I Became a Witch and Started an Industrial Revolution

Walking out from the vast Federal Capital Central Station, Bratt gazed at the dense flow of people on the streets and the iron boxes that could move without the need for horses or magical beasts to pull them.

It felt as if he had stepped into a fantastical world.

Invited by Coy into a convoy that had long been waiting, Bratt sat inside one of those iron boxes, curiously touching everything around him while staring fixedly at the driver manipulating the machine ahead.

There was no trace of magical fluctuation… yet this contraption was even more intricate and compact than that steam train.

He could hear a strange roaring sound emanating from beneath the long, narrow metal plate at the front of the vehicle.

But—why did it not burn coal like the train did?

At Bratt’s request, Coy detoured and took him to visit several automobile manufacturing plants.

Industrial development could not progress without the textile industry.

It was a labor-intensive field capable of absorbing vast numbers of workers, and since clothing was one of humanity’s essential needs, reducing its cost benefited everyone.

Apart from textiles, the second most important industrial jewel was, of course, the automobile industry.

From the iron shell of a car’s exterior to the engine within, the interior fittings, and even the wheels below—each component represented a labor-intensive production chain behind it.

In Mitia’s postwar reconstruction plan, the two key pillars of victory, apart from textiles, were automobiles.

Textiles and automobiles seemed unrelated, yet their underlying logic was almost identical.

Mass textile production required advanced mechanical technology and chemical science, and automobiles likewise depended heavily on chemical products.

These two industries together drove the explosive progress of the Seris Federation’s chemical sector.

The proliferation of automobiles, in turn, spurred the construction of bridges and roads and generated an immense demand for petroleum.

Refining fuel, diesel, and asphalt required countless laborers; the automobile industry alone stimulated a vast network of upstream and downstream sectors.

Workers were in high demand, yet skilled ones remained scarce.

Thus, many vocational schools were established to recruit commoners for free education and later absorb them into factories as workers.

The shortage of labor grew so severe that even the Parliament began to pressure Mitia to open pathways for farmers to migrate into cities—how absurd that sounded…

Workers labored by day to produce industrial goods and consumed those goods by night, fostering stores, restaurants, schools, and entertainment venues around their factories—forming industrial economic circles.

This was precisely why Mitia once declared this to be the best era for workers.

Seris had, without exaggeration, become a nation of laborers.

As the country strode boldly forward, every citizen behind her could share in the blessings she bestowed.

The industrial products of the Seris Social Federation seemed to fill every street, their designs simple and unpretentious.

Yet simplicity and affordability were themselves hallmarks of industrial strength—for to make something cheap yet profitable meant that the entire chain of technology and production lay firmly in their hands.

Behind every inexpensive product stood at least one industry chain concerning the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands or even millions of workers, along with abundant raw materials and low-cost transportation.

If any of these three factors faltered, the final product reaching consumers could never remain cheap.

The convoy gradually left the bustling streets, driving farther and farther from the city.

Yet the number of vehicles on the road did not decrease—instead, it grew, and their sizes became even larger.

Bratt even saw massive vehicles, no smaller than a steam locomotive, hauling a dozen smaller cars past them.

He swore that the iron boxes he saw on this road far outnumbered all the carriages in his kingdom’s capital.

How many craftsmen would it take to produce so many of these machines?

However, as he observed longer, Bratt slowly realized something—the majority of the cars, despite differing in color, shared nearly identical shapes, as though made from the same mold.

That meant these things must have been crafted not by one person but by a collective—a single, unified group.

Sera Vehicle Industry Consortium—a massive industrial city built upon the technologies once mastered during the construction of the steel warship.

Its size was nearly equal to that of the current capital itself.

It was one of Mitia’s model sites for industrial integration, containing every factory required for automobile production.

Dedicated railway lines connected the complex directly to deliver steel and raw materials.

An internal circular railway further sped up the movement of parts.

Over sixty percent of the nation’s vehicles were produced here.

Giant steam engines, stamping presses, hydraulic and oil-powered cranes—all were present and operating.

Bratt watched as iron plates were stamped into various shapes by the machines.

Following Coy through the manufacturing process, he saw steel gradually forged into form.

The conveyor belts flowed like water, carrying parts forward.

At each stop, a new component was added until, at the end of the line, it transformed into the small cars he had seen on the streets.

His eyes were filled with awe.

“This… by the Goddess! Am I truly allowed to see such a thing?”

Bratt looked at Coy in confusion.

Weren’t such things supposed to be the highest national secrets? Why—why was he being allowed to witness them so easily?

Did they not fear he might learn their methods—or did they simply disdain the notion of hiding them?

Coy smiled faintly and asked in return, “Tell me, how many workshops did you pass on the way? Do you know what those machines do? Why can steel be bent at will without springing back?”

“Why is it manufactured this way? What principles lie behind it? Why are the wheels round? What materials are they made of—and why those? Why do all vehicles share similar shapes?”

“You don’t even understand the basic principles—how could you possibly replicate them? Showing you costs us nothing~”

Though Coy smiled, his words left Bratt speechless.

He even sensed a faint trace of… disdain?

Bratt grew displeased.

‘These are but lifeless objects. Under a mage’s spell, they would all turn to ashes. You still cannot create Mechanical Bodies…’

Ah yes—the classic magical retort.

But it wasn’t as if they had no mages either.

“Honorable Bratt,” Coy replied calmly, “it’s true that we cannot manufacture Mechanical Bodies… nor is our magic as strong as yours. That’s precisely why there remains much room for exchange and learning between our nations.”

Hearing this, Bratt’s expression softened.

He subconsciously ignored the fact that his kingdom’s Mechanical Bodies were purchased from this very place.

Coy quickly realized his earlier arrogance and inwardly sighed in relief.

He was here to receive guests and demonstrate strength for business—not to quarrel with his financier.

Fortunately, he had managed to smooth things over.

Afterward, Coy continued guiding Bratt around several more places before escorting him to rest at the newly constructed Federal Grand Hotel in Sera, where he would meet the Empress the following day.

Throughout the tour, Coy had shown Bratt only civilian sectors—none related to the military.

His intentions were clear: he came to sell.

Whether it was trains or automobiles, though such things could slightly enhance military logistics, their importance remained limited—and thus they were fit for export.

The main continent’s vigilance toward such non-military goods was minimal.