Chapter 341 Silver Spear, Black Horse, Red Cape

Simon, Norman, Leslie, Eric, Daniel, and David arrived swiftly, eager to capitalize on Flower Town's growing success. They needed to be proactive in seizing this opportunity.

They were either commoners or second sons of nobles, with limited prospects for advancement. Opportunities like the one Flower Town presented didn’t come often in a lifetime.

Liszt Tulip received the six Earth Knights in the castle, without showing too much enthusiasm.

Perhaps after a month, some of these six Earth Knights would leave Flower Town—the process of following was a two-way choice. A month of trial would be enough to determine whether a mutual following relationship should be established.

The next morning, in the Knight Square.

The red sun rose from the east, and clouds dispersed in the west. Liszt Tulip, Baron of Flower Town, wore striking steel armor, with a blood-red sword at his waist and a steel shield in hand. It was the first time he had donned such imposing knightly regalia.

His handsome face was hidden behind the visor of his helmet.

Only his sapphire-colored pupils gleamed through the mesh, shining brightly.

A red cape fluttered behind him, and the Black Dragon, adorned with silver-white armor, blended with the silver-white steel, creating a dazzling contrast of black, white, and red.

The steel shield was engraved with a blooming black tulip, the symbol of Flower Town and of Liszt. Even the Black Dragon had a cotton cushion embroidered with the black tulip symbol. Rather than pursuing riding comfort, it was more a display of knightly status.

Nobles liked these flashy things.

While it slightly hindered riding, to the commoners, these were symbols of nobility that could inspire fervent admiration.

He rode the Black Dragon slowly around the square, his gaze inspecting the knights lined up, observing their spirit and vigor through the visor.

Each of them wore steel armor provided by the castle.

Their horses were decent warhorses, though unfortunately, they came in various colors—yellow, brown, gray, and spotted.

Fortunately, the horses wore standard half-body armor. While the Black Dragon had armor that only protected its forehead, these horses were tightly wrapped around the head, neck, shoulders, and hips. The cushions under them were also engraved with the black tulip symbol.

Each knight held a shield in their left hand and a spear in their right.

The sun glinted off their armor, lending them an air of majesty.

An eerie silence settled over the square, not even the horses stirred, save for the steady clop of the Black Dragon's hooves.

After a moment.

Liszt spoke loudly, “I, Liszt Tulip, Baron of Flower Town, consider it my life’s mission to fight for glory. The path ahead is perilous, and I need loyal companions, valiant knights! You, Earth Knights, standing here, are you willing to charge with me?”

The knights shouted in unison, “We are willing to charge for you, Lord Baron!”

“Very well.” Liszt abruptly drew his blood-red sword, pointing the tip to the sky and declared, “Then, I announce that the Flower Town Knight Squad is officially established today!”

“Hoo!”

“Hoo!”

“Hoo!”

Twelve Earth Knights raised their spears high, shouting in response to Liszt’s declaration.

In the open space outside the square, many young onlookers, seeing this scene, couldn’t help but shout along, “Hoo!”

Carl Ironhammer and Rom Winebarrel watched the youngsters' excitement from the side.

Moments like this would forever remind them of Flower Town's wealth and strength. Although most of the youngsters would eventually return to farming or labor, perhaps a few would be inspired to aspire to knighthood—at least in Flower Town, they had that opportunity.

After the knight squad's declaration ended, they began their first training charge.

The warhorses clad in full armor thundered forward, their hooves pounding the earth as if ready to shatter it, an unstoppable force. The mana of the knights surged into a torrent, capable of rending anything in its path.

……

The knights charged into the distance, leaving only a cloud of dust behind.

Carl approached Rom and said casually, "Rom, I'm leaving the patrol team in your hands. There are some troublemakers in the squad, but I trust you can manage them."

Rom asked, "When will we be leaving?"

"Soon, the lord will make the necessary arrangements," Carl said with a smile. "A year ago, we were just ordinary squire knights, lacking even mana, and followed the lord to Flower Town to spend our remaining years… Who would have thought we'd be where we are today, both of us as officials, with Odin and Gray thriving in their administrative roles?"

Carl Ironhammer, Rom Winebarrel, Odin Shoecushion, and Gray Sickle.

The first four squire knights under Liszt had meager talents; even Odin and Gray had not cultivated any mana. Yet Liszt, being a nostalgic sort, still secured good positions for them. Carl became the defense officer, Rom the insect control officer, Odin an assistant to the administrative officer Isaiah, and Gray an assistant to the financial officer Isaiah.

However, they could no longer continue working together in Flower Town.

Seizing the opportunity to form the knight squad, Liszt made a new round of personnel appointments in Flower Town, transferring half of the officials to work in the port town of Black Horse Island.

Carl would head to the port town as its defense and insect control officer.

Rom would take over as the defense officer of Flower Town, while Liszt's old friend Nemo would become the new insect control officer there. Most of the officials who were following would relocate to the port town with their families.

Flower Town could no longer contain Liszt's ambitions.

With the knight squad formed,

This year's expansion order gave him a plan to participate, meaning earning honors on the battlefield was not far off, and being enfeoffed as a viscount was within reach, with Black Horse Island soon to be revealed. As long as the secrets of the black blood horses and rubber remained undisclosed, developing the uninhabited island wasn't cause for alarm.

It was believed that the earl, Levis, and others were already aware of Black Horse Island's existence.

Rather than sneaking around, it was better to boldly build. Everyone knew of Liszt's grand ambitions and great future. So, developing the uninhabited island was exactly what he should be doing.

With Flower Wine funding the project and thorn fairies cultivating magic potions, it would be surprising if he didn’t act, which might even catch the earl and Levis off guard.

After over a year of development, no one could overlook his growing influence.

He was as exceptional as Levis, Lvera, and Lytton, all belonging to the Tulip family bloodline. His former timidity was merely a period of dormancy; today’s success was just par for the course.

He spent the morning watching the knights train.

In the afternoon, he didn't return.

For him, forming the knight squad early was more about fulfilling a task. Training the blizzard beasts was more crucial than training the knights; the blizzard beast army would be the main force in earning battle honors, with the knights serving as support.

After a nap, he went to the dragon nightshade field.

He called out the smoke mission.

"Complete the mission, reward auxiliary magic potion variant: nightshade."

In the lush dragon nightshade field, some plants were blooming, while others had already borne small, blue-black fruits. Liszt used the Magic Eye to observe the entire field and soon discovered the magic feedback—not from the cordyceps but nearby.

This was a mutated nightshade with small yellow flowers.

Its fruit wasn't black but a very special blue-black, with most of the plant's magic concentrated in the fruit. It confirmed his suspicions—this was indeed a magic potion. The nightshade, once thought to be just a snack to improve taste, finally had significant value.

Liszt, however, was left wondering, "What does 'auxiliary magic potion variant' mean?"