Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

Recently, two things had become hot topics among the islanders of Castel.

The first was the advanced class opened by the lord. Some people had even seen Sister Chloe attending the lessons.

This was a rare sight indeed. People had only ever heard of others going to the church to learn how to pray, but never before had a nun gone outside to study.

But what could a nun possibly learn? How to clean the church more efficiently?

Some devout believers even went to ask Miss Chloe directly, only to be dragged into a long-winded lecture about mechanical principles by the enthusiastic nun.

"It was terrifying! Miss Chloe’s eyes were shining, and she was unbelievably strong. I tried to slip away twice, but she pulled me right back!" one believer recounted with lingering fear.

And so, the nickname "Studious Nun" spread across the island.

Everyone knew that the church housed a particularly studious nun, which ironically led to an increase in people coming to the church to pray.

They even began discussing the lessons they had learned while inside.

Though not many people attended the advanced classes, the number of those who understood mechanical principles, physics, and chemistry was steadily growing.

Hughes did not forbid the advanced class students from sharing their knowledge. In fact, he even encouraged it, though he did establish a few rules.

Hughes had indeed fulfilled his promise, sharing knowledge with the islanders at almost no cost.

But by now, no one cared about such trivial details. The islanders no longer doubted Hughes’ words, everyone had come to believe that the lord would always keep his promises.

This small island in the Storm Ocean, along with its people, was undergoing a quiet transformation.

Besides the "Studious Nun," there was another topic of discussion among the people.

Josh had returned.

Everyone on the island knew Josh.

Though he was a bit sly and opportunistic, he was still a decent person.

He was also good friends with Ken, but ever since Ken joined the advanced class, they hadn’t spent much time together.

So, when Ken returned home after class and saw Josh waiting at his door, he was quite surprised.

"Josh! You’re back?! Oh my god, you really came back! We thought you’d run into trouble in the Empire!"

Ken rushed forward and hugged him.

"Hey, Ken, you’re choking me! Gaia, get your brother off me, he must be jealous that I got to travel to the Empire and now he wants to kill me."

"Actually, I am kind of jealous, I heard you ran into pirates?"

The group laughed and chatted as they entered the house. Old Ivan went to light the stove and boil some water.

Since everyone in the family attended the advanced class, they earned money but had no time to cook.

So, most nights, they just made do with whatever food they could throw together. But tonight was different, Josh had brought fried fish and potatoes for them.

Ever since the olive oil factory opened, islanders could buy olive oil at low prices.

As a result, fried fish and fried potatoes had become increasingly popular.

Many workers would buy fried fish from street vendors before heading to work. It was a rare delicacy for the islanders, but the key was that it was affordable, making it an occasional treat they could indulge in.

The students in the advanced class earned less money, so they usually couldn’t afford such luxuries.

When Gaia and Ken saw the large bag of fried food, they couldn’t help but swallow hungrily.

"Uncle Ivan, you should eat too. Don’t be shy, I made money thanks to your help."

"You made money? You sold all the soap?"

"Of course!" Josh grinned. "I’m here to split the profits with you guys. You wouldn’t believe how well that stuff sells in the Empire!"

Josh had been among the first to buy soap. When he took a few bars home, he was immediately fascinated by the little invention.

That day, he must have washed his hands at least twenty times.

The islanders all loved the new product, but Josh thought further ahead.

As he held the soap in his wrinkled hands, a thought formed in his mind:

If I take this to the Empire, I could probably sell it for a much higher price!

Josh was a man of action. That very night, he ran to find Ken.

Ken didn’t have much money, but his family all worked for the lord and had the privilege of buying soap at a lower price. Ken convinced his family to use their quota to help Josh buy soap.

Then Ken reached out to other families, and in the end, Josh left the island carrying a large crate of soap, sailing to the Empire aboard a returning Candlelight Church ship.

"Unfortunately, things didn’t go smoothly. We ran into pirates as soon as we left Castel."

"Pirates?!"

"They didn’t take your cargo?"

"No, and that’s the weird part. Their captain just asked us a few questions and then left without touching anything. Honestly, everyone on our ship was scared stiff. That pirate captain had a curved sword at his waist, the same kind Scribe Alexei wears. Who knows how many people he’s killed with it?"

"Oh my god, the outside world is really dangerous! Why do you think they let you go?"

"I’m not entirely sure, but I have a guess, they asked us where we came from, and when they heard ’Castel,’ they backed off. Maybe it has something to do with the lord."

"The lord?! You think he has a deal with the pirates?"

Ken and Josh turned to look at Gaia, then burst into laughter.

"Impossible! The lord is a Count of the Empire. There’s no way the Empire would ally with pirates. If anything, they probably fear him."

"Exactly! The lord is so powerful, it’s only natural for the pirates to be afraid of him. We used to have to pay sea taxes when we fished, but I heard the lord gave the pirates a good beating, that’s why they don’t dare collect taxes anymore."

"Oh, so that’s why you all have free time now, you don’t need to fish anymore and can work in the lord’s factories instead."

"Alright, enough about the sea taxes. Tell us about your time in the Empire! How many places did you go to sell all that soap?"

Hearing this, Josh scratched his head sheepishly and put down his fried potatoes.

"Actually… I didn’t go to many places. I sold all the soap at the port."

"You sold it all at the port?! But that was a whole crate!"

"Yeah. After I demonstrated how it worked, it was gone in less than half an hour."

He smacked his lips as he recalled the scene. It wasn’t selling, it was a frenzy.

Josh pulled out a pouch, counted out a pile of lio coins, and placed them on the table.

"This is your share."

"Why is there so much?! How much did you sell each bar for?"

"Ten lio."

"How much?!"

"Ten lio per bar. And even at that price, they sold out instantly. I think I could’ve charged twenty lio each and still sold them all."

Ken and Gaia’s eyes widened in shock.

The two fell silent for a while before Ken finally spoke. "Josh, we can’t take this much. We didn’t invest any money, we just used our quota to buy soap. This is too much."

The sight of so much money made Ken swallow nervously, but he still refused. He wasn’t in dire need of funds, and he didn’t feel right taking so much.

"Listen, my friend. This money is rightfully yours. Without your quota, I wouldn’t have made nearly as much. Besides, there’s something I need your help with."

"What is it?"

"Can you… introduce me to the lord?"