198: Chapter 198: Garden Development Strategies! Portia Breakthrough!

Returning to the castle, Rowan went straight to the study.

The light in the study was somewhat dim; he casually lit the magic lamp on the desk.

Soft white light filled the room, and he placed the three items he had just acquired onto the desk.

One tier 2 knight limit-breaking potion and two inheritance jade slips—one pale green, one crimson.

He sat behind the desk and fell into deep thought.

Ever since Julian had explained the difference between the physical and spiritual sides in detail, he had developed a clear set of ideas for cultivating the girls in the garden.

That was, based on each person's talent direction, to prioritize choosing either the Knight path or the Mage path for cultivation.

If those truly didn't work out, only then would he consider other avenues.

He was actually quite optimistic about this.

He believed that those truly unsuitable for these two mainstream paths shouldn't be many.

Because these girls had already been double-screened by the system's rating and his own succubus perception; those selected for the garden wouldn't have poor talent.

If a person was suitable for neither the Mage path nor the Knight path, he wouldn't easily choose to cultivate them unless their overall rating was extremely high.

After all, resources were limited nowadays.

Concentrating resources on the same paths was the only way to maximize resource utilization.

Based on his careful investigation and assessment during this period, he had basically figured out the spiritual talent potential of the nine members of the Female Official Cabinet.

The Wind Mage inheritance was suitable for Melissa and Charlotte.

Both girls' spiritual power showed obvious wind element affinity tendencies—light, agile, and sharp.

The Wind element was perfect for utilizing their strengths.

The Fire Mage inheritance was suitable for Adeline and Sylvie.

Adeline had a fiery personality and acted decisively, complementing the fire element perfectly.

And while Sylvie appeared quiet, deep within her spiritual power lay an inconspicuous passion that was well-hidden in public but impossible to conceal in private.

So far, only his personal maid Catherine had witnessed this side of her, which had left Catherine stunned at the time.

As for Eleanor and Fiona, their talents were better suited for the Earth Mage inheritance.

Steady, resilient, and calm—these were typical traits of the Earth element and also the underlying tones of their personalities.

However, he hadn't obtained an Earth inheritance yet and could only wait for a future opportunity to make up for it.

Thinking of this, he frowned slightly.

Finally, there was Isabelle.

Her situation was a bit tricky.

Her talent didn't possess any common elemental affinities—Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Ice, Lightning—she didn't have a single one.

He had investigated repeatedly and even took the time to look through many ancient texts before finally confirming a result that surprised him somewhat—

Isabelle's transcendent trait was likely the rare Necromancy branch.

Moreover, she only had this one transcendent trait tendency in her body and nothing else.

Necromancy.

These words belonged to a sensitive field in any orthodox power, and related inheritances were scarce.

Finding a suitable path for her would likely require a great deal of effort.

He sighed.

He could only place her at the end for now.

He would make plans once he had a suitable channel in the future.

After considering the cultivation plan for the Female Official Cabinet, his thoughts turned to the construction of the City Guard.

He thought for a moment, summoned a servant, and instructed:

"Go to the City Guard and ask Commander Portia to come over."

"Yes, My Lord."

The servant took the order and left.

Rowan leaned back in his chair again, his gaze falling on the milky-white potion on the desk.

About half an hour later, Portia arrived.

Upon receiving the announcement, Rowan didn't meet her in the study but instead had her go to the castle training grounds.

The training grounds were located on an open flat area on the east side of the castle, the ground paved with smooth bluestone slabs.

It was currently afternoon, and the sunlight spilled down at an angle, passing through the surrounding trees to cast a dappled pattern of light and shadow on the ground.

The twelve girl knights of the Castle Guard had just finished a set of Breathing Technique training and were currently resting on benches by the side of the field in small groups.

Some were wiping sweat with towels, some were talking in low voices, and some had their eyes closed to adjust their breathing.

Seeing Rowan and Commander Portia walking side by side, they all stood up and looked over curiously.

Rowan walked to the center of the training grounds and stood still.

He turned, looked at Portia, and took out the tier 2 knight limit-breaking potion, saying:

"Commander Portia, are you ready?"

Portia's gaze fell upon the potion.

Her breathing hitched for a brief moment.

Then, she nodded vigorously, her expression solemn and serious: "My Lord, I am ready."

Rowan looked at her and nodded, handing the potion into her hand:

"Then break through right here. I'll watch over you, so if there's any accident, I can handle it in time."

"Yes, My Lord."

Portia took the potion with both hands, then walked to the open space in the center of the training grounds and sat cross-legged.

She looked down at the crystal bottle in her hand, first taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling.

Then, she pulled out the stopper.

A faint, delicate fragrance drifted from the bottle, like a mountain breeze on a morning after snow.

She no longer hesitated, tilted her head back, and drank the potion in one gulp.

The moment the potion hit her throat, her body trembled slightly.

She closed her eyes and began to circulate her Breathing Technique.

For the first few breaths, everything was calm.

Then, a faint white halo began to emerge on the surface of her body.

The halo was weak at first, like a thin mist in the dawn, barely there.

But as the Breathing Technique circulated, it became more solid and brighter, wrapping her within like a soft cocoon of light.

Fine beads of sweat began to break out on her forehead, her breathing sometimes hurried and sometimes slow, her brow slightly furrowed, her lips pressed into a tight line.

Rowan stood not far away, watching calmly.

His perception had already quietly spread out, ready to intervene at any moment should anything go wrong.

However, his worry was clearly unnecessary.

Portia had been stuck at the threshold of Senior Knight for many years, and her foundation was extremely solid.

With such a deep accumulation finally finding release, although the breakthrough process wasn't easy, no dangerous signs appeared.

Her aura climbed steadily, surging wave after wave like the tide, each surge higher and stronger than the last.

By the side of the training grounds, the twelve girl knights had all gone quiet.

Their gazes fell in unison on the figure breaking through in the center, their breathing becoming light.

Most of them were still only Apprentice Knights, and some hadn't even reached High-level Apprentice Knight yet.

Witnessing the entire process of a Senior Knight pushing for the Peak Knight bottleneck was an extremely precious learning opportunity for them.

Cecilia stood at the very front of the girls, arms crossed, her gaze focused.

She was already an Official Knight and could appreciate the surging and pure energy within Portia's body better than the others.

She could perceive the Douqi within Portia's body circulating in a special rhythm.

With every cycle, it grew a bit stronger.

She observed silently.

Rowan walked up to her side and stood shoulder to shoulder with her.

He didn't turn his head, his gaze still fixed on Portia, but his voice was low:

"How have things been lately?"

Cecilia's eyes flickered slightly, and then she said:

"Replying to My Lord, everything is well."

She paused and added:

"The guard's training progress is normal. Anna is progressing very quickly and is almost touching the threshold of an Official Knight. The others are also improving steadily."

"Mm."

Rowan said nothing more, returning his attention to Portia.

About fifteen minutes later—

Portia's body suddenly jolted.

A brand new and majestic aura burst forth from within her!

That aura was like a long-dormant volcano finally finding an outlet, erupting with a bang!

After reaching its peak, the Douqi halo on her body's surface began to slowly recede.

Then, she opened her eyes.

In that instant, a sharp light seemed to flash through her eyes, and her entire temperament was completely different from before, becoming more solid and sharp.

Portia looked down at her hands, slowly clenching and then releasing them.

She felt a power far stronger than before flowing through her body.

A moment later, she stood up, turned to Rowan, solemnly knelt on one knee, lowered her head, and said loudly:

"Thank you for your cultivation, My Lord! This subordinate will surely fight to the death for you to repay this kindness!"

Rowan smiled at her solemn manner. He stepped forward and reached out to help her up:

"Rise. Go back and consolidate your realm properly; don't be in a hurry to keep pushing."

"There is still a long way to go between Peak Knight and Great Knight, and it requires a steady approach."

Portia stood up and nodded vigorously:

"Yes, My Lord!"

She bowed to Rowan once more, then turned and strode out of the training grounds.

Rowan watched her figure disappear, then turned to look at the twelve girl knights who were watching him from the side of the field.

He smiled and waved his hand, saying:

"Carry on."

Then he turned and walked toward the castle's main building.

...