I need more spells

"Did it work?"

Kroya had not expected to succeed on his very first attempt. His luck was pretty good. Besides, the inscription's description seemed rather interesting.

First, it could attack on his command-did that mean it would develop a sentience of its own?

Second, it could accumulate Sunflame Power, and the longer it accumulated, the stronger its attacks became. What was the upper limit? Just how powerful could its attacks get?

Moreover, it could refine the spell model as it grew. Did that mean it could optimize the spell and make it more powerful? Optimizing any spell was a massive undertaking.

Yet this thing could optimize one just by growing?

Was this the mighty power of nature?

Finally, it could store Sunflame Power, specifically in its seeds.

Wouldn't that essentially be... solar energy?

Mages could build mage towers, then use various magic arrays to construct mana pools that drew power from the atmosphere and sunlight, or even directly from the Elemental Plane.

But only high-ranking mages could do that.

For a mere first-rank mage like him, achieving any of that was a pipe dream.

Yet according to this description, a single sunflower could do it!

He would not even need to watch over it constantly. The sunflower could absorb Sunflame Power from the sun on its own, then store it in its seeds for use whenever needed.

If he harvested the mature seeds, could he obtain a steady supply of solar energy? Wouldn't that be like planting an entire field of fire-attribute magic crystals?

Solar energy-an endless supply.

Wasn't that more reliable than any magic vein or magic crystal?

"This carriage is way too slow! Why aren't we there yet?"

At that thought, he could hardly wait to plant them himself and see whether the mature sunflowers really had such miraculous properties.

Ordinary sunflowers took around sixty days to bloom, but this Magic Plant could shorten that to twenty.

With sufficient mana and special potions to stimulate them, they could grow even faster—and he happened to know a potion that helped Magic Plants grow!

Thinking of this, he could not help knocking on the window and asking, "Rob, how much longer until we reach Reef Island?"

Reef Island was his territory.

It was an island marked on the map as covering one thousand hectares, which was truly a tiny area for a mage. Normally, a first-rank mage sent out on assignment would receive five thousand hectares as a fief.

With a few connections, even ten thousand hectares was no problem.

Kroya had received just one-fifth of the usual allotment. Worse, it was an island, at constant risk of invasion by the sea folk.

Its population was pitifully small, too, with only a hundred or so households.

Little land, few people, a poor location, probably meager resources, and no mana veins-it was exile in every sense of the word.

No wonder the original owner of his body had died of despair. The disparity really was too great.

The steward, who had been driving the carriage outside the window, immediately answered his question. "Master, we still need another day. If we travel through the night without resting, we can arrive by noon tomorrow."

Hearing that voice, Kroya immediately recalled the image of a meticulous middle-aged man wearing a fitted waistcoat, the sort who looked utterly dependable at a glance.

And he truly was. This steward, named Rob, had been purchased along with his son when the original owner was selecting knights. He was reportedly a fallen noble.

He took particular care in managing affairs and was quite knowledgeable.

He was grateful to Kroya for saving him and his son.

On top of that, the original owner had been somewhat kindhearted by a mage's standards, treated his knights and subordinates fairly well, and was bound to them by contracts...

In short, for a variety of reasons, Rob seemed reasonably loyal.

Kroya was generous toward people who could help him get things done, especially when their loyalty was assured and they could be trusted.

Although he was a mage, he still needed people to assist him so he could quickly take control of his territory and get things moving.

He decided to offer a small perk.

He smiled. "Thank you for your hard work, Rob. Tell the knights that once we reach the territory, I'll prepare a mana bath to relieve everyone's fatigue and strengthen your bodies.

"Consider it a small reward for coming here with me."

He felt no pangs about using the original owner's possessions. Besides, winning people over was a worthy use for them, and a mana bath only consumed a single magic crystal.

As long as it helped them serve him better.

A relationship built on mutual benefit might be more stable than a simple master-servant bond.

Hearing his promise, the steward Rob sighed inwardly, feeling that his young mage master was far too kind.

Otherwise, he would never have been forced out of the royal capital by other people's schemes.

He weighed his words before answering. "Thank you for your generosity. However, Master, Reef Island likely won't bring in much tax revenue. You should keep some magic crystals for yourself."

His tone and advice were sincere. Remote regions produced practically no magic crystals, and without them, a mage had no source of power. It was indeed a difficult situation.

This steward really is good. He even knows to remind me.

Kroya felt a little moved. Rob was actually willing to turn down the chance to improve his own strength through a mana bath. It offered tangible improvements and could even cure hidden ailments.

It was one of the main reasons knights followed mages.

But since he wanted to give it, he could not let the steward refuse-the key was to win over the other knights as well. He needed to appeal to both their feelings and their interests.

"You need to keep yourselves healthy so you can help me better. I hear sea folk appear around Reef Island, and I'll need your strength.

"Rob, just do as I say."

He ended the discussion with those words, leaving Rob no choice but to agree-though he was naturally quite happy about it. A mana bath really was an extremely useful way to improve one's strength.

Following a generous, kindhearted lord was better than following a harsh, stingy one.

He decided to put more effort into training his son and the other three knights, so they could do more to help Kroya. After all, having left the royal capital together, they were now deeply bound to Kroya and could no longer separate themselves from him.

Over the next day, Kroya devoted all his mana to casting the Astral Spirit Engraving Technique. He successfully engraved the second-rank spell "Sunflare Ray" onto the remaining eleven sunflower seeds.

It was so fast because he did not need to construct a spell model externally or channel mana. It was essentially like simulating a spellcasting.

His understanding of the spell deepened another level.

The description of the Astral Body Inscription Technique suggested that it did not work on every Magic Plant or beast. Only special Magic Plants or beasts could activate it.

So he decided not to leave any seeds untouched.

At worst, he could buy more seeds later. Special seeds deserved special treatment, and he would modify them all.

Modified Magic Plants would surely earn more money than ordinary crops. Once he had money, everything would be easier.

These sunflowers all craved flames and showed no interest in anything else. He had tried casting spells such as Water Arrow, but they had no effect whatsoever.

The sunflowers simply ignored them.

He had also tried other fire spells, but none produced that mysterious feeling of perfect compatibility.

In the end, he could only engrave "Sunflare Ray."

During that time, he experienced the sensation of having his mana drained dry as soon as it recovered, and carefully reviewed all the spells he had mastered.

He discovered that the original owner's talent really had been rather poor-he had mastered ten first-rank spells, but only two second-rank ones.

Compared to other first-rank mages, he was genuinely below average. No wonder not a single teacher had spoken up for him when he was driven out. Had he truly been a genius, the association in the royal capital would never have stood by and done nothing.

More frustrating still, he needed to master the corresponding spell before he could inscribe it using the Astral Body Inscription Technique.

For example, he had to master Sunflare Ray before he could inscribe it onto a sunflower's Astral Spirit Body. If he did not even know the spell, how could he possibly succeed?

And so Kroya had no choice but to buckle down and study.

His only consolation was that his mental strength and comprehension were both fairly good. The original owner had also brought several thick books filled with first- and second-rank spell models and spells, certainly enough to keep him studying for quite a while.

Time passed quickly as he studied and engraved, and he arrived at the dock leading to Reef Island, which was also part of its territory.

The previous lord was waiting there to respectfully welcome him.