The Cornflower Witch

Sylutia led Amelie through the Feast Ritual School's exhibition hall. Considering the blue-haired girl beside her had a limited appetite and couldn't be fed everything, Sylutia steered her away from the common snacks and pastries, instead searching for things Amelie rarely saw or had never tasted before.

"Is this barbecue?" Amelie looked at the lamb skewer the girl handed her. It was sprinkled with spices, roasted to a crispy golden brown with oil bubbling on the surface, giving off an enticing aroma.

She had read descriptions of this kind of food in books. Humans had apparently started eating this long ago, but the library couldn't exactly have open fires, nor did it have raw meat ingredients, so this was Amelie's first time eating grilled meat.

"Try it, but be careful not to burn your mouth." Sylutia cautioned from the side.

"Mhm." Amelie took the small skewer, carefully bit off a piece, and chewed slowly, savoring it.

"How is it?"

"The texture is quite unique." Amelie couldn't find a suitable adjective on the spot. After all, descriptions usually relied on metaphors and analogies, and with such limited life experience, she struggled to provide one.

"Well then, do you like it or not?" Sylutia asked again.

"I like it. Three points." Amelie nodded.

"Is the full score five or ten?" the girl asked with a smile.

"Five."

"Alright, let's head to the next stall." Sylutia took Amelie's hand and continued forward.

The Feast Ritual School's members were skilled chefs, and the cuisine they produced was incredibly varied in style. Even Sylutia, with her past-life experience and knowledge, often found things novel.

For example, baking a certain edible flower together with slices of meat. The crispy petals released their fragrance, mixing with the meat sandwiched between them. The oil rendered from the meat was absorbed by the petals, while that layer of oil protected the petals from burning completely into charcoal. The result was a crispy texture that, when bitten together with the meat, created a wonderful mouthfeel.

Also, the ice cream cones she had previously proposed to the Fox Family had now been picked up by some Feast Ritual School members, who further improved and innovated upon them.

"Hey there, this is a new ice cream treat called 'Colorful Glutinous Ice Balls'." A mage dressed in colorful robes smiled and spread his hands. From the ice basin in front of him, little semi-transparent balls in pale, multicolored hues floated up.

The outer layer of these balls was a translucent soft skin made from glutinous rice flour, while inside were ice cream in different colors. Biting into one, the lightly sweet rice skin mixed with the creamy ice cream created a cold, sweet sensation that would feel absolutely wonderful in summer.

Seeing this novel thing, Amelie's footsteps unconsciously slowed. Sylutia immediately understood that she definitely wanted to try some, so she bought five "Colorful Glutinous Ice Balls." The two of them carried them in paper bowls, walking and eating as they went.

For Sylutia, tasting something once was enough to understand it, so she only ate two, giving the remaining three to Amelie.

Seeing Amelie still looking a bit reluctant after finishing, Sylutia couldn't help but tap her on the nose. "Don't eat too much. There's still a lot ahead we haven't seen yet."

"Mhm."

The two continued further in. By the time they had walked the full circuit of the Feast Ritual School's exhibition hall, nearly an hour had passed.

Considering she would be going on stage soon, Sylutia brought Amelie back to the viewing room. There, Sylutia took out another set of academy uniform, changed into it, and then walked out of the changing room.

"Silius, stay right here and don't wander off. If anything happens, you can use this to contact me." Sylutia thought for a moment, took out a communication orb, handed it to Silius, and then explained how to use it.

For Silius, this kind of item wasn't unfamiliar. She quickly grasped it and nodded in agreement.

"I'm going to participate in the 'Mechanical Creation' competition. I'll be back in about two hours. If you sit here, you should also be able to see me on the arena." Sylutia thought for a moment.

"Also, I've locked the door. No one else should come in. Even if someone does, don't go out carelessly." Sylutia was still worried and gave another instruction.

"Mhm." Silius nodded in agreement. Only then did Sylutia feel at ease. She waved her hand and left, closing the door behind her.

Walking through the quiet audience area, Sylutia lightly held the hood of her dark overcoat with one hand. She first went to the Tetis College spectator section, exchanged a few words with the supervising professor, then chatted briefly with familiar classmates from her year. When the competition began and her name was called, she waved her hand and walked down.

"Chief Hedra, go get them!"

"Senior Hedra, good luck!"

Among the cheers behind her were not only familiar classmates but also some Tetis College freshmen a few years below her.

Although Sylutia herself wasn't particularly aware of it, her reputation among the students of Tetis College was known to absolutely everyone. After all, she had been featured on the Mage Alliance's nationwide newspapers and official announcements, a rare honor even for Tetis College.

Hearing these cheers, Sylutia turned back again, waved in thanks for a moment, then lightly leaped up. Her body crossed the cloudsea between the massive viewing stands and landed on the competition platform plaza.

After landing and steadying herself, Sylutia thought for a moment, then pulled back her hood, revealing her slightly curly black hair. Perhaps due to the hood and collar, her hair was now pushed up into a shape resembling a "Q." Paired with that stylish academy overcoat and her long, slender legs, her overall aura became mature and dependable, fitting the image of a "senior apprentice sister" that many freshmen imagined and looked up to.

Once on stage, she looked around. Most of the contestants were over thirty years old. Those around her age could be counted on one hand.

After all, this was the highest-level competition within the Alliance, carrying the hopes and aspirations of every faction. Everyone sent their strongest members, and since strength takes time to grow, younger members found it difficult to surpass the more experienced veterans.

Aside from Sylutia and two other current students from the Mithril Clock School, the remaining three contestants were seniors who had graduated long ago. Their strength was all above Fifth Tier, not far from Sixth Tier. These three were the school's hot picks for the championship.

As for whether Sylutia could place, the school didn't hold much expectation. Even though she had achieved considerable success in the steam vehicle field, the steam vehicles she built were ultimately just relatively comfortable and practical, not the kind of war-capable mechanical creations.

"All participants are present. I will now announce the competition categories and rules." The chief referee stepped onto the stage and explained to the assembled contestants.

"The competition is divided into two parts. The first will have you craft specific creations, while the second will have your freely-built mechanical creations battle against each other to see who comes out on top."

"The arena will provide raw materials, and you may only use the limited materials provided here for your crafting. Otherwise, differences in material performance between participants would create unfair results."

"Upon completing your works, the judges will score them, and these scores can be exchanged for points. After the competition ends, you may use your points to take some of your crafted creations home."

"Those are roughly the rules. Now, I will announce the five challenges of the first trial." With that, he snapped his fingers.

A silver-white wall rose from behind the chief referee, and five boxes with requirements appeared on it.

"The theme of this competition is 'Winter Night Stroll.' You are required to craft five theme-related items." He began explaining each one.

[Forge the "Wild Boar Slaying Spear"]: A one-handed hunting firearm must be crafted, capable of killing a Fourth Tier "Winter Doom Shaggy Boar" within 100 meters and within one minute.

[Forge the "Lamp That Pierces Snow Fog"]: A lighting lantern must be crafted, whose light can penetrate a "Gray-White Mist" with a radius of 1000 meters.

[Forge the "Horn That Awakens Courage"]: A horn that boosts fighting spirit and strengthens willpower must be crafted, enabling ten cowardly "Sound-Fearing Monkeys" to muster the courage to fight a Third Tier "Winter Wolf."

[Forge the "Warm Current That Melts Frozen Ice"]: A heating device that relieves frostbite and wards off the cold must be crafted, allowing three "River Bend Crocodiles" from warm jungles to safely traverse a "Frigid Ice Fog" roughly 1000 meters long.

[Forge the "Snow Vehicle That Breaks Ice Forward"]: A steam-powered vehicle unaffected by severe winter conditions must be crafted, capable of crossing a "White Night Cold Fog" three kilometers in diameter. It will be scored on overall performance.

Once the challenges were announced, lively discussion immediately broke out among the audience.

"This year's challenges are very meaningful. After all, the Sinking Fog season arrives in two years. If there are truly good inventions and creations here, they could prove extremely useful."

"But the difficulty is considerable too. I saw that the highest material grade available on site is 'Third Tier,' and there are limits on how many you can take. For the trials ahead, dealing with that 'Winter Doom Shaggy Boar' requires an extremely powerful firearm to kill it at short range in a short time. If you put all the good materials into the gun, then you'll have to ration the high-quality materials for the remaining challenges."

"The Sinking Fog season has sixteen types of calamity fog, and this trial lists three of them, and the more dangerous ones at that."

"There's the 'Gray-White Mist' that makes people lose direction, dulls their consciousness, and induces hallucinations."

"The 'Frigid Ice Fog' that plunges life into silence and extinction."

"And the 'White Night Cold Fog' that erodes everything, mutating objects and living beings."

"If you encounter these calamity fogs during the Sinking Fog season, the least it could cause is massive regional damage. At worst, it could wipe out all life in an entire region." Someone recalled past events and shook their head with a sigh.

"Alright, the competition has begun. I wonder what kind of items these contestants will create to handle the five trials."

....

Down below, Sylutia also finished reading the five trial requirements listed on the wall and began to ponder.

For crafting the wild boar slaying firearm, she had learned some hand cannon knowledge from that senior apprentice sister from the Fire Essence School before. Though she wasn't as skilled as the specialized "gun smiths," dealing with this trial shouldn't be difficult.

For the lantern that pierces mist, she could use the lantern techniques she learned from Lady Franne as a template and modify it. The best Aspect against "mist" was "Luminous Moon," and she happened to possess the inheritance of the "Silver Radiance Church," making her quite adept at it.

The horn that awakens courage was truly her first time working with such a thing. She had never crafted an item related to emotions or spirit before. However, during her years traveling through the Western Mountain Range, she had seen many beastman tribal horns and war drums, and had even traded for some Shaman techniques. Though she was somewhat rusty, with a bit of on-the-spot study, she should be able to produce a barely passable work.

For the warm current that melts frozen ice, when it came to heating and warding off the cold's erosion, the "Scorching Sun" Aspect was the best choice. She hadn't studied this aspect extensively. If it were cultivating plants with the "Scorching Sun" Aspect, then she would be extremely skilled, as Lady Franne had taught her many valuable lessons.

The final challenge, crafting a steam vehicle capable of crossing the cold fog, was practically a gift to her. Over the past year, she had participated in countless tests and designs, all aimed at making the new vehicle capable of handling various complex and extreme environments, accumulating extremely rich experience.

It was safe to say that no one among the contestants here was more skilled at this than her.

Of the five trials, she was confident in scoring high on three. The remaining two would depend on how things played out.

When the competition began, all the contestants sprang into action. Sylutia thought for a moment, then walked to the material table and began selecting her raw materials.

Due to the rules, she could only pick three pieces of "Third Tier" material. She chose a piece of "Scarcegold" and a "Thermal Melt Crystal," leaving the last selection for later.

After obtaining the two main materials, Sylutia began selecting supporting "Second Tier" materials, then returned to her workstation to start processing.

Six delicate blue "Steel Shadow Magic Hands" materialized around her. A faint deep-blue symbol flickered in the girl's eyes as she directed these magic hands to operate, almost managing three tasks at once, simultaneously processing and crafting three different things.

First was the wild boar hunting firearm. She used the high-temperature heat flow from the furnace to melt the "Scarcegold," then began processing it, forging the barrel while various other components gradually took shape.

Years ago, when she was still Second Tier, she could craft 'Fourth Tier·Perfect' creations. Now, doing this was even more familiar and easy. Her speed was five or six times faster than before, and the process went exceptionally smoothly.

About twenty minutes later, a pale-golden single-handed long-barreled hand cannon appeared in Sylutia's hands. This gun used a reliable and durable revolving cylinder structure. After opening the back cover, she loaded six crafted enchanted bullets one by one, then closed the cylinder. Sylutia gripped the handle, aimed at the test target in front, and three pale-golden rings appeared around the barrel, reinforcing it, stabilizing its axis, and compressing the gunpowder's energy for more efficient operation.

After aiming, she pulled the trigger. The propellant ignited, and the scorching enchanted bullet tore through the air, streaking across as a golden line before striking the distant target, blasting it to pieces and leaving a large crater in the stone wall behind.

If a Third Tier knight had been standing there instead of a target, being hit by that shot would probably mean a shattered shield and a pierced body, dead on the spot.

The power should be sufficient. Unfortunately, with the material restrictions this time, she could only barely craft a 'Fourth Tier·Excellent' firearm. If she could have gotten her hands on the rare 'Fourth Tier' material 'Black Magic Copper' like before, she could probably have crafted a 'Fifth Tier' quality firearm.

Setting down the finished firearm, Sylutia moved on to the next trial.

"'The Lamp That Pierces Snow Fog.' Which method should I use to make this?" Sylutia's gaze swept over the various materials displayed on stage.

The "Silver Radiance Church" inheritance included various lamps such as the "Silver Candle Lamp," "Golden Radiance Lamp," "Moon-Waiting Lamp," and "Awakening Night White Lamp." Among them, several had mist-piercing effects.

After considering various factors, Sylutia decided on the "Moon-Waiting Lamp." Not because it was the most effective, but because it was the most unassuming and common. The "Silver Candle Lamp" and "Golden Radiance Lamp" had extremely powerful effects and could be called the signature items of the Silver Radiance Church. But precisely because they were so famous, she couldn't easily use them. Moreover, crafting them with Third Tier materials wouldn't allow those lamps to display their advantages. Better to choose the relatively common and people-friendly "Moon-Waiting Lamp."

This was a lamp developed by the Silver Radiance Church after absorbing some techniques and concepts from the East. It was commonly used at outposts in the Shadow World, able to emit a lasting light that could pierce mist and weakly resist erosion.

Having chosen this, she picked out several pieces of "Moon Firefly Stone," then combined them with some herbs and metal materials to begin crafting.

The lantern's structure was relatively simple. From start to finish, Sylutia only took 12 minutes to complete it.

[Moon-Waiting Lamp] (Third Tier·Rare): A bright lantern that emits a cool, lustrous white light. This light can easily pierce through mist and also possesses a slight suppressive effect against illusions and beguilement abilities. (Mist Piercing +4, Illusion Suppression +1)

Holding it in her hand, she used a small amount of Mental Power to activate the runes inside the lantern. A clear, glowing light spread out, instantly illuminating nearly a thousand meters in all directions. Such a powerful test result not only surprised Sylutia herself but also attracted the attention of many spectators.

"What is that?"

"That's Miss Hedra from Mithril Clock, isn't it? I even collected her poster earlier this year. No mistake."

"Impressive. Even from this distance, I can tell that lamp's effect is outstanding."

After testing it once, Sylutia put the lamp away and moved on to the next trial.