As the seemingly endless convoy slowly entered Newborn Town, the entire town came to a standstill.
Barrett, captain of the Garrison, stood atop the wall, his single eye widening in shock.
What was he looking at?
Heavy tarpaulins covered the wagons, and their wheels left deep ruts in the ground. They were clearly carrying heavy loads.
Nor were the people walking with the convoy ordinary wagon drivers. They wore matching dark blue artisan uniforms with golden sails embroidered on their chests.
Their steady strides and focused gazes marked them unmistakably as highly skilled artisans.
There were even three figures in alchemist robes among them, two of whom were speaking quietly with the White-Bearded Elder at the head of the group.
"Good heavens... didn't our lord go to provide 'disaster relief'?" Barrett muttered, forgetting to tuck the wineskin in his hand back into his belt.
"Did he... bring back the Golden Sail Merchant Guild's entire Alchemy Workshop?"
Not far away, Old Walker had just led the villagers through another round of irrigation channel digging. He leaned on his shovel, the advancing convoy reflected in his increasingly lively eyes.
His lips trembled. He wanted to say something, but his barren mind could not produce a single word.
He had thought the stone-skinned soft vine and sea-salt potatoes their lord had created were impressive enough.
Yet this time, he had brought back an army of artisans and scholars capable of building an entire city.
Awe and fervor spread through the hearts of every resident of Newborn Town.
Every so often, their lord created wealth beyond anything ordinary people could imagine!
At the foot of the low hills partly encircling Newborn Town, Veylin was explaining his plans to Caroline.
"The interior of the mountain will make the best laboratory. It has a constant temperature and is secluded enough."
Veylin pointed to an area on the rock face that the artisans had already marked. "The Origin Society's headquarters will be established here. I'll personally supervise the construction, and security will be of the highest level."
He paused, then turned his gaze toward the distant stretch of saline-alkali land dusted with what looked like white frost.
"I'll also put the plan to promote sea-salt potatoes on the agenda. If everything goes smoothly, the Golden Sail Merchant Guild will gain control of an entirely new, inexpensive staple crop that can be grown on a large scale at any coastal port."
"Not only will it quickly bring money back in, it will also give you leverage over those port cities."
Veylin's voice was calm as he laid out plan after plan, analyzing the advantages, drawbacks, and returns.
But to Caroline, his words carried more than their straightforward meaning.
Everything he mentioned was intended to benefit the Golden Sail Merchant Guild and ease her burdens.
He seemed even more eager than she was to pull the guild out of the weakness left by its costly victory and make it strong again.
Her heart, which had cooled on the terrace a few days earlier after his remarks about "scattered sand," now slowly thawed in a warm current.
She watched his intent profile. The vision of a future reflected in those wise eyes left her momentarily entranced.
This man was like a precision instrument, yet every gear seemed to revolve around her.
"You..." She had just begun to speak when Veylin turned and headed toward the Lord's Residence.
"Come with me. There's something you need to know."
After much consideration, Veylin had decided to tell her that Calamity was an artificially created organism, but only her.
The Lord's Residence was still the same small three-story building, though the people coming and going gave it more life than before.
Veylin pushed open the door to his office.
A moment later, Caroline froze in the doorway.
Inside, Xiao Lan was standing on one leg, her body held in a very... enticing pose.
She had raised one leg high behind her, almost touching the back of her head, and gripped her small, white-socked foot with both hands as she struggled to keep her balance.
The movement naturally pushed her chest out and drew her hips in, stretching the curves of her body to a breathtaking degree.
Together with the patches of sweat that had soaked through in several places, it gave the girl an innocent yet utterly captivating allure.
Hearing the door open, Xiao Lan turned her head in delight, her face still flushed from the effort of completing the pose.
"Lord Veylin!"
Her voice brimmed with an eager plea for praise.
"I heard you'd just returned, and I wanted to tell you right away that I can finally do this pose properly! Look, do you like it?"
A thick layer of frost settled over Caroline's face, draining it of all color.
She stared at the scene before her.
An innocent yet sultry girl... a provocative pose... do you like it...
So this was the "something" he wanted me to know!
Click.
Without a word, she turned away. Her high heels clicked sharply against the floor as she walked out without looking back.
"Caro..."
Veylin was about to call after her when something went wrong with Xiao Lan as well.
When Xiao Lan realized Veylin had not entered alone, she knew how embarrassing she looked. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, she shrieked and scrambled to lower her leg, only to fall to the floor in her panic.
"Ah!"
"S-sorry, my lord! I-I didn't mean to... there was a stranger..."
Ignoring the pain in her ankle from the fall, she covered her burning face with both hands, so mortified that she wished she could dig a hole and bury herself on the spot.
Caroline climbed straight into the carriage waiting outside the residence. Before she even gave an order, the driver shuddered at the chill radiating from her, flicked his whip, and hurried away.
By the time Veylin rushed outside, he had lost even the chance to explain.
Korn, who had now become his dedicated liaison, strode over with an unusually grave expression.
"Lord Veylin, the vice president..."
"She had something urgent to attend to," Veylin supplied an excuse for her.
Then he asked, "Judging by your expression, you have bad news?"
Korn nodded and lowered his voice.
"We cross-checked our investigations into the two leads, Calamity and the sick fish. In the end, all the evidence pointed to the same target."
"We suspected it long ago, but now it's confirmed-the Blackstone Hand Merchant Guild."
"They planned and carried out everything from behind the scenes. They paid a price, but as the largest merchant guild in Sea Land, these losses were nowhere near enough to cripple them."
"My lord, Hector is an obsessive madman. You ruined his plans, so you must be on your guard against retaliation."
With that, Korn took the remaining people to catch up with the vice president. Their next stop was Stonebridge City, where they still needed to inspect the fishery.
Night fell.
Inside the office at the Lord's Residence, Veylin stared coldly at the map of Newborn Town on his desk, which had barely changed.
Charcoal pencils of different colors marked the water sources, woodland, and that vast expanse of white saline-alkali land.
He raised his head and looked expressionlessly at Barrett and Old Walker, whose foreheads were covered in cold sweat.
"I dealt with the plague in Wrong Anchor Harbor, brought back enough artisans and scholars to build a city, and even planned the industries that will keep every one of you fed and clothed in the future."
He tapped his knuckles lightly against the saline-alkali land on the map. Each tap felt as though it struck the two men's hearts.
"And during the two weeks I was away, all you did was stand here and stare blankly at this land?"
His voice was quiet, but its chill seemed to freeze the air.
"Tell me, both of you. What exactly made you think that 'standing still' was the best response to everything I brought back?"