The Enormous Gap

In the golden autumn, a chill breeze swept through the port of Le Havre, but it did nothing to dispel the bustle and mingled smells unique to the docks.

The briny seawater, damp timber, faint fishy odor drifting from the market in the distance, and the myriad scents rising from mountains of cargo all came together to give this port city its vitality.

The docks rang with voices. Ship horns blared, and waves slapped the shore, their sounds blending into an unending symphony of labor.

Little Louis, Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Gaul, had just finished inspecting a shipyard in Armand's company.

Still in high spirits, Little Louis strolled toward the customs house in the bustling harbor district. From its balcony, he watched with his own eyes as coins poured into the royal treasury.

Sunlight filtered through thin clouds and spilled across the disorderly docks, illuminating the laborers' backs as they bent under heavy loads.

They bellowed rough work chants, sweat coursing through the grooves of their muscles as they carried sacks of grain and bundles of leather out of the holds, then struggled to load them onto carts.

Wheels carved ruts into the stone paving, and the air was thick with the smell of sweat and dust.

Little Louis's gaze swept over the busy port, and his heart filled with hope for the kingdom's future.

Suddenly, in the midst of all the activity, several bright patches of color caught his eye.

They were enormous boxes, stacked in relatively neat rows and painted vivid shades of blue, green, and red. They looked completely out of place amid the clutter, almost like a new neighborhood of houses.

The boxes had smooth, even surfaces, tightly fitted edges, and uniform dimensions, like bricks in a city wall.

"Armand, what are those?" Little