Chapter 87: Progress and the Alchemists' Guild
The Seven-Pointed Star is the primary canon of the Faith of the Seven, divided into seven gospels corresponding to the seven aspects of the God. The official version totals over 300,000 words, and when printed with accompanying illustrations, each book runs to over a hundred pages.
Under normal circumstances, purchasing such a tome—made of parchment and hand-copied and illustrated—would cost at least one gold dragon. Even then, it was often a matter of "price without market"; one had to place a custom order, as no one had the energy or spare capital to keep a stock of them lying around.
Once the first copy printed on plant-fiber paper was completed and bound, Tyrion took the sample to the Faith to pitch it. Leveraging his status and eloquence, he secured their first major order with ease: the Faith ordered a thousand copies at thirty silver stags each, along with ten thousand pamphlets and illustrations—with content provided by the Faith—at one silver stag per booklet.
Added to this were smaller orders from merchants and various shops brought in by the salesmen Tyrion had recruited. Even before the factory had officially opened, the tentative orders from customers testing this new invention already totaled several hundred gold dragons. Intimidated by the Lannister name, some smaller clients had even paid in advance.
The first set of woodblocks was already finished. Seeing the situation turning bad... no, one should say seeing it turn too good, Tyrion had decisively ordered the creation of a second set.
What was mentioned above concerned only The Seven-Pointed Star. The remaining calendars also had sporadic orders worth dozens of gold dragons, and preparations for novels and erotica had begun in earnest. Unfortunately, while writers were easy to find, Egger had yet to discover a talent with experience and flair for adult content.
He began to feel a faint sense of unease: if he truly couldn't find anyone, surely he wouldn't have to step up himself? Writing the action scenes was one thing—he had experience there—but the illustrations... this world had no cameras or computers; every image had to be drawn by hand!
It was too early to worry about that, though. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
After some discussion, the factory site was chosen outside the southwest walls of King's Landing, slightly upstream from the many docks of the Blackwater, south of the tourney grounds.
There were many reasons for choosing this spot: only outside the walls could they find such a large, open, and clean space; its proximity to the river facilitated water intake, waste disposal, and the use of water power; it was close enough to the Blackwater docks, the city gates, and the main roads to satisfy transport requirements; and the poor living around the walls provided an excellent source of cheap labor. After several days of studying maps and conducting on-site inspections, Egger and Tyrion finally found this open expanse—formerly farmland—located a few miles outside the King's Gate, only a few hundred yards from the road and right next to the Blackwater.
Logically, a location so close to King's Landing on the north bank of the Blackwater should have been highly sought after and long occupied. Fortunately, this was not the modern world filled with shrewd speculators. Not only was the land around King's Landing the personal property of King Robert, but one factor heavily influenced land prices: in this era, land without the protection of city walls did not hold its value.
In the original timeline, even the most valuable land outside the walls—the bustling and crowded Blackwater docks outside the Mud Gate—was ordered to be leveled to the ground by Tyrion during the defense of King's Landing to prevent the buildings from serving as a springboard for Stannis's troops.
The site Egger and Tyrion chose was west of that prosperous area, where the Blackwater Bay had narrowed into the Blackwater River. The banks were narrow and the current swift, making it unsuitable for merchant ships to dock. Merchants considered it worthless; the original trees had been felled and the land left idle, save for a few nearby farmers who had unofficially claimed patches to grow vegetables and fruit.
Arya adored her swordplay instructor. As a father influenced by his daughter's affections, Ned's opinion of Egger had also improved slightly by association. As Hand of the King and Lord of the North, he was actually quite interested in Egger's idea of developing Night's Watch industries in the capital. Thus, with minimal effort, the Chief Logistics Officer obtained the rights to use that vast tract of land from the Hand—as long as he compensated the farmers for their ruined crops, he didn't even have to pay rent to the Iron Throne.
Perfect.
With a construction crew hired and plans drawn up, the Night's Watch's first outpost in the south began hot-blooded construction.
On this day, Egger and Tyrion finished their inspection of the site and headed back to King's Landing together.
...
"Maybe I should move out here in the future. It's spacious, and more importantly, it doesn't stink."
"The location is good, but it's too far from the brothels."
"Once the industrial zone is populated, the prostitutes will naturally follow. In the future, there will be brothels here owned by the Night's Watch." Speaking of brothels, Egger couldn't help but worry for his dwarf friend. Because of Egger's interference, Tyrion hadn't met Shae, but the man wasn't getting any younger, and Egger wondered if he would ever find true love in this life. "Of course, brothels for workers certainly couldn't serve the noble Lord Lannister. Why don't you keep your own?"
"I like to change my flavor from time to time." Tyrion ignored the joke and said seriously, "I suggest you stay in the city. Moving out might be convenient for you, but what about your cute little apprentice? She's the Hand's daughter; how could she run ten miles out here every day for her lessons? Having a Stark kid involved is very helpful for our business. Even putting personal preference aside, you can't abandon her."
"True." Egger knew this without needing Tyrion to remind him; Arya's presence was immensely helpful. "I was just speaking idly. I'll stay in the city as much as possible."
"But you did remind me of something," Tyrion quickly steered the conversation elsewhere. "Building factories is a business, but providing services for workers is also a business. In the future, we can hire people to run canteens, various shops, brothels, and gambling dens—right next to the factory. Then, we restrict the workers from leaving during work hours and only allow them to spend within the factory zone. That way, we can pay higher wages, knowing a portion of that money will flow right back into our hands. Isn't that the stable capital chain you wanted?"
Too fast—the foundations aren't even laid, and you're already dreaming up the service industry? Tyrion, are YOU the transmigrator? Egger glanced at him sideways. "What a black-hearted boss. You truly live up to the name 'Imp'."
"I learned it from you. If I'm the Imp, you're the Big Demon!" The dwarf flashed a rude gesture at him and countered ruthlessly, "I only want their money, but you're thinking of tricking people into going to the Frozen Wasteland to fight wildlings and White Walkers. You want their lives!"
...
It was meant as a joke, but Egger found he couldn't laugh back. The atmosphere suddenly froze. "Someone... someone has to do it."
"Yes, someone has to do it." Tyrion realized immediately that he had overstepped. He often did this—joking without watching the heat. He quickly changed the subject. "When the time comes, the wages for those men must be high."
"Mhm. They must be high." Egger nodded. He was afraid of death and didn't want to face humanity's natural enemy himself, but he could provide honor and security for those who did.
By unspoken agreement, the two avoided the topic and continued discussing other matters. The investment aspect was also showing promise; a young noble living in King's Landing had been persuaded. He liked what Tyrion was doing, but unfortunately, he didn't have decision-making power over the family's large funds, so he had sent for his elders. Once that Crownlands Earl arrived in two days to inspect the workshop and the products, the first major investment would likely be secured.
Riding side-by-side, they returned to the city through the King's Gate, bypassed Visenya's Hill, passed through the Street of Steel, and went by the Great Sept of Baelor. Suddenly, Egger spotted a strange building.
He had actually seen it on his first day in King's Landing, but at the time, the stench of the city and the disorientation of being a newcomer had suppressed all other sensations. As he became more familiar with the capital, the building's jarring presence grew stronger: it was an imposing structure that looked like a grand hotel, significantly taller than the surrounding buildings but much more compact than the Great Sept they had just passed. Despite being in the heart of the city, it looked dilapidated and long-neglected; the doors were tightly shut with no one coming or going, and even some broken windows had gone unrepaired.
"What is that building for?"
Tyrion squinted at it. "That? That's the Alchemists' Guildhall."
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