Cornflower Witch

Chapter 245 Mountain Road Outside Jiaoshi City
Dulin City, Horticultural Society.

"Hello, what would you like to buy?" The shop assistant behind the counter asked the young woman who had just walked in.

“I’m a gardener passing through here and would like to buy some seeds of local specialty plants. It would be even better if there were some books about their origins and cultivation techniques,” Hiltiya said, looking at the furnishings.

"Okay, wait a minute."

Now, the 'Emerald Honey' aura emanating from Siltia, after she has restrained it, is roughly equivalent to 'Second Tier'. This makes her less noticeable, but avoids a lot of unnecessary trouble.

After a while, the shop assistant brought out a few small jars, and then brought out a few potted plants from the backyard for Hiltiya to see.

"This is 'calendula,' which is very beautiful when it blooms. This is 'raspberry,' which produces very small red berries."

"This is 'white cottony thorn,' which can adapt to very arid environments..." The shop assistant introduced the local specialty plant with practiced ease, indicating that horticulturists had previously purchased local plants.

“Okay, give me some seeds.” Hiltiya nodded, then took out several gold coins and placed them on the table.

With her current abilities, she can easily cultivate ordinary plants to the 'second stage'. Many seemingly ordinary plants will also produce unexpected abilities and effects after condensing into a 'phase'.

Although she can't use every single one of these plants' abilities, the process of collecting, observing, and cultivating them is itself a gradual increase in her understanding of all things in nature, which is equivalent to slowly enhancing her concept of 'Emerald Honey's' nature. This is a cumulative effect of water dripping on stone.

"Okay, I'll pack it for you right away," the shop assistant replied happily.

While waiting, Hilti looked around the surroundings and asked questions.

"Do you have any special plants here? I've heard that some horticulturists consign their special varieties to the association for sale."

“There aren’t many gardeners in our Dulin City. Some plants have been stored here for a long time without anyone buying or paying attention to them. Eventually, the local gardeners got too lazy to store them for sale, leaving only one special plant.”

"After saying that, he carefully carried out a bottle from the backstage room, inside which seeds were carefully sealed."

"These are the seeds of 'Dragon Claw Grass'. Once fully grown, they should be 'Tier 1: Emerald Honey' plants with sharp hooks on their leaves and very tough stems. If properly cultivated, they can also condense into 'Tier 2: Emerald Honey' properties, which can greatly enhance their toughness."

"Do you have any finished products?" Hiltiya recalled the scene of encountering 'Eyeball Grass' on the camel tower.

"We don't have any finished products, only a dried grass stem. I can show it to you." The shop assistant thought for a moment, then rummaged through the box behind him and found another brown grass stem, about the thickness of a thumb, with a few dried, thorny leaves still attached.

The girl slightly opened her eyes, revealing a faint emerald green hue, and glanced at the withered stem.

【Dragon Claw Grass】(Tier 1 - Pass): A plant with good toughness, possessing hooked claws and barbs, but difficult to cultivate and grow slowly.

It doesn't seem to be a very successful product. No wonder it's been sitting there for so long and nobody wants it. But she still spent an extra 5 gold coins to buy a small bottle of seeds.

After accepting the gift, Hilti left the association and toured the city of Dulin, curiously observing the lives of its inhabitants.

Also formerly a city of the Kingdom of Regas, this place is much more vibrant than Scorched Stone City, with a population of nearly 40,000. It is a well-known large city in the vicinity. Most of the houses in the city are built with white bricks and stones, and the residents' diet includes not only common bread and sausages, but also many fruits and fish that are rarely seen in Scorched Stone City.

After staying for two days, Hiltiia set off again, and then traveled along the main road, heading west, passing through several counties and cities.

Half a month later, Hilti arrived at Cedar City, a city east of Valley City and northeast of Burning Stone City. The city is surrounded by dense pine trees and is famous for its wooden furniture, carriages, and machinery.

After returning to the local horticulturists' association and purchasing some seeds, Hiltiya inquired about the recent situation.

"Are you heading west? It's very unsafe over there right now," the shop assistant reminded the young woman.

"Oh, what happened?" Hiltiya accepted the 'cedar' and 'honeywood' seeds she had just purchased.

"There's been a war going on in Valley City recently. It's said that Prince Jobs has gathered his old troops and hopes to break away from Antioch's rule."

"How is the battle going?" Hilti asked curiously.

"I don't know, but people in the city don't think much of Prince Steve Jobs because he's too young and hasn't shown any talent in the past."

"Even Grand Duke Regas and the eldest prince couldn't defeat the Antirians a few years ago, and it's probably going to be difficult now too," the shop assistant sighed.

"I understand. How's the situation in Jiaoshicheng?"

"Scorched Stone City? It seems to be ruled by a lord named Somelin now. He used to be a logistics officer in the army. It is said that he spent a lot of money bribing General Bet and the great nobles in the Kingdom of Antioch to obtain this territory." "Now he is preparing to mine the mines behind Scorched Stone City and has recruited a lot of people. We have posted notices here."

"Are there still mines there?" Hilti asked, indicating that she had never heard of them before.

"I don't know either." It seems that only by going to Jiaoshi City can we find out the specifics.

Knowing that there was a war in Valley City, Hilti was a little worried about Karen, because after they parted ways years ago, Karen went to the Hunter Association in Valley City.

Hopefully, Karen will get through this safely. In Hilti's memory, Karen wasn't the kind of person who was keen on fame and fortune, and she probably wouldn't get involved in the war. But the reality is ever-changing, and she couldn't be sure if Karen was alright.

Unfortunately, at this time, Xigu City was already closed off, and there was a large army stationed outside. She could only wait until the fighting subsided before she could go to Xigu City to find out the situation.

After purchasing enough travel supplies, Siltia left Cedar City and headed southwest towards Scorched Stone City. She quickened her pace slightly and estimated that she would arrive by tomorrow night.

Riding on horseback, the familiar feeling gradually came from the mountains and forests along the way. The cool breeze unique to the mountains brushed against Xilutiya's cheek. It was the season when the winter snow was just beginning to melt, and there was still a chill in the air.

After the arrival of the gale season, the weather is a bit colder than the monsoon season; at least it snows in winter.

After a day of travel, as night fell, Hiltiya found a sheltered spot not far from the roadside, pitched her tent, and prepared to spend the night there.

The campfire was quickly lit, and Hiltiya placed a triangular iron stand and a small pot on it, cooking some of her favorite foods, including potatoes, dried meat, and some vegetables.

Once the salt and spices are added, a delicate aroma wafts from the bubbling pot.

After adding some more firewood, Hilti stood up. She took a wooden ladle from the saddle, drew a line in the air with her finger, and water gathered from the invisible air and fell into the ladle.

"Would you like some water?" She took a wooden ladle and went to the white weather vane, handing the ladle to it.

The warhorse that had carried her all day crouched down, lay on the ground, and licked itself rapidly with its tongue, making a splashing sound.

Seeing that it was drinking happily, Hirutiya patted the white horse's ears and head, then took out a carrot and handed it to it.

This Messenger Horse is the property of Lantern Town. It was bred in the past by the horse farm of Radiant Plains and is very strong. Generally speaking, only formal knights are qualified to ride this white horse with the 'Second Tier · Castle' attribute.

However, Hilti seems to be very popular with the animals in the town, not only because she exudes a peaceful and tranquil aura, but also because this girl has an endless supply of alfalfa and carrots. As long as you act cute around her, you can get some.

After finishing the carrots that Siltia had personally grown, White Horse licked Siltia's palm, making her feel a warm, moist sensation.

"Okay, that's all. You've already eaten three today."

The carrots that Hilti gave it were vegetables and fruits that had fully condensed the 'Tier 1·Emerald Honey' attribute. Feeding it one of these a month would meet the growth needs of this warhorse. Ordinary horse farms would never feed it as luxuriously as Hilti.

After finishing his meal, the white horse lay contentedly by the campfire, watching Hilti cook dinner, before drowsily lying down.

After Hiltiya finished her dinner, the white weather vane had fallen asleep. However, a faint white light curtain spread around the weather vane, covering an area of ​​nearly fifty meters in radius. Any other life approaching would alert it.

Although it is only a support warhorse, it still possesses 'second-tier' elemental power, making it invincible to ordinary warriors and beasts.

At night, Hirutiya extinguished the campfire, crawled into her tent, covered herself with a blanket, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

In the dead of night, the chirping of insects in the mountain grass continues, and occasionally bats fly across the night sky.

On the distant mountain path, a group of people ran hurriedly through the mountains by the faint moonlight, without torches, while behind them were a group of soldiers with hunting dogs and torches.

"Quick, don't let them get away!"

"These guys, instead of mining properly, dare to collude and run away."

"If we let them go, Lord Somelin won't let us off the hook. We need to hurry and chase after them!"

Accompanied by the barking of dogs and the sporadic sound of horses' hooves, the group of soldiers carrying torches ran through the night, chasing after the fleeing people ahead.

They walked eastward, one after the other, getting closer and closer to the tent where the girl had spent the night.

(End of this chapter)