Chapter 583: Emily’s Persistence

The lithops potted plants still require meticulous care to prevent the loss of the spirit bug being nurtured. However, Liszt does not pay too much attention to them, for a simple reason: lithops have no magic herbs nor any yield.

They are purely ornamental plants, at best enhanced by the presence of a spirit bug, which can slightly improve the quality of ordinary lithops, allowing them to fetch a higher price when sold as potted plants. Like the Venus flytraps he keeps around the castle to catch flies, they are good for viewing but lack practicality.

What he values more now are the two tulip bugs waiting to be nurtured—the cultivation of black tulips is inseparable from tulip bugs.

The flower farm is not large, with just over a hundred acres of black tulips, twenty acres of red Saint-Denis tulips, and a dozen acres of yellow William I tulips. These two varieties were discovered after arriving at Coral Island, one commemorating the ancestor Dans Wafer, and the other commemorating Lee William being made an earl.

As ordinary tulips, their greatest use is to be made into dried tulips, relying on their strong fragrance to combat the pervasive smell of waste odors in the city.

However, under his governance, there is no issue with waste odors, so naturally, there is no need for dried tulips.

Moreover, the serfs of Flower Town have been transferred to Black Horse Island, causing the serfs at the flower farm to be busy every day in the black tulip fields, neglecting the Saint-Denis and William I tulips. By the time Liszt came to inspect, some of the red and yellow tulips had withered.

"Lord, Reiman did not notice the withering of Saint-Denis and William I, please punish me, Lord." The manager of the flower farm looked remorseful and terrified.

According to the rules of the territory, any abnormal phenomena in crops must be reported to the administration immediately.

Punishment is certainly necessary, but Liszt has long since stopped handling such matters himself, leaving it to the town officials to penalize the negligence of the farm managers.

Liszt is only concerned about the spirit bugs. He uses his Magic Eye to search around, and after some effort, he finds two spirit bug-infested plants in the field with dim magical feedback.

These two spirit bug-infested plants are clearly malnourished, with leaves that are somewhat yellow and curled.

"Fertilize and water immediately, provide ample nutrition for these two spirit bug-infested plants!" Liszt immediately issued the order.

Administrator Isaiah, who had come to handle the situation, asked in surprise, "My lord, have these two tulips already nurtured spirit bugs?"

"Of course."

Liszt also became dissatisfied with Isaiah. If it weren't for the smoke signal mission prompt, by the time the serfs noticed the problem, the spirit bugs might have already been lost.

He couldn't help but sternly reprimand, "Isaiah, as the town administrator, I know your work is busy. But crop abnormalities must be taken seriously, a rule I have strictly established. As an administrator, you must always be vigilant and frequently check the crops!"

Isaiah said shamefully, "Please punish me, my lord."

Liszt did not hesitate, "Deduct two weeks' salary, and don't make such a mistake again. Although Flower Town thrives on trade, the slightest change in crops is still the most important administrative matter."

"My lord, please rest assured, Isaiah will remember the lesson and will never be negligent again!"

...

The cause of the tulip withering has been investigated, and now it's just a matter of waiting for the problem to be resolved and the withering to recover, then the mission will be completed.

Liszt is not fixated on the mission.

He has been getting busier with work recently, as the earl has gone to the Blue Sky Mountain Palace to discuss this year's expansion order. As a viscount lord, he naturally needs to prepare his troops and organize his knight order.

The territory now has a total of seventy-seven Earth Knights,

Liszt plans to select sixty knights, forming five knight squads to accompany him to the battlefield, including one elite Earth Knights squad. The remaining Earth Knights will be led by Patrol Commander Parris to maintain the safety and defense of the territory.

Just after he announced the list of knights selected for the battlefield, the young and tender Emily petitioned him, "My lord, please allow Emily to follow you into the battlefield and participate in this year's expansion order war!"

Twelve-year-old Emily has grown to 5 feet 3 inches tall.

When they first met last year, she was only 4 feet 11 inches tall, and in just over a year, she has grown more than ten centimeters, and her future height will definitely not be short. Moreover, her distinctive features with deep-set eyes and a high nose bridge are becoming more and more outstanding, a beauty in the making. However, her intense training has tanned her skin.

"You're only twelve, what battlefield are you talking about," Liszt refused, as he plans to cultivate Emily to become a female sky knight and does not want her to be lost on the battlefield.

Emily insisted, "My lord, the battlefield is the best place for a knight to train. Emily has already noticed a slowdown in her cultivation speed and needs new pressure to stimulate herself!"

"A slowdown is normal. As a twelve-year-old earth knight, you have already shown greater talent than many nobles."

"But Emily is a woman!"

"What about being a woman?"

Emily gritted her teeth and replied, "My lord, Emily has asked Captain Parris. The Sapphire Duchy has very few outstanding female knights. Moreover, once a woman's period begins, it greatly affects the progress of mana cultivation. Captain Parris said that periods usually start around age 14, and at that time, mana cultivation will definitely be delayed, so..."

Her meaning was clear.

She hoped to solidify her foundation before her period began, so that in the future she could keep up with the pace of male geniuses—periods are unavoidable for women, and the monthly bleeding event would indeed severely impact mana cultivation.

"The effects of menstruation can be offset with potions. Don't worry, with your talent, I will fully support your cultivation. There's no need to rush."

Sending a twelve-year-old to the battlefield is indeed cruel.

Emily dropped to one knee and solemnly said, "My lord, Emily is grateful for your concern. Meeting you is the greatest honor of Emily's life. You’ve spared no expense to help Emily train, and Emily doesn’t want to be a failure, unable to repay your kindness!"

Before Liszt could comfort her,

She continued, "Only the battlefield can shape a true knight. It was in two wars that you, my lord, radiated a dazzling magic aura and became the youngest sky knight in the Duchy! Emily also has ambitions and hopes to become the first female sky knight in the Duchy!"

With that,

She dropped to both knees and kowtowed, performing the highest gesture of respect a serf could offer a lord: "Please, my lord, allow Emily to go to the battlefield."

She stood firm in her conviction, hoping to solidify her foundation in the two years before her period began, so that she would have the confidence to advance to a sky knight—she had already begun to feel a faint itch in her chest.

This was a sign of development. According to Parris’s advice, generally, two years after a woman's chest begins to develop, periods will follow.

She still had two years of rapid cultivation without loss.

Though the twelve-year-old’s body was still undeveloped, the aura she radiated was dazzling.

Liszt calmly watched her for a full thirty seconds before saying indifferently, "The first female sky knight of the Duchy, huh... For the sake of the future, I have no reason to oppose your going to the battlefield. However, Emily, my youngest follower, be prepared to die on the battlefield."

Emily trembled and replied, "Yes, my lord!"