Since Gius left for Eldora, half a month had passed in the blink of an eye.

During these two weeks, the snow in Brambleford had been intermittent, and the accumulated snow in the city was deep enough to reach a person’s knees. When the sun came out and melted the snow, the roads became extremely muddy.

As a result, the people of Brambleford were even less inclined to venture outside.

Simon shared the same sentiment as the townsfolk. Apart from occasionally visiting the Engineering Department to oversee progress, he spent most of his time in the castle, drawing. Today, he had finally completed the structural diagrams, overall renderings, and detailed node drawings for the galleon.

"Thankfully, I have some artistic skill." Simon said smugly. In his modern life, his only hobby had been drawing comics, so he had some experience with illustration.

Although he was using a brush, his drawings were quite impressive, with clear lines that rivalled computer-generated designs.

"My Lord, what has you so happy?" Joan asked as she brought in his breakfast.

Since winter had arrived, the food had become even more monotonous. Breakfast consisted of two flatbreads and a bowl of dough drop soup. However, this was also the season for hunting, so there was some venison and wild fowl available in the market.

Now that the prince’s castle had some silver, they could occasionally enjoy meat dishes.

"I’ve finally finished drawing the ship," Simon said happily, taking the flatbread and letting his fingers brush against Joan’s hand.

Joan shot him a reproachful look but was already accustomed to Simon’s playful nature.

Looking at the dozen or so drawings on the desk, Joan stuck out her tongue. "My Lord, you are truly amazing. If it were me, I wouldn’t know how many years it would take to draw so many."

Simon was in high spirits. With the drawings complete, it was time to get Harlan started on the project.

He believed that in terms of shipbuilding technology, the Eldorian Empire wasn’t lagging behind at this stage; what was lacking was innovative thinking and advanced techniques.

"It’s not that hard. If you’re free at night, come here, and I’ll teach you. I guarantee you’ll improve quickly." Simon said between bites of his flatbread.

Joan blushed. "My Lord is just trying to tease me again. I won’t fall for it." With that, she pouted and left Simon’s chambers.

Simon chuckled mischievously as he watched Joan leave. After quickly finishing his breakfast, he took the drawings and headed to the Engineering Department.

In the depths of winter, there wasn’t much else to do, so he spent his time shuttling between the Engineering Department and his castle.

Moreover, he wanted to take advantage of the agricultural off-season to establish some simple workshops, which would be ready for use by spring.

"My Lord." Fjord greeted Simon with a bow.

Unlike other places, the Engineering Department was bustling with activity. Craftsmen and servants were hard at work, and in the backyard, two blast furnaces over three meters tall had been erected.

On either side of the furnaces were earthen steps for loading materials, and at the base, each furnace was connected to a large bellows for air supply.

In front of the furnaces were piles of black, unremarkable objects, not coal, but coke that Simon had instructed Fjord to produce.

"How’s the iron smelting experiment going?" Simon asked.

The mature techniques Simon had taught Fjord had saved him a lot of trial and error, but the process still required hands-on experimentation.

"My Lord, the initial attempts at producing coke weren’t successful. The iron produced had too many impurities. Later, we adjusted the temperature and sealed the carbon more tightly, which finally yielded qualified coke. We also had to adjust the airflow and coke quantity multiple times during smelting to produce qualified wrought iron that met the necessary standards for forging." Fjord explained.

Since Simon had instructed him to use blast furnaces for iron smelting, Fjord had thrown himself into the task. Now, he had finally succeeded in producing wrought iron.

Simon nodded. "Good. Once the crucibles are ready, this wrought iron can be refined into qualified steel, and the strength of our machine tools and cutting tools will also improve."

"We’re just waiting for Steward Roland to return. It’s been over twenty days since he left. Why hasn’t he come back yet? Fjord couldn’t help but feel anxious.

Simon frowned. He was also worried. With the roads blocked by snow and bandits on the loose, he hoped nothing had gone wrong.

Glancing at the wrought iron ingots, Simon said. "Don’t worry. There’s plenty of work to do at the Engineering Department. You can focus on other tasks for now. By the way, how have Harlan and the others been performing recently?"

Fjord seemed to have forgotten about Harlan and his men. Only when Simon brought them up did he say. "My Lord, they’ve been doing manual labour and have been quite diligent. Why do you ask?"

Simon held up the drawings. "For this. The Engineering Department will likely need to produce some parts for it."

"My Lord, may I take a look?" Fjord immediately became eager.

Knowing Fjord’s nature, Simon didn’t tease him and handed over the drawings.

"Is this a ship?" Fjord glanced at the drawings and exclaimed. "But I’ve never seen a ship like this before."

"This type of ship is originally called a galleon. After some modifications by me, I now call it the Brambleford ship." Simon explained.

Fjord flipped through the drawings and then handed them back, scratching his head. "My Lord, I’m afraid I can’t help with shipbuilding. I’ve never studied it before."

"I’m not asking you to build the ship, just to help produce some parts." Simon said with a laugh.

Fjord breathed a sigh of relief and then remembered. "That’s why My Lord is looking for Harlan. His family used to run a shipyard, didn’t they? I’ll go fetch him right away."

A short while later, Fjord brought Harlan over. Harlan bowed and spoke. "This old servant greets Your Highness."

"At ease." Simon said, helping Harlan up. "I called you here because I have a task for you. It’s a waste to have your family doing manual labour. Here, take a look at this and tell me if you can build it."

Harlan was stunned. He took the drawings from Simon and, after a quick glance, froze in place. After a long moment, he frantically flipped through each page. By the end, his hands were trembling uncontrollably.

"My Lord, where did you get these drawings? I’ve never heard of such a ship, but based on my experience, this vessel is perfectly suited for sea voyages." Harlan said.

Simon nodded. This single comment showed that Harlan still had some expertise, as he could reco the technical sophistication of the design. "Don’t ask about that. I just want to know if you’re willing to build this ship for me."

"Willing!" Harlan replied without hesitation. "It’s better than spending my days surrounded by ore and coal slag."

"Good. In that case, I’ll restore your shipyard. However, from now on, it will be state-owned and have no connection to you. Are you willing?"

Harlan sighed. "This old servant is a criminal and a slave. I only wish to make use of my lifelong knowledge."

"Very well. In a few days, you and your family can return to the shipyard. I’ll handle the matter with the Chandlier family." Simon said.

Harlan’s former shipyard had been seized by the Chandlier family, and Simon would need to reclaim it. With this matter settled and no other urgent tasks at the Machinery Department, Simon returned to his castle.

---

At the same time, the Chandlier family’s merchant ship slowly docked at the port of Eldora, the capital of the Eldorian Empire.

Gius disembarked and stared in awe at the majestic and imposing city of Eldora in the distance.