Starting with the defeated female knight

However, since they knew they were making too many demands, and the magicians had returned a significant portion of the previous deposits as agreed and reduced their share of the profits.

Although they felt it was still somewhat lacking, the nobles reluctantly accepted it.

With the factory and the results, all we need to do now is bring the people over...

"What do you mean, not even people?"

As it turns out, even though the academic slaves had already simplified the design and operation as much as possible according to the nobles' requirements, it was still ineffective.

However, for an empire where the average person has dropped out of prenatal education and elementary school students are not public intellectuals but can be considered prophets, no matter how simplified the design and operation are, it seems a bit too high-end.

"Don't you know how to pull the lever? Just follow this order..."

"Can't you remember to count to thirty and then put the materials in? What do you mean you can't count?!"

"I can accept that you can't read words or do math, but why can't you even understand human speech?!"

"A bunch of idiots!"

It's not even just a matter of whether or not you know how to use it.

Urinating and defecating anywhere, malfunctioning and damaging the machine, stealing parts and materials, and even a curious child sticking their head into the machine, getting pulled in and turned into pieces, scaring everyone else away from the machine, and causing rumors outside that the machine would eat people, making it difficult to recruit workers...

The nobles are on the verge of collapse.

Even the mages were on the verge of collapse.

Finally, with no other choice, the mages had to reluctantly dig out the group of academic slaves again and throw them over to those lowly, stupid fools for basic training.

Then, the academic slaves collapsed, and the lowly bloodlines who knew nothing and would be beaten if they couldn't learn also collapsed.

Even when things were finally starting to look promising, the church would interfere again halfway through the lessons.

They barged in, spouting 'faith' and 'miracles,' insisting that their teaching was heretical and sinful.

In addition to demanding money, they also insisted on adding 'faith classes' to tell stories of faith and miracles, in order to cultivate the faith of these people of lowly blood.

Frankly speaking, academic slaves and those of lowly bloodlines wholeheartedly support this demand.

After all, regular lectures are really too grueling for both sides. If there were faith-based classes interspersed, at least they could hear some short stories and catch their breath.

But the nobles were not happy.

They've already paid so much, and it's been dragging on for so long. Now that things are finally starting to look up, they want to add some kind of faith class.

Isn't this just a waste of time?

The problem was that they also knew the prestige and influence of the church among those of low blood, and after hesitating for a long time, they gritted their teeth and agreed.

Now, the training, which had just begun to improve, has been brought back to square one, or even worse than it started, due to the delays caused by the faith classes and the shift in focus.

The nobles from the original investigation team were now in despair. They desperately squeezed onto the third caravan heading to Dawn City, practically kneeling and crying over Green's tentacles, expressing that they shouldn't have ignored his advice.

After comforting them, Green allowed them to exchange the association's knowledge and magical technology, as well as the design plans for their machines, for his guidance and assistance.

After returning home with profuse thanks, everything went smoothly from the initial stages until the factory started operations, thanks to the guidance and assistance provided by Green.

Other families at different nodes, with Green's guidance, finally got through the initial stage, and their factories gradually started operation.

Even the quality of the products has been significantly improved thanks to Green's suggestions on some small details, and efficiency has also increased.

Production has begun.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the long ordeal was finally over and all they had to do was wait for the money to be printed.

Only the nobles from the original investigation team received Green's warning, but they didn't dare to tell anyone.

Children, I really don't want to hurt you.

But the most dangerous part of this thing isn't now; once it actually starts operating, that's when it'll be completely destroyed.

It's not too late for you to stop now.

"It's too late, sir."

They responded with a wry smile.

The price of binding the family to the war machine with interests is that when they want to stop, others will hold a knife to their backs.

The sunk costs are too high, the future vision is too bright, coupled with so much effort over such a long period of time, and the low intelligence caused by inbreeding.

They've gone almost insane.

Why don't you just stay here and not go back?

silence.

They looked at each other, then at the tentacles before them, remained silent for a moment, and sighed.

"My lord, we are nobles."

Even if we can't defeat you, we still have to hold on to something.

"Thank you for your kindness, but we have to go back now."

It's not that they don't believe Green.

Although they still don't understand, the last warnings have all come true, and even if they're stupid, they won't take this lightly.

But as they said, they were nobles, and they had to have their own principles.

This was a battle they had started with their own hands; the blood flowing in their veins wouldn't allow them to flee in the face of battle.

not to mention......

"We'd like to give it another try."

"What if, I mean, what if you're wrong, what if... what if it works out?"

Clutching at a hope they themselves knew was unrealistic, they returned to the capital.

Then, the factory started operations smoothly.

Then, production of goods began in a steady stream.

Then, just like printing money, gold and silver coins arrived in droves.

The family members who benefited celebrated joyfully, and the nobles who were originally part of the investigation team became heroes.

But what will be the price?

Amidst jubilation, in every corner of the capital, and in everything.

The blue eyes began to move, and the red river of blood flowed slowly.

The two-headed eagle surveyed its territory, where tender green leaves began to grow.

Spring has arrived, the season when all things revive.

Wild animals, awakened from hibernation, begin their ravenous search for food.

But as they emerged from the cave and looked up, they discovered something they had never seen before in the distance, its mouth agape, waiting for food to enter on its own.

That monster is called the Factory.

It's going to start eating people.

------

P.S.: I didn't know which map to run, so I just randomly posted an old one.

Book 1: Chapter 97: Don't Cry Like a Dog

The factory has started to devour people.

But they didn't start eating right away.

On the contrary, in the early days of the factory's operation, no one thought there was anything wrong with it. Not to mention the nobles and mages who made a fortune, even ordinary people praised the factory's existence.

After the factory started production, with the continuous production of finished products, many higher-quality but lower-priced goods began to flood the market.

Not only did the nobles make money, but the middle class and even the lower classes also bought things they never dared to dream of before at relatively low prices.

Not to mention that, in addition to the goods, the factory workers also receive wages.

Moreover, due to the empire's educational level, it is difficult to recruit people even if they are not skilled workers but simply perform on-demand operations.

In addition, the high profits brought by the factory, even if still only a fraction of what ordinary upper-class people make, are figures that middle and lower-class people can only dream of.

Furthermore, with the stabilization of the situation, the situation in the capital gradually eased, the tensions between the various noble families and schools of thought were not so high, the blockades between them were relaxed a little, the trade of goods and materials slowly resumed, and the high prices also dropped.

Everything is getting better, everything is improving.

The thing called the factory, like a steam-powered heart, began to beat slowly after being implanted into the rotting corpse of the giant called the Empire.

Blood began to flow, the corpse regained its pulse, and as it gradually warmed up, tender new flesh even began to grow.

There even seem to be signs of recovery.

But at what cost?

While most people rejoiced at the production of new products, a small number of families who used to make a living by producing similar items were filled with gloom and despair.

While the arrival of new products is good for most people, it is a devastating blow to families, workshops, and even towns that have made a living from them.

They were barely making a living by relying on outdated skills passed down from their ancestors, and then they were hit hard by new technologies, with production and costs plummeting.

After losing their means of livelihood, they had no choice but to work in factories, where their income decreased and their workload increased.

Moreover, because of their similar experiences, they were ordered around more and forced to hand over their technology, further becoming accomplices in the expansion and development of the factory, squeezing out the living space of more families like theirs.

Family-run businesses and small workshops began to collapse.

But this is not the end; it's just the beginning.

As time goes by, although the number of goods on the market has increased and become cheaper, the raw material market is gradually heating up.

In fact, even after the nobles' factories started operating, the continuous influx of goods significantly reduced market prices.

But given the Empire's economic situation, even if you cut the price in half again, it's still not something ordinary people can afford to consume for a long time.

It's fine when you're just looking for something new. You can always save money from other things, squeeze out some cash, buy some trendy products, use them, and admire the lives of the upper class.

But for the rest of the time, they still had to rely on buying cheap materials and then making all sorts of simple, crude, but barely usable things by hand to survive.

But now, due to the establishment of factories and the demand for raw materials, the prices of those originally insignificant and cheap raw materials have begun to rise gradually.

At first it wasn't obvious, but after the first wave of nobles made a fortune, things got out of control, and the price of raw materials also soared.

Let alone ordinary people, even middle and upper-class families who can afford to buy goods are starting to feel that the water temperature is getting a bit too high.

After all, you can afford to buy goods, but you can't buy everything, or you'll be living a normal life.

As a result, after the collapse of the small workshops, the lives of ordinary people also began to become unbalanced.

The impact of rising raw material costs extends beyond the daily lives of ordinary people.

For factories, rising material prices mean further compression of profits.

But how could the nobles, who had already paid such a high price and were used to the huge profits brought by the factory, tolerate the decline in profits?

However, the price of the goods cannot be raised, since there are already many competitors in the market. Not lowering the price is already the result of everyone sitting down and discussing it together.

So naturally, after thinking it over, the only option left was to do something else.

For example, mixing inferior materials into normal materials, removing unnecessary safety measures during the production process, or...

This directly reduces workers' wages.

These measures have proven to be effective.

After doing this, product quality decreased, production safety became more dangerous, and workers' wages were cut again and again.

However, it did not have much impact on the overall operation, and the profit margin was preserved.

As for the workers' injuries? You're of inferior blood, you're useless, and you made a mistake, who can you blame? It's already being lenient that they're not asking you to compensate for the machine damage.

As for wage cuts, well, if you don't want to do it, there are plenty of others who will.

Although the average quality of the empire's people is indeed worrying, the problem is that even the worst quality cannot resist the temptation of high profits.

Not to mention that before this, the first batch of workers who passed the test, after entering the workforce, boasted and showed off to others out of vanity or some other reason, making others envious and attracting a large number of potential competitors.