Chapter 69 The mysterious missing saltpeter mine

The SeaVent Festival.

Lister would have forgotten about it if not mentioned.

In the Sapphire Duchy, there were two most significant festivals: the New Year's Festival and the SeaVent Festival.

The New Year's Festival was a continental custom, celebrating the end of one year and the beginning of another. Almost all nobles and commoners in any country would partake in its revelries.

In contrast, the SeaVent Festival was unique to the Sapphire Duchy. It commemorated the Sapphire Family's first voyage to the sea—following their failed dragon-slaying battle, they were forced to migrate from the mainland to the archipelago and establish their own nation. To gloss over the backdrop of failure, they promoted the day of their departure as a grand voyage in pursuit of dreams.

Commoners might prefer the New Year's Festival, as it was a tradition passed down through countless generations. However, the SeaVent Festival was an annual celebration that the nobility of the island nation must observe.

"Thank you, Sir Leiden, for your tireless efforts in conveying the message."

"It is my duty, Baron," replied Leiden.

"How is my grandmother, father, elder brother, elder sister, my wife, and Lytton?"

"All is well."

"That's good to hear."

During their conversation about recent events in Tulip Castle, Liszt learned that the Tulip Fleet had yet to return. Before he knew it, they had arrived back at the castle.

Leiden and his companions had not yet had lunch, so Liszt promptly instructed the kitchen to prepare a meal for them.

"Baron, is Flower Town planning to clear-cut all the trees on Thorns Ridge?" Leiden asked, voicing his curiosity from their journey. The logging team had already cleared a vast area over the past two days.

"We do plan to cut them all down to eliminate the habitat for magical beasts. However, we lack the manpower for now. For the time being, we'll clear the trees along the roadsides and create open spaces to minimize the risk of beast attacks."

"That's an excellent strategy. Magical beasts in the forest are terrifying creatures, while those in the wilderness are merely slightly stronger beasts."

For knights with horses, open areas would prevent sudden ambushes by magical beasts, and even spells could be evaded. Moreover, horses possessed incredible speed, which the beasts might not be able to match. Knights could launch charges in open terrain, combining their martial arts skills with their steeds.

Maintaining the etiquette and courtesy between nobles, Leiden and his group bid farewell after lunch.

Liszt, on the other hand, needed to make arrangements: "Mr. Carter, three days from now, the Tulip Family will visit the castle to celebrate the Seafaring Festival with me. I'm not particularly enthusiastic about such boisterous gatherings, so I'll leave the arrangements to you."

"Rest assured, my lord, in my youth, I had the privilege of participating in numerous Seafaring Festivals at Tulip Castle. The scenes of Master Louis presiding over the festive banquets are deeply etched in my memory. Currently, the castle holds an abundance of seafood and game meat that could easily suffice. Save for a slightly inferior selection of beverages, we can undoubtedly host a most exquisite feast."

"I recall there was a brewer among the new slaves?"

"Yes, his name is Frank the Fruit Wine Maker, but he only brews fruit wines. He doesn't craft white wine, red wine, or beer. And, alas, we don't have hops for beer either."

Lister frowned. "Have we completely run out of hops for our beer?"

"There's still half a barrel hidden in the cellar, my Lord. It's the last bit of enjoyment you have left. I was reluctant to bring it out." Carter said with regret, as he had already placed Liszt in the most significant position in his heart.

"Then don't take it," List said with a wink.

Carter responded with a knowing smile, "I thought the same."

"It's a shame that when Leiden left, I forgot to ask him to pass a message to Levis, asking him to purchase some wine and provisions for me... In the end, it all comes down to the lack of communication. Otherwise, the gold coins in the castle would have been spent rather than left to gather dust."

"Perhaps you could ask Mr. Marcus to deliver the message?"

"No, Mr. Marcus has more important matters to attend to. He needs to oversee the logging team and train the knight squad. Let's just make do with a simpler Seafarer's Festival this year, then."

Let Father witness the poverty of Flower Town; I believe it's not a bad thing." The one who cries gets the milk. Wouldn't the Earl's conscience ache if he saw Flower Town lacks even beer made with hops?

Carter smiled and said, "My Lord, you're becoming more carefree."

Lister chuckled slightly. "I've been reading a knightly novel lately, which contains a poem—If life deceives you, do not be sad, do not fret! In gloomy days, composure is needed; believe that joyous times will come! The heart forever yearns for the future; yet now, it often laments…

All is fleeting, and all will pass.

What has passed will become fond memories.

The Earl doesn't place much importance on his third son, Lister, and that's not a big deal. Thus, despite the occasional hardship and impoverishment, Lister remains optimistic. Compared to most commoners and minor nobles, life in Flower Town is already perfect.

Being able to eat white bread every day is a dream unattainable for many.

...

In the following days, the construction of the town continued fervently. Roads were being built, trees cut down, and houses constructed in Oyster Village. The slaves, armed with the copper coins Lister had given them, worked energetically, undeterred by the scorching heat.

Inside the castle, it was equally bustling. Carter, the butler, was busy directing the servants for a thorough cleaning and decoration of the castle. Cook Abby Soupspool used her loud voice all day long to command the kitchen maids, Irene and young Lily, to hustle around various ingredients.

Marcus, accompanied by his knight squad, guarded the lumberjacks while also practicing his basic Aura cultivation techniques.

Gort, Isaiah, and Blair were all diligently working as well.

Only Liszt was somewhat troubled – he couldn't locate any small-scale nitre mines!

The mission had been accomplished, but the promised nitre mine reward had yet to appear. No one had reported to him about any unusual stones found, nor were there any irregularities that warranted his attention. Three days passed without a clue, causing Liszt considerable distress.

It wasn't that he placed a great value on nitre mines.

Aside from using it for making ice, he was unaware of its other uses at present.

Rather, this situation was unsettling and made him worry if there was an issue with the Smoke Mission. Previously, mission rewards typically arrived in his hands the same day, never delayed overnight.

"Could it be that my golden finger is about to abandon me?" Lying in bed at night, staring at the Mushroom Village mission still pending, he felt deeply concerned.

Fortunately, his worry only persisted until the fourth day.

On this day, as Gort led the logging team into Thorns Ridge for work, another squad followed behind - the rubble transport team. Their task was to break down the stones found in the ridge and carry them to the sides of the road for paving purposes.

As they were searching for stones to crush, they stumbled upon a heap of loose rocks embedded in the ground, accompanied by an abundance of white, crystalline substances. Initially, they assumed it to be salt, which held significant value in daily life. Therefore, the slaves were delighted, for their discovery would likely earn them rewards from Lord List.

However, after a taste test, they found that this white substance lacked any salty flavor; instead, it had a bitter taste.

Nonetheless, they collected a considerable amount of the white material and presented it to Gort for verification. Unable to identify it, Gort reported the situation to Liszt.

Holding the white crystalline powder in his hand, Liszt had to admit that he wasn't sure if it was saltpeter either. But a simple experiment would reveal the truth.