Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage Chapter 792: Domain Council Meeting III

CH792 Domain Council Meeting III

***

Eleanore’s proposal was met with nods of approval from most of the council members.

"Before we decide to site these factories and industries within exiting settlements," Sugud said, "I believe we should first consider the health risks."

Milton’s expression immediately became solemn as he understood Sugud’s concern.

"Many of these industries produce fumes, dust and other forms of pollution that could be harmful to people living nearby," Milton said.

Sugud nodded in agreement.

"That shouldn’t be too difficult to address," Eleanore said after a brief moment of thought. "We could establish purification formations—or rather, purification talismanic fields—around the different factories."

"That would certainly help," Sugud replied, "but it wouldn’t eliminate the risk entirely."

"Then perhaps we should approach the problem differently," Rosa Mercier spoke up.

"What if we establish a dedicated industrial district outside the current town limits?"

"The entire district could be enclosed within a single large purification talismanic field, containing and purifying the fumes and pollutants within the area before they can spread to the residential or commercial districts."

"Besides, maintaining one large field should be more economical than installing separate formations for every individual factory." She added.

Eleanore rested her chin on her hand as she considered the suggestion.

"...That’s actually a good idea."

"Not only for the industrial district. We could properly zone each town into dedicated districts."

"Residential, commercial, administrative, industrial... Doing so would also allow us to place the necessary public services closer to the people who need them."

She turned towards Rosa with an appreciative smile.

"An excellent suggestion."

"Actually..." Sugud scratched his cheek awkwardly. "From a technical standpoint, it’s generally much easier to construct and maintain several smaller formations than one enormous formation."

"The larger a formation becomes, the more difficult it is to maintain its stability, particularly due to its complexity. You would need someone with exceptional expertise in formations to pull it off."

Zora, who also possessed considerable knowledge of array formations, nodded in agreement.

Then she smiled faintly before turning towards Alex.

"Can you do it?"

Alex shot Zora a sidelong glance for a long moment before letting out a sigh.

"I should be able to," he said thoughtfully.

"While I’m at it, I could probably also design formations for the other districts. I might as well make each settlement one large city-wide Grand Formation... especially since we’ll also need to account for berserk-energy corruption."

His response began as an answer to Zora’s question but gradually devolved into him thinking aloud.

The eyes of the few council members who truly understood the scope of what he had just suggested immediately lit up.

"If you can pull that off, we’ll solve a great many problems all at once," Sugud said.

"Indeed," Zora nodded. "If you’re already planning to construct city-wide Grand Formations, we should incorporate our long-term urban development roadmap into their framework from the very beginning."

Alex looked at her with a weary expression.

’You do realise you’re piling an entire mountain of work onto my shoulders.’

Zora met his gaze without the slightest hint of guilt.

’It’s only work. It won’t kill you. Besides, you’ll be the greatest beneficiary in the end.’

Most of the council members didn’t fully grasp the scale of what Alex had just proposed.

However, they understood enough to realise it would bring tremendous benefits to the domain’s settlements.

Naturally, no one voiced any objection.

"Another matter we need to consider is logistics," Rosa said, steering the discussion back on course.

"There’s little point in increasing production if we can’t move goods efficiently to wherever they’re needed."

"In particular, while intermediate or semi-finished goods can be produced close to their raw materials, more advanced manufacturing will inevitably require resources and components from multiple locations."

"As such, we must establish a reliable transportation network."

"Regarding the road network," Milton said, "His Lordship previously informed some of us—including myself—about his proposed ’Silk Road’ initiative."

"I as well," Sugud said.

"Young Mas—I mean, the Count—has already provided me with preliminary designs for a series of transportation machines powered by the Mana Motor."

"These machines will eventually eliminate the need for draft animals and much of the manual labour currently required to transport goods."

"I expect to have working prototypes ready before long."

Eleanore nodded.

"Furthermore, as part of the Silk Road initiative, the Ministry of Works and Construction has begun collaborating with the Survey Corps’ cartographers and surveyors to draft a comprehensive road network for the domain." She said.

"The proposal links our three existing towns with the planned fortified settlement at the southern valley entrance."

"Wherever geography permits, we intend to establish multiple routes between major locations to ensure traffic can continue uninterrupted, even if one road becomes impassable."

The more Eleanore explained the Silk Road initiative, the more favourably the council viewed it.

Even the military officers around the table nodded in approval.

Such a transportation network would not only accelerate commerce but also allow troops, supplies and reinforcements to be deployed rapidly across the domain.

At the same time, its complexity would make navigation considerably more difficult for outsiders unfamiliar with the road system.

As the discussion surrounding the Silk Road initiative drew to a close, Zora looked around the council table.

"Perhaps the most important decision before us now," she said, "is determining which advanced industries we should prioritise."

"Although our domain is blessed with abundant natural resources, those resources are still finite."

"We need to decide where our efforts should be concentrated."

She deliberately steered the discussion towards the same topic Alex and Sugud had debated earlier.

As expected, her gaze settled on Sugud, inviting him to speak.

Sugud nodded thoughtfully.

"It is difficult to say that we should develop these industries and ignore all others," he admitted.

"Every industry has the potential to contribute to the growth and prosperity of the domain."

"You are not wrong, Director Sugud," Rosa Mercier said. "At the same time, the Chancellor’s point still stands."

Eleanore turned towards her.

"You sound as though you already have a solution, Lady Rosa."

"I believe I do, Minister."

Rosa inclined her head politely.

"I think we should approach this the way a merchant would." She said.

’A merchant?’

A flicker of curiosity passed through the council chamber.

Fortunately, Rosa did not leave them waiting.

"I was taught that every merchant begins by identifying a gap in the market and supplying what customers need."

"As the merchant grows, he learns to anticipate future demand, allowing him to position himself ahead of his competitors."

"And when he matures, he no longer follows the market—he creates the market."

She allowed the words to settle before continuing.

"If we think of our domain as a fledgling merchant, then our path becomes much clearer."

"First, we identify everything the domain needs simply to function and develop, then establish the industries required to supply those needs."

"Once our necessities are secured, we can begin producing the things the domain desires."

"And after that, we can invest in industries that support the future we want to build."

"I believe that if we view our industrial development through this viewpoint, the priority of each factory will naturally reveal itself."

Understanding dawned on many of the council members.

Across the table, Alex and Saul exchanged approving smiles before nodding almost in unison.

"An excellent way of looking at it," Sugud said.

Resting a hand beneath his chin, he considered her proposal for a moment before speaking again.

"In that case, our first priority should be construction materials."

"Almost every project we have discussed—from mines and roads to workshops, factories and public buildings—depends on them."

"If we wish to accelerate development, then producing finished construction materials must come first."

He paused before adding,

"Fortunately, we already possess enough Mana Motors to supply the first wave of factories responsible for manufacturing those materials."

"Then, once we’ve secured our construction materials, we can shift our attention to the transportation machines the Count has designed..."

Sugud continued muttering to himself for another moment before suddenly realising where he was.

"Ah... my apologies," he said awkwardly.

Saul smiled, "There’s nothing to apologise for, Director. Your suggestion has considerable merit."

He glanced towards Alex, who returned the nod before looking around the council chamber.

"What does everyone else think?" Alex inquired.

"Do you agree that, during this initial stage of industrialisation, our advanced manufacturing efforts should focus primarily on construction materials?"

The posture of most of the council members already revealed their support.

Even so, rather than answering immediately, many of them instinctively turned towards Rosa Mercier.

Without waiting to be prompted, Rosa offered her opinion.

"I agree with Director Sugud’s proposal."

"No matter what products we eventually decide to manufacture, every one of them will require factories, workshops or other supporting facilities to be built."

"And those facilities, in turn, require both construction materials and an efficient transportation network to supply them."

"With that in mind, prioritising these two foundational requirements during the first phase of development is, in my opinion, the most sensible course of action."

With Rosa’s endorsement, the council formally settled on the broad framework that would guide the domain’s industrial development.

From there, the discussion shifted from strategy to implementation.

The council debated how resources should be extracted, labour recruited, wages structured, taxes managed and the many practical considerations required to turn their plans into reality.

By the time the discussion concluded, the civilian members of the council had a realistic roadmap they could begin working towards.

Their eagerness to put those plans into action was almost tangible.

Alex nodded to himself in quiet satisfaction.

To someone like him, with the knowledge and experiences he had of his previous life, many of the decisions reached today seemed obvious.

That was never what mattered most to him.

What truly pleased him was seeing the council members pool their individual expertise, challenge one another’s ideas, and ultimately arrive at a coherent plan together.

More importantly, they had done so with very little guidance from him.

That was exactly the kind of leadership team he wanted to build.

Although he would remain the Domain Lord and the highest authority in the territory, Alex saw no reason why every decision within the domain should revolve around him or require his direct involvement.

That had been the primary objective of this council meeting.

Judging by the discussion that had just concluded, he considered that objective successfully achieved.

***