Chapter 90
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Translator: Prime Works
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Between Construction and Trust (2)
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The head of the royal forge.
Wells Kogidus, the dwarf master artisan, had his thick eyebrows twitching wildly.
“This is... hmm... a skeletal framework to support the weight?”
His stubborn dwarf eyes scanned the blueprint.
The drawing featured a structure even he had never seen before.
‘It looks just like a skeleton.’
Rods made of straight lines connected with one another.
Forming triangular structures that linked up in a row.
Overall, it was a setup where dozens of short rods were placed diagonally between two long parallel lines of rods, creating triangles.
The flow of force that would rest upon the structure.
The balance of the load it would bear.
True to his skill as a master artisan, Kogidus grasped the purpose of the structure in the blueprint at a glance.
“No way... this is for a bridge?”
“Yes, exactly. It’s called a truss structure.”
A smile crept onto Lloyd’s lips.
Dwarves really were artisans through and through.
Just like in the novel.
Kogidus fired off another question.
“As I thought. This way, you can support a wide span and heavy loads with minimal structure. But who designed this? Don’t tell me you have a dwarf artisan on your side too?”
“No.”
“Then?”
“I did.”
“What?”
“I designed it.”
“......”
Kogidus looked up at him, his gaze turning peculiar.
Soon, harsh words spilled from the stern artisan’s mouth.
“You’re completely insane, aren’t you?”
“Haha. You think so?”
“I do. You’re actually here to blackmail me, right?”
“......You already figured it out?”
“Of course.”
Kogidus snorted through his nose.
“No ordinary blacksmith could make this. Hell, in this workshop, no one but me could do it properly. You need the entire massive iron structure to have uniform rigidity. But if you hand it off to another artisan?”
A major disaster was inevitable, of course.
Kogidus was certain of it.
Even if the truss looked fine on the outside. Any slip-up in fabrication, and there’d be at least one spot with uneven rigidity.
But if you built a bridge based on that seemingly perfect exterior?
“It’d collapse for sure. Iron’s like that. Looks fine one moment, then snaps in an instant. That’s the scariest part.”
And if the truss snapped?
If the bridge collapsed as a result?
Dozens would die in the accident, no doubt.
“But you bring the blueprint for something like that straight to me? You think I wouldn’t get your intent?”
“No, I was hoping you’d see it just like that.”
Lloyd smiled faintly and answered calmly.
Kogidus clicked his tongue.
“You’re testing my conscience?”
“Well, if you don’t want to, no hard feelings.”
“So I can watch the disaster unfold later and suffer in regret?”
“It’s your personal choice. I won’t force you.”
“You’re not confident enough in your charm to pique my interest and land the commission?”
“Exactly. No confidence there. Why would I assume I could pull that off? That’s why.”
“Why what?”
“I figured appealing to a renowned artisan’s conscience had a higher chance of success.”
“But you can just admit it so openly?”
“You’d see through any hiding anyway.”
“Hah hah hah?”
Kogidus’s thick beard quivered.
The guy was utterly shameless.
Yet, oddly enough, it didn’t feel offensive.
It was a rare attitude among those who sought him out.
‘Most flaunt their status or try to stoke my competitive fire by asking if I can make something like this.’
The Lloyd before him today was different.
He stated his business plainly.
No flaunting status, no obvious provocations to rouse his pride.
No, he was straightforwardly emphasizing that the project could only proceed safely with his help.
In the end, after much deliberation, Kogidus made up his mind.
“Show me the other blueprints too.”
“You mean...?”
“The blueprints first.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lloyd’s hands grew busy.
He spread out the blueprints he’d brought in order.
Each one delivered a fresh shock that delighted the artisan’s eyes.
A large socket to secure the suspension bridge’s cables to the main tower.
A link-type joint device accounting for the bridge’s thermal expansion and contraction.
Flaps to dampen vibrations from riverbank winds on the bridge structure.
And countless other modules and components unfolded before him.
The renowned artisan’s eyes filled with a sense of responsibility.
Finally, he nodded.
“Alright, let’s do it.”
“Really?”
“You think I’d lie?”
Kogidus’s sharp eyes fixed on Lloyd’s face.
“Looking at your other drawings makes it even clearer. No one in this kingdom but me can make these. And if I hand it off and the bridge collapses? This isn’t just about interest—it’s a matter of conscience.”
“Thank you.”
“Thanks my ass. These are all new to me too, so I’ve got a ton of questions. Forget going home tonight.”
“I was planning on that anyway.”
Lloyd grinned and opened his backpack.
Inside were neatly packed midnight snacks, prepared just in case.
Two portions, even.
“Hah hah hah?”
He’d anticipated even this?
The guy was no ordinary fellow, that much was clear.
Kogidus’s gaze toward Lloyd shifted from interest to satisfaction.
♣
Three days passed.
Lloyd had been stuck in Kogidus’s royal forge workshop the whole time.
True to his reputation as the top artisan, Kogidus was meticulous and thorough.
Even Lloyd, the designer, was caught off guard more than once as Kogidus pinpointed overlooked details with a sharp click of his tongue, asking about principles and fabrication methods.
Lloyd had broken into a cold sweat inwardly a few times.
‘No wonder he’s a master artisan.’
Truth be told, his designs had leaned heavily on skill assistance, so minor details often slipped by easily.
He hadn’t noticed before, but facing questions from an artisan rivaling his old engineering professors made it all too real.
‘I need to put more care into my designs from now on.’
With that resolve, he finally escaped the royal forge after three days.
But that didn’t mean he could rest.
If anything, he got busier.
The real work was just beginning.
“Alright, then. Shall we get to our fun cooking time?”
Crack. Crack!
Lloyd cracked his gloved knuckles and looked ahead.
A training ground specially provided by the palace.
Piles of dirt towered there.
Today’s cooking ingredients.
‘They delivered exactly as ordered. As expected of the royals.’
Oil-mixed clay, uto.
Stone powder clay and sand.
Mashato and gravel.
Finely crushed basalt, obsidian, olivine, lapis lazuli, talc, and tin, each stacked in separate heaps.
‘Start with the uto.’
Lloyd began shoveling.
He scooped up uto, pounded it flat with the shovel, spreading it out like a one-meter-diameter pizza dough.
He layered various soils on top in sequence.
Then sprinkled on the stones like basalt and obsidian.
And served it to Bangul, who’d been waiting with a rumbling belly.
“Here you go, Bangul?”
“Bangul!”
“I made it with that recipe you told me about before.”
“Ppa-bangul!”
“Wanna try it?”
“Bangul!”
Chomp!
Bangul, now in his massive form, took a huge bite of the dirt pizza.
He chewed thoroughly and swallowed.
Then his tail shook violently.
Jingle jingle jingle!
The bell on his tail rang loudly.
Bangul raised his plump tail tip high.
And cried out.
“Bangul-!”
At that moment, Lloyd moved.
He slid a large granite tray under Bangul’s rear.
Shwaaa!
Much thinner rebar than usual shot out from Bangul’s butt.
The glowing red-hot thin rebar piled up on the granite tray.
Lloyd spun the tray in timing.
The emerging thin rebar coiled around the tray’s edge like a large spring.
Lloyd shouted.
“Fan it!”
No sooner had the cry left his mouth than wind blew from both sides.
Haviel and Julian, waiting in position, swung massive fans with all their might.
Whoosh!
The fierce wind cooled the rebar rapidly.
Its diameter was just about 5 millimeters.
More like wire than rebar.
‘Good. Looks like it came out right, at least on the surface.’
Joy flickered in Lloyd’s eyes.
Bangul had been telling the truth.
Feed him that recipe, and he’d produce thin wire.
The result lay plentifully on the granite tray, just as promised.
‘Now, let’s check if the performance holds up.’
This wire was material for the cables supporting the suspension bridge.
It absolutely needed testing for tensile strength.
‘A load cell would be perfect for this.’
Sadly, no modern gear here.
So he tested it with his own body.
“Haviel?”
“Yes.”
“Grab this.”
He handed over the freshly cooled wire, having Haviel take one end.
He gripped the other himself.
“I’m going to pull on this from now on. You have to hold steady without budging.”
“Understood.”
“But don’t pull back at all.”
“So just hold firm?”
“Yeah. Need to test exactly when it snaps under a certain force.”
Any added pull from Haviel’s side would complicate calculations.
His end as a fixed value.
Calculate based solely on his pulling force.
“Here we go.”
Grip!
He clenched the wire.
Activated one mana circle.
Used a skill option for precise force measurement.
[Asrahan Heart Method Skill Option ④: Circle Shift activated.]
‘Test in stages, so start low gear.’
Set to first gear.
The circle responded instantly.
[Alpha Circle gear set to 1st. RPM fixed at 1,000.]
Whirr!
The first circle’s RPM locked at exactly 1,000.
He channeled the amplified mana into his right arm.
Pulled the wire.
Strreeetch...!
The wire stretched taut.
It held.
‘Good. Second gear.’
[Alpha Circle gear set to 2nd. RPM fixed at 2,000.]
Creak!
The wire stretched tighter.
Still held.
He upped the gear further.
Third, fourth... At fifth gear, the wire snapped.
Twang!
‘Nice. Between 4th and 5th on a single circle. One more.’
Tests continued.
First with fixed RPM via circle shift.
Later, gradually turning off shift for finer RPM control.
This let him map Bangul’s wire tensile strength in detail.
‘Snaps between 4,600 and 4,700 RPM roughly. Convert to force... hmm, not bad?’
More than not bad.
Comparable to modern wires used in cables.
Time to make cables.
Lloyd reached into his inner pocket.
Pulled out the fantasy beast napping cozily inside.
“Hey, Podong?”
“Mumble mumble... Podong?”
“Sorry to wake you, but could you help with one thing?”
“Po-do-dong?”
“Bangul’s gonna start spinning wire soon.”
“Podong?”
“When it comes out, collect it. Once cooled, bundle it tight—about 120 strands per bundle. Like those dried noodle packs at the mart, like this.”
Lloyd picked up a stick.
Drew on the ground.
To help Podong understand.
“How about it? Can you do it?”
“Podong!”
The round head nodded vigorously.
Podong loved helping Lloyd.
A pleased smile formed on Lloyd’s lips.
“Good boy. Here, eat this first?”
“Podong!”
Crunch-!
Podong, munching red sunflower seeds, grew to 10 meters tall.
That was the signal.
Podong rubbed his hands energetically.
Bangul wiggled his butt, prepping steel poop discharge.
“Po-do-dong! Podong!”
“Ppa-bangul! Bangul!”
Cable production prep: complete.
Lloyd’s head turned smoothly.
He pointed at his preselected third worker.
“Hey.”
“Uh, y-yeah?”
Overwhelmed by the massive fantasy beasts and Lloyd commanding them freely, Julian flinched.
Lloyd’s lip curled slightly.
“I’m thinking of starting the suspension bridge main tower foundation with Haviel now.”
“Uh, yeah.”
“So I need this area clear.”
“Uh, so?”
“Mind watching the place?”
“Me? How?”
“How? Like this.”
Lloyd picked up a shovel.
Thrust it at Julian.
Thud!
Before Julian could respond, the large shovel landed in his slender arms.
“Imagine you’re grilling meat. It’s delicious. But the cooked pieces run out. Only raw stuff left on the grill. Gotta wait for more to cook. Your tasty flow’s interrupted. How’s that feel?”
“Uh, hmm, a bit anxious and annoyed, I guess.”
“Right? You get it. So here’s the thing—”
Lloyd’s smile turned meaningful.
“You. Start shoveling. Faster than Bangul eats. Exactly to recipe. Got it?”
“......”
“The dirt you shovel and move goes through Bangul into wire, then cables that hold up the whole bridge. Clear? So work hard.”
Gulp.
Julian’s throat bobbed.
The delicate young master who’d only studied quietly till now.
For the first time, he grasped the meaning of this seemingly simple shoveling Lloyd entrusted to him.
“W-Wait, hold on.”
He grabbed Lloyd, who was turning away.
It was hard to believe, so he asked.
“This is super important, right?”
“Yeah, it is.”
“And you’re giving it to me? Why?”
He was curious.
It was weird.
The guy was Lloyd Frontera.
The brother he’d hated and distrusted.
Lloyd had never trusted him either.
Every time he refused drinking together, Lloyd would snap, calling him a ‘goody-two-shoes’ and hurling curses.
So why now?
Why the serious gaze?
The gentle voice, speaking as if it were obvious.
“Because it’s important, that’s why I’m entrusting it to you.”
“......”
Unknowingly, Julian’s eyes shook wide.