Cornflower Witch

Chapter 414 Feast and Biomimicry

Let us celebrate this grand feast!

Stepping into this fiery red domed exhibition hall, you are greeted by a variety of delicious foods: spicy and hot grilled, sweet and crispy, with a mix of different types and colors that whet your appetite.

Although the 'Feast School' is only ranked twenty-second, its influence far surpasses that of others. Not only in the Fourth Continent, it was originally composed of gourmets from various places, with the aim of exchanging various rare delicacies. Unexpectedly, it also developed many new secret techniques and food categories, and finally gave birth to a brand new school.

The 'Feast School' has branches on various continents, and this branch of the Fourth Continent's Mage Alliance is just one of them. Although they do not possess powerful combat forces, everyone from the extraordinary nobles to the poor in the mountains enjoys the food they create and the banquets they host.

In the bright yellow copper pot, precisely cut chunks of meat tumble in the boiling red broth, accompanied by green and light red side dishes, emitting an exceptionally enticing aroma. Beside this large pot, which is about five meters wide, chefs holding long ladles quickly scoop out the food and pour it precisely and without spilling a drop into the bowls of the students sitting in front of them.

【Spicy Hod Beef】(Tier 3, Excellent): A delicacy made with high-quality sesame seeds, chili peppers, radishes, and refined oil. It can stimulate the blood in the body, making it boil, restoring physical strength, healing muscle injuries, and slightly enhancing muscle strength (long-term).

Seeing the red chili oil, beef, and steam falling from the sky, many students cheered. Their eyes and expressions were infected by the lively atmosphere, and their mouths watered. They sat down at the table and enjoyed the food.

Although each student can only eat it once, it is still a rare perk.

No wonder so many young people like to come to the Mage Alliance. Compared with other organizations, the Mage Alliance is indeed much more generous in its offerings.

Hilti and Lovell sat down, watching the soup fall into their bowls before taking small sips. After they finished eating, they rejoined Aurora, who was standing nearby. This young lady from the Helt family didn't like spicy food and was holding a cup of ice cream. By the time the two of them came out, they had almost finished eating.

"How about it?"

"So delicious~" Luo Wei'er said happily.

"Hehe, there's still a lot more ahead." After saying that, Aurora led the two forward to sample the various delicacies in the exhibition hall.

"The 'Feast School' is so lively; its popularity is unmatched by any other school," the three discussed.

"There are probably more than 4,000 people here. Other schools of thought's exhibition halls may only have 300 or so people."

“That’s the allure of a feast.” Aurora turned around, held up one finger in front of her, closed one eye slightly, and smiled.

"Since fire was used to cook food, the pace of human development has accelerated dramatically."

In this world, the earliest intelligent beings were probably fairies. However, they had a certain aversion to fire, probably due to the 'Emerald Moth'. They also preferred plant-based fruits and vegetables. The carnivorous Stargazing Beasts were defeated by the fairies. Eating meat was considered crude and inferior in the culture at that time, so grilling meat did not develop.

However, during the Seventh Era, a time when the world was shattered and war raged among various factions, many sources of food, including fruits and vegetables, were depleted due to the distortion and erosion. As a result, many races began to eat meat, and various ways of preparing meat developed. It is said that the ancestors of mankind survived in that environment surrounded by powerful enemies because they were skilled at making delicious food.

Cooking food, in a sense, is the re-creation of food, giving it a completely new look. It often uses fire and heat, which makes it very much in line with the concept of the "Golden Steaming" attribute. Therefore, many mages or chefs in the "Feast Faction" are born with the "Golden Steaming" attribute. After reaching the fifth rank, they try to combine other attributes to create delicacies.

For example, pairing it with 'Emerald Honey' creates brand new fruit puddings and other fruit and honey delicacies; pairing it with 'Blood Law' creates even more delicious roasted meat masterpieces; pairing it with 'Insect Moth' creates a unique feast of a hundred insects; pairing it with 'Radiant Moon' creates magical 'Moonlit Cuisine'; pairing it with 'Twisted' creates bizarre 'Corrupted Food'; pairing it with 'Nightmare' creates terrifying 'Dark Delicacies', and finally, there's 'Noble Communion' paired with 'Blazing Sun'.

The members of this faction are more like gourmets and chefs than mages, but they do delve into food pairings and creations, and in terms of spiritual beliefs and pursuits, they can indeed be categorized as mages.

As the three walked along, they listened to the monks in the exhibition hall introduce the various glories of the school. At this time, Hiltiah also heard about the 'Feast of Flesh and Blood' again.

"If you apply and pass the school's assessment to become one of us, the school promises to hold a high-quality 'feast ceremony' for all new students during the next Silver Bell Festival to help you gain power and advance in rank."

Wow, is this for real?

"It's true. The Feast School, like the Gold Leaf School, is very wealthy. However, their academic pursuits have not progressed for many years. The members of their school mostly focus their energy on finding new ingredients and improving the taste of recipes. They don't pay much attention to the research of spells, runes, and basic theories."

"No wonder they're so strong, yet their ranking is always low," some people said with regret.

"Some people probably just like these things and don't care about the so-called rankings. They also have their own income and resource sources and don't rely too much on the Mage Alliance's resource allocation."

"In that case, I'd like to join too. Just the thought of eating delicious food every day is very appealing."

The students chatted as they walked forward, while Hilti was curious about the 'Feast Ceremony' prepared for the new students by the 'Feast School', wondering what level it was and which feast it would be.

If possible, she would like to learn how to grow her own food so that she can use it to host a feast for her friends in the future.

—Afternoon, Songzi Street—

More than a month has passed since 'Four Fingers' was poisoned by the 'Wind-Scented Eggplant Poison', and he has finally recovered. Today is a rare occasion to hold a group meeting, gathering several important subordinates.

"Thanks to everyone's hard work and perseverance, we have weathered a difficult period, and I am proud of you all!" Four Fingers raised his glass, urging everyone to respond with pride.

After the recruitment personnel from various colleges moved in, the underground world of Asura District enjoyed a brief period of peace. They all knew that causing trouble at this time would easily invite severe crackdown from the authorities.

“Now, all the colleges and universities need our help to set up their exhibition halls. It’s a lowly job, but without us, nothing can get going, hehe.” A foreman below said with a smile.

“That’s right. No matter how bold that ‘fire pig’ is, it has quieted down now and doesn’t dare to cause any trouble.”

"Thanks to our recent work connections, we can easily make connections with those noble academy mages and get some of their unwanted items." After the annual recruitment fair, some items are not brought back to the academy but are sold off directly.

"I already made arrangements with that mage from the 'Mist Spirit School' the day before yesterday. After this is over, he will sell us the remaining 'Mist Body Potion'. With this, it will be much easier to gather intelligence or take down the Fire Pigs," the leader, 'Blue Toad,' said smugly.

"However, he said we can't use these kinds of drugs until the students' assessments are over in June at the earliest."

"It seems we'll have to be patient for a while longer." After thinking for a moment, Four Fingers nodded slowly.

After a brief period of stability, the Asura district finally welcomed its second batch of academy representatives, including the 'Bionics School' that Hilti had studied.

This time, the "Bionics School" didn't showcase the amazing abilities of various ancient creatures, nor the numerous creations and technologies that mimicked animals. Instead, they directly recreated a lifelike giant dragon within the exhibition area. Upon hearing this news, many students were stunned, and those who entered the school's exhibition hall were also awestruck by the dragon's powerful majesty, becoming obedient and well-behaved.

"Is it really a dragon?" With this question in mind, Hilti and her two roommates also stepped into the school's exhibition hall.

After a brief tour of the sect's various secret techniques, the three quickly entered the central hall, where a giant dragon beast, over thirty meters tall, stood. Its forelimbs rested on a stone, and its fiery red wings spread out behind it, gently flapping, creating a scorching airflow that swept through the entire exhibition hall like a whirlwind.

【Crimson Scale Dragon Reconstructed Specimen】(Tier 5 - Dragon Eye - Blood Law)
Even after thousands of years, the skeleton of that dead dragon rose again under the secret techniques of the 'Bionic School', stretching its body and displaying its roar and power.

In addition, special birds constantly circled in the sky above the hall. They appeared to be real, but in reality, like the 'Silk Bird' that the girl controlled, they were simulated creatures created by the bionics school using unique rune combinations.

So, after circling several times, these birds swooped down again, transforming into different shapes and forms, some like beasts and others like fish, incredibly agile.

Later, other mages of this school used similar secret methods to imbue themselves with the power of ancient creatures, granting them a temporary ability.

After touring most of the exhibition hall, Hilti was about to leave when she was stopped by a silver bird that flew down from the sky.

"Miss Hedra, please come this way," the other party extended an invitation.

Afterwards, Hilti had to bid farewell to her two companions and go to the lounge on one side of the exhibition hall, where a short but serious-looking mage with a hooked nose was already waiting.

“I’ve heard of you, Hedra.” As she entered the room, he turned around, revealing a pair of grey-blue eyes, as white as snow that never melts on a high mountain.

"You defeated your opponents in the Asura region with silk threads, and used these threads to weave exquisite flying birds, as well as for combat applications."

"It's clear that he's already very proficient in some of our school's secret techniques."

"I'm very curious, who was the mage who gave you your first enlightenment?"

“This…” Hilti knew that the teacher did not actually want to contact the acquaintance from the 'Bionics School', but if she lied now, it would be easy to be exposed in the subsequent investigation.

“She is a lighthouse keeper from my hometown. I don’t know her name. She is often in a wheelchair,” the other person said upon hearing the girl’s evasive answer.

As expected, the other party couldn't recall which senior of their school this description of Hilti was referring to for a while, and finally had to give up on the matter.

In order to recruit this young woman, the representative of the 'Bionics School' offered generous terms.

"If you come to our academy, you will be provided with three high-quality resource support sessions to help you advance quickly and gain respect and recognition."

"Secondly, various high-level composite runes, as well as many secret techniques for enhancing runes, will be taught to you for free."

This can be considered a very generous reward, because even after joining as a normal freshman, one cannot obtain all the secret techniques of the school for free. Many things require learning through academic credit contributions, thereby guiding students to use the secret techniques they have learned to practice and earn the necessities of life.

Unfortunately, Hilti didn't value these promised benefits. Seeing her refuse so decisively, the mage sighed, shook his head self-deprecatingly, and let Hilti leave.

"I'm sorry," Hilti silently said, thanking the other party for their kindness, before leaving the lounge.

After finishing her tour of the bionics school, Hilti will still visit the remaining exhibition halls, but her mind is already focused on the upcoming exams. She will no longer spend a lot of energy touring, but instead concentrate on reviewing and studying the past exam items of the Tethys Academy.

Under her influence, her other two roommates also began preparing for their upcoming assessments.

As a result, the three of them appeared in the school classroom less and less often, and they began to act separately, going to the places where they were to conduct experiments and practical training.

At the end of June, after finishing her busy studies, Siltia returned to Agate Street, this time to see Anali.

"This is your new student certificate. Congratulations! You can continue to study here from now on." Hilti opened the book and handed the other person a card that had been re-stamped and specially treated.

Anali, with her purplish-red hair, carefully took the card. She stroked and looked at the small card gently, as if such a simple thing had determined the branching paths of her entire life.

Finally, she pressed the card lightly to her chest and then bowed gratefully to Hilti.

"Thank you, Lord Hedra, for giving me this opportunity."

"No, no, no, I just helped you with some minor issues along the way." The girl shook her head, holding up a finger.

"The person you should really thank is yourself, who persevered day and night and worked so hard." After saying that, she patted the girl's head, her fingers gently stroking the two curved corners of her head, one large and one small.

The tip of the smaller, curved horn was broken off, making it look somewhat damaged. When Hilti touched it, Anali trembled slightly, as if recalling unpleasant things from the past.

"It's alright, it's all over now," the girl comforted softly.

"Don't hate your past, and don't feel inferior because of it. Those past events may be full of pain, but as long as you get over them, they will become your proudest scars."

"People become stronger by overcoming difficulties, and so do you."

"Go for it, Anali!"

Gentle words seeped into her parched and barren heart like a clear spring, slowly nourishing it. After a long while, the girl with the animal horns wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and nodded slightly.

"Thank you, I will, senior."

Senior, that's a really nice title.

(End of this chapter)