Chapter 525: The Luddite Movement(4)
Chapter 525: The Luddite Movement(4)
The Luddite movement, which originally should have spread as a machine-breaking campaign, took a different turn.
Thanks to the unintended "contribution" of a demon worshiper, only the sheer effectiveness of machinery was revealed to the world.
The Minerva Empire tried its best to suppress the information, but it was futile. Once the weaver confessed, the true capabilities of the factory spread across the land.
Consequently, the Luddite movement began to transform—not into a campaign to destroy machines, but into a Machine Renaissance Movement.
[Quality doesn't matter! We need tools and goods we can use right now!]
[The 1% may use items crafted by master artisans or Dwarves, but factory-made goods are more than enough for the other 99%.]
[The mana engine was the key to solving the Great Depression. Zenon was right!]
[All that's left is expansion. We need more mana engines.]
More mana engines. More factories. More supply.
Just as magic is a nearly impossible phenomenon on Earth, the reverse was true for this world.
That massive hunk of iron moves without magic?
It produces mana on its own without a spell?
A pure machine is solving the Great Depression that even magic couldn't fix?
A single machine does the work of over a hundred people?
In the eyes of the people of this world, machinery possessed a power beyond magic; it was a force that made the impossible possible.
[We have seen the future through Blood and Iron!]
[The world of Blood and Iron is a future that can become reality, not just a fantasy. They don't even have Dwarves, let alone magic, do they?]
[Magic is a supplement, not a necessity—but machinery is different. From now on, machines will be treated as a necessity.]
As a side effect, interest in Blood and Iron skyrocketed.
The prologue of the novel had mentioned that the invention of the steam engine triggered a Machine Revolution—in other words, an Industrial Revolution.
By the standards of this world, they were standing on the precipice of their own Machine Revolution. Naturally, the world clamored for more mana engines.
[We must consider the treatment of workers. As seen in the Soviet Union and the factories of Machina, a nation can be overthrown.]
[As shown in Blood and Iron, the Machine Revolution will lead us into a new society called 'Capitalism.']
[It is good that supply increases as machines advance. However, various problems, including monsters, remain scattered...]
Of course, not everyone was singing praises. Cautious individuals did not guarantee that the Machine Revolution would only bring positive effects.
The most frequently discussed topic was the treatment of workers. Recalling that the decisive cause of the Machina revolution was the exploitation of workers, it was an issue that had to be addressed.
For now, the factories were state-run—nationalized—but as time passed, they would inevitably transition to privatization.
In other words, it was obvious that conflicts between workers and factory owners—corporations—would become frequent.
[Zenon spoke up amidst the heated debate regarding the treatment of workers: "If you do not want your country to change like the Soviet Union, look after the rights of the workers."]
[The work week shall not exceed 40 hours, and the work day shall not exceed 8 hours. A one-hour break must be provided during work.]
[If overtime work is performed for unavoidable reasons, overtime pay or additional holidays must be provided.]
[Employment of children and minors without parental consent is prohibited. However, if they have no parents, employment is possible depending on circumstances.]
[In addition to minimum wage and wage payment regulations, Zenon proposed a system for workers' rights...]
And so, I preemptively mentioned the Labor Standards Act. Here, I suppose it should be called the Labor Rights Act.
Though the society and world were different, basic rights could still be guaranteed. I only mentioned the minimum wage in passing without setting a specific figure.
The Great Depression hadn't fully receded yet, and this world's economy was vastly different from what I knew. That was something the government had to decide.
In this way, I set up a minimum 'shield' so that workers wouldn't collapse in harsh environments like they did in the factories of Machina.
Since the Machine Revolution—the Industrial Revolution—was inevitable, I could at least prevent workers from being reduced to the level of slaves.
[Machina immediately adopted the system proposed by Zenon.]
To my surprise, Machina bit the hook and institutionalized it right away.
From what I heard, Bourgeois V had exploited the factories so ruthlessly that the people didn't even know how to take a break.
They had declared Dwarven Communism, but Geas was bound to be inexperienced in administration.
Furthermore, Eins was more of a technician than a politician. Geas was likely handling all the work right now.
[Minerva Empire: Cotton textiles supplied by mana engines will show production levels higher than before the Great Depression.]
[Demand for coal begins to skyrocket. Fortunately, transportation is going smoothly, but supply is still slow.]
[Machina: The mana locomotive will hold its trial run as scheduled. The mana locomotive and the railway will clear the blocked lifelines of trade...]
In my world, the steam locomotive was invented after the Industrial Revolution began, but here, things were moving in reverse. Still, everyone went along with it since it was a positive development.
However, the hidden potential of Machina didn't end there. It was a field that both the Minerva Empire and other nations had overlooked.
That was Machina's iron-making capability—specifically, their 'metallurgy.' As mentioned before, Machina's metallurgy was evaluated to be several eras ahead of other nations.
The reason Machina's goods, especially their weapons, were of such high quality was solely due to their metallurgy. When the quality of the steel itself was different, the weapons were bound to follow suit.
The reason for this was revealed in the 'blast furnaces' used by the factories. In truth, the blast furnaces themselves weren't that different from those used by humans.
There was only one difference: the 'fuel' used in the iron industry.
And the raw material for that fuel was 'coal.'
[Minerva Empire: We put coal into the mana engine, but it won't start. Contacting Machina to see what the problem is...]
The Minerva Empire, which had been mining coal blindly, had no idea what the difference was.
For a week, they used the coal gifted by Machina, but after that, they started using their own.
However, not only did the efficiency of the mana engines drop drastically, but they even started breaking down.
Since the current climate was dominated by the praise of machinery, the Empire was deeply flustered.
Naturally, I felt the same. From my perspective, I could only wonder, What's wrong with it?
It had worked perfectly fine when they used Machina's coal.
[Machina: Just as wood is processed into charcoal, coal can be used more easily if it is processed.]
[If you don't know how, we will teach you the processing method, so use it.]
Machina coolly handed over the processing method. As it turned out, the Empire lacked the 'Coke' refining method.
I was dumbfounded when I heard that. It felt like everything was happening in the wrong order.
In my world, the sequence of the Industrial Revolution was roughly this:
The invention of coke led to an explosive increase in coal demand -> Miners had to go deeper into the shafts -> Difficulty in draining water from the shafts led to the automation of pumps -> Invention of the steam engine -> Appearance of steam locomotives and railways.
By this logic, Machina should have already surpassed the Industrial Revolution. However, their path had been blocked by Machina's geographical characteristics and social issues.
By nature, Dwarves build their villages or cities near mountains—specifically, mines. Because of this, they never felt the need for long-distance transport.
Add to that the tyranny of Bourgeois V. It was a truly deformed and unbalanced state of development.
Normally, coke processing would be a revolution within a revolution...
They had no idea how innovative the coke refining method was.
Why? Because it was something they had been using consistently. They just assumed other races used the same fuel they did.
From the Dwarves' perspective, refining coke was such an obvious technology that they never gave it a second thought.
Of course, their extreme manual dexterity played a part. Because they were so skilled, other races could never hope to keep up.
No wonder everyone just imports from them.
It was a kind of prejudice. Because the Dwarves were born that way, no one bothered to look deeper.
Since the Dwarves were naturally gifted, people didn't investigate the details.
They probably thought, Even if we try, we'll fall short of the Dwarves, so why bother?
All raw materials were handed over to Machina, and Machina supplied the finished goods at a reasonable price.
This cycle repeated until the bubble burst, leading to the Great Depression.
It really is deformed.
Even if the results of history are somewhat similar, the flow is entirely different. Strictly speaking, Machina alone was showing overwhelming scientific progress.
However, Machina also had holes here and there because they lacked basic academic foundations, much like Helium.
They could explain the principles of how a mana engine worked in words, but they couldn't explain it with a formula.
But I suppose it's only 'deformed' from my perspective.
To the people of this world, it was just the normal flow of history. It was just that a being like me had intervened.
I slowly looked through the news of the praise for machinery and the massive surge in interest for Blood and Iron.
The Great Depression would likely vanish within a month at the earliest, or three months at the latest.
Since other nations besides the Minerva Empire had announced they would adopt mana engines, that timeline would likely be moved up.
[This year's Xenon Festival will be held as scheduled. Furthermore, the serialization of Blood and Iron will return to its frequent cycle...]
It was decided that the Xenon Festival, which was almost canceled due to the Great Depression, would proceed normally.
Public opinion of me had soared, and it was enough to further inflate the growing hope.
Additionally, I planned to meet with Luminous and Mora. I would receive their apologies and resolve the lingering resentment between us.
And...
Before the Xenon Festival, there was an 'event' scheduled that, from my perspective, was very special and required immense courage.
I had been building up to this single event bit by bit, and I had even commissioned a famous 'jeweler' for the task.
Of course, I kept it strictly hidden so that my lovely fiancée, Mari, wouldn't find out. I even made Ariel keep her mouth shut, so there was no worry of being caught.
I might be caught because of Mari's ability... but she only detects lies; she can't read minds like Ariel.
I should do it on our anniversary, right?
It wasn't long until the anniversary of when Mari and I first started dating. I was so embarrassed back then.
Since it was the first time in my life planning such an event, my heart raced just thinking about it. I was worried I might need to take some herbal medicine for my nerves.
I need to rush out the chapters up to the Invasion of Poland.
To me, neither National Self-Determination nor the Invasion of Poland was the most important thing. The world would judge those on its own.
"Whew..."
I lightly tapped my chest at the mounting tension.
I shouldn't be like this already, but I didn't know how I'd react when the moment actually arrived.
Why does this feel more nerve-wracking than when I confessed my identity to the public?
It was a strange feeling.
*
Isaac released enough content for Volume 3 of Blood and Iron in the short span of a week.
It was partly to prevent the independence of Stavirk, which was bound to boil over with National Self-Determination, and partly under the pretext of releasing the long-delayed chapters all at once.
Thus, while the world became a bit noisy with talk of National Self-Determination, people began to go wild in a different sense once the full-scale 'war' began.
Above all...
[Operation T4, to make the Aryans even greater. What is the true nature of this operation?]
[In the story, it is described as an operation for the disabled and the elderly, and for the future of the Aryans.]
[Is Hitler a capable leader who can turn even the disabled into ordinary people? Or does the technology in Blood and Iron make that possible?]
[Realistically, it's impossible, so he must have prepared a powerful welfare system.]
The precursor to the Holocaust had appeared.