess]

‘In this life you were born into the prestigious Meizhalansi family of the Sun Dynasty. As the only daughter of house head “Aster Sorceress” Sherin, your bloodline is inherently noble. At ten you accompanied your mother into the gardens that connect to the celestial gardens and received the blessing of an upper-tier fairy, making you fond of cornflowers. From then on, your name was engraved in the Meizhalansi genealogy with a leading claim to inheritance.’

-Effect [Meizhalansi Lineage]: You can easily distinguish tonal differences and discern color variations, giving you advantages in poetry and painting. This lineage produces natural artistic masters.

‘In your childhood you met a dragon princess from the Eastern Continent who showed you an emerald dragon’s residual luster pendant. That memory still sleeps deep within you, waiting to awaken one day.’

-Effect [Dragon Oath]: You will remember that forgotten promise.

This life’s identity certainly had nothing to do with ordinariness, Sylutia thought wryly. She could not recall the dragon princess scene at all. The page only sketched an Eastern-styled jade sea dragon ship, without concrete details.

She turned to the third page.

On this page she wore a deep-green long dress, sitting in a courtyard thick with autumn. Behind her a lush tree’s canopy layered yellow and green leaves, ten golden pears swayed gently in the wind. Dense blue-green shrubs circled around, dotted with tiny red berries. Beneath her feet lay a carpet of pale yellow leaves, with the occasional sprout of flowers and grass from between the seams.

The whole scene was tranquil. The glow of the courtyard suffused her face and hair with a soft gold, blending her into the surroundings in striking harmony.

[Page Three · Girl in the Courtyard]

‘The plants and trees you carefully tend crowd around you. You are their nurturer and the master of this courtyard.’

-Effect [Master of the Courtyard]: You are familiar with many plants’ traits and have cultivated many specimens into perfect, cohesive states. This achievement lets you nurture familiar plants to ideal conditions by memory and instinct alone.

‘The cornflowers blooming in the corner go unnoticed, but when they bloom in a mass, they reveal astonishing beauty.’

-Effect [Cornflower’s Favor]: You are favored by cornflowers; your fate is deeply bound to them. Everything associated with them you become skilled at. They may not be the strongest or most beautiful flowers, but they are your best ornament and conceal many secrets for you.

After finishing that page, she turned the next.

On this page she wore White Flower Battle Armor and rode a warhorse through various scenes: the knightly arenas under public gaze, desolate nights in the wilds, and fiery battlefields she charged across.

In those images her weapons varied—sometimes a knight’s longsword, other times a glaive, sometimes a massive axe—clearing a path through obstacles. Silver hair spilled from her helmet, embodying the lofty bearing of a legendary knight.

[Page Four · Galloping White Knight]

‘Arena, battlefield, inferno—your silhouette is so striking. The lone charge inspires admiration and trust; you are the White Knight, a symbol of hope and victory.’

-Effect [Laurel Ride]: When you charge alone under the eyes of many, you receive augmentation from the “Castle” Aspect. (The more people who worship, respect, and love you, the stronger the augmentation.)

That ability seemed to be the core power she gained after becoming a “Castle” Aspect, Sylutia quickly realized, and then she continued flipping.

On a new page Sylutia wore a dress with blue accents and black base. Behind her spread a vast sea of stars; many Eye Tyrants floated calmly in the air, clustering at her side and obeying her command.

The girl’s black hair drifted gently through the star sea. One hand rested before her, covered by black velvet gloves. Her fingers curved slightly to partially veil her face; the exposed irises shone with dazzling, terrifying, flickering starlight.

[Page Five · Star Girl]

‘You are a star from another world. You command many astonishing “alien star” secret arts and abilities. Even those bizarre alien lifeforms heed your orders and become your familiars and servants.’

-Effect [Star Origin]: You are a Star—that essence exceeds any talent. One day that will strip away all shells and reveal itself to the world. You can wield any secret art or ability related to stars, whether their source is this world or another.

After finishing these five pages, Sylutia noticed that various scattered Ability Cards had been automatically sorted into the corresponding pages: horticulture-related abilities were on [Page Three · Girl in the Courtyard], and newly learned “alien star” Path abilities were on [Page Five · Star Girl].

This picture book functioned like a library, storing all the Ability Cards she possessed. The items Lake-Praying Meleranke and Grimoire: Hundred-Eyes Ritual were also placed in the back pages for easy reference.

Beyond storage, it let Sylutia switch her own Aspect phases more easily, like a revolving marquee—effortlessly altering her Aspect phase and various abilities without the old tedious sealing and swapping one by one.

Of course, the book’s most important power was not merely collecting cards but gathering “colors” and recording the scrolls.

What are “colors”? According to Luna’s explanation, they are near-conceptual things, not actual pigments. She meant that when an individual changes themselves, their environment, or others through unique actions, a “color” is produced. For instance, if a singer’s voice changed the world, she would bring a unique color to it.

Although Sylutia did not fully grasp “colors,” the book automatically collected the colors she possessed. Now she could see how many “colors” she had.

“Dewy Verdant” — 37 portions, condensed from cultivating perfect plants.

“Noble Sacred White” — 12 portions, condensed from saving many towns.

“Pure Silver Sheen” — 5 portions, condensed from purifying water and land.

“Blood Crimson” — 3 portions, condensed from killing powerful enemies in battle.

“Alien Star Hue” — 10 portions, condensed from contacting and analyzing otherworldly existences.

Miss Luna had also hidden many gifts in the book that Sylutia could exchange using “colors.”

“Colors” had another use: Performance Drawing, which, based on Sylutia’s learned concepts and knowledge, automatically drew and simulated superior cards, discovered potentials in certain cards, and awakened unknown new powers.

For example, the initial Breathing Technique beyond the Lunar Radiance Breathing Technique could fuse with Iron Armor Protection to transform into Steel Body. The Gold Steam Path could fuse with Heat Absorbing Breath to become Iron Lung Breath. The Mist Shadow Path could fuse with Sound Suppression Method to become Silent Body. These were metamorphosis secrets refined by past geniuses through research and trials. With the book, she could simulate even better and more perfect cards.

Like a growing tree, it displayed different branching directions to the girl, drawing more beautiful and stunning future possibilities.

This picture book was truly special and practical. No wonder the umbrella-holding girl under the moon had specially told her to make good use of it.

Sylutia exhaled and shook her head to clear the slight dizziness from taking in so much information. The faintly adorable look made Princess Mursa suddenly realize the girl before her might be younger than she had thought.

Previously Mursa had assumed this girl was some reclusive powerhouse; high-ranking Transcendents had many ways to retain youth. Now she suspected she might have been wrong—maybe the girl truly was a prodigy who had achieved astonishing things at a very young age.

The vulture-lion dove from the distant firmament. Its body was more towering than mountains. Though this was not the vulture-lion’s true form but a body condensed from starlight, it still felt overwhelmingly powerful, enough to shake the entire Regas region.

[Cerulean Vulture-Lion] (Sixth Tier · Alien Star · Vaulted Sky); a projection of the Lion Palace’s true form, lasting three days. Its power can tear the sky and shatter the earth. It is a special projected lifeform.

As it neared the ground, the vulture-lion leveled its dive, then spread its wings. A surging airstream swept the land, and its speed rapidly decreased until it came to rest before the ruined valley.

Sylutia helped Princess Mursa slide down from the vulture-lion’s spine. After a while they both finally hit the ground.

Looking up, the two standing before the vulture-lion were each smaller than one of the creature’s nails. It was mountain-like in scale—larger even than the camel that had once carried Sylutia to the Hidden Grove.

They walked out slowly. Not far off the pounding of hooves approached urgently. When those figures finally saw the two, they could not help cheering.

They rushed excitedly to the girl. Some shouted with joy, some lavished praise on Sylutia’s looks and valor, and others wanted to pledge fealty to this peerless girl on the spot.

Under so many fervent gazes, Sylutia felt a little embarrassed. She turned her eyes aside and lightly brushed her hair with a fingertip. After everything had ended she no longer wore the decisive, bloodletting demeanor of battle; a shy trace of her natural personality showed.

But there was no time to rest yet—she had to finish things properly.

Thinking that, Sylutia’s embarrassment eased. Standing beneath the lion, she looked particularly small, yet her gentle brows and presence brought calm to many around her.