The Cornflower Witch

“Hello, you must be the new colleague, right?” The light blue-haired girl stood in front of Sylutia. She looked a little over twenty, hugging a large stack of documents to her chest.

“That’s right, I am.” Sylutia nodded.

“Whew, sorry, I’ve been busy and only just got a moment to come over.” She put the documents down, then introduced herself.

“I’m Ina. I’m actually new here too, just started working a year ago. I’m currently an office assistant, mainly handling miscellaneous tasks, document notifications, verification, and delivery, stuff like that.”

“Did you also pass the exam to get in? I spent a long time preparing back then. During the re-exam and interview, I was terrified by all kinds of questions. I thought I hadn’t passed at the time.”

.....

“Although the work is a bit tiring, the benefits are really good. For a Second Tier apprentice like me, it’s pretty much ideal.”

.....

“You’re not an apprentice? Does that mean you’re already an Official Mage? That’s amazing. My brother is an Official Mage too, but he only advanced when he was around thirty.”

......

“The Finance Department has a massive workload. There are about over three thousand permanent staff in these few buildings, handling budget reviews and fund allocations for various projects. Occasionally, I still see them working overtime until the lights go out.”

“But we don’t have to worry about that. As assistants, we usually don’t work that late.”

“The supervisor said I should show you around and help you get familiar with the environment first.”

“Follow me. Let’s check out the break room first.”

After saying that, Ina led the young woman to a break room in the building. In the center was a circular open space, surrounded by several rings of chairs and small tables. Next to it was a stove for brewing coffee and tea, where people could sit and rest for a while, snack on something, or look out the window at the scenery.

It was around ten in the morning. There weren’t many people in the break room—just a few sitting on chairs in the corner, leaning back with their eyes closed to relax.

After arriving, Ina continued her introduction.

“If you get tired from work, you can come here and sit for a bit. There’s tea and small pastries too, but don’t eat too much—you’ll gain weight.” Saying this, she gave Sylutia a once-over.

“You’re fine. Your figure is very well-proportioned. I’m a bit overweight now.” She sighed, but quickly broke into a smile again.

In truth, Ina wasn’t even fat. Her face was even a bit cute, and her build was healthy with just a hint of plumpness.

After staying there for a few minutes, Ina continued leading the young woman on a tour of the building.

“Our office is Room 9 on the fourth floor. That’s the office responsible for reviewing public construction expenditures. Currently, the supervisor is Mr. Warren. The office has 43 members, 21 of whom are regular staff, and the rest are assistants.”

“The Alliance invests in building many public facilities every year, including schools, railways, landmark buildings, hospitals, libraries, and so on.”

“These facility constructions cost a lot of money. Officials from various regions also love to apply for funding. But how much should be allocated, and whether the investment is worthwhile, all require review and approval.”

“If it’s a really good project, even though it spends funds upfront, once completed, it can recover huge costs and even generate a surplus. For example, some railways and schools.”

“However, there are also some projects that are purely applied for by local officials seeking personal gain. Most of the investment and construction funds end up embezzled, and the buildings themselves are shoddy.” Warren briefly explained the office’s responsibilities to Sylutia.

“Within the Finance Department, there are three offices responsible for public facility budget audits. We’re just one of them, handling relatively small-scale projects, roughly at the level of millions of gold coins.”

“The largest office has several hundred staff members. The projects they handle are also enormous, including the railway construction and development that runs through the entire Mage Alliance. That’s an extremely broad project. Not only does it require accounting, but we also have to regularly send people to local sites for investigation and verification to ensure the funds are directed to the right places.”

“Although the work is a bit dull, this department is a very important link for the entire Mage Alliance.” Warren introduced with pride.

Thus, on the first day, Sylutia gradually adapted to the work here through Warren’s introductions.

....

The first two days passed normally. On the third day, in Ina’s curious and astonished gaze, Supervisor Warren approached Sylutia to talk.

“Getting used to life here, Hedra?” He pushed up his glasses. This seemingly refined supervisor had once been a student at Tetis College. Now at Fifth Tier, he had served as supervisor for five years and was a rising star in the Finance Department.

“I’m slowly getting familiar with it. I have to thank Ina for her help.” The young woman nodded in response.

“Heh, Ina really is a good kid—very energetic, and usually diligent and responsible.” He nodded slightly, then turned to Ina and introduced.

“Hedra is my junior, also a former student of Tetis College. Starting today, she will work as a regular staff member, and you will serve as her assistant. Would you be willing to do that, Ina?”

“Ah, junior? Regular staff?” Ina was full of surprise. She had originally thought this young woman was just like herself—a newly arrived assistant.

“Heh, that’s the case. But I didn’t tell you before, because if you had known, you definitely would have been very reserved.” Warren smiled.

“The supervisor is such a sly one.” Ina shook her head.

“But, I’m very happy and willing to work with Miss Hedra. I have no objections.”

“That’s good then.” He nodded slightly, then turned his gaze to Sylutia.

“Today, I’ll start explaining the daily workflow to Hedra. Although it’s a bit tedious, for you and me, there shouldn’t be any difficulty.”

“Thank you, Senior.” Sylutia nodded.

In the following two weeks, Warren would set aside two hours every morning to explain the specific workflow and content to Sylutia. The rest of the time, he would let her gradually get hands-on experience, step by step handling tasks within the office, performing checks and calculations.

After two weeks ended, Sylutia had already sorted out the work content of the regular staff in the office and began independently completing assigned tasks, only occasionally asking Warren when she encountered things she didn’t understand or wasn’t familiar with.

One month later, Sylutia changed into the uniform issued by the Finance Department. It was a white outer coat, suitable for any season. On the chest was a Golden Needle badge, and the inside was engraved with Sylutia’s employee number and her department.

To celebrate Sylutia’s full integration into the office, Warren specially invited all office members to a dinner that evening. The venue was a rustic log-style restaurant in the Parliament District.

A row of staggered hanging pine-oil lanterns illuminated the restaurant brightly. Beside the round table below, office members stood with glasses raised. The clear, light-red wine inside the glasses rippled.

“Congratulations to Miss Hedra for becoming a member of our office.” Everyone toasted and congratulated with smiles, the atmosphere relaxed.

The dining staff ranged in age, from those in their fifties to younger members similar to Ina, still bearing a trace of unpolished rawness.

Sylutia wore a light blue and white dress. She became the focus of everyone’s attention today. The dress was elegant and simple in style, with a large blue butterfly ribbon at the waist. The white skirt resembled the paper used to wrap bouquets, accentuating the beautiful figure wrapped within.

“Thank you.” The strands of hair on the side of her ear fell, revealing small, round earlobes that, under the lamplight, showed a hint of crystal clarity.

Over this past month, Sylutia had come to know everyone in the office. Her intelligence and ability had also won the recognition of everyone, so this dinner was more like a celebration of a successful performance than a completely unfamiliar opening act.

After dinner ended, Sylutia took a steam vehicle back to her residence.

Outside the window, the street scene was a tapestry of lights. This was the Parliament District, where the Alliance’s highest parliament was located. All the major institutions and departments of the Mage Alliance were established here. It was the true heart and core of the entire Mage Alliance, also located at the geographical center of the Mage Alliance. The three college systems surrounded it like satellites.

Tetis College, Gras College, Taireze College—the towers of each college district stood like pillars, supporting the sky and guarding the countless beings below.

Three colleges, three factions, three sages, three Named Ones, and the celestial gardens sheltered by the Hours. The mages built their paradise upon the land.