Chapter 441

Chapter 441: Preparations Before the Performance

Emenath, a small town in the west,

Under the sunset, the fields were dotted with small hills of straw, the ground after wheat harvest still had broken stalks, which felt less stable underfoot than when the wheat hadn’t been harvested.

Funa sat on a stone stool under a tree, watching the afterglow of the sunset spread across the world, casting long shadows from the straw piles.

Finally, they have finished harvesting.

This was her first time participating in field labor. Although she kept wanting to give up midway, she persisted due to her slight pride.

Today, I must take a good bath when I return home. Funa began to miss the showers in the dormitory. However, there was also a bathtub at Servis’s house, but boiling water would take more time.

The residents of the town placed the straw on carts and transported them into the nearby granary for storage. The next step would be threshing.

Penny came over holding a bundle of wheat stalks.

“How do you feel about today’s work, Miss?” She bent down, placing her hands on her knees, looking at this different Miss from before.

“Now, all I want is to not do anything, take a bath, eat something, and then go to bed.”

“Still able to remember to eat, that’s good.” Penny smiled.

“Have you eaten wheat grains before?”

“Of course, I’ve eaten wheat.”

“Not bread made from flour, but just the wheat stalks.” Penny shook the bundle of wheat stalks in her hand. This one was different from the golden ones in the field; it still had a green hue, seemingly not fully matured.

“Come with me.” Penny led Funa to a spot where the wind was blowing, picked up some residual straw on the ground, and ignited them together. A thin smoke rose with a smoky smell, followed by a faint flame.

As a personal maid to the Anemyi family’s Miss, although not among the top in terms of strength, she did have Sequence 2. This allowed her to easily heat things up, making it easier to serve her master better.

“What are you going to do?” Funa looked at Penny with some confusion.

“Just roast these wheat stalks.”

Penny held the green bundle of wheat stalks over the fire. Soon, smoke rose, and occasionally, there was a popping sound. As the flames flickered, Penny turned the wheat stalks in her hand, ensuring even heating, then a faint fragrance wafted out.

“It’s done.”

Penny took off the bundle of wheat stalks. The originally green kernels now had a layer of charred black, the smoky scent permeating the air, with a little white ash floating and falling.

“Do you want to try eating them? They’re actually quite good.”

After cooling slightly, Penny put the wheat stalks into her palm and rubbed them, causing dust and soft skin to fall off. Then, she opened her palm, letting Funa pick out the wheat grains to taste.

Funa curiously tried one, a sticky and sweet sensation spread on her tongue. Though the quantity was small, the texture was very new and interesting.

“Can wheat be eaten like this?” She reached out to take the roasted wheat stalks from Penny and ate the small grains.

“Yes, but only unripe green wheat stalks. Ripe grains are harder, so they can’t be eaten this way. Besides, roasting produces a lot of black ash, and the nobles wouldn’t try it.”

“However, the taste is indeed very unique.”

As Funa ate, her fingers got a bit of black ash on them. Now, this Miss seemed to have less of the naive innocence and more of the brightness and beauty of the sun.

“If you like it, there are many other new and interesting things in the world,” Penny said standing beside Funa. As the sun gradually set, dragonflies flew over the fields under the afterglow of the sunset.

“Thank you.”

Funa knew that Penny was trying to console her. After two years of travel and living outside, she had gradually moved past her previous sorrow.

Although everything from her family had vanished, at least she was still alive, right? Just like this field, even if the sky darkens, the sunset remains beautiful. And by tomorrow, the sun will rise again, and new life will emerge on the earth.

“After graduation, I will travel around the world and return to Hope Lane to greet Mereu and tell her about my experiences over these years.”

“Then we will go to other places and rebuild the Anemyi family.”

She took off her hat, stood up, and looked into the distance with Penny, letting her light red hair sway in the evening breeze.

—

Temple Academy, the Hymn Chapel,

The afternoon sunlight shone through the stained glass windows, illuminating the men and women in white robes practicing singing on the steps. They were preparing for the upcoming Winter Festival.

A few students and teachers sat in the pews below, listening to their performances and occasionally pointing out areas for improvement.

At the back of the chapel, two girls sat side by side.

“Does Lohil usually practice and sing here?” Florasia turned to ask the silver-haired girl beside her.

“Yeah, but I don’t usually sing,” Lolan Hill, known as the legendary songstress, was actually shy and didn’t perform often.

“You don’t need to sing too well, just passable is fine. Your voice has a natural advantage.”

“I don’t think I’m bad at singing, but I usually hum short tunes when I’m alone.”

Since last year, after being affected by the power of the Chaos Phantom, her playing skills had declined significantly. In this year’s Crown of Melody competition, she lost to other young songstresses.

Now, one of these young songstresses had come to invite Lohil to join the Winter Festival.

Given that Lolan Hill already had plans with Florasia, she naturally agreed to participate. Thus, several people started rehearsing.

As the finale of the winter festival, not only Lolan Hill but also the new Crown of Melody invited several celebrities and powerful figures from the academy, including herself. Seven people would be performing on stage.

“Almost everyone is here.”

While the choir was resting, a girl with slightly tanned skin and short white hair walked over from the front row. She wore a very gender-neutral style with metallic edges and ornaments. This was Janie, the current owner of the Crown of Melody at Emenath, known as ‘Explosive Sound’.

“Lishuang said she’ll be here shortly.”

A girl with similarly light brown skin stood up, it was Lingxin.

“Oh, if Lingxin says she’ll be here, then it shouldn’t be a problem.”

Janie was shorter than Lingxin and not as tall.

“So let me introduce everyone first. Once Lishuang arrives, I’ll add her details.”

This tomboyish girl clapped her hands, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Welcome to this year’s Winter Festival designed by me. Seeing everyone prepare so seriously makes me feel honored. You’ve probably already seen most of the programs earlier. Now, let me briefly introduce the finale performance.”

“The final act will feature seven singers, including myself, Florasia, Lishuang, Lingxin, Vimiya, Lohil, and Igli.”

“I believe that just seeing the lineup tells you how unprecedented this performance is. This time, our goal is not only to host a successful Winter Festival but to make it a milestone in Emenath’s history!”

The tone of the new Crown of Melody rose, instantly stirring up the students’ emotions in the church. Cheers of anticipation and excitement echoed through the hall.

(End of Chapter)