Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

The underground secret passage of the manor.

The palace that had originally been completed was now partially dismantled.

The exit of the passage, which had once been just an ordinary limestone cave, had been expanded into a massive vertical hollow.

A spiraling road wound downward, leading all the way to the sea surface at the bottom.

This space was divided into multiple platforms, with each level having wide tunnels extending in different directions.

At the center of the platform, in a circular hollow, square open compartments connected together were slowly moving.

Their speed was not fast, but they moved continuously, without any sign of stopping.

This was the Paternoster elevator.

The elevator was named so because it moved in a continuous loop, much like the repetitive cycle of reciting prayers with a rosary, carrying a subtle religious metaphor.

An eternally circulating elevator that never stopped, this doorless elevator was born in 19th-century England on Earth.Passengers could step on or off at any floor as they wished, though quick reflexes were necessary.

This posed no problem for the Sirens.

This type of machinery, allowing quick ascents and descents, was immediately favored by them once it was installed.

When it first started operating, some Sirens would ride it endlessly, treating it like a roller coaster until their annoyed kin hurled them into the sea.

Well, the biggest flaw of this elevator was its lack of safety.

There was always the risk of getting stuck if one wasn’t quick enough, though the Sirens didn’t need to worry about that.

If one went around to the opposite side, they could see the power source of the elevator—Clamorer.

It sang joyfully, a melody only it could understand, burning pollution as fuel and driving the elevator’s endless rotation.

Hughes’ steam factory had not yet adopted the use of the Clamorer.

Whether this steam engine, which seemed possibly controlled by an Outer God, was truly reliable still required observation.

However, where the Sirens gathered was the perfect place for experimentation.

The Clamorer posed no threat to them, and whether it suddenly exploded or emitted pollution, the Sirens could react swiftly and minimize the damage.

At this stage, the factory used steam engines equipped with Machine Souls.

Hughes would regularly go to soothe them himself, as Chloe’s research team had yet to discover a method to calm the Machine Souls.

For now, Hughes had to handle it personally, though luckily, the Machine Souls remained stable, and each time he visited, the machines would run smoothly for several days.

Alexei held a blueprint in his hand, staring thoughtfully at the Clamorer before him.

”So, the factory will soon be equipped with these Clamorers? Even if they have some unclear connection to an Outer God?”

Next to him stood a Siren with long brown hair, Una, who oversaw the design and execution of Castel’s construction. Originally, architecture had just been her hobby, but after preparations for war began,

Hughes brought her in to handle both the Network Path Project and the construction of ground fortifications.

Una glanced at the Clamorer, nodded slightly, and spoke softly, ”Yes, don’t worry. They’re very stable, more stable than ordinary steam engines, in fact. The Steel Spirits inside seem to actively maintain the engines themselves, which has been very convenient for us.”

The Steel Spirits were strange entities summoned through a ritual led by Chloe and her team.

These noisy, peculiar beings were once thought to be Outer Gods.

But now, most people no longer feared them.

Though they constantly murmured incomprehensible things, they never posed any danger, so everyone simply let them be.

At most, some soundproofing was installed to keep things quiet.

”Alright then, since Lord Hughes has decided so.” Alexei sighed.

He had a natural distrust of these mechanical devices.

Thankfully, he no longer had to manage the factory himself; otherwise, he wouldn’t even sleep well at night.

”Miss Una, did you call me over this time to discuss the connection between the underground passage and the surface fortifications?”

Ever since Hughes had devised the Network Path Project, Alexei had frequently worked with Una, this particular Siren.

In Hughes’ division of labor, Alexei was responsible for leading Castel’s construction team to build fortifications on the island, while the Sirens handled the underground network and outer fortresses.

These structures needed to connect underground for seamless communication between fortifications; otherwise, the reinforced concrete buildings would be nothing more than isolated islands.

Pouring concrete fortifications on the surface wasn’t difficult.

Hughes had provided a complete set of construction plans, and most of the workers were literate.

Una’s task of digging underground seemed simple too, she just had to keep throwing Fossil to Mud forward.

But connecting these two areas was proving to be a headache.

The Sirens had trouble accurately determining direction underground.

Even if they could, judging depth was difficult, and the ground wasn’t level.

The plains in the north were manageable, but the southern hills were a nightmare, often, digging a few meters up would break through to the surface, while in other places, they’d only realize they were inside a mountain after digging upward for a while.

This problem had given Alexei quite a bit of grief, he was even starting to lose hair over it.

Una wasn’t having an easy time either.

Though Sirens could dig quickly, their construction diagrams were far more complex than surface structures.

Surface construction, no matter how difficult, always took place on the same plane.

But Hughes’ Network Path Project diagrams were three-dimensional, adding a Z-axis.

This presented a considerable challenge for Una, who was essentially tackling civil engineering as a hobby.

Unfortunately, this time she wasn’t here to solve that issue.

Una shook her head, her beautiful brown hair swaying in the air.

”No, that’s not it. Lord Hughes wants you to temporarily halt surface fortifications and focus on expanding the church first.”

”Expand the church?!”

Alexei’s voice jumped an octave.

His eyes widened as he tried to discern whether this was some kind of terrible joke, causing Una to take a step back in fear.

Only then did he recall the Siren’s peculiar nature.

Despite being a powerful supernatural being, this Una always seemed timid and hesitant, except when discussing engineering and construction, then her eyes would light up, and she’d speak with passion.

Heaven help her, Una was simply a bit socially anxious.

Such a personality was rare among Sirens, who were born with telepathic abilities and later connected through Mind Links.

Most Sirens could chat with several people simultaneously while speaking aloud.

”It’s true! Hughes went to the factory but will return soon. He told me to inform you ahead of time, he’ll come directly to you shortly. Look, there he is!”

Una raised her hand, pointing toward a platform on a lower level.

A tunnel extended southeast from there. Alexei looked in that direction and saw Hughes just getting off a carriage.

•••••

[”Paternoster” in Latin translates to ”Our Father,” the opening words of the Lord’s Prayer in Latin.]