Chapter 10: Ned’s Greedy Claim
Blue flames erupted around the gathered seedlings, their unnatural brilliance causing the farmers to gasp and stumble back. Some flinched. Others dropped to a knee, half-expecting a monstrous rice demon to burst out of the fire.
But when the flame died down, there was no monster. No destruction. Just quiet awe.
Where a tangled heap of ordinary sprouts had once been, now stood forty radiant seedlings, unlike anything the farmers had ever seen. Their leaves shimmered with an ethereal emerald hue, each stalk upright and proud. Delicate veins pulsed faintly within the blades, translucent and glistening like polished jade under sunlight.
They looked... divine.
[You have successfully created Starlight Rice. A hyper-nutritional rice grain of excellent quality. Super delicious. Clears the mind. Contains a small quantity of mana that nourishes the body and matures in a month!]
Kaelor stared in wonder. ’Mana-rich rice...’
In this world, warriors and Acranists trained their bodies and minds for years to harness mana. It took endless meditation and ruthless physical discipline to draw the ambient energy of the world into themselves.
But this rice? It gave mana, directly. Eat, digest, and grow stronger. Even a bowl a day could push a man a step closer to the supernatural...hypothetically.
His heart raced at the implication.
Behind him, murmurs grew as the farmers slowly edged forward again, drawn to the majestic green glow.
And that’s when a familiar, grating voice rang out.