Schools and Factories

"We should open another school. All our workers and their families will be able to learn to read there for free. The school will also teach some mechanical knowledge and other subjects, with classes during the day and after work in the evening."

Did that mean teaching commoners to read?

Alexei raised his head in surprise. Opening a school was certainly a good deed, but teaching people for free?

How could precious knowledge be given away for free? H-how would anyone understand its importance?

Even in orphanages funded by the royal family, learning to read was still a reward that took considerable effort to earn.

Besides, time was so tight. They had to find a way to deal with the pirates within a month. How could they spare the time for this kind of charity?

"My lord, should we put off opening the school for now? We don't have much time..."

"No. This can't wait. It's far more important than you think, and we need to get started at once." Theus paused, then added, "And remember to spread the word: I'll teach at the school myself."

Though puzzled, Alexei nodded and carefully wrote it down in his notes.

Charity? Theus certainly wasn't doing charity.

People of this era hadn't yet realized how important knowledge was. They treated it like gold coins, locked away in a chest.

But Theus knew how crucial a skilled workforce was to industrialization. And the most basic requirement for a capable worker was literacy.

Once people could read, they could understand all kinds of knowledge and learn on their own. Learning was the key to fundamental change.

The foundation of industry had never been factories belching black smoke. It was workers with a basic understanding of equipment, machinery, and assembly-line production.

On modern-day Blue Star, many people thought assembly-line jobs required no education at all. But that was because compulsory education had become widespread, giving workers the basic knowledge their jobs demanded.

If a group of people who knew absolutely nothing walked into a workshop, it would be a disaster.

Of course, this era had its own way of doing things. The factory owners during Theus's previous Descent hadn't given their workers much training, yet the factories had still managed to operate.

It was simple: treat the workers as expendable. Once enough people died, everyone would learn how dangerous the work was.

Theus had no intention of doing that. If he built factories, he wouldn't limit himself to competing with the industrial goods of this era. To change the world and unleash the tide of industry, he had to aim much higher.

That would require countless engineers and skilled workers... They wouldn't grow out of the ground. He would have to train them himself, little by little.

And opening a school was the first step.

Thinking of this, Theus couldn't help sighing. This Descent had been a winding journey. Only now could he finally begin making plans and getting things on track.

"Alexei, I need you to organize some people to build factories on the island."

Alexei had little idea what a factory was. He only knew that even in the Empire's capital, Rhine, these fashionable establishments were few and far between, and were usually run by the Church. He'd even seen notices from several factories looking for workers. It was strange—they always seemed to be hiring.

"Yes, factories. The island has so many olive trees, so I plan to build an olive oil factory."

"But who will we sell to? There aren't any merchants here."

"You don't need to worry about that." Theus smiled faintly.

It was simple: he planned to sell to the pirates.

The pirates weren't interested in olive oil, but that wasn't all he wanted to sell. Olive oil was merely the first link in his chemical industry chain. And once this industrial beast began to stir...

Castel's goods and money would soon pile up like mountains. As it happened, he also knew a thing or two about weapons manufacturing.

He had goods, and he had force. The pirates? They would become the most docile merchants on the Storm Ocean.

The island had even better conditions than he'd expected. Theus was confident he could quickly build a complete industrial system.

"Go back for now. I'll discuss the details with you later. Get the people organized first. We may be short-handed soon."

There weren't many residents on the island. That was what worried Theus most; no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make people appear out of nowhere.

He'd have to find a way to attract immigrants. Theus frowned as he considered the problem. It wouldn't be easy. People in this era rarely left their homelands, whether in the Empire or elsewhere.

He'd heard that the White Crow Duchy in the north was relocating people south on a massive scale. Perhaps he could find a way...

"...My lord?"

"Hm?" Theus came back to himself and saw Alexei watching him. "Is there something else?"

"Er, yes, there is..." Alexei looked a little embarrassed.

"What is it?"

"It seems the town hall has run out of money..."

"What?"

Theus was stunned.

"It's like this." Alexei sighed, picked up the ledger, and began to explain.

The manor where Theus lived hadn't been built by him, but it had already been in poor condition when he arrived on the island. It had taken several months of repairs to bring it to its current state.

Repairing the manor had been expensive. Though Theus had paid most of the costs out of his own pocket, the town hall had also contributed a great deal of labor and building materials.

The island's output was already low, and the manor repairs had taken workers away from other tasks, leaving them even more stretched.

But none of that was the main problem. There was another reason...

"The pirates collect a batch of Sweet Fruit Wine every time they come to levy their sea tax?" Theus stared at Alexei in disbelief. "You're not about to tell me..."

"Yes, my lord." Alexei struggled to get the words out. "Castel's main source of income is actually the sweet wine the pirates happen to buy."

Theus pressed a hand to his forehead and closed his eyes. "Now I see why all these ledgers are about paying the pirates. I thought the accounts were kept separately. Turns out there's barely any trade here at all."

This had to be a joke. There was no commerce here whatsoever.

But it wasn't a major problem. Though Theus couldn't come up with the money right away, lords of this era had their own solution—paying late.

Yes, delaying payment was a very useful method. All he had to do was call on the people of his domain to work and promise to pay them later. Then he could get the whole territory moving.

He was the lord, a noble lord. No one dared disobey him. Even if he openly refused to pay, the people of his domain would still come work for him, grumbling all the while, despite being free citizens in name.

How could free citizens really be free?

But after thinking it over, Theus abandoned the idea of delaying payment. For one thing, he didn't want to spend his credibility. And for another—

"We can't delay payment. Quite the opposite: every wage must be paid in full and on time. If funds are tight, we can set wages lower, but we absolutely cannot refuse to pay."

Alexei frowned, about to argue. This was a critical time for the territory's development. How could they waste precious resources just to appear benevolent?

"Alexei, wealth only shows its true value when it's in circulation. Sitting in a chest, it's no different from scrap iron!"

Theus stood and paced briskly. "Commercial activity in Castel has all but ground to a halt. If all we want is to spend our lives as lords here, collecting a few baskets of salted fish as taxes, then fine. But if we want to get the whole territory developing, we have to prove that we can be trusted!"

"Post a notice and send people door to door to tell everyone: we will never be late paying our workers."

"If there's no money, go to Connor and draw from my private treasury. If there's cash, take it. If not, there are still some jewels we can sell."

Theus gritted his teeth as he spoke.

Alexei looked at his lord in surprise. Theus had both hands braced on the table, and the pained look on his face seemed genuine. But his gaze was fervent and resolute.

"Just watch, Alexei. Once money starts circulating, it has a kind of magic."