Clip-clop, clip-clop... Chirp, chirp…
The carriage moved along, accompanied by the sound of birdsong. It had been over a month since the start of spring; the land was a carpet of green grass, and the trees were covered in new leaves.
"Annie, what has the shipping volume at the grand market been like these past few days?" Lucas pulled his gaze back from the window and turned to ask. "Have those merchants made any moves?"
Today, he was leading a team to find a water source—the waterfall he had previously designated—to serve as the head for the city's running water system.
"Master, the market's shipping volume is dozens of times greater than it was in winter. Large batches of goods are being shipped out daily. Just the taxes paid by those capital merchants alone have earned us several hundred gold coins," Annie reported quickly. She had been busy managing the market's logistics.
"Oh? What about our inventory? And the production rate?" Lucas raised an eyebrow. He wasn't very satisfied with that tax figure. It meant that a large portion of the merchants weren't buying goods; they were still observing, or perhaps hoping to profit without investing.
Quite a few merchants and nobles thought this way. They felt Sedona City would be conquered sooner or later, or be devoured and carved up. Many great nobles were known to be eyeing Sedona City, especially its enviable goods like perfume, linen, and paper.
"Master, the output of the workshops can already meet the shipping volume, and we still have a large surplus. We also had a lot of goods in storage from before. Now, several large warehouses are completely full," Annie said, sounding a bit troubled. "Having too much production and stock isn't necessarily a good thing."
"Production surplus, is it?" Lucas mused for a moment. He knew this meant it was time to open up the "golden waterway." He turned his head to look at Dahlia, who was sitting opposite him.
"Lord Lucas? Is there something you need?" Dahlia blushed, being stared at so intently by him. She thought for a moment, then frowned. "Do you want me to take goods to the capital?"
"No, we can't go to the capital for the time being." Lucas shook his head. "Based on the intelligence from Princess Lucy, from you, and from what we've gathered from the merchants and nobles, the capital is a massive vortex right now."
"The struggle for the throne has likely already begun. This is especially true given the intelligence we've received in the last few days—the Fourth Prince has actually left the capital and is preparing to move into the western territories. Under these circumstances, only two princes remain in the capital. Add to that the fact that the old king doesn't have much time left... the capital is guaranteed to descend into chaos. Bringing goods there at a time like this is just handing money over for others to spend."
"Then...?" Dahlia paused. She had been wanting to go back and keep an eye on Catherine, afraid that silly girl would do something foolish.
"You're familiar with the cities along the Whispering River, correct?" Lucas asked lightly.
"I've had dealings with some of the more prosperous ones," Dahlia replied honestly. She was already guessing at what Lord Lucas had in mind.
"Could you compile a file on those cities for me?" Lucas's eyes brightened. He realized Dahlia could save him a great deal of effort. Or maybe... I can just convince Dahlia to do it.
"Of course." Dahlia chuckled and nodded. She already had records of this information.
"Master, are you planning to start distributing goods to those cities?" Annie asked in surprise. "That seems a bit fast. I thought we'd wait a few more months, at least until we had more of the fifty-meter-long ships."
"We'll create the appearance of a goods shortage for those merchants and see who gets anxious first," Lucas said with a smile. "Seizing the market early is the only way to ensure the next phase of the plan goes smoothly."
"That's right. Those people still think we have endless stock, so they're in no hurry to buy," Annie said, wrinkling her nose. She was long sick of them being so picky—coming in, complaining about this and that, and then not buying anything. Sedona City's goods were the best; the fox-eared girl knew they were just trying to drive down the price, and drive it down hard. If Sedona City had no other sales channels, they might have had to sell at a discount. But now, they don't have to worry about a surplus at all.
"Mina, what moves have those other parties made?" Lucas asked, turning to the cat-eared girl who was staring intently out the window.
"Master, they've all sent the treasure maps out," Mina said, pulling her gaze away from the people following the carriage. "And two of the copies were taken by the Bounty Hunters' Guild."
"Oh? Interesting." A slight smile touched Lucas's lips. It seemed ten fake treasure maps would be enough to throw the situation in this Siacan Kingdom into even greater chaos.
He had a feeling the Fourth Prince would definitely be interested in this treasure map. And that Santner, too. Both of them were ambitious.
Clip-clop, clip-clop...
"My Lord, we've reached the waterfall!" Chris's voice called out.
Whoosh... Crash!
Lucas could already hear the sound of the waterfall outside. He set his other thoughts aside for the moment. The first priority was to solve Sedona City's domestic water supply. Otherwise, the newly built houses would have no running water, forcing people to haul buckets up and down the stairs, which was incredibly inconvenient.
Creak!
After stepping out of the carriage, Lucas gazed at the waterfall. He could see signs of water erosion all around—scars left from the recent floods.
"Master, can this water really be sent up into the apartment buildings?" Annie asked, amazed. "But the buildings are higher than the ground! How will the water get up there?"
"The elevation of this waterfall is much higher than Sedona City itself. Sending water into the buildings won't be a problem," Lucas chuckled. He had chosen this specific waterfall precisely because of its high elevation.
"Is that how it works?" Annie was a little dazed. She exchanged a glance with Mina and Dahlia. All three of them were equally confused; in any case, they hadn't understood his explanation.
Lucas saw their expressions and smiled slightly. He didn't bother explaining further. Instead, he took a map from his robes, waved over the head of the construction team, and began explaining the water diversion, the construction of the aqueducts, the reservoir for water storage, and the laying of the main pipelines.
In a short while, running water would be available in every single household. No one would have to go through the misery of hauling water anymore.
"Mina, tell Aiden to dispatch soldiers to guard this water source. Absolutely no one is to be allowed near it. Not even animals," Lucas said, his expression serious.
This water source was of the utmost importance. He had to post guards to prevent anyone from poisoning it or animals from contaminating it.
"Yes," Mina replied.
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