The Cornflower Witch Chapter 7

Chapter 7 Cold Mist Wine

Minutes later, bright lights illuminated the inn. Several cavalrymen bound the man with thick ropes. As for the wound on his shoulder, it was simply bandaged to stop the bleeding.

Many people gathered in the inn, curiously observing and asking questions, whispering among themselves.

Inside a room, Captain Friein, the innkeeper, and the merchant Van der Heath were all present. Hylial and Talil sat by the bed.

“After that shadow bumped into me and woke me up, I immediately called for help. He became very panicked and tried to escape through the window, but Lia stopped him right away…” Talil excitedly narrated what had just happened.

“So, he was a thief,” Friein rubbed his eyebrows, still somewhat groggy.

“Do you know that man, boss?” He turned to look at the innkeeper, who was standing nervously.

“Him, I have some impression. He’s from the town, usually idle, doing odd jobs. I never expected him to be a thief.” The innkeeper clasped his hands nervously in front of him, explaining. Although this matter had little to do with him, it was hard to say he was completely free of suspicion. If the captain of the Tee Cavalry pursued it and arrested him, the outcome would not be good.

“Speak slowly. Is there anyone else in town who knows about his situation?” Friein thought of the local constable.

“This… I don’t know much more.” The innkeeper really couldn’t recall much, after all, he had only seen that man a few times before and heard others talk about him.

“Alright, you wait here for now. I’ll send someone to fetch the constable.” He waved his hand.

Riverstone Town was Viscount Xuefeng’s territory, not part of Baron Holin’s. Any law and order matters here would require him to consult with the local constable.

“Mr. Friein, would you like to come with me to see where that person is being held?” Hylial stood up.

She had already put on her reddish-brown cloak again, with only a few strands of silver hair visible from her neck.

Wondering why she would make such a request, Friein still nodded in agreement.

Soon, the two and several Tee Cavalry arrived at the place where the man was held. It was the inn’s cellar, which had just been cleared out by the Tee Cavalry to hold prisoners.

“Captain!” A young Tee Cavalry member stood at attention and saluted.

“Hmm.” Friein scanned the area, feeling it was acceptable, then had several people guard the door before he and Hylial went inside.

The man who had sneaked into the inn to steal was now bound by layers of rope, lying on the cold ground, with dark red bloodstains seeping through his clothes.

“Miss Lia, did you discover something?” Friein asked, looking at the thief on the ground.

“Yes, he’s not weak; he should know breathing techniques and also some ability to conceal his figure.” Hylial blinked her eyes slightly, the other party’s information reappearing in her mind.

——

Name: Unknown

Race: Human (Mortal Body)

Status: Injured (Bleeding stopped)

Talents:

Dim Light Vision [Good]: Even in dimly lit places, you can see a few things clearly. Don’t rely on this too much; if it’s too dark, you still won’t be able to see clearly.

Fate Card: [Nimble-fingered Person] (Phase Tier: None)

In a grey border, a figure walks stealthily, with nothing else around.

Ability Cards:

[Breathing Technique Lv.1] (Blood Rule): Regulates blood flow rate by breathing, and drives and enhances the strength and reaction speed of the entire body. This ability has a load requirement on the heart and body, and cannot be used for a long time (recommended not to exceed 1 minute/day).

[Stealth Method Lv.0] (Mist Shadow): Can blur the figure in a dim environment, making it difficult for the opponent to see and hit. (If there are candles, this ability will not work).

——

“Are you saying this guy knows a breathing technique?” Friein looked a bit surprised after hearing Hylial’s narrative.

Breathing techniques weren’t rare abilities, but if one knew them, they could usually find a job, at worst as a patrolman in the village, which was much easier than other work.

“Yes, he should also have an ability to conceal his figure, but it’s not strong, only showing slight effects,” the girl added.

“If he really does, then I’d have to suspect he’s with the Thieves’ Guild,” Friein rubbed his chin.

After a while, he shook his head.

“No, he shouldn’t be from the Thieves’ Guild.”

“Although the Thieves’ Guild isn’t a formidable organization, a character like him would be too much of a discredit to their reputation. He probably learned some things through some channel.”

“Let me interrogate him, Miss Lia. You have to leave tomorrow, so you can go to bed early.” He had some methods that were not suitable to display in front of the girl.

“I understand, you should rest early too.” Hylial nodded, glanced at the man huddled on the ground, and then left the cellar.

…

Back in the room, the candles were already lit. Talil was happily eating the apology food sent by the innkeeper.

“Lia, look, I saved you half a roasted chicken, it’s especially delicious~”

On the wooden plate lay half a roasted chicken, still giving off heat and aroma. It must have been prepared by the cook at the innkeeper’s request.

Hylial was a bit hungry now and didn’t refuse. She sat down and carefully picked up a chicken leg with her fingers to eat. She had to admit, this was the best food she had eaten in ten days, no wonder Talil was so excited.

After enjoying this rare meal, Hylial curiously asked, “How much does a roasted chicken like this usually cost?”

“A chicken costs about 8-12 copper coins. If it’s made into roasted chicken, the price will go up by 2-5 copper coins,” Talil recalled.

100 broken copper coins = 1 silver leaf coin (usually 110 others are willing to exchange), an average villager earns 2-3 silver coins a month. Roasted chicken is about 1.5 days’ wages.

It’s truly a luxury to eat meat every day, Lia thought. She missed the prices of her previous life.

After supper, the two went back to bed, but this time they didn’t blow out the candles, instead falling asleep by candlelight.

…

The next morning, with a slight drowsiness, Hylial and Talil went downstairs. By now, many people were already eating in the inn lobby.

Everyone was discussing last night’s events, and several town constables were sitting there.

After asking the owner for a complimentary breakfast, the two sat at a corner table and quietly enjoyed their meal. After they finished, a Tee Cavalry member came over and asked Hylial to come with him.

“The captain is looking for you, and the constable is there too,” he explained.

Hylial stood up and followed. Soon, they arrived at a room in the backyard of the inn. Besides Friein, there was also a short, pot-bellied man wearing a chainmail shirt, who was likely the local constable.

“This must be Miss Lia, right?” As soon as the girl entered, his gaze fixed on her face.

The constable’s expression was quite surprised by Hylial’s appearance, and his originally lazy and casual demeanor became slightly more formal.

“Yes, and you are?” Hylial’s light blue eyes lifted, looking at him. “Ahem, I am the local constable, and I’ve learned about last night’s incident.” If it were a commoner, he would have dismissed them casually and wouldn’t have bothered to explain himself here.

Although he didn’t know which family Hylial belonged to, he could tell that the girl came from a prominent background, so he became a bit more polite.

“I apologize for disturbing Miss Lia’s rest. I will take that thief back and interrogate him thoroughly, so he knows the consequences of offending you.”

“This…” The girl’s voice hesitated, and she looked at Friein beside her.

After several days of interaction, Friein could guess what the girl meant; she probably hoped for leniency.

“Lord Mort, I believe I need to bring this thief back to Threetowers Town for detention.”

“Oh, why is that?” Constable Mort frowned slightly.

Although a thief was a minor matter, he was a subordinate of Viscount Xuefeng. If Baron Holin’s Tee Cavalry captain were to take the person away so casually, wouldn’t that make the Viscount look bad?

There were always various excuses for how well one performed their job, but if losing face wasn’t explained well, the Viscount might reprimand them, or even dismiss them.

“The target, Miss Lia, is a distinguished guest of Lord Holin. Such a major incident occurred last night, and if I don’t bring the person back to report, I’m afraid I’ll have difficulty answering to Lord Holin.”

Friein’s words made some sense, and as a fellow professional, Mort could understand. However, these were ultimately Friein’s problems and had nothing to do with him.

Shaking his head, Mort expressed his dilemma, indicating that he could not easily release the person.

Silence fell upon the scene, and neither spoke.

“Lord Mort,” Hylial said at this moment.

“What is it, Miss Lia?” Mort turned around.

“I hope you can grant Mr. Friein’s request,” she said directly.

“This…” Mort didn’t know why the girl would say this.

“I am about to depart for Burntstone City, and Mr. Friein’s purpose on this trip is to escort me. If I see Lord Xuefeng in Burntstone City, I will commend your excellent work and performance in front of him.” Hylial’s words resolved Mort’s previous concerns.

“Well then,” he showed hesitation, maintaining a bit of reserve for a moment, then nodded in approval.

“Then I’ll grant Friein’s request, but you’ll still need to provide me with a detailed report so that if Lord Xuefeng truly asks, I’ll have something to explain.”

“Thank you, Lord Mort,” Friein knew that asking Hylial to come earlier was absolutely the right choice.

Afterwards, the handover proceeded as a matter of course. Friein had men tie the man from last night to a carriage, then he and Hylial went to a separate room for a detailed discussion.

“The details you discovered yesterday, after my interrogation, did yield quite a few insights.” This was why he had taken the man away.

“Here’s some money found at his home.” He placed a money bag on the table.

“Of course, these are all incidental. The important things are a thief’s diary and a bottle of ‘Cold Mist Wine’.”

He took out a tattered diary and a dark glass wine bottle from a nearby cabinet. Inside the bottle was a grey, misty liquid.

[Thief’s Diary]: Records the life and memos of a thief, can teach simple lock-picking techniques, and the secret method for cultivating ‘Stealth Method’.

[Cold Mist Wine] (Tier 1 – Mist Shadow): A special wine containing the ‘Mist Shadow’ phase. It can be used for cultivating ‘Mist Shadow’ phase abilities or for other purposes.

Less than a quarter of the liquid remained in this bottle, indicating it had been used.

“He must have learned the stealth ability according to the methods in the diary and this bottle of Cold Mist Wine,” Friein explained.

“Aside from the phases inherited through bloodline, if one wishes to acquire other ‘Phase Powers’, one must rely on external objects as seeds for cultivating that ability.”

“Each of us has a faint and hidden ‘Blood Rule’ phase in our bodies. Learning breathing techniques directly cultivates and strengthens this faint Blood Rule Phase Power. But other phases are not like that, so we need some methods. For example, this bottle of ‘Cold Mist Wine’ can open the cultivation of the ‘Mist Shadow’ phase power.”

“Every time during the Mist Season, on nights when the moonlight is hazy, some flowers and plants in the forest will be imbued with faint ‘Mist Shadow’ phase power. If they are collected before dawn and given to someone skilled in special secret methods, they can be refined into ‘Cold Mist Wine’.”

“I heard this from Scholar Feigin. He’s the Baron’s advisor. Many years ago, when I was a young soldier, I searched for these kinds of flowers and plants in the forest, but unfortunately, the harvest was not great.”

Friein picked up the wine bottle and gently shook it. The liquid inside churned like mist, quite peculiar.

“Looking at it, it should have been refined in the last Mist Season, at least twenty years ago. The ‘Mist Shadow’ phase within it has dissipated by more than half.”

“That man’s talent is mediocre, he used more than half a bottle and still didn’t complete the cultivation of the ‘Stealth Method’, or it might be that the phase power in this bottle of ‘Cold Mist Wine’ has dissipated too much,” he analyzed.

“Lia, you probably can’t use this, and I don’t recommend you learn it. I’ll take this bottle of Cold Mist Wine and the diary back and give them to the Baron and Scholar Feigin.”

“Even if it’s not very useful, Scholar Feigin is very interested in this kind of thing, and he should offer a reward of money.” Saying this, he took out about 20 silver coins and put them into the pouch on the table.

“These will be for your travel expenses. You clearly come from a good background, but the process of finding your relatives won’t be easy. Having money always makes things much more convenient.”

Taking the money bag, Hylial bowed in thanks, then straightened up.

“Where did that person get these things?”

“I asked about that. He found them in a hidden cave by the river. It used to be a place where some thieves hid their loot, but later an accident happened, and several members died inside. The things weren’t taken away, so that guy got lucky.”

“All the valuable items inside have now been secretly sold by him, and many of the others have rotted away, so they’re useless. If you’re interested, I can have someone take you to see it.”

“No, thank you.” Hylial shook her head. That kind of place was probably in terrible condition, full of mud and stench, and she certainly didn’t want to go there.

“Hahahaha.” Friein also laughed at this.

“Alright, get ready then. We should set off.”

After a delay of a morning, the group departed after lunch. Not long after leaving Riverstone Town, they parted ways at a crossroads.

“I’m quite familiar with Mu Yan the blacksmith in Burntstone City. When you get there, mention my name, and he won’t cheat you. If you need to maintain your sword and weapons, you can go there.” After last night’s battle, the short sword Hylial had just acquired developed several small nicks. If she wanted to continue using it, she would have to find a blacksmith to maintain and repair it.

“I understand, thank you, Mr. Friein.” Hylial bid farewell to the departing Tee Cavalry, then returned to the carriage and set off again.

Recalling the encounters of last night and today, Hylial gently rubbed her forehead, feeling somewhat incredulous. Perhaps it was because these experiences were simply too different and exciting compared to her previously mundane life?

Leaning back in her seat, Hylial organized her thoughts, then returned to the [Thief’s Diary].

Before leaving, she asked Friein for the diary, read it through completely on the way, noted the important content, and then returned it to Friein. She then had a better understanding of the ‘Stealth Method’ and the ‘Mist Shadow’ phase.

She hadn’t expected the ‘Mist Shadow’ phase to be related to ‘Radiant Moon’. She opened her light blue eyes and looked at the forest scenery outside the window.

As one of the three major moon-attributed phases that split from ‘Phantom Moon’ in ancient times, ‘Mist Shadow’ inherited the haze, illusion, concealment, shadow, obscuring, and bewildering qualities of ‘Phantom Moon’. ‘Radiant Moon’, on the other hand, inherited the clarity of ‘Phantom Moon’ after the haze was stripped away, which is pure moonlight.

————

Phase [Mist Shadow]: (The void of brilliance, blurred form and lightless shadow)

Thanks to迈向前进, 南城风zch, 哟哟鹿鸣Nova

咸鱼料理, u夜汐u, 等闲莫别离, 陈方墨 for the tips~

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(End of this chapter)