Chapter 261: The Attitude of the Elves

The autumn sun, which had lost its fiery power , lazily shone on people, feeling warm and intoxicating. The path leading to the Manor was covered with fallen leaves, baked by the sun until they were loose and crispy. The desolation, the decay, and those withered leaves soaked by time all hinted at the passing of years.

On the ridges of the harvested fields outside the Manor, Caril horned goats were happily munching on the short wheat stalks left behind. Their powerful jaws could sometimes throw the wheat roots from the ground to add to their meal.

These Caril horned goats, named Caril, can be said to be one of the crystallizations of the farmers’ own wisdom on the Western Continent. After years of breeding, they finally obtained this breed that could eat wheat stalks automatically in addition to grass. With them, the cleanup work in the rice fields became much easier. Even for fields that were left fallow for a year, such residues would affect the growth of next year’s pasture.

Next year, this area would be planted with alfalfa, a high-quality livestock feed rich in protein, suitable for pigs, cows, sheep, horses, and more. On land of the same area, the total digestible nutrients of alfalfa were twice that of grasses, the digestible protein was 2.5 times, and the minerals were 6 times. Therefore, known as the “King of Pasture,” it was the best feed for horses.

In addition, in the Bolerum Territory, the yield of dry hay per mu could reach 1400 to 1500 jin. The amount of fresh grass provided during grazing in spring and summer was even twice this base number. It can be said that the livestock industry in the Bolerum Territory was basically supported by them; otherwise, the large number of cattle, sheep, and horses could not be supported by such a small territory. Only the vast grasslands could raise those nomadic tribes without artificial planting!

More importantly, because alfalfa belongs to the legume family, its roots have nodules. These nodules contain nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The function of these bacteria is to convert nitrogen in the air into nitrogen fertilizer that plants can absorb. Not only can it supply the pasture itself, but it can also improve the soil, known as green manure. Let’s not even talk about how its developed root system can provide a large amount of organic matter to the soil, absorb calcium from deep soil layers, decompose phosphates, leave them in the plow layer, and form organic colloids after decomposition, which can make the soil form stable aggregates and improve the physical and chemical properties of the soil.

Just in terms of the ability of nodules to fix atmospheric nitrogen and improve soil fertility, the fresh weight of roots in 2 to 4-year-old alfalfa fields can reach 1335 to 2670 kilograms per mu. Each mu of root stubble contains about 15 kilograms of nitrogen, 2.3 kilograms of total phosphorus, and 6 kilograms of total potassium. Each mu can fix 18 kilograms of nitrogen from the air annually, equivalent to 55 kilograms of ammonium nitrate.

Alfalfa fields can allow the following crops to yield steadily and highly without fertilizer for three years. The increase in yield is usually 30% to 50%, and in high cases, it can exceed 100%. No wonder there is a farming proverb that says: “One mu of alfalfa equals three mu of fields; plant it for three years and the energy never fades.” It can be said that if modern management conditions were used, it could replace one-third of chemical fertilizers. What is the concept of one-third of chemical fertilizers? The crop yield can differ by several times with or without the use of chemical fertilizers. Even with the current management method of the Bolerum Territory, it was still able to guarantee that the grains in the territory would have “high yields” year after year.

The high yield here did not refer to the high yield of a thousand jin per mu before George traveled through time. For the people of this world, a ratio of planting one and harvesting twenty was already considered high yield. However, without the fertility brought by alfalfa, the land here would become barren and unable to grow much grain in less than three years.

It can be said that since the Druids began spreading this knowledge 200 years ago, the grain shortage on the Western Continent was truly curbed. Now, the low price of grain also needs to thank their grace. However, it is said that the earliest reason the Druids did this was because one of them proposed: If the output on the existing arable land could meet human needs, then the possibility of them burning forests to open up new fields would be greatly reduced.

Although George did not yet know if the wishes of those extreme environmentalists had been realized, relying solely on such achievements, he could be called a savior of ten thousand families even in the world before his transmigration.

The heavy plows crafted by the craftsmen were equipped with wheels to control the depth of plowing. The vertical plowheads allowed the plowshares to easily turn over the plots. Although this plow was heavy in ancient times and required horses to operate normally, it could not only cover the seeds tightly but also loosen the soil so that seeping water concentrated at the crop roots, making it easier to absorb. Although there were still many territories on the Western Continent that did not value the improvement of these tools, or thought the investment was too large to bear, George, who valued new technologies, would not be stingy in this regard.

If one were to speak of the biggest shortcoming of agriculture in the Bolerum Territory, it was the dry summer of the Mediterranean region, which made it impossible to condense the essence of the earth during the summer. Even with fertile land, it could not carry out the common three-field or four-field system. Although planting winter wheat at the end of September was feasible, the production cycle of spring wheat was too long.

The four-field system was a planting system that rose about 300 years ago, improved from the original three-field system. Under this four-field system, three-quarters of the land was planted with crops each year, and only one-quarter of the arable land was left fallow. Converting from the two-field system to the three-field system increased the land area planted with crops by one-sixth each year; converting from the three-field system to the four-field system increased the planting area by another one-twelfth.

In this era, the four-field system represented advanced productivity. However, the unfavorable natural environment meant that this advanced system was not for the Bolerum Territory. But with the help of the hired Druids, a system was established that combined fallow and crop rotation with grazing, suitable for both wheat and sheep farming. That is, the land was divided into two or three zones, planting different crops in each, with one zone being fallow land, rotating every two or three years to protect soil fertility and moisture, and combining planting with animal husbandry.

It was precisely this agricultural production method that created a rural landscape in the Bolerum Territory similar to the typical European countryside before George’s transmigration: different crop fields, pastures, and fallow plots were distributed on the land, with different areas and colors, forming a well-organized, block-like network that changed every year. In the block structures formed by different colors, manors and roads were distributed.

At the same time, thanks to it, George could still see a pastoral landscape similar to the spring planting and autumn harvest in northern China here. And as a nectar source plant, alfalfa was also a delicious bonus. Its flowering period lasted 40 to 60 days. During this 40 to 60-day flowering period, each bee colony could collect an average of 20 to 30 kilograms of honey. Even in the present day with beet sugar and cane sugar, it remained an expensive luxury due to its unique flavor. Of course, that sugar itself was also.

Watching the joyful faces of the farmers after the harvest, George felt that his previous efforts were absolutely not in vain. Although he belonged to the exploiting class, he would never do something as insane as sheep eating people. At least for now, the territory under his rule could be considered a place where people lived and worked in peace on the entire Western Continent.

After finishing the inspection, George turned his horse around to return to the city. For these past few months, to settle the lives of those Dwarfs and handle the upcoming work, George had been under extreme mental stress. The only time he relaxed during this period was when he was arranged to attend a blind date at the home of Baron West. Although George was not a sister complex, the saying that “a woman three years older than you holds a brick of gold” was very reasonable.

Unlike the cute little princess of the Malkin Family, the little girl from the Kately family who wore a mask and acted like an adult, and the tomboy from the House Cranston named after her great fame in Brandenburg, Miss Clematis Nephton West, who was gentle and calm like water, was more in line with George’s taste. So, after negotiations between the two parents later, the marriage was settled.

However, to get married, they had to wait until George completed his coming-of-age ceremony. When that winter passed, George would be 16 years old. Although among Commoners this was already the time to start a family, establish a career, and live independently from parents, for Nobles, 21 was the age when they were truly recognized as adults.

However, now George could not relax about love affairs, because unlike most other Heirs, he bore the heavy burden that others were not yet ready for. Earlier, those friends in the Bolerum Territory who had been thoroughly trained by Val Knight for a quarter finally returned home safely before the autumn harvest. Their expressions of escaping from suffering before they left always made George suspect that Val Knight had done something to them besides normal training.

However, during this period, those guys’ strength had improved significantly. However, George, who had inherited the Sword of Military Path, had improved his combat power even more rapidly. In several battles during this period, even when facing Ben Andrews Markin, who was previously the strongest, George could firmly hold the upper hand. This made the other friends shout that it was unfair. In their opinion, after such hellish training, the degree of improvement should have been far higher than George’s, but they unexpectedly got such a result. In the following days, those guys changed their initial eager-to-fight behavior and became listless.

However, after completing the busiest tasks of the territory for the year, George could not rest yet. Because in addition to the Northern Fortress of Brandenburg, a new frontline had appeared right next to the Bolerum Territory: the Broken Halberd Fortress. Hiren Knight, Sir Bart, and Sir Chris, who were originally sent there to guard, had arrived at the time to go home and reunite with their families. Replacing them were Sir Ahuatan and Sir Fukna. However, George himself also set off with these two and a batch of military supplies ordered by His Grace the Duke.

The heavy carriages pressed deep tracks on the trade roads, and their movement was even slower in the open wilderness without roads. Originally, a squadron of cavalry with light loads could complete the journey in a few hours, but they had to walk from early morning until night was about to fall.

Perhaps in the future, when the roads of the Broken Halberd Fortress were built, they could arrive quickly! However, just the construction of the fortress, which was constantly facing the threat of the Dark Elves from the Underdark, had cost His Grace the Duke a lot of manpower and materials. For a time, it was really impossible to spare the time for such construction.

But just as they were about to approach the Broken Halberd Fortress, George found that there was a giant eagle with a wingspan of more than 30 feet circling in the sky above the fortress. This was a powerful Magical Beast. Like all birds of prey, this creature had strong claws and sharp, hooked beaks, looking very perfect when tearing flesh and blood.

Excellent vision allowed them to detect enemies from a distance, and their usual hunting method was to circle at high altitudes. After discovering a target, they would dive down at high speed. If they could not dive to attack, they would use their powerful claws and sharp beaks to attack the opponent’s head and eyes.

And what was amazing was that this bird could speak the Wind Tribe language, which meant that the opponent’s intelligence was not low.

George stared at the giant eagle for a good while, and finally discovered the rider on its back amidst its changing flight. He asked Sir Ahuatan beside him: “When did our Duchy of Nohan get a giant eagle rider? There was no news of this before!”

Although very wise, giant eagles still needed to undergo necessary training before serving as combat mounts. Moreover, the venue required for such training was not small. If it really was the work of one of the territories within the Duchy, there should have been some news by now. And since George was unsure if the opponent was a Knight, he could only call them riders.

“George, you have spent too much time on the issue of settling those Dwarfs recently. Have you not noticed that this giant eagle is different from ordinary giant eagles? Those feathers like platinum are the best sign of a Celestial Creature! Those are Elf warriors who volunteered to come and support us. The ones flying in the sky are usually called the Lords of the Sky, powerful scouts. With their existence, although those Black Skin cannot be said to be unable to hide, it is probably impossible for them to launch a surprise attack.” Sir Ahuatan pointed to the one soaring in the sky while speaking.

These Elf warriors, the Lords of the Sky, used their bloodline connection with flying creatures and the power of the wind to fight against Evil forces. Because he saw that the events happening in the world were more urgent every day, his connection with Elf society generally appeared very loose.

This view usually did not work on the King of the Elves, because they preferred to isolate themselves from the events of those short-lived races. Elves who became Lords of the Sky usually came from the ranks of Barbarians, Warriors, Druids, and Rangers.

Soaring in the world above humans, the Lord of the Sky observed everything. From this advantageous position, the Lord of the Sky learned to appreciate the beauty of the world below, using the wind and taking advantage of the anger of storms to create favorable conditions for himself. By hiding himself in the clouds, he could quickly disappear to avoid enemies. In battle, his presence would encourage all friendly allies in the air, giving them confidence.

The Lord of the Sky usually served as an aerial scout, monitoring the actions of Evil armies and keeping an eye on areas that were difficult to reach on land. He was also a messenger, conveying messages across vast distances faster than other possible means without using Magic. When Evil forces raised their ugly heads in the sky, the Lord of the Sky would display his divine power, but if necessary, he was also a capable warrior indoors or underground.

‘Volunteers? Could it be a volunteer army? It seems the Elf Race is really highly alert to the Dark Elves!’ George did not believe in his heart that it was merely an individual action. Even though the Lords of the Sky had a good reputation on the Continent, that itself did not necessarily mean they had no selfish motives. Because of the prior plan, it was quite convenient for George and his group to enter the Outer City, but he found a building that seemed quite desolate compared to other places. Even if someone passed by the door, they would detour slightly. However, looking at the octagram and Magic Wand emblem printed on the building’s door, it told people that this was an office of a Mage organization.

It was obvious that the people living in the Outer City had a deep sense of caution towards them, believing that they must be engaged in some activities or Magic experiments that would harm local residents. This was not only due to ordinary people’s fear of the unknown, but more importantly, many Mages indeed had no bottom line for their experiments. Over time, Mages became a synonym for danger in the eyes of those ordinary people on the Continent who did not understand the situation. However, since they could still open for business here, it meant that those guys were still considered honest.

Although the wait before entering the Inner City was long, George did not mind. He was now observing this newly built fortress with great interest. However, after entering the Inner City, he found that there were two Elves sparring on the training ground. Their long ears were the best characteristics. However, their combat style, which involved chanting spells while fighting with flashing arcs of light, aroused George’s interest.

“My blade is my law, my law is my blade. The sword and spell combined, forming a whole.” George, who was muttering something, immediately understood the identity of the two people before his eyes: Twilight Blade. The reason for knowing this was that for certain reasons, George had previously paid special attention to certain so-called dual-cultivation professions of magic and martial arts.

Twilight Blade blurred the line between Spellcasters and warriors, combining the power of Magic with the courage of combat. Integrating the power of Arcane into extraordinary combat skills, it was difficult to distinguish whether it was a Spellcaster or a warrior.

As an apprentice of ancient Elf magic techniques, the Twilight Blade combined Arcane casting with the combat techniques of warriors. Although the ability to cast spells while wearing armor originated from Elves, for a thousand years, the secrets of the Twilight Blade had spread among other races. To this day, members of any race could become a Twilight Blade.

If you find that you have difficulty making a choice, not knowing whether you should become an Arcane Caster with powerful spells capable of destroying enemies, or become a melee gladiator who fights agilely and powerfully on the front line to defeat opponents with sharp blades, then the Twilight Blade can give you the most perfect answer.

Combining Arcane Magic with melee bravery, you can face any predicament. Your foolish enemies who underestimate you will never get a second chance, because you don’t even need to switch between fighting and casting spells; you can complete them simultaneously.

Watching the two people not far away, a thought suddenly popped into George’s mind: “I didn’t expect warriors like this to appear! If the Eternal Blade appears later, does it mean that the Elves think this will be a major battlefield!”