Chapter 50: An Angel on a Mushroom?
Behind the castle, on the mountainside.
Upon learning that Croyer planned to cultivate magic plants here, Art immediately ordered his men to inspect the already-prepared land overnight.
Every stray stone, every weed—completely cleared out. What remained for Croyer was a bare patch of land, clearly already tilled.
The soil underfoot was soft and loose.
“You did a thorough job,” he casually praised, scanning the area.
The bareness was ideal—no unwanted growth to compete with the magic plants.
“This is our duty!” Art chuckled, signaling for the farmhands to follow.
As for the laborious task of plowing land with farmhands at night—he would never bring it up. His father had taught him that there was no need to boast; as long as the lord knew, that was enough.
...
Since this was only the beginning, Croyer planned to use just an acre for experimentation before gradually expanding. The entire mountainside spanned about sixteen or seventeen acres—more than enough space to grow plenty of magic plants.
Magic plants, in general, had diverse needs. Some high-tier varieties were particularly demanding, requiring unique environments to grow.
However, low-tier magic plants only needed sufficient mana.
This meant that even if one acre was packed with ten thousand plants, as long as they received enough mana and nutrients, they would grow peacefully—provided they were of the same species. Otherwise, mana conflicts would surely cause them to perish.
According to the Holy Spring Chamber of Commerce's guidelines, the recommended planting density per acre was:
Tranquil Bell Lily: 400 plants per acre
Firm Earth
Tuber: 600 plants per acre
With 140 Tranquil Bell Lily plants and 280 Firm Earth Tubers in hand, half an acre for each species would suffice.
Neither of these magic plants had strong mana affinity—despite its name, the Firm Earth Tuber wasn’t actually an earth-type plant.
This meant they could be planted together without conflict.
Moreover, with the Wood Luminary Vine present, there was no need to worry about mana scarcity. The vine’s roots would supply mana to the plants.
Thus, the Wood Luminary Vine needed to be planted first.
...
“This spot will do.”
Croyer paced around the area, using his spiritual senses to locate the most mana-rich zone.
Without hesitation, he grabbed a shovel and started digging.
He dug a hole about twenty centimeters deep.
Then, he placed the Sunflower Mana Extract from his mana pool inside, covered it with a layer of soil, and carefully planted the Wood Luminary Vine. Finally, he gently covered the roots with its special verdant mana soil.
Ordinary grapevines required a trellis for support, but according to the guidelines, this magic farmland vine required no such thing—it could grow on its own.
Croyer was curious about how it would develop.
So, after planting it, he stood still and observed.
He activated his Star Spirit Engraving Technique, amplifying his perception to the maximum.
The deep blue vine seemed to realize it had been planted. After a brief moment of stillness, it started growing at an astonishing speed.
It visibly thickened and elongated.
Though its roots were underground, the above-ground growth was clear to see.
Rather than a vine, it looked more like a tree.
A particularly thick main vine shot up nearly two meters high, without any external support. Then, from this main vine, another tendril extended and quickly spread across the land.
Again—two meters high.
The vines multiplied, intertwining with each other, with leaves and tendrils flourishing rapidly, soon covering the entire area.
In less than ten minutes, the entire acre was blanketed by the Wood Luminary Vine’s lush canopy.
Fully grown, the Wood Luminary Vine retained a pale, translucent blue hue, allowing sunlight to filter through, ensuring the plants below still received light.
Moreover, the filtered sunlight seemed much softer. Those standing beneath the vines felt pleasantly cool rather than hot.
The gathered farmhands were utterly dumbfounded—Was this the power of a mage?!
Had he really just instantly grown such an incredible magic plant?
And it covered an entire acre!
Croyer, however, remained calm. He pointed at the raised soil and instructed, “Plant the Tranquil Bell Lily and Firm Earth Tubers directly above the vine’s roots.”
“Make sure they’re arranged neatly—do not damage the roots or plants. If anyone harms them, I’ll throw you into the sea to feed the fish.”
“If you do it well, each of you will be rewarded one silver coin!”
His voice carried the power of Crimson Resonance, ensuring everyone heard him clearly and even felt a surge of motivation.
One silver coin! For just planting crops?
The farmhands instantly lit up with excitement and shouted in unison:
“Yes, Lord Croyer!”
Then, with utmost care, they started digging holes and planting.
Their movements were so gentle, as if handling treasures—probably more carefully than they would with their own wives and children.
As for Croyer?
After using the classic carrot-and-stick approach, he stood up and made his way toward the lake—to check on the mushroom and the Kaba Beasts.
There was no way he would personally supervise planting. In the future, there would be many more instances of land cultivation and magic planting.
As a lord, he couldn’t always act as an overseer. His subordinates needed experience—a good workforce had to be trained.
...
With light steps, Croyer dove into the lake.
Inside a bubble formed by Air Coral, a pile of Holy White Iron—a gift from Baron Cormoye—was stacked up, while the Kaba Beasts leisurely gnawed on the ore.
The Burrowing Thief Mice were nowhere to be seen, though their burrows were evident—probably still busy expanding their underground network.
“Hm?”
Was it an illusion?
Croyer felt that the Kaba Beasts’ fur seemed to shimmer with an odd, sacred radiance, as if they were glowing.
“...I almost mistook them for priests from the Order Temple.”
“If the Order Temple saw these holy-looking Kaba Beasts, would they start worshipping them as sacred beasts?”
His lips twitched as he walked toward the mushroom, now surrounded by Holy White Iron, and looked down.
Something was off.
The mushroom's surface had developed a strange, glowing speck—emitting the same gentle, sacred white light as the Holy White Iron.
It radiated purity, and through the glow, he could faintly see... a living form inside.
“A person?”
Impossible.
Startled, Croyer crouched down for a closer look.
Inside the small, grape-sized light speck, there really was a humanoid figure.
He rubbed his eyes, thinking he was seeing things.
But no. It was real.
The mysterious figure inside the light had pure white wings. Wrapped in its own feathers, it appeared to be peacefully sleeping.
This...
Wasn’t this an angel?!