A new day.
After eating breakfast, Sylvia and Talia went to Winnie's home. Little Randy was playing in the living room, hugging a large ball of yarn.
"You're here," Winnie said as she stepped out of the kitchen, bringing freshly baked cookies to the two of them.
"Have some."
She then picked Randy up and put him back in his room to play by himself before starting their first official lesson.
"First, I need to determine Lady Tia's level of literacy." She placed a very thick book on the table.
"This is a graduation gift from Scholar Hyde, 'The Annual Rings of the Fir: Past Events of the Mountain Kingdom'. The author is the famous scholar Arcanash from 300 years ago. This book tells the early history of the Regas Kingdom, how the Knight King Regard Buweli conquered the mountains, established the code of laws, and pacified the various mountain tribes to earn their loyalty."
"Now, Lady Tia, please try reading aloud the chapter 'The Battle of Snowfall Mountain' on page 235."
"I understand." Sylvia took the thick book with great interest.
She quickly flipped to the specified page and tried to decipher the text. She recognized most of the characters, though a few words and phrases were somewhat obscure, likely terms her original self hadn't learned.
'The heavy snow fell for five days and four nights. The pine branches were broken by the weight of the thick snow. We were forced to dismount and trek through the accumulated white drifts; all we saw was a vast expanse of gray...'
The accompanying 'Wind' Hunter, Hyde, told me that there was a lingering aura of 'Dormant Winter' in the wind. This heavy snow might be man-made, which caused me worry.
Malang and Pulis said they would find a way to assist me in solving the blizzard problem, but I thought to myself, what could these scholars of Candle Keep do? They are only suited for organizing knowledge in books and transcribing marks on ancient artifacts. The only thing that could be called pleasing is that they are all good at mathematics and skilled at building stone-throwing siege engines, which has solved many problems for me.
...
During those two months, we could never find the enemy's main force, wandering fruitlessly among the mountains. Many froze to death in the cold nights. Today, Knight Holin reported to me again that thirteen soldiers did not wake up last night.
I think we are probably lost.
...
Facing the corpse of Knight Reid, anger filled my body, making me want to let myself burn and explode like the Blazing Sun. Unfortunately, I am not of the 'Blazing Sun' essence; I could only plunge my sword into the rocky soil beneath my feet.
I can wait no longer, I cannot let this continue. I asked Scholar Malang to leave my tent for a moment, then walked toward the birdcage covered with black cloth. Inside stood a strange bird; it would convey my resolve...
...
The Black-Crowned Magpie cried, and the 432nd annual ring of the Brown-Blooded Redwood scarred. I executed Keshal under the black pines of Snowfall Mountain. He fell with a curse, and my heavy sword was full of nicks.
Regardless, we gained victory, defeating the last and most powerful tribe in the mountains and beheading its leader. Those Snow Mountain Hags who assisted Keshal were all nailed to wooden stakes, their blood drained dry.
From twenty-one years ago, when I brought my family's attendants south to settle in the small town by the shores of Ear Lake, through the journey of pioneering, alliance, and conquest, finally sweeping away all obstacles, this long journey has finally come to an end.
It is time to return. My family is waiting for me, and so are the warriors.
We shall build a city at this confluence of mountains, make a pact with the foundation stone, and establish our kingdom.
May it be as evergreen as the fir tree. May our knights' armor always be strong, and their swords always sharp.'
After reciting the slightly rhapsodic end of the poem, Sylvia put down the book.
Winnie clapped her hands lightly in approval. "Not only is your pronunciation exceptionally standard, but Lady Tia's voice is also so beautiful, rhythmic, and immersive."
"If a full score is 10, I can give Lady Tia a 9.6."
"Huh, that's not a perfect score?" Talia didn't understand.
"Well, Lady Tia probably wasn't born in the Regas Kingdom. She doesn't understand some of the unique local words and slang, and skipped a few terms, so points must be deducted," Winnie explained.
"I see."
"However, what is heartening is that Lady Tia accurately read some of the uncommon and obscure words in the book. You should know that the author, Scholar Arcanash, had a habit of showing off his literary skills, preferring to use rare words to demonstrate his vast knowledge and taste." As she spoke, Winnie shook her head slightly, as if she had suffered a lot while studying this book in the past.
"So, there's no need to further evaluate Lady Tia's literacy. Next is arithmetic." She took out a piece of paper with various arithmetic problems and handed it to Sylvia.
The girl felt a bit nervous before receiving the paper. After all, she had forgotten most of her mathematical knowledge after graduating from university, especially things like advanced calculus.
However, when she saw the problems on the paper, she instantly relaxed. These were just elementary school level problems, with at most a bit of middle school knowledge added.
She wrote down the answers almost without thinking; she didn't even take a minute to finish the whole page.
Winnie had just been preparing to test Talia while Sylvia was answering the questions, but she didn't expect the other to hand in the paper the moment she turned her head. She had to look at Sylvia's answer sheet first.
"All correct." Her voice held a hint of hesitation, as if it were somewhat unbelievable.
Talia leaned over at this moment, but seeing the various numbers and problems on the paper, she immediately felt dizzy and turned her head away.
"Now there's no need to worry about Lady Tia's foundation." Winnie felt relieved and asked the girl to wait for a moment while she evaluated Talia's situation.
During this free time, Sylvia continued to flip through 'The Annual Rings of the Fir: Past Events of the Mountain Kingdom' with great interest.
This book was written by Scholar Arcanash 300 years ago. It cited parts of the autobiography of 'Knight King' Regard Buweli, records from scholars who accompanied the army in the early years, and accounts from local figures. Finally, it was researched and compiled into a long epic describing the establishment of the Regas Kingdom.
Regard Buweli was born in the Gulunga Mountains in the central part of the continent, the second son of a local minor noble. Although he could not inherit the title, he was extremely talented from a young age. He became a 'Third Rank - Castle' essence knight at the age of 24. Afterward, he gathered a group of like-minded companions and attendants and came to the mountain lakeside in the south. Using this as a starting point, he gradually expanded his territory until he cleared all obstacles and established the Regas Kingdom at the age of fifty-six. The knights and partners who followed him through his campaigns also became the first generation of nobles in the Regas Kingdom.
The establishment of the Regas Kingdom was not smooth sailing. 'Knight King' Regard spent twenty-one years conquering the mountains, and after establishing the kingdom, it took nearly another twenty years for the country to initially stabilize. The various public security, economic, and construction problems that arose during this process several times left the Knight King overwhelmed. Fortunately, the 'Candlekeep School' that supported him sent scholars to this bitter cold mountain region for decades to serve as aides, advisors, and tutors to the local nobles, gradually educating them, imparting skills, and building castles and towers, which finally truly stabilized the country.
Scholar Arcanash must also be from the 'Candlekeep School', Sylvia guessed the author's stance and background after reading to the end. Although there were parts in the beginning that complained about and teased the 'Candlekeep School', the various praises and compliments later made those small flaws seem more like a rhetorical device of praising after criticizing.
Perhaps there was a bit of selfishness, but if it weren't for the records of these scholars from the 'Candlekeep School', future generations would have no way to understand the history of the past. Overall, Sylvia's impression of the 'Candlekeep School' was quite good; they were indeed expanding the boundaries of civilization and improving the living environment of the local residents.