Sword of Dawnbreaker

Chapter 572 - 571: Pioneering

Inside a manor south of Carol City, the once-warehouse barn was brilliantly lit.

This was the property of the great merchant Kode. The barn and several surrounding houses used to be warehouses for storing feed for horse teams and temporarily handling goods, but since the start of spring this year, the warehouse had changed its purpose. The merchant purchased five Magic-guided Vehicles in one go, forming a new fleet, immediately reducing the original horse-drawn carts by half. The remaining ones were allocated to itinerant merchants in the countryside, which led to a decrease in the demand for feed. The old warehouses were thus transformed into new facilities — workshops and laboratories.

Kode, dressed in a light coat with meticulously combed hair, walked into the barn. The Magic crystal lamps hanging from the roof shed bright light, making the interior as bright as day. The expansive space inside the barn was divided into several zones by chest-high low walls. Newly acquired simple machinery buzzing joyfully in each zone, the sound of metal parts clashing and the hum of magical mechanisms mixed with the peculiar smell of lubricating grease — the merchant passed through this cacophony and aromas, directly reaching an enclosure at the end of the aisle.

Several young people in short robes were busy at the workbench. Seeing Kode appear, they all turned around to greet him, but Kode quickly waved his hand: "No need to be formal — just carry on with your work."

The young people returned to their previous tasks while Kode stood by the workbench, watching them bustle around.

These individuals were Mage apprentices and rune craftsmen recruited at high prices — apprentices and craftsmen were not inherently expensive employees, but having undergone further studies at the academy sponsored by the Administrative Office and earned Mage Technician Certificates, their value had significantly increased.

Employing these people was costly, but from the merchant’s perspective, their contributions were worth every penny.

On the workbench, a formerly complete ancient magical device had been disassembled into a pile of parts. Several rune triggers and a series of control, power supply, and linkage mechanisms were neatly laid out, each component labeled with its function. On one side of the workbench laid a heap of papers and scrolls densely packed with formulas and records — so overwhelming that an ordinary person might faint just by glancing at them.

"Sir, we have completely dismantled the M-2 model universal Magic Transmission Terminal and understood the function of all the rune triggers," a young Mage Technician with messy short hair reported to Kode, "We’re currently calculating the power and interference coefficient of the Ice Cone Technique Plate within according to rune logic. We believe that with proper adjustment to its projection area and adding a well-insulated container, creating a food-preserving device is entirely feasible..."

"Very good, very good," Kode nodded repeatedly, "Are there any difficulties?"

Another young person spoke up: "We need a more stable magic power source — the previous Magic Web Units were all second-hand, some even starting to malfunction, which makes them unusable."

"Rest assured, I’ve already sent Pal to purchase new Magic Web Units, this time not used ones, but brand new."

"Then there’s no problem."

The technical staff returned to their work while Kode continued standing by the workbench, observing them busily work around the array of runes, papers, and formulas.

He could only understand a small part, yet it did not stop him from being absorbed in it.

Since winter, the attempt to advertise the local specialties of Carol City had already achieved great success. Local merchants, after tasting the benefits, became supporters of the magical industry and its by-products. His newly founded "Kode Household Service Company" this spring was his second endeavor in this new era.

It seems this attempt will also achieve great success.

The emergence of the magical industry has transformed the means of production, and as a successful businessman, Kode saw more than just a change in production methods in the spread of the magical industry. After acquiring his first Magic-guided Vehicle and personally experiencing the power and efficiency of such a vehicle, he realized its incredible utility — for an ordinary person, someone like him, to control a mighty machine with a simple pull of the levers, how unimaginable!

For Kode, purchasing Magic-guided Vehicles from the leader was not most shocking because of their power, but rather that "magic could indeed belong to ordinary people."

He opened his mind and found business opportunities in the pricing of Magic-guided Vehicles.

Magic-guided Vehicles, Magic Web Communication, large machinery... these things were beyond his capacity to replicate and produce, but smaller, simpler things?

The officials of the Administrative Office did not prohibit him from doing so, which means it can be done.

His approach was simple, even seemingly absurd to real Mage Technicians — he bought a universal Magic Transmission Terminal from an officially-operated store, took it apart, and with his exceedingly limited knowledge of magic symbols, referenced the basic courses taught at the academy, cobbled together its heat rune group, energy group, and a recessed iron plate, and placed a pot on that plate to cook a pot of half-cooked vegetable soup.

The vegetable soup was the most unpalatable thing he had ever tasted, yet the silly-looking "heating platform" left him immensely proud.

Then, he registered the Kode Household Service Company.

He couldn’t rely on purchasing Magic Transmission Terminals from stores and disassembling them to produce his own products — doing so could only result in losses. Thus, he went through all departments of the Administrative Office to buy a Rune Press Machine, semi-scrapped due to overproduction;

Lacking technical personnel, he copied the entire curriculum of rune logic and mechanics from the schools (at that time, printed books were short in supply, and textbooks could not be purchased anywhere) and pulled in literate young people from his family and guild to study for half a month, repairing the scrapped machinery;

Leveraging his reputation and connections, he spent a substantial amount of money hiring several young people with Mage Technician Certificates — the ones standing before him.

He bought a large stack of ancient magical devices, those produced by the Cecil Mechanical Manufacturing Facility and Magic Guide Technology Research Institute, from general Magic Transmission Terminals to agricultural water pumps, machinery, and even the expensive Magic Web Communicators, only to dismantle them into parts;

He built his own "new style factory," created his own "laboratory," and even constructed a simple lathe with the workers—a machine driven by a discarded Piston Mana Engine, only useful for drilling holes in metal plates, yet its efficiency far surpassed manual labor.

This place is his "Kode Factory," but it’s not the first plant he built. His first building was actually farther north, near his large residence, but after a rune malfunction incident that burned down most of the facility and alarmed nearby residents, he had no choice but to transfer the equipment and personnel here.

All of this took nearly half of his family fortune, pouring all the wealth he accumulated from his business into these machines and workshops as if they were water. Many people thought he had lost his mind, deceived by the dazzling illusions of the Magic Web Broadcast into taking such huge risks at such an age...

But eventually, he sold two thousand sets of his first batch of Magic Heating Platforms—somewhat affluent upper-class citizens couldn’t resist these convenient things, not only for their novelty and utility but because breaking away from wood fires and smoke was a symbol of dignity.

The "products" Kode created were actually based on simple principles, just like his initial crude method. He purchased complex ancient magical devices, then took them apart to see if there were any simple technologies he could master himself, or he studied courses at academic institutions to seek ideas and methods.

The current magic guide technology wasn’t that complicated; many basic principles were understandable and controllable by ordinary people. Meanwhile, the civilian sector was so vacant that any slightly convenient invention had enormous practical applications, and what Kode needed to do first was find the "demand points" for civilian use.

His method wasn’t complex—it involved studying the lives of nobles and Transcendents, examining the convenient and comfortable aspects of their lives and then finding ways to realize these aspects with magic guide technology.

The world’s aristocrats and Transcendents have always lived comfortably and conveniently, to an extent that surpasses civilians’ imagination.

They have magical illumination, comfortable environments with controlled temperature and humidity, instant communication, artificial intelligent servants, and can enjoy any delicacy in any season...

As a merchant who came from humble beginnings and grew wealthy through commerce, Kode knew the survival conditions of commoners and had experienced the lifestyles of upper society. He leveraged this advantage to the fullest, equating it to finding countless business opportunities—

Mages could use magic flames to heat food, so he could produce civilian heating platforms; mages maintained permanent spring-like conditions in mage towers with spells, so he could use rune triggers and ventilation ducts to create similar effects; nobles could enjoy ice cubes in the summer and always have fresh meat, so he had to manufacture a cheap and convenient container that could also produce ice and preserve food...

The success of Kode Household Service Company also caught the attention of others. Now, in Carol City and surrounding areas, many merchants are becoming active, preparing their own companies, with many acquaintances approaching Kode for experience. People seemed to finally realize the principle that should have been obvious:

Magic brings a convenient life, and whoever can bring convenience can seize business opportunities.

Voices came from the factory door, and Kode looked up to see his eldest son Pal bringing in a cart with several workers—they were cautiously guarding the contents, a large box wrapped with wooden slats and grass ropes, bearing the mark of the Cecil Runeforging Factory.

They bought a new laboratory-grade Magic Web Unit array.

Kode hurriedly approached, also calling nearby workers to help unload, but his eldest son Pal pulled him aside. This young man, fresh from the city center, wore a deliberately mysterious expression: "Father, I have news for you..."

Kode glanced at his son: "What news?"

"Duke Cecil has learned about your company and what you are producing. Can you guess what happened?"

Kode suddenly felt a wave of tension.

What happened?

He suddenly realized there was another layer of risk in what he was doing, that he was encroaching on the leader’s privileges—even though he was just tinkering in a "little realm" the leader had not yet concerned himself with, disassembling Cecil-produced ancient magical devices, creating new machines, and employing Mage Technicians... could these actions themselves be some sort of taboo?

Although the officials at the Administrative Office had not stopped him before, although Cecil’s laws did not seem to have ordinances prohibiting such actions, although the leader always spoke of acting strictly according to the law, but... after all, this involved the leader, would the leader really adhere to those laws himself? Would he be angered by these bold actions?

In a moment, Kode thought of a multitude of things, to the point where he forgot that the advertisements he published on the Magic Web were all first approved by the Cecil Supreme Administration Office. Meanwhile, Pal noticed his father’s anxiety, and this young man suddenly burst into laughter, pulling out a carefully rolled paper from his pocket: "Father! An award signed personally by Duke Cecil! And you are going to be knighted!!"

Kode froze for a moment, momentarily rigid in place.

Two seconds later, he snatched the award from Pal’s hand, his own hands trembling as he unfurled it, then examined every word carefully.

The end of the award contained the knighthood decree.

He read it again and again, finally noticing the irrepressible smile on Pal’s face beside him.

"You rascal, how dare you tease your father!"

"Oh, father! Don’t forget your knightly manner!"