Hydroelectric Generator (3)
These days, even ten bodies wouldn’t be enough.
There was too much to do and nowhere near enough hands. On top of that, proper work was impossible at night—which made him resent Robon Bladewyn all over again.
Should’ve trained harder as a kid!
If he’d at least managed to form some aura, how much easier would life be? Looking at big brothers Gain and Burgess, or Wendy, they practically soared when they moved, and their stamina was absurd.
His own stamina, on the other hand, was still garbage.
“Haa… haa…”
At first, even a single lap around Bladewyn Castle had nearly killed him. Now he could somehow manage about three.
“Ugh.”
He flopped onto his back and stared up at the sky.
White clouds drifted slowly across a clear blue expanse. Back in his old life, whenever research hit a wall, he’d go up to the rooftop just like this, gaze at the sky, and sink into thought.
“Here or there—the sky’s the same.”
“Where’s ‘there’?”
“Aigoo—! You scared me!”
He’d finally stolen a moment of rest, and of course this little pest had to show up out of nowhere.
“Why so jumpy? Thinking something weird again?”
“I was not. Don’t you have training? Brother Gain trains every day. You just skip out like this and it’s fine?”
“Skip out? I’m on a short break, thank you very much. Since early morning it’s been mana reception methods, basic swordsmanship, noble etiquette… Ugh, I’m sick of it!”
Judging by her face, she wasn’t lying.
With a talent like hers, the family could hardly leave her alone.
He understood that much.
Thinking about it now… maybe it was a blessing that Robon had lived like a good-for-nothing all this time?
If he’d been Wendy… yikes. Just imagining it was terrifying.
“Keep at it. Fighting!”
“Ugh… You’re the worst. You’re just teasing me!”
“I’m not.”
“I want to roll around on the ground all day too.”
Anyone watching would think he was some idle layabout. He had been training hard and was only resting for a second. A second.
“If you hate it that much, just don’t do it.”
“I don’t want to get scolded. Ah—they’re looking for me again.”
Over there, Wendy’s personal maid was searching hard for her charge.
“Lady Wendy! You can’t just disappear like this! Sir Melten is waiting. Come along, now.”
“Yeees…”
Watching her get dragged away with her lips stuck out in a pout was exactly like watching his little brother back home sulking about having to go to academy.
Speaking of which… was that little brat doing all right? Everyone must be grieving because of him. What would people in Korea be saying? No—by now, interest had probably faded completely.
“All right!”
No point dredging up what’s already gone. There was a mountain of work waiting ahead. Better focus on that.
“Young Master! Young Master!”
Rachel came sprinting toward him, voice urgent.
“Hm?”
“Hurry! You have to come right away!”
“Why?”
“H-His Grace…!”
“His Grace? What Grace… His Grace?!”
“Yes! Grand Duke Mardin has come in person!”
Why was the Grand Duke of Mardin suddenly here? And why did that involve him?
“Please hurry!”
“Got it.”
Apparently people in this world just dropped by unannounced as a matter of course.
Well, without any real communication methods, maybe there was no choice. The lack of contact was extremely inconvenient. Hmm. He ought to consider building a receiving station later.
Clunk! Clunk! Clunk!
Every time the carriage hit the little hill road, the Black Terrahole lurched hard enough to make Grand Duke Alvin Victoria Mardin’s face twist. He climbed out and switched to a horse.
“Gilten. You take this thing.”
“Understood.”
The knight escorting him dismounted and climbed into the Black Terrahole.
The controls weren’t difficult; even knights who’d never driven one before managed it well enough.
That was one of the automobile’s advantages over horseback—no years of hard-earned skill required.
“Much better.”
If it had been his first time in a Black Terrahole, it might have been different. But after riding Ted’s Black Terrahole R1, he simply couldn’t adjust to this one.
“We’ll have to modify it soon.”
“We’ll arrive at Iron Hall shortly.”
The knight’s face was faintly flushed as he spoke.
“Having fun?”
“Not at all.”
“Heh. No wonder you’re curious. Faster than a horse, no fatigue, comfortable, and solid as well.”
Watching Gilten drive, the Grand Duke pictured his entire knight order charging in Black Terraholes.
Could an opposing knight order even stop them if they came thundering from the other side?
On impact, horses and riders alike would be wiped out in a single stroke. A charge of pure terror.
A story for the distant future, but the thought alone is pleasant.
Grand Duke Alvin had a dream.
A grand dream of breaking free of this isolated eastern landmass and building a kingdom that could stride out onto the wider continent.
“We’ve arrived.”
Iron Hall in broad daylight was livelier than expected.
He had assumed the monster rampages would leave the place tense and grim. Instead, people looked utterly at ease.
No—they looked even better than before.
“Hm?”
That was when the cylinders every territory resident seemed to be carrying caught his eye.
“Robon-001?”
He already knew what it was. The portable water purifier Robon Bladewyn had made last time.
He’d heard mass production and sales had begun, but he never imagined this many people would already own one.
Were the people of Iron Hall this wealthy?
Unable to contain his curiosity, he stopped a woman passing by.
“Y-Your Grace of Mardin! I greet you!”
The woman trembled violently and bowed her head deep.
“Raise your head. I have a question.”
“P-Please… ask anything. I’ll answer whatever you wish.”
“That. It’s something Robon Bladewyn made, correct?”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“What does it cost, that so many people all have one?”
“Five silver, Your Grace.”
“…Five silver? Truly?”
“Yes.”
He let out a hollow laugh and looked around.
It didn’t seem like a lie—not with this many residents carrying them.
But for something like this to cost a mere five silver…
“Rellic. Didn’t you estimate the price at a minimum of thirty silver?”
“Yes. The Magical Finance Department estimated as much, Your Grace.”
“…Hahahah! Hahahahaha!! Interesting. I’m glad I came today.”
He mounted his horse again. The desire to meet Robon Bladewyn burned even hotter.
“Make haste.”
“Yes.”
Lately, the way people looked at him had grown far too intense.
This very moment was a perfect example.
Say something, please.
Grand Duke Mardin stood with his arms folded, staring straight through him as if trying to bore a hole in his face.
Had he done something wrong? His face felt ready to catch fire.
“Ted. How are things in Iron Cliff Territory these days?”
“Excellent. Public order within the territory and the monster problem have both been resolved, and with the recent solution to the drinking-water issue, the residents’ satisfaction has risen considerably.”
“Bladewyn’s situation has improved quite suddenly.”
As he said it, he stared at Robon again.
Was that not a compliment?
“It’s thanks to Robon. Everything he’s developed lately has been extremely well received.”
“You must be proud of your son.”
“Yes.”
If you’re that proud, how about increasing my funding a little, Father?
He wanted to say it, but with the Grand Duke right there, he held his tongue.
“Robon Bladewyn.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Any interest in coming to Vulkan?”
“None. My apologies.”
“Quite firm. Why?”
“I’ve already built my own laboratory. And Iron Cliff Territory is better suited for research. My father supports me very generously, you see.”
As he spoke, he locked eyes with his father.
You understand what I’m saying, right, Father? I just got a recruitment offer.
“How much support are you giving him?”
“He has agreed to provide ten thousand gold annually.”
For the first time, Grand Duke Mardin was visibly shaken. Of course he was. Ten thousand gold was roughly a third of Bladewyn’s yearly budget.
“So it wasn’t that Robon Bladewyn suddenly started producing brilliant inventions. Bladewyn had been backing Robon Bladewyn from the start, was that it? Heh.”
He gave a self-deprecating chuckle and nodded.
“With Robon Bladewyn, that would make sense. Ted. I never knew your foresight was this sharp.”
“…I merely got lucky.”
“Luck is a skill. I thought I’d been investing quite a lot in Vulkan myself, but apparently not.”
He rose and looked out the window.
Even now, residents stood waiting in line outside.
“You were looking far ahead. Selling such remarkable inventions for a mere five silver—raising the residents’ quality of life and expanding the territory’s scale in earnest. Even if there’s a short-term deficit, in a few years it will return as enormous value.”
Robon’s eyes met his father’s again.
Was that your plan?
No?
They didn’t need words to know what the other was thinking. Grand Duke Mardin was thoroughly mistaken. Five silver already left plenty of profit—that was all.
“Robon Bladewyn. Can you modify my Black Terrahole?”
So that was why he’d come. Not bad. Modifying a Black Terrahole would accumulate experience either way.
“Understood, Your Grace.”
“In return, the Principality will also provide your laboratory with two thousand gold every year.”
“Truly? Thank you, Your Grace! I will serve with complete loyalty!!”
What a windfall. This was why people ought to live decently.
“In Iron Hall I saw the possibility of the future. You two are better than I am.”
“Please don’t say such things, Your Grace.”
“That’s right. It’s because Your Grace founded Vulkan that we can do what we do now.”
“Even if it’s only words, I appreciate them. I can’t leave my seat empty for long, so I should be going.”
The Grand Duke pulled on his outer coat and turned.
“Ah—and could you prepare a few Robon-001s for me? I’d like to try them myself.”
“Of course! I’ll pack plenty.”
“My thanks.”
Creak—click.
Once he was gone, Robon let out a long breath of relief. He’d been tense for no reason.
“Robon. What was that earlier?”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
“Ten thousand gold.”
“Hahahaha! That was because His Grace wanted me. If I left, who would take responsibility for our territory’s development, and my laboratory would—”
“Well done.”
“…What?”
“The territory’s finances aren’t that comfortable at the moment. So ten thousand gold may not be possible—but I’ll support you to the fullest extent I can.”
This, too, was a completely unexpected development. What had gotten into that cold man? Had the Black Terrahole R1 pleased him that much?
“Go on.”
“Yes. Thank you, Father.”
He bowed, stepped outside, and punched the air.
“Heh. Money’s pouring in.”
Come to think of it, he’d meant to visit Vulkan but never found the time.
I wonder how the crossbow development is going.
He’d ended up making one almost by accident, but Aunt Sophia had seemed intent on developing spring-based weapons herself.
Building another Black Terrahole and preparing everything else would keep him frantically busy.
“Better get back to research.”
A few more days passed.
Word arrived that Robel’s large-scale subjugation force, now backed by Principality support, had headed for Lostwood once again.
This time a full knight order from the Principality had gone with them, so the casualties shouldn’t be as bad as before, right?
In truth, he had no room to spare them any attention. Completing the hydroelectric generator he was building right now was more than enough work for two bodies.
“Waterwheel size and bucket size are good enough like this, waterproof coating on the gears and shaft is done…”
“Now we just need to finish the generator.”
“The generator’s almost done too. We only need to coat the coils.”
“But is that coating really necessary?”
“If we skip it, the wires can touch and short, current leaks, and efficiency drops. Worst of all, if it overheats, it’s game over.”
Ordinarily he would have used enamel coating, but that was realistically impossible here. There was no way to obtain enamel.
So he’d substituted rubber.
Natural rubber harvested from rubber trees was dissolved in water to adjust the viscosity, then coated onto thinly drawn copper wire. Done.
Efficiency would drop a little, but it was a workable substitute. Cooling technology and magical treatment would have to make up the rest.
The sun was already sinking. He was just thinking of wrapping up for the day when—
Clop! Clop! Clop!
—the last materials he’d requested arrived right on time.
Old master blacksmith Amos climbed down from the carriage and handed over a massive electromagnet.
“I did everything exactly as you said.”
“Thanks. But why come yourself? You could’ve sent someone.”
“What if the idiot carrying it broke the thing by accident? I don’t want to do this annoying job twice, you brat!”
“Perfect timing, then. Since you’re here, you should stay and watch.”
With this last component—the electromagnet—he could finally run the generator.
He assembled the motor at once, fixed it to the waterwheel, and linked them with a chain.
ROOOOOAAAAAAR!!
The waterfall’s fierce torrent spun the waterwheel like a mill wheel, and the spinning waterwheel turned the motor to produce electricity.
It was a spectacle in itself.
“Heh heh heh heh. Take a look! This is electricity made by the generator!”
Simple light bulbs—thin iron wire sealed in glass.
He set them into wooden posts he’d prepared nearby and connected the generator’s lines.
Click! Clack-clack-clack-clack!
One after another, the bulbs in the row flared to life, flooding the surroundings with light.
Even as the sun set and darkness slowly closed in, the area around the waterfall pushed that darkness back.
The waterfall shining alone in the dark was a vista neither of the other two had ever imagined.
“…What is this?”
“To think it could… truly create light… Haa. I can scarcely believe it.”
Both men stood frozen, expressions blank with awe.
They simply couldn’t look away, wanting to burn the beautiful, wondrous scene deep into their eyes.
Watching the two of them, Robon spoke quietly.
“From now on, for Bladewyn, night is no longer something we have to flee from.”