Wizard Farming Guide

Chapter 1 The Gardener Knight

The Kingdom of Rosa along the eastern coast.

The scorching summer winds of July blew in from the southern plains, flowing along the Maisui River, where cargo ships crisscrossed, and into Jianling.

Laborers dressed in linen tunics were sweating profusely as they carried goods along the dock.

The crowd was bustling, and shouts were constant.

At this time of year, grain harvested from the Great Plains is being transported down the river in large quantities to the capital and major cities in the east.

This is Jianling, a river bend city formed by the confluence of the Agate River from the north and the Wheat River from the west.

This was the first stop for these merchant ships as they headed east into the heart of the kingdom.

Moving inward from the port, along the riverbank, in the city center, surrounded by Platinum Avenue and Flower Avenue, a hill resembling a long sword rises.

Atop the hill stands a magnificent, white castle made of marble—Sword Ridge Castle.

There lived the master of this land, Duke Bert Rosedale of Swordhill.

At this moment, the kingdom's grand duke stood on the hilltop platform, taking in the bustling city scene below.

As he turned to walk toward the castle, he couldn't help but glance at the garden in full bloom, where the purple lavender was in full bloom.

However, when he noticed a figure squatting by the garden, loosening the soil with a trowel, his expression gradually turned cold.

Rod, who was tending to the lavender, noticed his father's arrival.

Duke Bert's tall figure blocked the sunlight, casting a shadow over Rhodes.

Rod looked at his gardener's apron covered in mud, then at his father's magnificent and clean court robes, blinked, and his expression turned somewhat helpless.

He knew he was probably going to get scolded again.

"Father," Rod quickly stood up and greeted him.

Even when standing upright, Rhodes still looked small and thin, like a child, compared to the Duke who was over two meters tall.

Well, he was sixteen years old this year and still had room to grow taller. Moreover, compared to the average person who was short due to malnutrition, he was already considered tall at 1.7 meters, which comforted Rod.

"Do you know what people in the capital call you? 'Gardener Knight'. Perhaps I should be happy? You are the first noble of your age to obtain the title of knight."

Duke Bert looked at him with a complicated expression.

When Rod met his father's gaze, he knew things weren't going well.

A month ago, Duke Bert took his eldest son Anthony to the capital city of Fuxing, and they just returned three days ago.

It seems that he doesn't get along well with the royal family and nobles.

Knighthood is not just a title and a status, but also a symbol of strength.

To be described as a gardener when one is a nobleman, and to be called a knight when one's strength is not that of a knight, is a thoroughly insulting title.

Duke Bert gazed at his second son.

As the king's younger brother, he defeated the barbarian army in the northern expansion war thirty years ago, making outstanding contributions and becoming a military noble with countless honors.

His eldest son, Anthony, followed the family tradition well, becoming a knight at the age of eighteen.

He shone brightly in the knightly tournament and was hailed as the "White Knight of the Sword Tomb".

However, his second son, Rod, repeatedly disappointed him.

He neglected his knightly training, spending his days either wandering outside or fiddling with people's toys in the garden.

Today, he is even jokingly referred to as the Gardener Knight, and Duke Bert could not tolerate his descendants doing so.

"Go change into your military uniform, then come to the award hall to see me."

Without waiting for Rhodes' reply, Duke Bert turned and left after uttering those words.

Rhodes could only nod to indicate that he understood.

After finishing tending to the last remaining patch of lavender, he got up and headed toward the castle.

After changing out of his dirty clothes in the bathroom and washing himself, Rod changed into his white military uniform in the room and fastened his cavalry belt around his waist.

He adjusted his attire using the silver full-length mirror in the room.

Although I didn't know what my father wanted to do, the Hall of Honor represented the transfer and bestowal of power and was the most solemn and dignified place in the castle.

Making him go in military uniform is no small matter; being neatly dressed is a must.

According to the Rothdale family tradition, women are not allowed to touch military uniforms, so Rod could only carefully tidy them up himself.

Looking at his reflection in the mirror, beneath the dazzling golden hair inherited from royalty, was a handsome young man with striking features.

The solemn military uniform added a touch of sharpness to his originally youthful face.

This was his sixteenth year in this world, Rod looked at himself in the mirror.

Before the age of ten, his memories were hazy and confused. After regaining all his memories at the age of ten, Rod looked at the brand new world before him, feeling both unfamiliar and bewildered.

In the ancient Middle Ages, royal power stood firm and nobles inherited their positions. In the context of the backward development of civilization, there were legends of gods that seemed both true and false.

As the son of a duke, he had no worries about life; his future was already arranged and predetermined.

Just as Rod was hesitating whether to lie down and accept the twists of fate, a book in his mind broke through his confusion.

Wizard's Guide

As the name suggests, this is a textbook that guides readers on how to become a wizard.

Rod guessed that it was this thing that brought him into this world.

After reading the book, Rod found that it was somewhat different from the wizard he had imagined.

This guide divides wizarding knowledge into three parts.

Crop cultivation, livestock breeding, and mineral refining.

Rhodes returned to the cover to confirm that he hadn't misread it; the word "Wizard" was indeed written in large letters.

With all this farming content and the familiar language he could understand, Rhodes finally got it.

It can only be said that there was a reason why this handbook selected me; there was a certain degree of hometown connection involved.

In its first year, Rhodes learned two wizarding skills about crop cultivation: Seed Modification and Magical Harmony.

[Seed modification] allows him to intervene in crop seeds as needed, so that they exhibit the desired traits after growth.

[Magic Harmony] allows him to use magic to blend the medicinal properties of different drugs, creating highly effective magical potions.

Rhodes, who had just come into contact with wizarding knowledge, was very excited and couldn't wait to try it out, but after practicing, he found that it was far from simple.

The wizard's manual contains only theoretical knowledge, but no practical guidance.

This is equivalent to providing only the formula, without any specific drawings.

Rhodes could understand, after all, crops vary from world to world, and the wizards in the manual were obviously not limited to a single world.

Therefore, he could only try to explore it on his own.

Fortunately, these two pieces of wizarding knowledge are at the beginner level. The difficulty is equivalent to telling you that alloys are better than elemental metals, and then figuring out the alloy formula.

Rod left the mirror and looked at the wooden shelves in the room.

There was a neatly arranged shelf of flowerpots, filled with plants that Rod had collected from various sources and then modified to grow.

Most of them grew haphazardly and were failures in his experimental records.

But with persistent efforts, some individuals will always stand out.

It was a shrub about one meter tall, with a string of thumb-sized black fruits hanging from its branches, emitting a faint fragrance.

[High-grade Black Goji Berry / Tier 1 Intermediate Magical Plant]

[It begins to bear fruit two years after planting; its lifespan is unknown.]

The fruit can effectively enhance physical fitness and promote blood regeneration.

This is Rod's record of this plant.

The precursor to the superior black goji berry was a mixed fruit known as black thorn fruit in the south of the kingdom, which Rhodes accidentally discovered while foraging in the mountains.

Wild black goji berries, even in his previous life, were considered a good nourishing medicine, so Rhodes included them in the list of things to be modified.

Finally, amidst a host of herbal modifications, it successfully survived and evolved into a superior black goji berry.

Rhodes picked one and put it in a mortar, added other herbs, and crushed it with a pestle.

During the grinding process, subtle magical energy flowed from his palm along the pestle and bowl, entering and blending into the medicinal paste.

The medicinal mud eventually melted into a light green liquid, crystal clear and shimmering with a captivating luster.

He poured it into a cup and drank it down in one gulp. He could feel the heat rising from his lower abdomen, flowing through his entire body, and strengthening his physique.

Two weeks ago, after two years of successful seed modification, the magical plant was finally ready for harvest.

"Now, I can be considered a true knight." Rhodes felt the power in his palm.

Using a potent potion made from high-grade black goji berries, he successfully gained the physique of a knight after drinking it for half a month.

Compared to the ordinary knights who rely on constantly exploiting their bodies and replenishing their energy through near-binge eating, this advanced method is different.

The method of potion modification is more comprehensive and gentle, and will not leave any hidden injuries to the body.

However, there are also corresponding drawbacks. The rapid advancement makes Rhodes lack the combat skills that other knights have honed through daily training and memorized by their bodies.

This is something that potions cannot replace.

However, Rhodes didn't care; as a wizard, he had other means to replace it.

(End of this chapter)