Pioneer Wizard's Notebook

Outside the manor lies the town of Hundred Flowers in spring.

Little Broad is in a bad mood today.

The ice fishing event, which was originally organized by the lord and was supposed to take place this month, has yet to materialize.

At this time of year, the nearest Mecca River is already frozen solid, and without the tools provided by the lord, fishing is simply a pipe dream.

My father went hunting a month ago and died in the forest. The rye we stored up over the summer is almost gone.

Without the catch from fishing, the food they had wouldn't be enough to keep him and his mother through the winter.

Just as he was feeling troubled, he suddenly heard his mother talking outside the door.

"Good day, Lord Hippel. It's so good to see you're in good health."

"What? A conscription? An order from that young master Linde? But, but you don't know, Broad fell off the wall the day before yesterday and injured his leg. I'm afraid he can't go to the manor."

"Yes, yes, the militia are well paid, and that young master made a promise, I know that, but my injured leg won't heal, so I'm sorry."

Broad pressed his ear against the door, eavesdropping on the conversation outside.

His eyes lit up when he heard that the daily rations included two pounds of barley and a pound of dried meat.

If they eat these foods sparingly, they will be enough for him and his mother to get through the winter comfortably.

But why did his mother say his leg was broken? That's so unfair! He's just a little short, he's perfectly healthy!

Brode was indignant, feeling discriminated against, so he turned around and secretly slipped out the window, deciding to go to the manor to answer the call to arms.

He climbed over the wall and heard a noise, only to find that his neighbor Mark had also climbed out of the window.

"You're planning to join the militia too?" Brod exclaimed excitedly.

“Of course, of course I have to go.” Mark rolled down the window and lowered his voice. “My mother said that the Sheep Master’s orders don’t need to be obeyed, that he’s not qualified to be summoned, but I think I can go. Mr. Hilbert is trustworthy.”

"Yes, that's what I think too!"

Broad nodded quickly, and seeing his clever partner's agreement, he spoke with more confidence.

"We'll get lots of food! And we'll even get armor and longswords like the knights, which is much more impressive than hunting bows. Mother and Aunt Susan will be so proud of us!"

Mark interrupted his fantasy: "Stop dreaming. Militiamen aren't qualified to wear armor, and you couldn't even lift it. I just hope this is a game for some young nobleman, and he'll let us come back when he's had his fill."

At the moment the Baron left, the second son's sudden conscription of the militia was hard not to raise suspicions.

Out of respect for Mr. Hilbert, Mark decided to play along in this game of lordship, since food was the most important thing, and he could accept even if he only received half.

......

Sunflower Manor, in the garden.

Linde completed the evolution of another sunflower, but the exhaustion from depleted magic forced him to stop and rest.

Sitting on the stone chair, meditating and adjusting, he casually plucked a petal from a superior sunflower and put it in his mouth.

The texture is like chewing a freshly baked, steaming hot soup dumpling.

Unlike burning, the stimulation of chewing only triggers a faint solar wind, more like a unique flavor.

Most of the magic stored in the petals is well preserved.

Compared to the violent magic of nature, this purified, gentle magic is more easily absorbed through meditation, allowing Lind to recover quickly.

At the current rate, he can evolve a maximum of six advanced sunflowers per day.

This is not the absolute limit.

Magic can be restored, but mental exhaustion cannot; he must conserve some energy to deal with unexpected events.

Otherwise, it would be hilarious if the Ice Demon suddenly attacked you while you were lying in bed unable to move.

The sky was dark.

Without the power of the sun, the success rate of evolution drops drastically.

Linde stopped working and walked toward the wall of the manor.

At the urging of Knight William and Instructor Hippo, a considerable number of people have already gathered here.

There were about forty people, including many teenagers, excitedly gathered together, anticipating something.

It seems like a lot, but it's less than half of the young and middle-aged men in the town.

"Sir, many residents are making excuses to avoid it. If we don't inform them of the Icefield Demons' attack, it may take several more days to gather them."

Hippocratic instructor came to his side to report.

Lind expressed his understanding, saying that the situation was much better than he had imagined.

With the baron and knight away, the second son of the territory suddenly issued a conscription order. If it weren't for Hilbert's intervention, he probably wouldn't have been able to summon a single person.

A lack of authority, whether through coercion or informing the Icefield Demons, will cause the residents' trust level to collapse first, so you have to rely on incentives to recruit people quickly.

Linde looked at the butler, Pullman, and asked, "What is the status of the food and weapons reserves on the estate?"

Feeling Sir William's gaze on the wall, Pullman nervously rubbed his hands and said, "Young Master Lind, there are 1,500 pounds of barley, 2,500 pounds of rye, and 1,200 pounds of dried fish and dried meat in the warehouse."

"Most of the weapons were taken away by the master, leaving only a dozen or so wooden spears and round shields."

Not much grain was left on the estate.

The diet of two pounds of grain porridge and one pound of dried meat per person per day is only enough to sustain two hundred people for about eight days.

Lind ordered, "Bring out all the food and distribute it to these soldiers who responded to the call to duty."

"And I told the town's residents that regardless of gender or age, anyone who completes the tasks I'm about to assign can come here to collect food."

Pullman panicked and quickly tried to dissuade him, saying, "Young Master! This won't do! Following your instructions, this food won't last long, and we'll go hungry!"

"Do as I say, and you won't go hungry."

Pullman left with a worried expression.

Linde was not worried; as the sunflower evolved, his spirituality was honed.

At the current pace, the new witchcraft can be reverted in six days.

The list of spells in the wizard's journal will also be refreshed, including methods to solve the food problem.

As for now, the first priority is to survive.

He came up to the top of the wall.

William was assigning guard posts to the new militiamen, making sure they knew where to stand and shoot arrows in case of an enemy attack.

"How is the situation?"

Upon hearing the question, William said worriedly, "The manor is short of weapons. The good news is that they can provide their own bows and arrows, but whether these inferior hunting bows will be effective against the Ice Demons is anyone's guess."

"Moreover, they haven't received any armed training, so they might not have the courage to shoot arrows at those monsters."

This is a reality; even the Baron's regular army fled in panic upon discovering the Ice Demon's trail.

William did not believe that these temporarily conscripted civilians would dare to resist.

"So we have to get everyone to hide in the manor."

Lind wasn't so pessimistic, and comforted them, "When they clearly know what they are protecting, courage will allow them to make a choice."