Chapter Summaries

Friedrich Lister saw McKinley off in Niceburg and then witnessed a Purification Squad member confront the Witch he had met at an inn. The Witch escaped after blasting the man with a flash and flames, while he sounded a horn to summon reinforcements.

• McKinley sailed for Northwest Bay with the recruited craftsmen, leaving Lister in Niceburg to investigate and establish an office.
• Lister heard townspeople discuss witches captured by the Purification Squad and feared that the woman he had met at the inn might be among them.
• A Purification Squad member accused a cloaked woman of witchcraft and blasphemy near the Grand Cathedral.
• The Witch revealed herself to Lister and used a powder-fueled flash and burst of flame to stop the man and escape in the crowd.
• The Purification Squad member ordered the crowd to stay put, but chaos continued, so he blew his horn to call reinforcements.

Sevia Asitini openly declared war on the Horn Bay Church near the Grand Cathedral, then defended herself when Vileus and his forces attacked. As flames engulfed four Church fighters, Lister watched from hiding.

• A burly Purification Squad man blamed Sevia Asitini for explosions near the Grand Cathedral, and Vileus arrived with armed Church forces.
• Vileus ordered his subordinates to search the area and proposed sealing the city, but Sevia appeared and identified herself.
• Sevia declared war on the Horn Bay Church and said its accusations against wizards rested on ancient legends.
• Vileus charged Sevia with his lance, but an invisible shield stopped the weapon just short of her chest.
• Sevia cast a spell that ignited the ground beneath four men carrying iron hammers, setting them ablaze as Lister watched from behind barrels.

Vileus’s squad was lured away from the Grand Cathedral while a Witch attacked them, allowing prisoners to escape from the cathedral’s prison. The Witch collapsed in an alley after hoping that Leechmann’s people would keep their promise.

• The Witch’s prepared spells burned and injured Vileus’s men, and Vileus realized she had laid traps around the street.
• Vileus threw a spear at the Witch, but her defensive magic weakened; when his men tried to attack, smoke and explosions let her escape.
• Vileus learned that the prisoners in the cathedral’s prison had been broken out and led his remaining men in pursuit.
• The Witch reappeared in a concealed cloak, hoped Leechmann’s people would honor their promise, and collapsed in the alley.

Paul lamented his failure to achieve sweeping reforms, then declared that he wanted to devote his life to filling the stomachs of the people in his territory. He argued that developing productivity and addressing unequal grain distribution were essential, leaving the Government Affairs Council stunned by his criticism of the great landlords.

• Paul reflected on his limited accomplishments and the resistance to his reforms, and Hansel asked how he wanted to spend his life.
• Paul declared that he would strive to fill the stomachs of the people in his territory, earning applause from Old Ford and the others.
• Paul argued that society needed to develop productivity through agriculture, mining, textiles, pottery, and other industries.
• Old Ford recommended reclaiming more farmland, but Paul argued that existing harvests could feed everyone if grain were distributed equally.
• Paul said that unequal grain distribution left the poor starving while great landlords' granaries overflowed, prompting an awkward silence from the council.

Paul explained how manufacturing and expanded trade could improve food distribution, while industrial technology could raise agricultural productivity and keep pace with population growth. He outlined Arda and Bairdin’s growing industries and labor force, then asked his advisers where productivity could advance further.

• Paul told Cecil and the council that manufacturing and wider trade could give people goods to exchange for food and weaken landlords’ control over local supplies.
• Laddie Setia recognized that Paul’s Customs Union proposal supported his Market Economy by lowering tariffs and encouraging trade.
• Berna warned that population growth could eventually outstrip food supplies, and Paul argued that machinery and farming technology could raise agricultural output.
• Paul described the growth of industries and hiring workshops across the territories, as rural workers and even serfs moved to towns for work.
• Paul asked the council to suggest areas where productivity could still improve.

Paul asked the Government Affairs Council to propose new industries for Northwest Bay and added fishing, shipbuilding, and coal processing to the development plan. He introduced honeycomb coal and a stove for burning it, while the council also planned to attract craftsmen and train local sailors.

• Gaye Berns proposed expanding the machinery factories and requested funding for steam research, but Paul postponed the project because he feared machines would displace workers.
• Old Ford proposed expanding fishing and selling fresh and pickled fish inland, while Paul noted that greater demand could support shipbuilding despite a shortage of craftsmen.
• Cecil reported that Cape Bay's witch hunt could drive skilled workers, merchants, and wealthy people to Northwest Bay, and Paul tasked him with promoting the region there.
• Paul proposed offering favorable terms to visiting merchant ships in exchange for employing local people as apprentices, and Old Ford reported that the navigation school's first students had begun onboard training.
• Paul demonstrated honeycomb coal and its stove, explaining that the processed coal burned efficiently and was easier to use.
• Paul directed the Government Affairs Council to develop the fishing, shipbuilding, and coal-processing industries.

In Holy Calendar 1993, Princess Catherine and the Kingdom Army prepared for a decisive battle against the Giles rebels after years of stalemate, despite Duke Veblen joining the enemy. Improved weapons and armor from Northwest Bay strengthened the Kingdom’s forces, but the rebels’ mysterious Undead Army remained a major threat.

• Princess Catherine urged the Kingdom Army generals to end the rebellion before winter, and both sides prepared for their agreed decisive battle near Fougeres.
• Duke Veblen sent troops to join Giles’s rebels after his eastern campaign failed to break through the Kingdom’s defenses.
• Northwest Bay’s growing weapons industry supplied the Kingdom Army with affordable arms and armor, helping it field more than 70,000 troops in the south.
• The generals worried that the rebels’ Undead Army always returned to battle as exactly 6,000 fearless, unusually strong soldiers, despite reported casualties.
• The Kingdom Army attributed the Undead Army’s unexplained replenishment and savage behavior to the Rebel Wizard.

Duke Giles gathered the Restoration Army’s leaders before its decisive battle against the Royal Army, but his forces faced shortages and unreliable allies. The chapter ended with Giles demanding that his commanders focus on next week’s battle and vowing to settle accounts with his enemies.

• Duke Giles welcomed his commanders to a feast and announced the decisive battle against the False King’s army would take place the following week.
• Sir Abel boasted that the rebels would defeat the Royal Army and seize Crystal Radiance, while Giles privately blamed the Veblen Family’s army for its repeated failures.
• Scott promised that the Secret Art Society would send medicine, armor, and magical devices, but could not guarantee Samar’s request for more weapons and armor.
• Samar explained that the Royal Army’s equipment came from Northwest Bay, where a newly discovered iron mine had boosted weapons production.
• Duke Giles silenced the discussion and ordered his commanders to focus on the coming battle, vowing to settle accounts with everyone who had wronged him.

Princess Irene shared her Northwest Bay experiences and her medical handbook with her noble friends, then learned that goblins released during the pirate occupation of Westport had multiplied in the surrounding forests. She worried that the threat in the rear would worsen while the Kingdom Army fought the rebels in the south.

• Irene's friends gathered in her Reception Room and asked her about Northwest Bay and Earl Greiman's inventions.
• Irene showed the girls the Basic Medical Handbook she had coauthored with Laddie and explained its lessons on hygiene and germs.
• Irene told her friends that Northwest Bay's printing press could produce books in batches and that she had ordered one to spread the handbook in Crystal Radiance.
• A steward summoned Annisa home because her brother had returned from Westport to deliver a message before going back to his post.
• The steward told Irene that goblins released during the pirates' occupation of Westport had multiplied in the forests, and Irene worried about the threat while the Kingdom Army faced the rebels.

Paul convened a meeting to decide which technologies the Greiman territory could license to other lords and proposed creating a Patent Protection Alliance. The meeting ended with Paul establishing a Technology Review Committee, while Mellon agreed to discuss the plan with Northwest Bay’s lords.

• Paul examined the goblin Tirpitz had sent, then ordered Philip to kill it and feed it to the dogs.
• Paul told the council that keeping existing technologies secret had become impractical and proposed licensing them through a patent protection system.
• Laddie suggested establishing a Patent Protection Alliance as a first step toward a Customs Union, and most of the attendees supported Paul’s plan.
• Paul asked Mellon to speak with the lords of Northwest Bay, and Mellon agreed while urging Paul to decide which technologies could safely be shared.
• Paul established a Technology Review Committee to evaluate technologies for external licensing, and Hansel volunteered to join it.

Viscount Eugene Helson visited Lakeheart Town to buy agricultural equipment and learn about Earl Greiman’s new technologies, while discussing his nephew Orlando’s education and prospects. Eugene warned Orlando to avoid conflicts between students and to stay out of matters concerning the Earl’s policies.

• Eugene arrived at his manor in Lakeheart Town and reunited with his nephew, Orlando.
• Over dinner, Eugene asked Orlando about the town and the Ves Institute, and Orlando described its practical education and the Earl’s emphasis on rewarding hard work.
• Orlando asked why Eugene had sent him to study instead of taking the Government Affairs Officer examination, and Eugene explained that the institute’s students would be more valuable to the Earl in the long run.
• Orlando admitted he wanted to transfer to the military academy, but Eugene cautioned that military advancement would be slow and their family’s status as former enemies made caution necessary.
• Orlando revealed that the military academy seemed to favor commoner youths and that he had joined some brawls with students from the neighboring academy.
• Eugene sternly told Orlando to avoid future student conflicts and not concern himself with matters beyond his place as the family heir.

Princess Catherine’s Kingdom Army used Hellfire to destroy the rebel army’s first Undead Army, but Giles revealed a larger force and the battle shifted again. As the rebels tried to regroup, Veblen’s unauthorized charge collapsed, and Lester’s cavalry pursued the fleeing troops into their ranks.

• Duke Walker urged Catherine to deploy Hellfire, but she refused until the rebel Undead Army appeared, then sent Lester to lead a flame-armed unit against it.
• Lester’s soldiers used Hellfire to rout the six-thousand-strong force, lifting Kingdom Army morale and prompting Catherine to prepare a counterattack.
• Catherine’s commanders spotted more than ten thousand soldiers equipped as the Undead Army, and Catherine ordered Duke Dodge and Sir Klein to close the wings on the center.
• Scott’s grey-robed ally reported that most of the Hellfire unit had switched to ordinary weapons, and Giles ordered his real Undead Army to prepare to strike.
• Veblen’s troops charged without orders and were quickly defeated, disrupting the rebel formation as Lester and the Kingdom cavalry rode in pursuit.

Cecil told Paul that the southern war had ended with Giles and Grand Duke Veblen renewing their allegiance to the Royal Family while keeping the territories they had seized. Catherine faced the kingdom’s weakened position, and Giles blamed Veblen and Northwest Bay for his bitter victory.

• Paul questioned Wells and old Hoffman about the Saltpeter Fields’ low output and warned them not to divert research funds again.
• Cecil reported that Giles and Veblen had resumed pledging allegiance to the Royal Family without returning the territories they had annexed.
• Paul and Cecil concluded that the Royal Family had effectively lost influence over the south and east, and Paul worried that the war’s end would hurt Northwest Industry’s business.
• Catherine reflected on the kingdom’s losses and accepted that the peace left it with landless nobles, goblin threats, and pirate attacks to address.
• Giles vented his frustration after the war by fighting in a dueling arena and swore revenge on Veblen and Northwest Bay.

Edward reported to Nathan and his mother that Aldo’s civil war had ended, leaving the kingdom too weakened to interfere abroad. The Secret Art Society turned its attention to its next plans, including the Crown Prince’s scheme and contacting escapees.

• Edward arrived at a secluded estate near Niceburg and told Nathan and his mother that Giles and Veblen had submitted to the Royal Family.
• Edward explained that the rebellion had driven loyalist families from the southern and eastern regions, leaving those areas beyond the Royal Family’s control.
• Nathan and Edward discussed how their plan had weakened Aldo, while his mother insisted they had not intended to create chaos and ordered them to stop interfering in Aldo’s affairs.
• Nathan said the group would next tie down the Holy See’s forces in the Horn Bay so the Crown Prince’s plan could proceed.
• Nathan told his mother they had contacted the escapees, many of whom were hesitant, and she urged him to bring them over to their side.

Friedrich Lister opened Todd Shipping Company's office in Niceburg with Sevia Asitini, the Witch he had rescued, working as his assistant. As they cleaned the new building, a crowd marched outside chanting Bishop Angelo's name.

• Friedrich Lister finished setting up Todd Shipping Company's Niceburg office and hurried upstairs to help Sevia Asitini clean.
• Lister recalled rescuing Sevia after she helped free a wizard from the Church's prison and sheltered her while the Church searched Niceburg.
• Sevia agreed to work as Lister's assistant, and she used her disguise skills to remain hidden from the Church.
• While cleaning, Lister awkwardly tried to make conversation with Sevia, who wondered whether he had really saved her out of simple justice.
• Sevia and Lister heard a crowd outside chanting Angelo's name and recognized it as the name of Niceburg's new bishop.

Sevia and Lister followed a protest in Niceburg after Archbishop Elvis ordered Bishop Angelo arrested and imposed a new poll tax. The crowd stormed the Grand Cathedral, and the story left the archbishop’s envoys being thrown from its second-floor windows.

• Sevia went downstairs with Lister to learn why a crowd was shouting Angelo’s name, and Lister discovered that people were protesting a new Church poll tax and Angelo’s dismissal.
• Sevia and Lister followed the protesters to the Grand Cathedral, where the crowd demanded Angelo’s release and Marquis Foster’s negotiations reached an impasse.
• Angelo and other Niceburg clergy emerged in shackles under armed escort, prompting the crowd to surge at the cathedral as the Church knights refused to draw their weapons.
• The crowd broke through the cathedral entrance, forced the envoys and their attendants inside, and stormed the building.
• Sevia and Lister watched from a nearby alley as people threw the archbishop’s envoy and his attendants out of the second-floor windows, where the crowd beat them.

After violence at the Grand Cathedral, Chairman Marcus and the Horn Bay Alliance Council planned public negotiations with the Church while secretly seeking allies and preparing for war. Marcus asked Marquis Foster to discreetly arrange weapons purchases from Arda through Paul Greiman, whose ties to the Foster family could provide a secluded supply source.

• Quiller Foster reported that the cathedral was secured, with five civilians and six Church members dead and dozens injured, after the Church knights apparently struck first.
• Chairman Marcus decided to send an envoy to Archbishop Elvis in Collins and secretly seek support from friendly states, then agreed to send another envoy to ask the Pope to mediate.
• After the council dispersed, Marcus told Marquis Foster to prepare for the possibility of war by discreetly expanding military supply warehouses.
• Marcus explained that the Aldo Army's equipment came largely from Northwest Industry and asked Foster to investigate suppliers connected to Arda.
• Foster agreed to send his sons to Arda to learn about Paul Greiman's attitude toward the Church, his relationship with the Auldo Royal Family, and his production capacity.

Paul assessed local gentry’s support for his proposed Customs Union and discussed using planned reforms as leverage to reduce opposition. He settled on advancing two steps and conceding one, while wondering whether Hansel’s service in Northwest Bay was only temporary.

• After the banquet, Paul asked Mellon, Old Ford, Hansel, and Philip what they thought of the local gentry’s attitudes toward the Customs Union.
• Old Ford said most guests had been evasive, while Baden had shown genuine support for Paul’s proposal.
• Paul reviewed the planned technology agreements with Potri and Lanaka and insisted the Customs Union needed results the following year.
• Hansel proposed announcing broader reforms, then withdrawing minor goals to ease resistance, and Mellon suggested limiting concessions to one step back.
• Paul adopted Mellon’s approach and later asked him what he thought of Hansel, reflecting that Hansel might regard his time in Northwest Bay as temporary.

Queller Foster and Gaius Foster visited Paul in Lakeheart Town, where Gaius revealed that he represented the Horn Bay Alliance in seeking a major weapons contract. Paul agreed to show Gaius Northwest Industry’s facilities, while the Alliance kept the reason for its preparations secret.

• Paul hosted Queller Foster and Gaius Foster at a banquet with Mellon Garnard in attendance.
• Gaius explained that the Alliance had sent him to inspect Northwest Industry and pursue a long-term weapons partnership.
• Gaius requested at least ten thousand sets of infantry armor, ten thousand longswords, thirty thousand spearheads, and fifty thousand bows and arrows within a year and a half.
• Paul assured Gaius that Northwest Industry could meet the order and promised to take him to a nearby factory the next day.
• Gaius declined to explain what threat the Alliance anticipated, and Paul agreed to keep the discussion focused on business.

Erkins prepared his workshop for a visit from Earl Greiman and a major customer from Cape Bay, hoping the visit would reveal new business after arms orders declined. The chapter ended as the earl was about to bring the customer to Erkins’s workshop.

• Erkins gathered his employees before dawn and urged them to perform well for the expected visit.
• Erkins recalled how Earl Greiman’s Mechanical Factory had displaced traditional craftsmen, then encouraged workshop owners to adopt its methods and granted them a three-year tax exemption.
• Earl Greiman offered surviving workshops a chance to supply Northwest Industry with goods, and Erkins’s workshop prospered from the south’s demand for weapons during the Rebellion Suppression War.
• After the war ended and weapons orders fell, Erkins worried about finding new business.
• The Lord’s Manor announced a major customer had arrived from Cape Bay and selected Erkins’s workshop for a visit with Earl Greiman.