The Cornflower Witch

Book 3: Chapter 21: The Teachers' Secret Evaluation

"Make way, no sneaking bites now."

Sylutia, wearing gloves, placed the still-bubbling hot pot on the table, then adjusted the alcohol lamp beneath it to keep the cooked food warm.

"It smells so good~" Lovier and a group of children gathered around the table, sniffing the steaming aroma wafting to their noses, their eyes fixed on the food tumbling in the pot.

Inside were cooked beef chunks, carrots, and green vegetables, paired with suitable seasonings, releasing an enticing fragrance in the winter.

This was Agate Street, a place where beastmen and laborers gathered. Sylutia often came by to visit. Today, she had also brought plenty of ingredients, planning to give the children here a good celebration before the Silver Bell Festival.

Prices in the Asra District had always been high, and meat here wasn't cheap either. The residents of Agate Street usually couldn't bear to buy it, only eating a bit more on a few special holidays.

"I didn't expect Miss Hedra to be such a good cook," Lovier said, looking at the meat and vegetables tumbling in the pot, praising with anticipation.

Regarding this, Sylutia wasn't particularly self-aware; she had just prepared the hot pot by following her feelings.

Once the hot pot was almost ready, Sylutia brought out the cheese bread, roasted potatoes, and sliced honeydew melon she had prepared in the kitchen.

At that moment, Aurora also walked in with a few local residents."I checked the house; fixing it up won't be too troublesome. You just need to prepare planks and nails." It turned out she had gone to inspect the building's structure earlier.

"It smells so good~" After entering the room, Aurora put down her book and pen, came to the table, and also looked curiously at the food cooking in the pot.

Seeing everyone looking so expectant, their eyes practically sparkling, almost reaching out to scoop the food, Sylutia had to speed up a bit, then told everyone to set out their bowls.

Picking up a ladle, Sylutia scooped out the beef and carrots from the hot pot, placing them into bowls one by one, then distributed them to everyone. What followed were the cheerful sounds of eating, with bowls basically cleaned out in less than a minute.

Sighing at how much these beastmen could eat, Sylutia glanced at the hot pot beside her and realized she had prepared too little.

"So delicious~"

"I want more."

The children's praise came from the heart, and Aurora beside them also nodded, believing the food Hedra had made this time was far more delicious than expected.

"Is it really that good?" Sylutia skeptically lifted her own bowl, taking a small taste with a spoon. It didn't feel much different from her memory.

"Yes, it is. I've been in the Asra District for half a year, and what Hedra made this time can rank in the top three," Lovier nodded.

"You used a lot of spices, right? But surprisingly, these spices complement each other very well, without any conflict or strange aftertaste," Aurora also commented.

"This..."

She had indeed used various seasonings, like star anise, cinnamon, bay leaves, Sichuan peppercorns, tsaoko, and small amounts of cloves and white cardamom. These spices were all purchased alongside her alchemical ingredient shopping. Back in the Hidden Grove, she had also made similar hot pots, though mostly for herself, with Dorothy occasionally coming over to snatch some.

Because these spice combinations were all very classic versions from her previous life, she didn't think they were anything extraordinary, just following memory and feeling.

She hadn't expected that in this world, it would become some kind of Rare food recipe. This could be considered reaping the benefits of an information gap.

"Since everyone likes it, I'll make more next time," Sylutia promised under the praise of the children and residents that she would come again.

After enjoying the food, Sylutia sat by the fireplace, listening to a beastwoman aunt nearby talk about recent current events and news.

"School No. 24 produced a genius. It's said that student defeated ten opponents of the same tier single-handedly in the year-end school assessment."

"What kind of technique did he use?" Sylutia asked curiously.

"It seems to be a Bloodline Aspect spell that can disrupt an opponent's blood, causing them to collapse incapacitated," another resident warming themselves by the fire told Sylutia.

"That kind of spell..." the girl recalled records she had seen in the library.

"Probably 'Kuras Blood Tremor Art,' an ancient spell passed down from the Blood Dynasty. Very few people learn it now."

"Speaking of geniuses, after all the school exams were completed and summarized recently, the teachers secretly ranked the ten strongest and most promising students."

"There's such a ranking? I've never heard of it," Lovier's interest was piqued now.

"Because it was just finalized not long ago. I also heard the teachers discussing it while cleaning that day," the person beside them laughed and spoke up.

"Miss Hedra is among them, and she even ranked third."

"Miss Hedra is third? Then who are first and second?" Aurora and Lovier became even more curious.

When she entered school, Hedra's grades weren't the best. But as months passed, Hedra quickly caught up to Aurora and became the top of the year in the year-end assessment.

"First is Xinke from School No. 19. She excels at 'Sonic Bee Arrays' and is said to have a relatively strong innate Golden Honey Bloodline, allowing her to command bee swarms. She'll probably join the 'Opera School' in the future."

"Second is Huadelin from School No. 73. He is proficient in concocting potions. In the year-end assessment, he successfully brewed a Third Tier 'Corrosive Poison Steam Potion.' He'll likely choose the 'Four Salts School' which specializes in Alchemy."

"Third is Miss Hedra. Not only her assessment results, but the incident where she defeated Spicy Face also reached the school teachers. In the eyes of many teachers, Miss Hedra is a genius proficient in magical thread manipulation, capable of weaving threads into birds with immense lethality. She will definitely be a member of the 'Puppet Shadow School' in the future."

"Huh?" She actually wanted to join the 'Mithril Clock' school.

"What about the previously mentioned genius who defeated over ten same-tier students and is skilled in Bloodline spells?" someone nearby remembered to ask.

"That one? He probably only ranks around the twenties. Although his combat ability is good, the inherent value of that kind of spell isn't high, so the teachers don't think much of him."

"Mages value the mastery and deep study of knowledge and techniques, as well as integration and creation. His method of winning purely relies on the rarity of his spells and others' difficulty in defending against them, which doesn't earn the teachers' recognition."

Listening to the discussion, Lovier leaned close to Aurora and whispered a question.

"Aurora, what rank are you?" The golden-haired girl's voice was very low, and the heat radiating from her approaching body made Aurora instinctively lean back a little.

"I probably only rank in the fifties," she wasn't particularly discouraged. After all, she had only started shifting her focus to knowledge and techniques related to dolls after coming to the Asra District. If she had continued studying the techniques and abilities of the 'Opera School,' the first place this time probably wouldn't have been Xinke, but her.

Having grown up immersed in the Opera School since childhood, everything she learned and the techniques she practiced from a young age were related to the 'Opera School.' If she had continued down that path, she would have been beyond comparison with ordinary geniuses; even Xinke would have been a step below her.

But she had ultimately grown tired of it. Aurora didn't want to continue developing within the 'Opera School' like the veterans in her family and chose other schools and paths instead. She had expected these assessment results.

However, she hadn't expected Hedra to progress so astonishingly fast. After all, they lived together normally, and Hedra didn't spend extra time studying. Yet despite that, not only had the gap between them been closed, it was continuing to widen.

Lovier had a simple personality and didn't pay much attention to such things, but Aurora felt it was particularly different. Within her family, she had already been rated as the most talented genius seen in a century, potentially reaching the heights of her ancestors. Yet she hadn't expected to encounter a roommate with even more terrifying natural talent than herself upon entering a small school in the Asra District.

It seems I need to be more humble in the future. Well, that's true. After all, there are nearly two hundred thousand new students each generation. Even if there's only one genius in ten thousand, that's still over twenty. Aurora silently cheered herself on.

On the other side, after listening to everyone's talk, Sylutia also fell into thought and comparison.

Had she been too showy? Even if she wanted to become famous, it would be better to do so after gaining a certain level of strength. It seems she needs to be more humble and cautious from now on.

In another corner of the room, Lovier stood up, trotted over behind Sylutia. Although everyone was praising the girl in front of her, she also felt particularly happy and proud.

My roommates are the smartest and cutest. Looking at it this way, I must be pretty amazing too~