Soilless Cultivation / The Witch King

"Wouldn't this be a little too generous to Siracusa?"

Warfarin looked somewhat reluctant. This funding had all been earned through the sweat and hard work of the Sarkaz. Siracusa did not have to do anything; it only had to wait for the Sarkaz to prepare the meal.

"Don't worry. Giving them a discount is enough. How could they possibly share the food with anyone else?"

Although Theresica had agreed with Lady Sicilia to send students to Kazdel Polytechnic University according to a one-to-one quota, he had also reached an understanding with all the teachers.

The money was Kazdel's money. They were merely improving the teachers' living conditions and placing the university in Siracusa. Hopefully, no one would misunderstand who the true client was.

These highly educated people who had emerged from Columbia's capitalist society were also very sensible. They all stated that they would never allow Siracusa's students to participate in the genuine experiments.

Theresica stayed in Siracusa for two days. After receiving a batch of goods, he hurried back to Kazdel.

This batch of goods consisted precisely of Oripathy suppressants produced in Columbia.

He did not have the manufacturers under his control ship directly to Kazdel. Instead, he claimed that the goods were being exported to Siracusa and then transferred them to Kazdel. Not a single Sarkaz participated in the process.

To ensure complete secrecy, he even had the manufacturers prepare accounts and pay taxes to the Columbian authorities.

Thus, in the eyes of the outside world, Kazdel remained a devastated country where infected people could be seen everywhere and no medicine was available.

But in reality...

"All refining workers, stop work! Assemble outside the factory immediately! Production is suspended today! Starting tomorrow, you will also receive a temporary break!"

The sudden shout from the production supervisor caused everyone to start discussing among themselves.

"Don't spread random rumors! You'll hold up production!"

"Let me finish refining this Originium unit first. It's almost ninety percent pure. Don't disturb me..."

The supervisor shouted several times, but he found that most of the workers on the production line were still at their stations, and hardly anyone paid him any attention. He could only fetch a megaphone and bellow at the top of his lungs.

"His Majesty has obtained Oripathy suppressants! There's enough for everyone! Come outside and take your medicine! That's an order!"

That finally worked. The Sarkaz doctors who had been waiting outside for some time finally saw the tardy workers arrive. They had already set up temporary testing equipment and were waiting for the infected workers.

The workers formed a long line and underwent examinations one by one. The doctors assessed the extent of infection and the density of Originium in their blood, then supervised them as they took the suppressants or received injections.

This was Theresica's order: the workers had to be watched while taking their medicine. He was afraid that some of them would be unwilling to use it and would save it for their children or relatives.

That was indeed what happened. Several doctors caught workers hiding the tablets under their tongues, intending to take them home to their families. They could only keep persuading them.

"There's more medicine! We're only taking care of the refining workers for now, so you're receiving it first. Just swallow it! His Majesty is here too. If you don't take it, I'll kneel before His Majesty and tell him you refused your medicine!"

After hearing this, the old worker's throat bobbed, and he swallowed the tablet.

Theresica was indeed near the factory district. He was discussing the five-day shutdown with the factory director.

"I didn't come here to announce an order. I wanted to ask you: what impact would shutting down for a while have? Tell me honestly."

Theresica walked along casually while the factory director followed carefully beside him. "Your Majesty, a shutdown will cause some fluctuations, but we have ample Originium reserves. We can draw from them to meet daily needs and trade demands."

"Mm. Very good."

The temporary shutdown served two purposes. First, it would allow them to better monitor the refining workers after they took the medicine repeatedly and prevent problems such as drug rejection.

Second, when Theresica made his latest investment in Rhine Lab, he had also purchased several technologies, including safety measures for Originium refining plants.

A research group at Rhine Lab had extracted an entirely new chemical element, which they named boron.

Although this element was harmful to the human body, it could reduce the harm Originium ore inflicted on people to a certain extent. They processed the chemical into panels and designed partitions that enclosed the Originium refining equipment, with openings in the walls for inserting one's hands to operate the machinery and for observation.

Although direct contact was still necessary, they had conducted experiments on animals. Under identical conditions, animals protected by these partitions showed far less Originium infection than those without such protection.

These researchers had been promoting their results everywhere, but implementing the modifications required shutting down every production line. Moreover, the modifications were not permanent; the panels had to be replaced regularly.

"If you can make money lying down, why bother standing up?"

Not a single Originium refining plant in Columbia was willing to use it.

However, these people had already obtained positions at Kazdel Polytechnic University. Theresica had also prepared first-rate laboratories and funding for them, supporting them in continuing their research.

Theresica had brought their technological achievements back to Kazdel. He was discussing with Sarkaz craftsmen how to combine them with the existing Sarkaz protective clothing to achieve more effective protection. Among the technical products Kazimierz had used to repay its debt were also devices its people used to assist with Originium refining. Theresica intended to upgrade the production lines at the same time as the protective renovations.

After extensive research and calculations, the Sarkaz engineers proposed a ten-day renovation period. Production costs would rise afterward, but with the assistance of Kazimierz's machines, efficiency would also improve to a certain extent.

Ten days without Originium refining production essentially meant that Kazdel's primary source of national income would be suspended for ten days. The surrounding Sarkaz engineers watched Theresica nervously.

Theresica did not hesitate. He took the documents and signed his name. "You need ten days? I'll give you twelve. Complete this renovation. There must not be a single mistake."

"Yes!!!"

Chapter 76: Soilless Cultivation

"Your decision is truly peculiar."

"Oh? Why?"

Everyone else had left the room. Only Theresica remained seated there, yet a woman's voice suddenly emerged. Gladiia appeared silently.

"Land-dwellers all like to create distinctions between superiority and inferiority, yet you are doing everything you can to ensure equal distribution of supplies."

Gladiia had heard that Theresica was currently giving refining miners priority access to Oripathy suppressants, and that he planned to provide them uniformly to every Kazdel citizen who needed them, just as he did with food.

"Aegir also guarantees everyone's material needs, but that is built upon a surplus of supplies. You are clearly facing a shortage, yet you insist on ensuring that everyone receives an identical share. Why do you persist in this? It is highly unusual in the terrestrial environment. I am curious."

After Gladiia had stayed in Kazdel for a while, Theresica felt that she had changed somewhat as well. She used fewer formal expressions and spoke more directly.

"Mm... I can't really explain it. I just like things this way. I feel that this is how things should be, so that's what I do."

Theresica voiced his most genuine thoughts, but confusion still flowed across Gladiia's face.

The next second, she vanished silently again. Theresica had given her travel permits covering most of the country, and this Aegir had no idea where she had gone to conduct her latest terrestrial observations.

Theresica had no interest in managing her. He had plenty of matters waiting for him.

Kazdel Polytechnic University needed to select a group of students and send them over for enrollment. At home, he also had to supervise Kazdel's engineers as they completed a support frame, ensuring that the protective panels at the Originium refining plants could be replaced within two hours in the future.

However, he did not personally interfere with every detail. Instead, whenever the engineers encountered a problem, he helped fulfill their needs so that they could solve it as quickly as possible.

On the other side, there was also a plant ecology research team. They were outsiders who had just arrived, so moving around Kazdel was genuinely inconvenient. Since he was also concerned about the issue, Theresica accompanied them personally.

The teachers and students from the former Trimount Botanical Ecology University traveled across the land within several dozen kilometers of Kazdel, collecting more than six thousand soil samples and conducting detailed tests on each one.

Workers who had been paid enough truly gave their all. Each person voluntarily did the work of several people, but the results they obtained were even more precise—and even worse.

"As a technician and a scientific researcher, I must report the truth to you."

The teachers leading the team shook their heads regretfully. "The soil around Kazdel is genuinely unsuitable for growing any crops. It cannot support them."

"Why has this happened?"

Theresica asked curiously.

"First, the soil here is inherently unsuitable for growing crops. We found none of the nutrients plants require. Second, we separated a large quantity of Originium-contaminated material from it. Ordinary soil should not contain anything like that."

"What is it? Is there an Originium deposit underground?"

"No. If there were an Originium deposit, what we separated from the soil should have been Originium Shard components."

One of the teachers explained, "Originium contamination usually appears near battlefields, especially in areas repeatedly bombarded by Originium Arts. The more severe the bombardment, the more contamination there is. This material severely obstructs plant growth, but the concentration here is absurdly high. Why is there so much of it?"

Hearing this, Theresica sighed helplessly. After more than two hundred years of war, how could there be any shortage?

Plant ecologists in Terra were broadly divided into two factions. One was the soil faction, which advocated improving the soil so plants could survive. The other was the plant faction, which advocated improving the plants so they could adapt to land that was originally unsuitable.

The teacher from the soil faction looked pained as he examined the results and could not help speaking frankly to Theresica. "Your request is to change the soil, and you have even provided us with research funding. Please rest assured that we will find a way. That is also the purpose of our field. However, we cannot produce results in the short term. I suggest you speak with the plant faction."

At this, the plant-faction teacher, who had been flipping through the compiled soil data, raised his head. He also looked troubled. They had accepted a huge amount of funding but could not accomplish anything, and they felt ashamed.

They were all teachers in plant ecology. The moment they saw the seeds Theresica had given them, they recognized that they were crop seeds and quickly guessed what he intended to do.

"We'll begin designing an improvement plan for the seeds you gave us tonight, but... producing results within three years will be difficult."

"Don't worry. I know that scientific results require time to cultivate. I won't interfere with your experimental process."

Theresica gave every researcher present a reassurance before saying, "You are all professionals. I have an idea, and I wonder if I may discuss it with you."

"Please, go ahead."

Out of respect for science, Theresica only began after the professional technicians nodded.

"Your ideas involve changing the soil or changing the plants. Both are scientific approaches. But I'm not a researcher, so I have a short-sighted idea. Plants need sunlight, water, and soil. Since the soil is unusable, could we find something to replace it directly?"

"For example, water. Water itself is one of the things plants need. If we add the nutrients found in soil to water, then soak the plants' roots in it, wouldn't that be equivalent to planting them in soil? And we wouldn't need to water them afterward."

Theresica's words plunged all the teachers and students present into thought. The teachers from the plant and soil factions gathered together, discussed it for a moment, and then said,

"Your suggestion is highly constructive. We will immediately begin theoretical verification and experimental design."

"Please do."

Theresica's expression was sincere, but Muelsyse suddenly ran over and asked curiously,

"Did you study plant science?"

"No. I just looked into it a little."

Theresica waved his hand awkwardly, which caused varying degrees of surprise to appear on the faces of those present.

We thought the boss had also graduated from a plant ecology program at some university.

With a new direction available, that did not mean the old ideas had to be abandoned. Theresica stated that he would continue supporting research by both the soil and plant factions, but also hoped they would not neglect experiments in soilless cultivation. He further made one request of the plant faction: increase food production.

Just as Theresica was about to discuss the matter with them further, a messenger hurried over. He leaned close and spoke in a low voice.

"Your Majesty, two of our airships have crashed."

Chapter 77: The Witch King

The sudden incident interrupted Theresica's discussion with the researchers. He rushed to the Kazdel Airframe Manufacturing Plant, where a pile of burned and severely deformed airship frames already lay. Zeppelin was leading a group of people in analyzing the damage.

"What exactly happened? How great are the losses? Did Columbia or Ursus suffer any collateral damage?"

Theresica urgently fired off a string of questions. Zeppelin also understood the seriousness of the matter and quickly replied,

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. Columbia and Ursus suffered no losses. The airship that was shot down belonged to Kazdel. It had just finished transporting construction materials and was returning to the airframe plant for inspection."

"Shot down?"

Theresica noticed Zeppelin's wording. He knew Kazdel had some friction with the bandits in the desert, but did they really possess such abilities?

"Your Majesty, we inspected the wreckage and confirmed that a single Originium Art pierced the metal armor beneath the gasbag and ignited the gaseous Originium inside. The airship exploded in midair."

"Did it cause Originium contamination?"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty. Gaseous Originium is further refined from Originium ingots with one-hundred-percent purity. Once ignited by Originium Arts, it burns up completely in an instant and leaves no residue."

Zeppelin continued, "The Sin Pardoner arrived at the attack site immediately. They brought everyone there back and are questioning them one by one."

"Did we suffer any casualties?"

"Yes. The captain, co-pilot, and one cargo handler were killed, three people in total."

After hearing Zeppelin's report, Theresica immediately ordered, "Give the three of them compensation according to the standard for fallen soldiers."

"Understood." Zeppelin nodded.

"But you said two airships crashed. Did everyone from the other airship survive?" Theresica asked in surprise. The wreckage at the scene also looked like it belonged to only one airship.

"Your Majesty, that was an airship purchased by Columbia. It was shot down in Sargon, also with Originium Arts. However, it happened yesterday, earlier than our incident. The Columbian messenger only arrived today. We were preparing to report it when our own airship was shot down as well."

After hearing Zeppelin's words, Theresica fell into deep thought. How could desert dwellers systematically train Arts users? This had to be a country looking for trouble with the Sarkaz. Moreover, they were being cautious, avoiding any impact on Columbia and Ursus so that the incident would not escalate.

Ah! What a headache! It's easy to dodge attacks you can see coming, but not hidden arrows. He somewhat missed Kazimierz's straightforward Knight Errants charging directly at him.

"Summon the Military Committee. We have trouble to deal with!"

Leithanien. On this country's soil, the use and education of Originium Arts had penetrated every mind. Powerful and widespread Originium Arts casters were the capital that allowed this country to stand firm between Victoria and Ursus.

Slender, towering structures adorned with elegant decorations on their surfaces were known as towers. They were this country's distinctive architecture and symbolized the absolute authority of the nobility.

Each tower represented a noble. Above the nobles were beings of transcendent status known as Elector Counts. Only they were qualified to choose a Witch King and install him in the grandest of the countless towers—the pinnacle of Leithanien's power.

Today, the seven Elector Counts of Leithanien had been summoned by the current Witch King for a meeting. Yet the atmosphere made the servants nearby break out in sweat.

"Great Witch King, could you please clear up our confusion and explain our recent excessively agitated behavior?"

Although the Elector Count's posture was respectful, his words carried an unmistakable hint of interrogation.

Victoria was in civil war, and Ursus was also in complete chaos. Leithanien, which had originally been restrained by Terra's two great bullies, suddenly felt as though its wings could spread once more.