Release that Witch

After solving the payment problem, Roland planned to break through another wall on the road of development.

This was to formulate standard units.

The universal education in Neverwinter had taken millimeter, centimeter, meter, kilometer, and some other distance units into the textbook, replacing the original distance units such as inch, foot, yard, and so on. So far, it was quite effective. The measuring instruments produced according to the new units, due to their high precision, had been universally acknowledged in construction and industrial production departments.

The benchmark prototype for centimeter, namely an iron bar as wide as Roland’s nail, was stored in the study of the castle.

What he wanted to do next was integrate the other units and popularize them in the entire Kingdom of Graycastle.

The reason that he waited for long to do so was that the early levels of production and education did not urgently require new units, and the technique for the units’ popularization was not mature enough.

After all, to merely have standards was meaningless. If they could not be produced by measuring instruments, people could not use them in practical life.

For now, none of these things were a problem anymore.

For example, he defined the volume of a vessel of one cubic decimeter as one liter, the weight of one cubic decimeter of water as one kilogram, and a one-meter long pendulum’s swing at a period of one second... Hummingbird could precisely replicate the vessels for one kilogram and the pendulum could be used for time. With the prototypes and models, factories in Neverwinter could produce numerous replicas.

Or Anna would have to take care of all the production of measuring equipment, which was a waste of time and effort.

When the industrial technology reached a certain level, the popularization of more precise measuring units would become inevitable and smooth.

Roland did not worry that those standards might not be ”pure” enough. In fact, those prototypes in human history had always been under improvement with the advancement of times.

...

Three days later, Iron Axe, leading the Eastern Front Army, finally returned to Neverwinter. Arriving with him was Echo, who had spent almost half a year in the Port of Clearwater.

Looking at the two Mojins reporting into him in front of his desk, Roland was overwhelmed with emotions. The two of them had been exiled criminals—one of them with a concealed identity and hunted for a living in Border Town; the other was sold as a slave and lived a dangerous life. But now, they had become indispensable members of Neverwinter.

Having shouldered the heavy responsibility of commanding an army all by himself and working busily for months, Iron Axe showed no trace of fatigue, but rather appeared perfectly fine. His gestures and expressions exuded the qualities of a senior general. Echo had changed more dramatically. The influence her slavery life had faded away and her blue-grey eyes radiated confidence. Her temperament matched better with her status as the chief of Osha.

It seems experience can indeed change a person.

Echo’s report was quite simple. The Wildflame Clan stuck to the agreement and the first batch of migrants had been stationed at the Port of Clearwater. Affected by the choice of the first clan in Iron Sand City, a few relatively smaller clans came up to her and expressed their wishes of serving the chief. The entire plan was carried out quite smoothly. After receiving all the people from those clans, the emigrant population in the Port of Clearwater was estimated to reach 30,000 at the end of the year, a number which could compare favorably with that of the old king’s city.

She also brought a letter from Spear, the ruler of Fallen Dragon Ridge. Without reading it, Roland was sure it was a request for more labor and food.

”Spear said that as she was only a manager of a small manor, she lacked the experience of taking care of so many people, and she was quite bruised and battered.” Echo said, imitating Spear’s tone, ”Although the skilled hands in the City Hall were good at work, according to their suggestions, there had to be two to three hundred more clerks to help those migrants settle down. If Your Majesty doesn’t kindly take more care of her, she said she had the impulse to shrug off her burden and run off to Neverwinter to become a common witch.”

Roland could not help, but laugh. ”Who said a common witch is idle. Soraya and Leaf will be watching you. How could you be worthy of such a useful ability as magic power channel if you don’t exhaust it every day?” Roland thought to himself. ”I see. I’ll dispatch her more officials from the next batch after they had been approved. You must be tired after this mission. Rest for a few days.”

”Yes.” Echo bowed and then asked, full of expectation, ”Your Majesty, have you been... composing recently?”

”Um...have you learned all the other songs?”

”Yes... they all have good effects, especially when inspiring people,” Echo replied with a smile. ”When I’m confused, I often sing the songs you taught me. If not for those songs, I might not have lasted till this day.”

It seems to coordinate relationships among the clans and maintaining order in the Southern Territory isn’t as easy as she reported. It’s just she bears the difficulties and setbacks all by herself.

”I see,” Roland said slowly. ”I’ll have someone write down the new songs and send them to your room.”

Echo bowed deeply. ”Great. Thank you.”

No matter how bad he was at composing, he could always rummage through the Dream World. After all, he could never refuse such a request.

After Echo left, Roland looked at Iron Axe.

”It’s been a hard task.”

”It’s okay, Your Majesty,” Iron Axe bowed and said hurriedly. ”It’s an honor to fight for you. I don’t find it hard, on the contrary, I enjoy it.”

”Really?” Roland smiled, without giving his opinions. ”What happened to the nobles who escaped to Seawindshire? You didn’t burn them, did you?”

”I wanted to, but they ran too fast,” Iron Axe said seriously. ”After the First Army finished clearing Valencia and arrived at Seawindshire, the suburb had become a piece of wasteland. Other than that, several granaries in the downtown area caught on fire. Obviously, the nobles would rather ruin the city than hand it over to you in one piece.”

”That must have been the last revenge from the rebel king’s remnants,” Roland thought to himself. ”If the Eastern Front Army hadn’t had sufficient preparations and the dozens of cement carriers that kept on transporting supplies day and night, this battle would have stopped there because the hungry city dwellers would have robbed from the First Army. As soon as the army suppressed them with violence, restoring order would be out of the question.”

”Where did they escape to?”

”Some went to Fjords, others went to the other three kingdoms,” Iron Axe said with regret. ”Unfortunately the First Army was not equipped with ships, otherwise there was no way I’d let them go.”

”Don’t worry. As long as they dare to use their original family names, I’ll clear them away sooner or later,” Roland said slowly. At least the batch that fled to the Kingdom of Dawn were none better than flies throwing themselves into the net. They probably were Timothy’s last loyal followers. Roland did not worry that they might come back. The reason he wanted to remove them once and for all was that they gave him a headache.

After inquiring about the rehabilitative measures in the Eastern Region, Roland suddenly remembered something he had doubted awhile ago.

”Right, and luring the nobles to prison then setting it on fire... did you come up with this idea?”

Iron Axe’s expression instantly froze.