Steel and Mana

Chapter 178 – Steel

"Should I modify this?" Merlin asked, looking excited, hopping over to my desk and watching the first drafts of a train. I was working on the main engine, which was running on coal, and I was about to finish designing it.

"No, it's fine as is; the magic is there to make sure it remains clean. I have called you here because I read your last report. Is it true?"

"Ah." He straightened his body, looking around, but it was only us in the room. "Yes. I confirmed it myself. The spell failed, but we captured the main man and his associates before they managed to cause trouble. I tried using the spell myself, but it was only a temporary change. They broke free of its effects in five to six hours."

"Huh… This is important, new data." I nodded, leaning back in my chair. "Does this affect other spells that were derived from it?"

"No, to my knowledge. Either because we deviated far enough and they were significantly modified to retain their effects. Or they don't need to present continuous results, so we don't notice it. I studied it again in full detail, and I have a theory."

"I'm all ears."

"Take our duke as an example." He started, unperturbed by our discovery, that some people got free of the 'brainwashing' effects of our spell, getting close to causing great harm to those around them. "He still aligns with us perfectly as many of the refugees. I think the reason is that the suggestions we implanted into them also align with their original thinking. The Duke already felt antagonistic towards the royal family, so our influence was easily assimilated to be his own. Refuges wanting to escape war and live an everyday life are also the same. My theory is that the spell only works well if it is in sync with the subject's initial thinking. It then fully merges with their personality and becomes real. The group that shook it off was… good at infiltrating, with a strong conviction to their initial ideas."

"Check their background once again; there is a high chance they were trained by the military."

"We are doing it, My Sovereign. But… what do you want us to do with them?"

"Use them to test the effects of the brainwashing spell. We need to re-evaluate its efficacy now that we have a much larger sample size to work with. Also, keep watching the refugee villages; we can no longer trust our work to be immaculate, but don't stop the process."

"Yes, My Sovereign!"

"And Merlin!"

"Y-yes?" He stopped before he left my office, looking at me, blinking his eyes innocently.

"Don't blow them up, okay? I want them to remain unharmed."

"Of course!"

"When you have all the data, sentence them to the Walk and send them on their way."

Watching him leave, I couldn't help but sigh, leaning back once again and tapping my finger on the table.

"Nothing is infallible, huh?"

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"Noisy!"

"Um, Noisy!"

"You wanted to come and see it!" Yuri grunted, pinching Arthur's cheeks and holding him in her arms while Leyla was held by Sasha as the two visited the industrial complex, checking on the construction of the second mech, which was already in its last phases.

"I want!" Arthur exclaimed, stretching his tiny arms toward the standing machine that was still lacking armor plates, its arms, and its head.

"Yeah, yeah! That is mine, kiddo! You are way too small to have your own."

"Buuu!"

"Arthur, small!" Leyla giggled, making his brother stick a tongue out at her that she returned before both of them began laughing.

"Yuri Mama, make boom!" Arthur pleaded, almost melting Yuri's heart as she rubbed her face against his.

"I will make it boom when it's completed, don't you worry!"

"Yeah, but do it in moderation." Sasha interrupted them before Yuri could promise something outrageous, "If you wreck your machine after it's finished, you won't get it replaced!"

"Don't worry, I am looking after my toys~!"

"Toys!" Leyla clapped, "I want horsie!"

"At least that is more manageable." Sasha whispered, but then her daughter continued, giggling, pointing at the mech.

"Big horsie! Giant horsie! Many legs! Big boom-boom horsie!"

"Yes!" Arthur nodded, flashing a thumbs up at his sister, "Super boom!"

"Let's go." Yuri muttered softly, exchanging an understanding glance with Sasha, "If we stay for long, these little imps will get weirder ideas than their father!"

"Daddy!" They said in sync, their eyes sparkling, "Visit Daddy!"

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As summer arrived, my work increased, especially after the first shipment of coal had been delivered. While building and designing a train was part of the plans, its immediate usage was much more important. This meant that it was first going to be introduced into the mines, making mechanized pulleys that would bring up dozens of carts at once from the depth of the mountains.

Then, there was the conversion of the tractors, and with the option to burn coal, I went ahead and also introduced excavators to the general public. Scaling the hydraulics down from the mechs and using the tractors' base as a starting point, it didn't take long for them to start rolling out. Their job was already waiting for them as we were finishing the massive 'canal' that would soon be filled with water, connecting our two rivers.

"Would this really work?" Mikan asked, walking with Luna and me while we were inspecting the working site. We were right where we would soon connect the finished, deep ditch, attaching its end to the first river.

"We will see." I shrugged while I observed with great satisfaction that they were just as precise as always. "In theory, there should be no issues. The elevation of this river is higher than its twin, so the water should flow towards it nicely. Also, their source is most likely the same, somewhere high up in the mountains! This one heads down to the center of Ishillia, merging with others of its kind before reaching the great lake close to the capital."

"And the other flows out from the country, heading into the League." Luna added, munching on a slice of watermelon.

"Wait…" Mikan looked at me and then at the unfinished canal. " Are you going to use it for trade?"

"That too." I smiled, "First, let's see if it works or was nothing but a tremendous waste of effort and money. Right now, its first and foremost function is to be a natural barrier. After it does its job, we can start building bridges over it, big, arching ones! So ships can sail under them."

"And when all is completed," Luna grinned, finishing her snack and wiping her mouth with her sleeve, "We can assemble a fleet and expand on our trade! We could send them down to other regions faster than going on land. Also, our ships could sail into the League's territory and maybe even further!"

"Did you read my notebook again?" I grunted, knocking on her head and making her giggle sheepishly. "Haaah, you gossip machine, always looking for a scoop. Go, become our first news reporter! But yeah, she is right. Although, those ideas she is reciting are established in the far future when an ideal outcome has already been achieved."

"How far ahead are you thinking when making plans?" Mikan asked, looking at me with a warm gaze that made me think and cross my arms.

"What if I tell you that my goal is not to defeat Ishillia? Or to become fully independent from them?"

"It isn't?" They both asked, surprised, looking at me, waiting for me to continue.

"It isn't, not really. I just want to be left alone and do my thing. If we can agree to that, I'm fine. What I want to explore is that way." I pointed towards the mountains.

"That is impossible!" Mikan protested immediately. "The strongest forces went in there, never coming back! That is a death sentence!"

"Haaah… you asked; I'm just answering!" I moaned, raising my hands. "I am not stupid to do it now. But… I can dream about it, no?"

"No." Luna answered, shaking her head, "I don't like nightmares…"

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Inside the capital of Ishillia, Duke Jauwin, an older man with black, swept-back hair decorated with silver lines, sat at his dinner table, listening to his butler recite the freshest of news.

"Send word to Marquess Opina to double their output of leatherworks to make up for their delays for the past two months. I don't care how they do it, but we need the materials before it is announced that we are preparing for another war in the South!"

"Yes, my lord." His old butler nodded, taking quick notes, watching as Jauwin reached for his goatee, stroking it while his black eyes were moving left and right, calculating.

"Reread me the last four months' reports of the amount of steel we imported and then this month's."

"Certainly, my lord."

As he quickly recited everything, flipping his binder masterfully, Jauwin continued eating, cutting down a slice of red meat, enjoying its taste while his brain memorized and calculated in real-time.

"Send a message to the Silver Regions and demand an explanation why their last shipment had 10% of its usual quantity missing. This is 7% above the previously accepted margins of error. Hikes like this don't happen without reason."

"Most certainly."

"One more thing!" He spoke up before his butler would leave to complete his task, "Look into who visited them in the past two months. Make it thorough; I want to know it." When left alone, he continued his dinner in silence, finishing it calmly and letting out a satisfied sigh. After the aftertaste was gone, he stood up with a cup of wine in hand, slowly walking before his window, looking out and watching his courtyard within the massive city. "Which one of you was brave enough to reach into my cookie jar? You thought I wouldn't notice? It is my job to supply the royal family with its needs… If you want to steal my golden egg, I am going to bleed you dry."

Right as he was watching the midnight scenery, the Kustov family was also having a similar meeting, where the Duke announced that they would prepare for their very first conflict to become even more influential among the other dukes. In a few letters exchanged with Matilda, Garbank had already bought the first shipment of steel that was being prepared to be shipped to Avalon instead of the capital.

"We tried doing it at a size that is reasonable." He explained to the rest of his family, subordinates, and everyone who held any sway and was now a little cog in the machine that was the Kustov family. "But, Duke Jauwn is known to be a control maniac. He is already sixty, yet he is still managing everything within his family, even the guard's rotation within his estate."

"We are most likely already exposed to him." Milan added, sitting right next to his father. "The Empress knows our deals and will not interfere, not until it disturbs the peace of the city or the Empire."

"We have the upper hand." Garbank smiled as he continued, "Although everyone knows that Milan is attending to the Empress, nobody is expecting the reason why. When will it be announced?"

"She didn't give me a date yet. I think she is waiting for my name to be more widespread."

"This will do it…" Garbank smiled, patting his son's back, "Because of our backing, being the royal family itself, we will not hold back. First, we will move a contingent towards the Silver Region and send them to help and protect our shares. Until we are discovered, the reason will be that they are heading toward Greyback!"

"Are we going to clash with Duke Jauwn's forces?" The leading strategist of the Kustov family asked, raising his hand at the table.

"Most likely." Garbank nodded, "Don't hesitate if we do. We will show our strength, the fact that we can stand up to even older families."

He wasn't wrong. Since Mirian sat on the throne, she has agreed to almost any requests Milan made to her, letting his family arm themselves, having not only trained soldiers but a whole mercenary guild under their control, easily matching the size of any of the dukes within the city. Now, it was time to put them to the test…

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