The Cornflower Witch Chapter 248

“Oh, Tiya, is that you?” Myrine’s voice was full of surprise when she saw the girl.

She stood up, looked around, found a familiar colleague to temporarily cover for her, and then pulled Sylphidya into the room behind the guild.

“Tiya, why are you back?” Although she wasn’t clear about the situation in the Forest Land, based on what she knew, very few students who went from Scorched Stone City to the Forest Land in the past had returned, and if they did, it was usually after more than ten years.

“Well, I took some time off recently, so I came back to visit.” Sylphidya thought for a moment, deciding not to mention that she had reached Tier 3, as that would be quite surprising and require a lot of explanation.

“Can you even take leave from the Forest Land? Never mind, let’s not talk about that.” Myrine shook her head.

“Scorched Stone City isn’t very peaceful right now. I’m fine staying in the Adventurer’s Guild, but for others…” Myrine mused.

“The Anti lords are very tyrannical. They enjoy finding wealthy people to extort and blackmail. Also, if a girl is very beautiful, she could be in danger.”

If they were local guards, they might have many family members and relatives here, so they would be somewhat cautious. But for these Anti soldiers, since it wasn’t their hometown, they felt less guilty doing bad things. Moreover, the entire army’s atmosphere was like this, and everyone was used to it, thinking it was no big deal.

“I understand,” Sylphidya nodded, thanking Myrine for her kind reminder.

Afterward, the two talked about their recent situations. Sylphidya learned that Lei had gone to Forge City to study and was no longer in the area, and Komia’s parents had moved out of Scorched Stone City some time ago to seek refuge in other cities.

This meant that none of their old friends were in Scorched Stone City anymore, which made the girl quite sad.

However, they had agreed to reunite after five years, and only three years had passed, so there were still two years left. By then, everyone should return once more, and thinking this made the girl feel much better.

Afterward, Sylphidya asked about the mine.

“How did you know they re-opened the mine in the back mountain?” Myrine was a bit surprised.

“But many residents indeed talk about it,” she said, then continued to tell Sylphidya about it.

“That mine actually dates back several hundred years.”

“Most people had forgotten about it, but while organizing the guild’s internal documents, I found records from that time.”

“Originally, this place was called Blackrock City because a black type of stone was produced in the nearby mountains. Although it had no special properties, its unique color was appreciated by some, and it was mined for construction materials or furniture.”

“But during an excavation one year, a hidden ore vein was discovered in the mountain. The lord then sent people to prospect and continually dig downwards, extracting the minerals inside.”

“Some parts were metal, and there were also a small number of special, valuable gemstones. Viscount Xuefeng’s ancestors made a great fortune from this.”

“However, in the middle and later stages of the excavation, a dangerous Corpse Dragon was unearthed in the mine, causing a great crisis. That Corpse Dragon was incredibly powerful, probably Tier 5. Its breath of death ash and black fire incinerated the city, causing massive casualties among the residents and collapse of buildings. Even the bricks and stones used to build the city walls were scorched black.”

“To deal with this disaster, Duke Regas sought help from the Woodland Association. They dispatched a powerful expeditionary force, and after about a month of probing, battles, strategizing, and fierce fighting, they finally took down the Corpse Dragon.”

“However, even though the Corpse Dragon died again, its remains and shattered dragon soul still permeated the mine, creating a strange influence that prevented ordinary people from approaching.”

“Later, for safety, and to erase the family’s bad reputation, Viscount Xuefeng’s ancestors sealed the mine and forbade the locals from discussing the matter again.” “Two hundred years have passed, and now no one remembers what happened in the mine, but the name change from Blackrock City to Scorched Stone City has always been passed down.”

It was a dragon, Sylphidya was astonished after hearing Myrine narrate the history.

Giants generally possess the ‘Dragon Eye’ Aspect, which is the only powerful Aspect that requires ‘Tier 6’ to condense. Therefore, anything in the world related to ‘dragons’ would not be weak.

While creatures require Tier 6 to condense a ‘Dragon Eye,’ it doesn’t mean that there are no lower-tier products or life forms with ‘Dragon Eyes.’ This is because Aspects can also degrade and regress.

For example, a powerful Tier 6 giant dragon in life, after death, may become a Corpse Dragon or a Dragon Soul Ghost, its strength significantly reduced. At this point, a ‘Tier 5’ ‘Dragon Eye’ Aspect might appear.

Also, dragon materials like ‘hearts,’ ‘eyeballs,’ and ‘scales’ might weaken and deteriorate over time, slowly degrading to ‘Tier 3’ or ‘Tier 4’ dragon materials.

She hadn’t realized that Scorched Stone City had such a history. No wonder some of the old bricks on the city walls were exceptionally charred. At the time, she had thought it was some special technique that made them appear that way.

“Then now, won’t it be dangerous for them to mine the cave?” Sylphidya thought of the people she had rescued a few days ago.

“Of course it’s dangerous.”

“Although two hundred years have passed and the residual Aspect influence in the mine has gradually dissipated, it still greatly erodes ordinary people. Staying there for a long time will definitely shorten one’s life,” Myrine said sadly.

“In recent months, many residents have heard about the high mortality rate in the mine, so everyone is afraid of being forced to dig there.”

“I don’t know when this situation will end. If it continues like this, I’ll have to consider moving away from here,” Myrine said sadly.

“I understand. Thank you, Sister Myrine, for telling me all this.”

“Mhm, just take a look around Scorched Stone City during this time, it’s best not to stay too long.” Myrine then admonished Sylphidya a bit more before letting the girl leave.

Back on the street, Sylphidya looked at the familiar shops along the way, then stopped, her gaze fixed on the castle at the end of the street. It was located north of the city, and behind the castle were a sprawling mountain range and a winding path leading into the mountains.

That must be the direction to the mine, Sylphidya thought.

The sky gradually darkened, but Sylphidya did not look for a place to sleep tonight. Instead, she put on a dark, concealing trench coat, covered her face with a light veil, and moved nimbly through the city’s shadows.

After a day of practice, her use of the concealment spell was becoming more proficient, almost reaching Level 3. If she had the opportunity to learn the sound suppression spell in the future, she could combine the two abilities to form the stealth spell.

Although she hadn’t learned the sound suppression spell yet, her light weight and unheavy clothing meant she moved with minimal noise, which ordinary soldiers wouldn’t notice.

Slowly, Sylphidya bypassed the obstacles and reached the edge of the city wall, jumping down. Her toes tapped against the wall several times, dissipating the impact force, and she finally landed lightly on the grass.

At this moment, she raised her head in the night, looking towards the path leading to the back mountain, and her form gradually approached the legendary mine.