Chapter 248: Chapter 175: Are We the Real Pitiful Ones?

Under the curious gaze of the locals, Osguta led two hundred Empire craftspeople out of the Black Dream submarine.

A small group of technicians responsible for controlling the mechanical soldiers stayed on the warship.

Their duty was to sit in the submarine day and night, tightly controlling the ship’s firepower and always ready to send commands to the mechanical soldiers on standby.

Most of the craftspeople were leaving the borders of the Empire for the first time in their lives.

Before disembarking, their eyes carried a hint of contempt and prejudice.

Everyone knew that the Alliance Chamber of Commerce, that group of bloodsuckers, was wantonly harvesting the archipelago’s resources. Therefore, most islands outside the Empire were barren and backwards, with the unfortunate people living in a savage and chaotic environment, lacking any cold and reliable order.

The Ark had just ended its dispute with the Alliance, and the Empire workers thought they would be living in simple houses made of stone and wood, gnawing on hard and dry food alongside the refugee wretches around them.

Reality, however, exceeded their expectations.

The moment they left the submarine, what appeared before them was a very beautiful seaside city.

Thanks to Eleanor’s efforts, the high-rises of Seagull City had already broken into double digits, with square, exquisite buildings scattered throughout the city.

The next moment, a brilliant waterfall of light suddenly poured from the depths of the sky onto the distant land, the sun’s brilliance casting an enchanting glow over the entire city.

So this is how the Ark Kingdom ’mines’...

Completely unlike what they imagined.

Under the wary and fearful eyes of some seafarers, the Empire workers silently formed a neat square formation and, under the guidance of the envoy, left the dock.

They wore uniform dark worker uniforms and marched in orderly steps. This group looked less like they were here to work and more like a well-trained army.

In fact, this group of workers had quite extraordinary combat capabilities. Even without the protection of mechanical soldiers, they could easily slaughter the guards of some small countries with their own abilities.

That’s how ferocious the Empire people were.

The leader of the workers following Osguta was a lively elderly man.

The elderly man was not tall, his hair was white, and his palms were calloused, yet he walked with vigor, his deeply set eyes carefully scanning the surrounding environment.

Wide and clean roads connected the various skyscrapers, with some young people with triangular ears driving drop-shaped golden vehicles that stopped and started.

They got out of the cars, wagging their furry tails and chattering about something, seemingly conducting some improvement tests on the vehicles. When the young people argued intensely, they would puff up the fur on their tails, making furious "woo" sounds as they scrapped with each other.

This was a new city full of vitality.

The old man sighed inwardly, turning his gaze to the beautiful skyscrapers that stood more than twenty meters high.

Very similar...

Very similar to the Empire Sanctuary built under the guidance of the great ’Prophet’.

The Ark Kingdom was clearly entwined with the Empire in countless ways. The difference was that there was no ceaseless, biting wind and snow here, and the flowers and plants growing by the roads were even carefully pruned.

Could it be that Lord Lin Lan, living here, was actually the illegitimate child of some duke?

Hoffman wondered in his heart.

The Empire craftspeople behind him also looked astonished, examining everything about the Ark Kingdom. Seeing those ’familiar’ architectures, their prejudices visibly dissipated, and their gazes towards the local residents grew much more friendly. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

No wonder the Duke planned to help the Ark Kingdom. Perhaps before long, the Ark Kingdom would become part of the Empire...

Moments later, Osguta led the craftspeople to the accommodation building prepared by Lin Lan.

"Mr. Hoffman, this will be your temporary residence in the future."

The man stopped, gesturing to the elderly man beside him: "Lady Margaret and Lord Elio are already residing on the top floor, the remaining areas are free for you to arrange."

Including Hoffman, all the Empire craftspeople were wide-eyed in surprise.

"My lord, are you saying..."

Hollman hesitated: "Even we ordinary people are qualified to live in the sanctuary built by the Prophet?"

In the system formulated by the Empire’s upper echelons, the higher the status of Empire people, the higher they lived. It was said that in the Empire’s new city, some nobles and officials with special status never needed to set foot on the ground their entire lives.

"In the Ark Kingdom, civilians also have the qualification to buy apartments, and there’s no rule here that status determines height."

Osguta, a man of few words, simply introduced and advised them: "Don’t ask about the details, and don’t offend the local workers. You just need to follow arrangements and work diligently."

Don’t ask... Don’t offend...

Most of the young workers swallowed their saliva, their eyes a bit bewildered. Wait a minute, are we actually the ignorant wretches?

Hoffman, however, quickly calmed his mind.

"Alright, let’s get in and wash up. There’s heavy work waiting for us ahead!"

The elderly man shouted energetically, and the workers entered the skyscraper one after another, residing in their new accommodations two per room, as arranged by Osguta.

The accommodation building, over twenty meters high, was more than spacious enough to house the two hundred workers and still had many rooms left over.

The old worker’s leader turned his thoughts to his future work.

Hoffman had originally thought his group only needed to set up a small factory to build wooden boats to satisfy the Ark Lord, and the local residents would be grateful to the Empire.

Now it seemed he had oversimplified things.

As he pondered, he looked at the envoy beside him: "Lord Osguta, does the Ark Lord have specific requirements?"

"Lord Lin Lan hopes for us to establish a factory capable of building medium-sized steel cargo ships."

Osguta responded concisely: "He will arrange enough local workers to cooperate with your work."

Hoffman instinctively furrowed his brows.

A factory for building medium-sized steel cargo ships...

That’s not just something that can be talked into existence.

They brought a few leveling and hydraulic machines, as well as corresponding measuring devices, aboard the Black Dream warship. But starting from scratch to build a medium-sized shipyard was no easy task.

The absence of cranes was also a major issue. Lord Lin Lan couldn’t possibly expect people to fly around carrying steel materials, could she?

For most small maritime nations, establishing a shipyard is an insurmountable barrier in itself.

He feared he would have to spend a very, very long time on this small island nation.

What awaited the workers next would certainly be intensive labor, and who knew if his old bones could endure it...

Hoffman composed himself, suppressing his stray thoughts, and said, "My lord, as long as the Ark Lord can provide enough materials, I can first set up the material preprocessing center and subsection workshops."

"It’s up to you, Mr. Hoffman."

Osguta said gravely, "Only by satisfying Lord Lin Lan can the two counts secure enough benefits for the Empire."

At that moment, he suddenly thought of the future vision from his dreams.

The rampant mechanical insect swarm in his homeland, the golden communication block, the search and rescue team of the Ark Kingdom, and that beam of sunlight piercing through the snowstorm...

"Please approach this work with the utmost seriousness."

Osguta looked at Hoffman, his tone unprecedentedly earnest: "Trust me, Mr. Hoffman, as I see it, helping the Ark Kingdom is helping the new Empire. We’re essentially on the same path."

Hoffman was momentarily stunned.

He looked at the young man in front of him, cursed by wind and snow, and nodded solemnly. A phantom snowflake drifted past the depths of his pupils.

Everything was for the prosperity of the Empire.