Kingdom Technology

Technology was the foremost productive force.

If the kingdom wanted to grow stronger, it needed to develop its science and technology.

This was what Hades valued most. The Kronos Kingdom had not been affected by the World Government's suppression of technological progress across the seas.

For superpowers like it, the World Government's influence was extremely limited.

The Kronos Kingdom also had a strong technological foundation: powerful artillery and guns that were more accurate and had greater range.

These were vital to the kingdom's ability to stand firm on the seas, fend off pirates, and suppress rebels.

To that end, the Kronos Kingdom already had a dedicated Research Base.

Within the kingdom were many accomplished scientists working in various fields.

One had even developed wireless communications that worked independently, without relying on Den Den Mushi or being disrupted by the unique magnetic field surrounding the Kronos Kingdom's entire island.

That scientist was Nikola Tesla.

He was the undisputed giant of electromagnetic engineering in the Kronos Kingdom, if not the entire world.

Hades had even praised him as "a godlike man." His research in electromagnetism had reached an almost divine level.

Wireless communication was merely a minor technology Tesla had developed long ago.

But although it opened up a new field, it had received little attention at the time.

After all, Den Den Mushi already served as a means of communication.

Others had tried to develop communications technology before, only to be stymied by the chaotic magnetic fields of this world.

Only the biological magnetic fields of Den Den Mushi could establish independent connections.

Wireless communication was an exceptionally difficult, advanced technology. Its greatest challenge was establishing an independent connection amid those chaotic magnetic fields—effectively fighting nature itself.

In certain particularly strange and turbulent sea areas, even Den Den Mushi communications failed or suffered interference.

With the right adjustments, however, wireless communication could work even in those places.

Hades understood the technology's immense potential. If they could build an independent communications network covering the entire Kronos Kingdom,

and create devices similar to telephones, they could replace Den Den Mushi entirely.

Then they could block Den Den Mushi signals.

That would make the Kronos Kingdom an iron fortress. No information could leak out, because Den Den Mushi would be unusable once their signals were blocked.

Communications within the kingdom could instead rely on specially made devices.

The peculiar conditions of these seas meant the network could cover only the Kronos Kingdom and some surrounding waters.

The magnetic fields around more distant seas and islands would differ. They could establish new networks tailored to local conditions, but there was no need.

That was Hades's vision.

As Hades saw it, the kingdom's current level of development was far from enough.

After coming into contact with the Underworld Prison and learning more about conditions in the Kronos Kingdom, Hades immediately applied to establish the Royal Academy of Sciences.

Naturally, the Royal Family gave him its full support.

The existing Research Base was incorporated directly into the newly founded Royal Academy of Sciences.

With materials and funding from the Kronos Kingdom, projects involving weapons, missiles, submarines, communications networks, and compatible telephones were approved one after another.

There were also more advanced projects involving laser cannons, electromagnetic cannons, human enhancement, and Nutrition Pods.

Vegapunk's arrival would mark the true beginning of this world's technological explosion, driving technology to ever greater heights. But that did not mean the seas lacked a sufficient technical foundation already.

Laser cannons, for instance, were a technology they could already envision and realistically build.

That was especially true in the Kronos Kingdom, with its considerable technological foundations and scientists of the highest caliber.

Under Hades's direction, the Tartarus Royal Family invited numerous renowned scientists from within the kingdom, as well as scientists around the world who had shown exceptional talent in various fields.

Given sufficient funding, most would not refuse. To set their minds at ease, the Kronos Kingdom could also bring their families over and offer them generous benefits.

The Five Royal Trading Companies had connections throughout the Four Seas. Combined with the Underworld Prison's intelligence network, their reach extended like tendrils into kingdoms and islands everywhere.

They searched for scientists with sufficient talent.

To avoid raising alarms or drawing the World Government's attention, they did everything in secret.

Future Country, with its formidable technological capabilities, required particular care. To restrict technological development across the seas, the World Government had built a Marine Fortress on a small island nearby.

It kept Future Country under constant watch, making travel in and out troublesome.

In technology, Future Country was undoubtedly ahead of the rest of the world. It even had rudimentary artificial intelligence.

Someone had developed more advanced artificial intelligence in the past, though few people knew about it.

The assembled scientists researched the fields and inventions Hades wanted them to pursue.

His many ideas and concepts—especially the concept of satellites—captured the interest of numerous scientists.

Having lived two lives, Hades had enough experience to understand how to make a country stronger.

He knew which directions and industries to develop. Until now, few people had given such questions much thought.

The World Government's suppression of technological development was one reason.

Hades could also offer plenty of suggestions for inventing weapons. He was a weapons enthusiast—not quite a military buff, but familiar with all sorts of arms.

Weapons were among the first projects the Royal Academy of Sciences undertook after its founding.

For those brilliant scientists, a concept and an understanding of what it should do were often enough to work out how to build it.

Take automatic rifles. The Kronos Kingdom had more than enough technical know-how to make them. Weapons similar to Gatling guns had already appeared in this world.

The only drawback was their high cost, caused by a lack of adequate manufacturing technology.

Hades knew it all depended on a strong industrial system and sufficiently precise equipment, such as machine tools and lathes.

Even in the future, the Beasts Pirates would rely on Wano Country's craftsmen to make their precision weapons. How could production volume be high under those conditions? And the costs were unimaginable.

Assembly lines and automated production existed as concepts in this world, but only at a rudimentary level. Machine tools alone were a bottleneck.

With a sufficient industrial base, however, they could establish complete production lines. Output would soar, while costs would fall many times over.

Precision mattered most. Being able to mass-produce artillery did not mean they could mass-produce guns. The smaller the device, the greater the precision required.

A strong industrial base would also support other industries and drive the kingdom's economic growth.