A few days later.
Albedo came to the royal palace of his own accord, holding something Rowan knew well.
Cement. As long as you can make cement, then mix it with crushed stone and sand, you get practical concrete.
Concrete is perfect for roadbuilding.
Even in the rain, the road would only get wet, not turn into a muddy mess like before—it would stay solid.
As for a higher-grade asphalt road, Mondstadt probably can't make that yet.
Across all of Teyvat, Rowan honestly has no idea where there's any petroleum.
And asphalt roads require petroleum.
For now, roads can only be built with cement concrete.
"Your Majesty, the cement is finished."
"As you ordered, all alchemists in Mondstadt have already begun mass production."
Albedo entered the palace's council chamber to meet Rowan.
He handed over the sample he had made. Rowan took the box, pinched up a bit of the powder, and brought it to his nose.
That familiar smell.
The genuine scent of lime.
"Excellent, Albedo. As expected of Mondstadt's foremost alchemist—you did wonderfully."
"Name what you need. I'll reward you."
Clear rewards and punishments—that's something a king must learn.
Since Rowan had taken up the mantle of Knight-King, he had to rule with clear rewards and punishments.
Albedo shook his head.
"That's unnecessary. I made the lime because I was curious what 'lime' truly was. As an alchemist, I'm naturally drawn to unknown knowledge."
"If my king insists on a reward, then grant me more formulas."
Rowan wasn't surprised by the request. Any true alchemist has no resistance to unknown science and knowledge.
Even Rhinedottir couldn't resist that temptation—how could Albedo?
It's just that Rhinedottir knows she's not suited to remain in Mondstadt right now; otherwise, she'd be meddling in all of this.
"This is a cultivation method for hybrid rice. If I remember right, your student Sucrose is good at that sort of work?"
"If it interests you, research it together with her."
"Once this is developed, Mondstadt will never face famine again."
Rowan hadn't expected to draw such a nation-shaping treasure from a chest.
Hybrid rice—the greatest invention of his homeland.
It let everyone there eat their fill.
The greatest of inventions.
"Of course, if you don't want to study hybrid rice, I have other things."
"Here: generators, electric lights, televisions—pick what you want to research."
"When you finish one, bring it to me. I'll look it over."
"After that, set up an assembly line and replicate them."
Rowan poured a pile of blueprints and formulas into Albedo's arms.
Whether Albedo could master all of them wasn't Rowan's concern.
It's his field. With diagrams and formulas in hand—if he still can't make them—he doesn't deserve to be called the Chalk Prince.
And so, Albedo left the palace hugging a mountain of plans.
Watching him go, Rowan remembered that when he touched the Gnosis earlier, he'd earned a lottery draw.
With nothing else pressing, he decided to use it now.
"System, draw."
"Drawing… Congratulations to the host for obtaining the Gilgamesh Saint Graph!"
Rowan hadn't expected anything from this draw, but the result surprised him.
He'd actually obtained Gilgamesh's Saint Graph.
The oldest king—the King of Heroes.
A figure worthy of the Grand seat, even if Gilgamesh isn't one of the seven standard Grand Classes.
With his ability, stepping up wouldn't be hard at all.
Besides, the Grand Classes are more a measure the Root uses to oppose the Evils of Humanity.
Rowan had in fact drawn Arthur once before as well—Arthur is also counted among Grand-class Heroic Spirits, in the Saber slot.
Which is to say: Gilgamesh's might is tremendous.
Especially his Noble Phantasm—the King's Treasure.
If he truly gained that, Rowan might not literally punch the Heavenly Principles and kick down the Five Great Sinners…
But there wouldn't be many in the world who could defeat him.
Still, Rowan figured the system wouldn't make it that easy.
His gut told him it would probably hand him an empty King's Treasure.
"Fuse?"
"Fuse."
"Fusing… Congratulations, you have obtained the Noble Phantasm: King's Treasure!"
"You have obtained the skills: Magic Resistance, Charisma, Golden Rule, Witness of All, Divinity, Collector, Babylon Treasury, King's Return!"
As expected of Gilgamesh—so many skills.
Some, Rowan already had.
Magic Resistance and Charisma were already his.
The rest were new, though a few felt like upgraded versions of his original skills.
For example, Witness of All was an upgraded Charisma.
Babylon Treasury was an upgraded Collector.
King's Return was an upgraded Golden Rule.
(Golden Rule: Gilgamesh bears a fate of lifelong good fortune in wealth—never troubled by money, living as a great magnate.
In the legends of Type-Moon, Gilgamesh claims all treasures in the world as his own.)
(Divinity: Gilgamesh has one of the highest divine aptitudes among Heroic Spirits.
His divinity surpasses even that of Zeus's son Heracles, who became a god after death.)
(Collector: A talent for obtaining higher-quality items.
It's a luck that frequently yields rare items, but since it only applies to Gilgamesh himself, it brings no benefit to the Master.)
Rowan skimmed the descriptions and didn't linger.
These skills would add a touch of polish, but they wouldn't massively raise his combat power—aside from Divinity.
On Teyvat, Divinity would likely manifest as a god's "seat."
Which meant that starting today, Rowan had formally ascended to the station of a god?
He shifted his focus. More than Divinity, he cared about the Noble Phantasm, King's Treasure.
(King's Treasure: A key-shaped sword linking to the "Golden Capital" that Gilgamesh possesses.
It's connected to the vault's space, allowing free retrieval of the treasures stored within.
Its rank is E–A++, indicating the rank of items you place inside the vault.)
After he finished reading, Rowan willed it to appear.
Golden ripples spread. He reached in to pull something out—only to find nothing within.
Rowan muttered helplessly,
"Just as I thought."
"Empty."
(End of Chapter)
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