“No, no, you don’t have to use steel for the engine, normal wrought iron will do just fine in almost all but the smallest parts.”
I was drinking tea with Mary. She had come in the morning, claiming that in her thirst for knowledge she wanted to learn from me. Not that it did matter much to me, since teaching one and teaching 2 wasn’t all that different. Now, we were waiting for my other student, while I filled her in some of what I had taught the other one.
“Oh, that would decrease the costs greatly indeed. But manufacturing will still be hard, I don’t think even a class 3 smith will be able to manufacture it. And grandmaster smith’s time is quite valuable, which will increase the cost of manufacturing.”
A smile was more valuable than an answer here, yet, I spoke.
“You are right, if not for 2 points. First, the one I showed yesterday had been overdesigned, to be able to do many things. Usually, steam engines are made for specific needs, reducing the number of parts necessary. Second, with it, steam power also brings new methods of manufacture, making it much easier to create one.”
There was a minute of silence between us. I asked a question, after wetting my lips with the tea.
“So. Who are you, actually? You didn’t expect anyone to believe that little story, did you?”
I have to give credit where it’s due. She did a lot to hide her panic. Her ears didn’t move, neither did her face change. If not for her pulse shooting through the roof, I would have started to question whether I was right or wrong.
“What do you mean by that?” She said, right before taking a swig from her cup.
“No one actually bought your lies, you see. A daughter of merchant reaching Tier 3, at this age? In this backwaters of the world? It might be possible, but add in the guards and you manners, it’s not likely. We had an extended meeting after you left yesterday. There are some theories floating around.”
“Oh, what would they might be? It’s rather amusing that they doubt me, yet I am also curious.”
“That you are daughter of a noble and that you father died, so you are seeking refuge. Some also think that you are indeed a daughter of a merchant, but from the duchy, not the counties.”
“Creative indeed. But regrettably they ar-” I cut her off, before she could continue.
“Before you lie once again, I have to say, I can tell when you lie around me. I know that your father is some kind of noble, yet he lives. I also know that he is not from the Duchy. I can’t tell whether you said the complete truth or not, but lies, I can. But I am not stupid, young lady, when you said you wanted to learn, it was truth, you do want knowledge and power. But that’s not all is it? I know you also want something else from me.”
It took her 5 minutes to answer. Entire time, she had lost control of ears. Her ears were going up and down from panic, and they were going red, as if she was overheating.
“I guess there would be no harm in telling you. You do not seem like the type of men who doesn’t know when to shut his mouth. Even better, I don’t think you have the need to blackmail me with it. My real name is Silva, Silva Laverna. Daughter of Naevius Laverna, granddaughter of the late king Jorma Laverna.”
Oh? We have a real princess in our hands. Now, we only lacked the white knight in the shining armor. Or, does she still count as a princess if the kingdom is no more?
“I am afraid we will have to cut this matter short, Princess Silva. Brian is about to arrive.”
It seems like I had touched a sensitive area with that title, as she threw me a sharp glance.
When Brian came in, he stood at the door for a second, as his sleepy eyes got glued to her. Indeed, she was pretty, but I don’t think that was why his eyes got stuck on her. She was average for an elf, at 185 centimeters. Her eyes were brown, with just a hint of blue. Her short hair was also somewhat blue toward the edges, starting as bright yellow. Small nose, large eyes, the whole ‘observe me and worship’ look. But it was nothing I hadn’t seen before. From the end of 22nd century, where genetic modifications became almost mandatory, humanity had been doing wacky things with their bodies. And it was fully legal to do anything that you could imagine, as long as you didn’t touch the sperm line, where it could affect your offspring. Woman just as beautiful as her was common place during my time.
“All right, Brian, sit down, would you. Today we were supposed to talk about steam governors, but since Mary doesn’t know enough about the engine, I have decided to change the subject. But before that, what happened to you? Your eyes are about to sown shut.”
He struggled to keep his eyes on me.
“It’s the book you had me give to Larysa. She had been screaming all night long, ‘how is this possible?!’ or ‘what about magic?!’. I don’t think anyone living close to her potionery managed to get a good sleep.”
I had given her a simple chemistry book, designed for children, alongside bunch of necessary equipments. Even then, I had to cut or replace huge swaths of it, as some concepts such as electricity were going to make her even more confused. She had enough on her plate as is. Just like I was training Brian to do the future engineering work, I wanted her to do the chemistry part. There were going to be a lot of need for chemicals when we managed to kick start the manufacturing. Sodium carbonate, sulfuric acid, calcium hypochlorite and many more. This list didn’t even include the chemicals needed for making gunpowder or primer.
The hardest part, for me, was to learn the written language. But my fears were for naught, as the alphabet turned out to be a simple one. 44 different syllables, each for a different vowel. As simple as that. It had taken Jesse less than a second after that to translate it.
“In a sense, it would have been weirder if she hadn’t done that. Anyway, to make it easier for me, please do tell me, what do you burn to melt the iron when you refine it?”
“We use charcoal, sir. Wood doesn’t get hot enough, and the normal coal makes the iron brittle.”
“Indeed, it does. That’s one part of the lesson today. Do you remember the molecular theory?”
The man was a smith by trade, so he had good enough understanding of nature of metals. But that didn’t make him a genius. Thus, I had decided to take it slow when it came to atomic theory, and dumb down concepts.
Just as he was nodding to show his response, Mary, or rather Silva, cut in.
“I am afraid that you will have to explain it to me too.”
“Hmm… It is hard to explain in detail, and not even a week would be enough. Short story is, things are made out of small thing called atoms, so small it can’t be divided. The thing is, they like to stick to each other sometimes, creating more complicated matters. For example, to make Steel from Iron you need to add Coal, right? The coal particles, when hot enough, interact with Iron atoms, and you have steel.”
Granted, it was not a good example, as in this case, carbon did not interact with iron, rather got stuck in the bonds of the iron molecules. But this was the simplest way that I could think of to explain it.
“Similarly coal itself doesn’t only have carbon atoms, which is the part that burns when lit. It also contain Sulfur. When added to Iron, it interacts with it, turning it weaker.”
“I see. Is there any methods to eradicate this ‘Sulfur’ thing you talk of?”
“Of course there is. It would be a short talk otherwise, wouldn’t it? Brian, as you know, when you melt iron, impurities rise to surface as slag. What we have to do is to force sulfur into the slag. For that, we need limestone.”
“Limestone, sir? I can’t say I have heard of it.”
“I am getting there. Have you seen the white rocks near the oceans? I think there should be some near the lake, too.” I helped myself to some water, as I listened Brian talk. Silva was listening from the side, muddled, as if she couldn’t understand half of what was said.
“Yes, there are some white rocks near the lake, but they are deemed useless. They are too brittle to make anything out of them.”
“That’s where you are mistaken. They are one of the most useful of materials. They are not only useful to make wrought iron and steel, but they are also needed for something else. That something is the topic of today’s lesson. Cement.”
There was puzzlement on both of their eyes, or rather, ears.
“Cement is a construction material. When you add water to it, it hardens until it’s as hard as rock.”
That’s what I was looking for. Disbelief, suspicion and surprise, all packaged into one facial expression.
“Look, I have some right here to prove you.”
I lifted a box from ground, where I had hid it, to the table. From it, I took the premade powders and water.
“This is the cement powder. It’s made by calcinating limestone powder and clay powder together. This is iron shavings, as Brian should be familiar. It’s often used alongside sand to make it stronger. All you have to do is to mix them together with water, and wait for it to set. It should be pliable for 2 hours, and should fully set in 2 to 3 days.”
“Calcinating?”
“That means you have to burn it to a high temperature in an enclosed space. That is the reason I had not told you about it, as without steam engine pushing air into the furnace, which you are going to build, it would be impossible to reach high enough temperatures.”
“Sir, what do you mean by me building it?”
His ears rose as high as it could, an expression I have taken to mean surprise.
“You don’t expect me to do it, do you? I will show you the limestone mine, but making charcoal, building the furnace, mining limestone, dragging along clay, crushing them, calcinating them and transporting it back will fall to you and anyone you manage to muster. Believe me, in the end, it will be much faster than processing all that lumber into planks for the houses. In good news, its right next to river, downstream, so you should be able to reach it in 4 hours by boat.”
And thanks for the chapter!
it will be much than processing all that lumber to planks for the houses
much better than
Great chapter as always!
Good to see our MC showing the elves the path to innovation.
Or the destruction of their species just so he could have a few luxuries
@Fafulin Intriguing that you would put it like that.
In what way would it instigate their destruction?
@Alphafi Same reason as the prime directive kinda. There would be two ways of destruction and my English not strong enough to articulate both. One would be the actual physical death of the elves the other is spiritual death. If a culture and everything they were was gone would they still be them. Kinda like say Han moving in mass to Tibet and the Tibetian being force relocated until they are gone. With no more would there still be a Tibetian people. We also saw this with many aboriginal tribes in Autralia/ the US well anywhere a technologically advanced civilization finds one thats not. In the movie The Day the Earth stood still (the one with Keanu Reeves not the original) there is a great speech that I cant find where Kathy Bates ended it by saying then comes the flood. The way it seems now is that the author is going to try to institute some thing against monarchies to a democracy via tech, like gunpowder weapons for the masses...then you either get the French revolution (which did not work out well for anyone) or some form of MADD. MADD can only work when you have one world. When it's you may destroy is but you win nothing and you will die to and even if you dont die you will rule rubble. But when off world is a option then You can kill as you see fit and leave the planet who gives a fig of whats left. Or you get a arms race the citizens try to keep the tech advantage VS the monarchies trying to gain it. The first rule of war is always assume whatever you have to use against you enemy is what they also have to use against you. Just feel like Lloyd is doing this not because he should but because he can and has not thought of the ramifications past his desire for toilet paper.
@Fafulin That is one hell of a compelling argument.
However let me just add one thought:
Would it not be worth it, for the principal reason that mana and magic is hindering their technological and social advancement?
In their world, technology has been put aside due to the omnipresence of magic.
With no reason to innovate, and with an elitist society controlling the majority, they are stuck in a cycle of stagnation.
A repeat of civil wars, constant banditry and monster hordes only await them.
However by introducing modern concepts (even if it means the gradual replacement of their original societal values), would it not guarantee a more peaceful and safer outcome for all?
The cycle of deaths caused due to noble bickering, pillaging and civil wars would be terminated.
In the end, would it not be kinder to show them an alternative even if it means changing them into something different?
@Alphafi Thats one of the winners write the history book questions. Every invader from every royalty ever oligarch and leader who sees a "backward" or "uncivilized" populace has said the same thing. Ohh they will be better under our ways our stewardship. Maybe they were but we never know because who they were was killed off with a assimilate or die ethos. Lloyd does not even have that ambition where we can look at him as a anti hero or some such, he is just selfish. Kinda like a Child with a new toy or a kid that decides to play with that AI that gas started a glactic war.
So your question becomes wouldn't it be kinder to civilize them, because we can see even in this reality of Llyods world how that ended wars and hunger and cronyism...why did he get sent to the end of the Galaxy again?
@Alphafi I have been reading this thread, and I find it fascinating. There are point that in both arguments that I agree. Yes, Lloyd has not thought of ramifications of his actions, and no, this world does not need industrialization to advance. Also, in this world, where strength of individuals can and does equal to million ordinary lives, you can’t just say noble=bad.
And lastly, I would like to point out that neither the moral evolution of our society (French revolution), nor the technological evolution led to an immediate betterment of the world. Even today, at the early 21st century we can’t say we are not heading to a dystopian world.
In this novel, actions of Lloyd was never done out of purity of his heart. He is a mercenary from a technocratic society, and you can’t expect him to act like Gandhi.
@Monk_Origins Wow a response from the author. Thank you very much, it says a lot to me about you that you actually care what others are thinking about your work.
One thing I think that Lloyd has going for him is that he can easily look back historically and think no one else in my position would not do what I have done if not vastly worse, but by the same token he should be able to look back and see how that has ended almost every time. He says how he wants luxuries because he will be alive for several hundred years, but again open revolt can shorten his lifespan dramatically.
Also how does he think these people can transition through to some sort of democratic rule within a generation when that has never happened historically either?
@Fafulin First, you have to note that he is a man form 23rd century technocracy. For him, constant advancement of society by any means is not only normal, but a necessity. Also, as you put it, he is basically a child with toys. He does not care much about guiding a foreign culture away from its natural path.
As for your question, he does not. He has explained the princess, who he thinks is the most likely person to act as a leader post industrial revolution world, what its consequences might be. What Lloyd did was warn her, not give her a guide of what to do. He, as a member of different race won’t interfere with elven politics. He will leave all the politicking to Silva, who is trying to wrestle out of political destiny that has fallen on her shoulders.
Does he think of how the society will react to changes? No. In his eyes, does he have to? Also No.
@Fafulin Gotta hand it to ya. You make a good counter argument.
The world still has its quirks and demons.
@Fafulin Indeed, the abrupt change to democracy might not end well. But what choice do they have now?
The fact that Lloyd is able to arrive in this world has opened the gates to the possibility of other humans arriving as well (Either accidental or deliberate)
In this case, they'll need to westernize rapidly or end up with the same fate as the indians.
@Alphafi That is a great point so i guess the question is did that worm hole send him somewhere, or did he not enter the wormhole and the planet was just hidden. If the planet is just hidden is his ship sending out a distress signal to let's say a worried family member who just so happens to be in charge of a mercenary unit. Since he has run off with the AI maybe said family member trades this location to the powers that be to smooth things over.
My answer to that would be this though, it wont be Vietnam or Afghanistan where some poor farmers with outdated weapons try to hold a stronger military force. No unless the offworlders came to conquer it would be genocide. They would come with the idea that the land is important the elves are not. Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor said it best when he said land is the only thing they are not making any more of. I doubt that LLoyd could get the elves ready to fight a intergalactic battle in even his life time and with the way the author has put his mentality even if he could would he bother.
@Fafulin It would indeed be a colossal hassle.
We'll have to wait and see how he feels after living in this world for some time.
@Alphafi It kept on my mind so I looked and looked and finally found the speech from that movie. This is from the day the earth stood still
Regina Jackson: History has lessons to teach us about first encounters between civilizations. As a rule the less advanced civilization is either exterminated or enslaved. I'm thinking of Pizarro and the Incans, Columbus and the Native Americans, and the list goes on. Unfortunately in this case, the less advanced civilization is us.
Michael Granier: This is the representative of an extra-terrestrial civilization. This is the most important discovery in the history of Mankind!
Regina Jackson: It may well be the last discovery in the history of Mankind.