Chapter 30: Starting the Agricultural Revolution
A group of 14 carriages could be seen advancing trough an almost forgotten road southwards towards a very fertile valley that currently is labeled as "The Bread Backet of the Southern Regions" Rumors say that it's impossible to find any plate in the southern half of the kingdom that doesn't have anything coming from there. The large group is heading there with a mission, to ensure that it's not just the breadbasket of the south, but of the entire kingdom, for that they are carrying a very important and heavy cargo.
Central Valley: 07:25 hrs. 25/11/1538
Finally, the group had arrived at their destination, the northern most village amongst the many that dot the vast valley.
In the village another much smaller group had already arrived long ago and had laid the iron road though had run out of iron to continue long ago and where focused instead in building other things. The iron road as far as they could tell headed north stirring clear from the river that carved the valley millennia ago.
The leader of the group met the townsfolk and as agreed they all aided him in unloading the material and would then hear him out as the rest of the men assembled what they had brought.
Central Valley: 15:00 hrs. 27/11/1538
The men had finally finished assembling the two machines that they had brought and where now going doing the final tests to ensure that they work as intended. Meanwhile the leader of those men rallied up the townsfolk to instruct them further.
"As of now only those four men over there will be allowed to conduct these machines and be aboard them as they move" The man told as he pointed at the four men atop the machines.
"But what if they are going somewhere we don't want them to?" A lady asked.
"We will discuss the places the machines will work at in detail before they even get fired up." He replied.
"Will the machines start working today?" A man asked concerned that they might be left with a poor harvest if they keep wasting time in unproven concepts.
"Hopefully, but if not they will be hard at work by tomorrow at most." The man promised.
"So, all we do is just stand on top of plows and the machine does the rest? Are you sure they can pull ten plows trough the soil?" Another man asked skeptical about this endeavor.
"Yes, it may sound too easy to be true, but it is true." The man reassured confident since he had seen the same machine pull 20 plows with ease.
Suddenly a loud whistle interrupted them signaling that the machines where ready to work.
"Alright, the machines are ready to go, everyone get on the plows and we will get to work!" The man yelled getting everyone yearning to see how the machines work.
All of the people that where to stand on a plow where in position. They all started to jump up and down on their plows to get them into the soil. Everyone eventually succeeded and signaled that they were ready, a few hand gestures were all that was needed for the almost deaf drivers to start moving their machines across the field.
Each of the machines was pulling ten plows, despite them knowing that they could pull twenty, they choose caution and to not risk any break down since they lacked spare parts, and they would take a good time to arrive if they asked for any.
As the machines pulled the chains they lifted off the ground, eventually pulling the plows that then turned the soil. The townsfolks where left speechless after a few meters as they looked around, 'A weeks work has already been done' an elder man thought in disbelief as they passed a group of farmers that had been hard at work for a whole week.
"Remember, work smarter not harder! These should allow you to cover these entire fields in grain in no time!" The man told them as he walked beside the plows.
"Does this machine have a name?!" A young man asked him.
"As far as I know it doesn't. Why?" The man inquired.
"Can we call it Imelda? My favorite donkey is called Imelda and this is a…steam donkey!" The young man replied.
"We can hold a name contest once we are done for the day. But steam donkey might just be the name for these types of machines." The leader of the caravan reassured the young man as he waved them off to attend other matters.
16:00 hrs
The leader entered a small house that they would use for the next few weeks and one his men ran up to him.
"Sir…we have an issue." The man said handing him a letter from the whaler HQ.
"I hope it's not too bad." He replied as he started to read the letter.
A few moments later and his eyes finish following the works. He calmly leaves the letter on a nearby table and asked one of the drivers. "Where there any forest on the way here?"
"Quite a few actually, but none are nearby." The driver replied.
"How far is the closest one." He inquired.
"Hmmm…three…maybe four days heading back on the road." The driver replied.
"To far, one they finish plowing for the day it ask the leader if there is a forest anywhere close. Meanwhile finish unloading and prepare one carriage…" He stopped to write something down behind the letter. "Here are the details for that one carriage." The leader handed the driver the letter that now had his details.
"We'll have it ready by nightfall." The driver affirmed as he exited.
"Why do we need to find a forest at all?" One of the other men asked intrigued.
"Because the railway will be delayed, by a lot according to that letter." The leader replied, searching for any maps they have.
"Shouldn't we be digging for coal then?" A second man asked.
"Why do we want coal for? Can't we just ask for more?" The first man asked.
"It'll take too long for the coal to arrive, longer than the rails will take to arrive even with their delay and no we won't waist time digging if we don't even know where to start and we need a forest for fuel. Maybe we can just burn the wood as is or turn it into charcoal." The leader clarified, still searching for any useful map.
21:00 hrs.
The sun was finally setting, the machines gone silent their work clear for all to see. What all the village could plow in a month had been done in a day and next day would be the same.
"So, the only forest is the one we saw?" The leader asked hoping he heard wrong.
"It is, so deal with it. By the way what is the delay you speak of and just how badly will it affect these…steam donkeys?" A proud lady answered and inquired.
"We have enough coal for three more days of work, we will plow tomorrow and then it will take a day to install and adjust the seed drills, then we will use the last of our coal to seed the fields we have plowed." The leader of the whalers informed the lady that was de facto leader of the townsfolk.
"That's great, I was worried you would leave us to sow the fields all by ourselves. I will see if we can get any volunteers for your tree cutting plans." The lady replied rather happy with his answer.
Central Valley: 3:00 hrs. 30/11/1538
The night had fallen long ago on this world, fresh it felt as did the men that where working on the new tail of the metal monster.
"Turn that screw two more times!" A man told his assistant.
"Stop! Make a quarter of a turn back!" Another man yelled at his assistant.
"Does it have to be so perfect?" One of the assistants asked drowsy.
"Typically it doesn't, not if we had brought the plows from Macragge. All the mixture of different handmade plows makes a mess of a field if you ask me and we have to compensate here." One of the men answered the assistant's question.
"It's been 5 hours. This should have been a two-hour job." Another assistant complained.
"It will take as long as it needs to be ready so stop complaining." Another man stated not wanting to be reminded of just how grueling the work had been that day.
6:10 hrs.
(AN: This is based on regular sunrise in my country during summertime that from what I hear is using a time zone that doesn't correspond with our region or something like that. In case the time feels off for any of my readers.)
Sunlight flooded the valley peering though the windows and waking up the residents who set up to start the day as soon as possible. The light bathed the turned ground and the few crops that had been sown before the arrival of the machines, but the machines themselves where nowhere to be seen. Hidden from the moisture brought by the night in warehouses they where finally ready for another day's work.
6:30 hrs.
The residents of the town had finished breakfast and gathered near the Steam Donkeys. They had heard that today they could just watch, except for those picked to learn how to use the machines. The people where curious since they spent all of the day yesterday pouring seeds into a hopper for the machines that would sow the fields all alone without needing them to provide their weight.
The machines where already smoking when the people arrived and the drivers tried to see if they would move, they didn't a clear indication that it still needed to warm up further.
The leader watched from afar as he ate breakfast alone.
"And to think that we barely got them ready in time." He laughs to himself taking a price of bread to his mouth.
"Is that so?" The proud lady startled him making almost choke on his food.
"Don't scare me like that please and yes, we only finished adjusting an hour ago." He replied.
"I didn't mean to scare. Anyways you delivered on your promise-" She said.
"The whalers promise." He cut her off.
"Yes, the whalers. Regardless, I have something that might help your plight with the coal." She finished.
"You have? Like now?" The man asked intrigued since the logging operation wasn't really working out.
"I do, I bring these." She delicately places a bag on the table. "Firestones. All you need is a source of heat and these can provide it." She stated confidently.
"I can't use these. They are dangerous and might ruin the machines." The man stated somewhat letdown by the outcome.
"Sure, a bag is dangerous, but just use one." She said as she got one out of bag and placed an artifact on the table the man was eating on.
The artifact looked like a candle holder, but it had a weird protrusion on the side near the base that made it continue above the place where the candle could be in with a needle pointing right at it.
"This is a traditional lamp made on this valley. Meant to illuminate the night and ward any intruders since we don't really have to worry about witch beasts that could be attracted by its mana here and also the hazard that traditional candles represent to dry crops." She explained as she placed the firestone where the candle could be in and turning a screw pushed the needle closer to the stone. She then pulled a string that was at the base and something sounded as if it was being wounded up. She released the string and the stone started to slowly spin, as the needled was dragged on the surface it gave off light as well as some heat.
"So, this is safer than a candle?" The man asked exited.
"It is and using this screw it can be made to expel more mana and with it more heat. Maby enough for your machines." The lady replied proud of her display.
"This might just be it…but we will still use coal tomorrow. We will see just how safe and how much heat these can expel today and tomorrow though." He replied containing his excitement.
"By the way these are expensive. Since they are so finely crafted very few can be made and only in the largest towns further south. This one has forty years within my family and more without it so don't break it." She warned dryly.
"In that case we are better off buying other ones that don't mean as much to you." The man said confident that no matter how expensive they where the whaler's pockets could withstand it.
"They cost 30 holy coins each. They are cheaper if they are used and they aren't available always since they take so long to make." The lady objected.
"We have two days to send people to all nearby towns and the pockets to buy a few of them if that is the price. So, worry not." The man explained as he started to wright on his accounting book to justify his retrieval of money and then the use of said money.
"Just how much money did they sent you with?" She asked curious.
"That's a secret, the word they use is…classified or something like that." He said writing on his book.
The lady looked at it and accidently read the number of holy coins they had been sent with. She couldn't believe it but managed to keep her stern face.
"I bet not even your men know." She let out trying to forget the information she just saw aware of just much trouble it could bring them.
"They don't, so promise me you won't tell anyone. We have to go great length to protect it." The man stated having realized his mistake and hoping that there will be no need to silence the woman.
"I promise. I know what has to be done to protect just a fraction of that money. Let's forget this ever happened." She replied.
"It will be our little secret." The man finished as he closed his accounting book and waved off the lady enjoying the view of the artifact glad and that no one had be hurt and hopeful that he may have a good promotion due to the knowledge the lady gifted him.
"Of course I have to eventually repay my favor. If it works." He told himself as he wondered on ways to make the town more important and richer in the future.
Railway Works Heading Towards the Central Valley: 11:00 hrs. 01/12/1536.
The railway works had advanced fast in their direction south, the rail constructers having gained significant experience and insight in their past projects now faced down for a week already the most difficult obstacle yet. A large mountain who's rocks where much harder than expected and was immediately followed by a ravine caused by a fight that had taken place who knows how many centuries prior.
It didn't appear in any maps since they were so far from any road or village that no one had ever really mapped the area. Whoever's map they were using they eighter decided to fill it in with forest like its surroundings or attempted to map correctly and got devoured by Mabeasts and the map was later filled in by someone else. Eighter way it was wrong and the workers now faced an unenviable situation.
Their camp was about 400 meters away from the base of the mountain where the railway ended. A hole would be seen where the tunnel was supposed to be. But it was shallow having hit some incredibly hard rock they had carefully drilled some small holes into it for the past week and stuck firestones into them.
"It's time! Blast it!" The general manager yelled hiding behind a huge rock.
"Goa!" Casted one of the workers into the tunnel and launched himself behind the rock his manager was at.
¡BOOM!
An explosion was heard as large chinks of rocks started to rain, followed by a dense cloud of dust. All the workers hid behind the cover they had chosen or made in the past days holding tight to their helmets.
11:12 hrs.
The dust had finally started to settle and the workers could see enough to move again confidently, some started to pick up equipment, other cleared the way and a small group went straight to the tunnel to assess their progress.
"We have advances…though the mark we left to measure is no more." One worker noticed.
"It was significant, but this damned rock continues through the whole mountain probably." The manager noticed looking though the ruble.
"For the next explosion we are going to have to stand even further away, that was quite uncomfortable." The lead manager stated in awe of the power of firestones.
"Not to mention unsafe it's a miracle that no one was wounded or worse." The local manager stated.
"Clean this, get drilling and ready another charge as soon as possible, I'll bring someone to measure our progress soon." The lead manager stated as he left back to the camp.
Macragge: 19:40 hrs. 03/12/1538
Emilia had given Subaru his instruction to go to Priestella soon with Otto. She had faith that her knight would bring the desired result but sent him with someone that could ensure the optimal result. She was thinking about what to get her knight for the new year as she opened another letter, she as so many times before stopped her train of thought to submerge in the letter.
'So, 20 days to go through the mountain and then 6 more to reach the town where they are doing the farming stuff?' Emilia thought confused. 'Why did they send me this? It's clearly for Subaru or some other administrator.' She wondered. 'Maybe they are inflexible and wouldn't allow a delay?' She pondered as she thought about the response she would write. "They should just take as much time as they need to do a good job!" She said aloud starting to write her letter completely unaware that another copy of it was also delivered to Subaru who also wrote pretty much the same response.
Central Valley: 8:00 hrs. 05/12/1538
The steam donkeys where slowly crawling across the fields no longer powered by coal or wood or any combustible fuel. But by firestones. The leader of the company delegation knew that the 'Big Boss.' Would disapprove of his decision but then again what other option did he have? Leave the fields unworked and break the deal they had struck launching a free village into bankruptcy and into the arm of the of one of the lords that ruled the valley? That was not acceptable, those lords all saw their machines and company as a threat to their power and would in time confront them for every meter of farmland if given the chance. For now, they need not know what they were doing.
The lady that led the village visited the leader of the group as she now accustomed to do every morning. She gave suggestions in where to go plow next and on changes that could be made to the machines suggested to her by fellow townsfolks. This time though she came to warn.
"Tomorrow you will have to store the machines and your men all day." She said somewhat nervous because she knew just how much work won't be done because of this stupid incident.
"Why?" The man asked concerned since he hasn't seen her nervous so far.
"Some of the local lords have denounced that we haven't been working on the fields in the past months and that we may be incapable of paying the land tax to the lord administrator. Who will come tomorrow to personally see if it's true and with all the necessary paperwork to 'File Bankruptcy and file for protection of the nearby lords' or basically subjugate us. And I do not want him or any other lord to see those machines." The lady explained.
"Because he will raise taxed by a lot…" The man concluded.
"Or he could declare them as damaging to the land and have all hung for instigating a famine." She stated knowing that it their favorite way of keeping thing just the way the want them to.
"That…is way worse." The man realized.
Next Chapter: The Lord Administrator
(AN: ¡Enjoy!)