The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

The sun had set.

The lord of dazzling radiance, the ruler of Fresh Flower Town, Liszt Tulip, had returned to the castle. On the rocky pier area, Paris still stood in the cold wind.

She tried to dispel his tall and straight figure from her mind, but it clung on persistently.

On the contrary, the more she attempted to chase it away, the more memories flocked to fill in his silhouette. Eventually, the figure turned around, revealing a face more handsome than any woman’s. His sapphire eyes were deep and captivating; his short, light golden hair fluttered in the wind, along with the corners of his mouth that always wore a gentle smile.

The curve of his lips was so pleasing to the eye.

She thought back to the first time she saw him, her effort to appear calm, which was amusing; the first actual combat training when his naive but swiftly maturing swordsmanship astonished everyone; the first time he went out to sea, the cold wind on his face as if he was detached from the world, which was heartbreaking.

And more recently, tumbling in the snow, the almost intimate contact of his face against her chest, which would wet her blankets whenever she thought of it at night.

Even now, upon recalling it,

she couldn’t help but blush fiercely, “What to do, it seems I can no longer extricate myself…” It felt as if something was pressing against her chest, making it hard to breathe.

The moon rose from the sea surface, and the cold moonlight poured down on the world. She had involuntarily released her invisibility.

Her voluptuous figure, now visible again, emitted a burning heat.

After a long while.

It was as if she remembered something, she suddenly turned around and slipped into the shadows.

Leaving only a murmur carried away by the wind: “Pity, he is a noble, and I am just… a commoner…”

…

In this world.

The gap between nobles and commoners.

Was clearly recorded on the thick parchment in Liszt’s hands at this moment.

Like a series of inventory lists, every name represented a piece of merchandise.

The final list of serfs had just been delivered by Goltai. There were no noteworthy details among regular serfs and workers, but what he was mainly concerned with was the craftsmen list.

Not a single technician or master level craftsman was on the list; no one would sell those who possessed such advanced skills.

“There are quite a few blacksmiths, a full five of them, but it’s a pity I don’t have that much iron for them to work with…” Liszt caught sight of the blacksmith quotas first thing.

The Eagle Kingdom had Iron Dragons, and was rich in iron ore, so naturally, it had many blacksmiths.

Three stonemasons, who were in dire demand in both Fresh Flower Town and Black Horse Island. The rocks produced by Douson every day had piled up into a small hill, and the construction of bridges and roads was inseparable from the stonemasons.

Four carpenters, just as Fresh Flower Town was set to build the Iron Wood Era; the addition of four carpenters would accelerate this process. The Iron Thorn quality was very tough, making the carpenters’ work slow, which could be compensated by having a greater number of them to address the issue of low efficiency.

Two tanners, one specializing in making leather goods, the other in tanning leather. Together with the old tanner Phil Descendant of the Sun who was skilled in crafting leather shoes, the leather industry of Fresh Flower Town could be said to have been established.

Three tailors, which was very timely. With a population nearing five thousand, the consumption of clothes in Fresh Flower Town was on the rise, needing more tailors to mend and make clothing.

These five professions were among the most common in the craftsman class.

Thus, there were quite a few people.

In addition, two bakers and three chefs were also popular craftsmen and would become a part of the culinary culture of Fresh Flower Town, driving the development of the food industry.

In the remaining list, there were no more duplicate craftsmen.

One bone craftsman could be sent to the Bone Craftsman Shop to speed up the process of grinding Fire Dragon Bone Fragments by the Blaice Bone family, one locksmith, perhaps, could replace all the serfs’ house locks, and one cooper, as the consumption of buckets is on the rise, arrived just in time.

One brewer, who could brew beer and rice wine, was a perfect addition to the brewing workshop, and one barber could relieve the busy work of the town’s barbers.

Last but not least, there was one spice maker and one sugar maker left.

“A spice maker? Fresh Flower Town doesn’t produce spices, and I haven’t heard of anyone growing spices on Coral Island either, so her usefulness isn’t great. Maybe she can be hired into the castle kitchen to collaborate with Mrs. Abbie on some culinary research,” he mused, already deciding on the female spice maker named Saisi Mi to be Mrs. Abbie’s assistant.

Counting up,

Mrs. Abbie already had two assistants, Julia with a chef background and Saisi Mi with a spice maker background, along with three kitchen maids, Eileen Four Fingers, Oly, and Karxi, and several junior maids training in the kitchen. It was a large team, all capable of being employed to open a big hotel.

“Why not add one more baker? That way, Mrs. Abbie wouldn’t even have to bake the bread herself and could focus on researching stir-fries for me!”

He thought of the hometown dishes he longed for, gradually coming to life, and couldn’t help but clench his fists.

He was moved by his own wise decision.

“Let’s hire this female baker named Alia into the kitchen. Then, Mrs. Abbie in charge of culinary development, Julia cooking, Alia baking, and Saisi Mi handling the spices… my castle’s kitchen will become the source of this world’s culinary delights!”

The spice maker’s job was neatly arranged.

Liszt’s gaze settled on the last craftsman, the sugar maker named Calum.

Sugar is an indispensable food seasoning. I don’t know if this world has sugarcane, but in the Duchy of Sapphire, there’s no sugarcane; sugar mainly comes from the cultivation of sweetroot vegetables, which are somewhat similar to a mix of earth’s beets and sugar canes, containing a large amount of sugar in their roots.

Fresh Flower Town had a small cultivation of sweetroot vegetables, used as a palate change.

To take it for sugar making, one would need the help of sweetroot beetles, as well as a sugar maker.

However, upon seeing Calum’s detailed introduction, he realized he had been mistaken, for Calum was not a sweetroot vegetable sugar maker but a malt sugar maker.

The making of maltose wasn’t too different from brewing.

Cereals like wheat, barley, glutinous rice, and millet, once fermented and then saccharified, could produce maltose.

“Great, with a malt sugar maker, maybe I could develop a series of candy delights… Instead of recruiting him into the kitchen, I’ll build a malt sugar workshop right away. That’s right, it could partner with the peanut processing workshop to produce nougat. I remember clearly, nougat is made from peanuts and maltose!”

Delicious nougat, with its rich milky flavor, abundant nuts, and maltose that grows more fragrant as you chew.

I believe once nougat is produced, it will open up a significant market. Even if copied, it can still solidify Fresh Flower Town’s position in the culinary scene.

And, what’s crucial, is that Liszt rather liked eating nougat.

Peanut nougat, brimming with sweet memories from childhood. Such a tasty candy must by all means color the New World.

After reviewing the list, he summarized, “There are many ordinary craftsmen; among the special ones, the spice maker and sugar maker are unexpected delights.”

He set aside the list of craftsmen.

At that moment, a knight swiftly rode toward the castle.