Before meeting the dwarves, Alpoi asked Vanessa.
"With the success rate now significantly improved, do we really need a large incubator? Wouldn't it be enough to provide small incubators to the farmers and just teach them how to maintain the proper environment?"
Even that would substantially increase meat production.
It wasn't a difficult task either. All they needed to do was teach the farmers how to maintain suitable conditions.
"It's not because I'm lazy or anything, I swear. I just think it's more efficient that way."
Hearing Alpoi's clearly lazy excuse, Vanessa shook her head firmly.
"Of course, we'll use that method too. That way, the farmers' wealth will also increase. But if we run it on a large scale in the territory, we can secure far more production than leaving it to individual farmers. That's also what the lord wants."
If the farmers' meat production increases several fold, and the lord also produces large quantities of meat?
The price of meat would drop significantly, making it accessible to everyone.
Imagining the impact, the mages gulped nervously. On second thought, this truly was an enormous venture.
And when Vanessa decided on something, it got done. The mages had no authority to refuse her.
Vanessa forcefully dragged the mages into a meeting with the dwarves.
Galbarik, already overwhelmed with the task of developing the new material, spoke with mild annoyance.
"A scale? A sluice gate? You're putting something like that in an incubator?"
"Yes, yes, we need a very precise mechanism."
Vanessa enthusiastically explained her concepts and mechanisms to the dwarves.
What she proposed was a system to measure the weight of water using scales.
"The idea is to measure the remaining weight of evaporated water, and if it falls below a certain level, a sluice gate opens to refill it."
"Measuring weight? Then, you're just going to place scales all over?"
"No, the incubator must maintain a uniform temperature and humidity throughout. We'll drill evenly spaced holes in the floor where the eggs are placed and install a water tank below. Please make it so the weight of the tank can be measured."
"Hmm, so we just need to make the floor beneath the tanks function like a scale. Then, when the weight drops below a certain level, the sluice gate opens to refill it."
"Exactly. We'll control the humidity by evaporating the water. Matching the temperature to what a hen provides will be our job. This way, we can conserve rune stones as much as possible."
Vanessa showed her design. Beneath the egg platform, there was an additional floor acting as a scale, with multiple water tanks installed on top of it.
Although it was a conceptual blueprint without precise engineering details, the dwarves understood it well enough.
Vanessa's eyes sparkled as she continued.
"It won't work perfectly on the first try. Since the incubator is much larger, we'll need to recheck how much water is required to maintain the humidity. But I'm confident it will succeed."
Her words conveyed unshakable determination. Her passion resonated with everyone.
Moreover, developing new technologies was something the dwarves found deeply enjoyable.
Eventually, the dwarves also became intrigued by Vanessa's proposed mechanism and enthusiastically joined the discussion.
"We'll need a separate space to monitor and refill the water externally."
"We should also create vents to prevent excessive humidity."
"How many temperature control magic circles will you engrave?"
While Vanessa set the standards and concepts, the task of implementing them with precision fell to the dwarves.
After days of intense brainstorming with the mages, they finalized a design for a much larger and more sophisticated incubator than any they had used before.
"Alright, this is doable. We've done things like this before."
Galbarik spoke confidently, as if it were no big deal.
The dwarves had plenty of experience working with weighted mechanisms in construction. Although this time required much more precision, they didn't consider it an impossible task.
Because this was… a matter of dwarven pride.
In this territory, there were far too many self-proclaimed "geniuses" full of pride.
"Let's get to work right away. This design minimizes the need for maintenance staff."
Just one or two people would be enough to monitor and refill the water.
The incubator was large enough to hatch tens of thousands of eggs at once. If successful, it could produce an enormous amount of meat.
As complex as the mechanism was, the initial construction required a significant budget.
The group immediately sought out Claude to demand funding.
Hearing the unexpectedly high costs, Claude crossed his legs arrogantly and said.
"How can you just demand funds like this? How much is this going to cost? Rune stones, workers, materials… It costs this much to make just one? Are we even going to break even?"
When Claude began his usual nagging, Vanessa presented all sorts of data and research materials.
On top of that, the dwarves began explaining the intricate mechanism, leaving Claude utterly overwhelmed.
'…What are they even saying?'
The data had been compiled by the mages and dwarves over several days. No matter how smart Claude was, there was no way he could understand it all at once.
But he did grasp the gist of it.
'It… kinda makes sense?'
Ultimately, Claude surrendered, begrudgingly giving his approval with a reluctant expression.
"If this fails, we're in big trouble! The cost per attempt is astronomical!"
"Don't worry! We'll succeed for sure!"
Vanessa declared confidently and began work with the dwarves.
As the incubator grew in size, maintaining the proper temperature and humidity became much more challenging.
Despite the precision of their construction, the interior space was so vast that conditions weren't uniform.
The hatch rate was only about 50%, and even then, the timing varied widely.
After several failures, Alpoi spoke dejectedly.
"Can't we just settle for this? Even 50% is better than nothing, right?"
"No way. If we settle for this, there's no point in making such a large incubator."
"Exactly! This is a matter of pride!"
Vanessa wanted to succeed in this endeavor for the sake of the territory. Galbarik couldn't give up because of his pride.
With both of them stubbornly holding their ground, no one else could stop them.
Except for one person.
"What the heck! How much money is this burning? Are you sure this is even going to work?"
Claude came by daily to nag and put pressure on them. With all the revisions and rune stones consumed, his frustration was understandable.
No matter how much the territory earned, it was spending even more. Throwing so much money into this project was enough to make Vanessa feel dejected.
'Oh, what should I do… I'm causing a huge loss to the territory. I shouldn't have taken this on….'
Vanessa's naturally timid personality reared its head again.
She hated causing any harm to the territory. After a major blunder in the past, this tendency had only worsened.
Now, spending sums she couldn't have imagined back when she was a mere servant filled her with dread.
'Should I stop here? We can still increase farmers' production. Maybe we should spend the funds elsewhere….'
As she was debating whether to give up, Ghislain arrived.
Having heard that things weren't progressing smoothly, Ghislain had come to check in.
"My lord!"
"Hey, Vanessa. I hear you've been working hard lately?"
"I-I'm sorry! I keep failing… I've spent so much money…"
Vanessa lowered her head, unsure of what to do. But Ghislain replied nonchalantly.
"I told you, we're rich. Don't worry, just keep going."
"But… the head butler said the expenses are too high and that it's difficult to manage…"
"That's just because he's always worried about everything. He's cautious by nature. If we need money, I'll figure it out. Just keep pushing forward. And remember, those barbarians in the north, when they curse someone…"
"They never stop until the person dies, right?"
Vanessa replied with a smile, and Ghislain cleared his throat before continuing.
"Exactly. So, you keep going until it works. You already succeeded with the small incubators, didn't you? Just a little more, and you'll succeed. If you managed the small ones, the large ones will work too."
"Yes… the small ones all… Ah!"
Suddenly, Vanessa's eyes widened as if struck by inspiration.
Lost in thought, she didn't even notice Ghislain quietly slipping away. Interrupting her now would have been a mistake.
Vanessa kept mumbling the same thought to herself.
'The small ones worked…? Then why not make it smaller?'
She realized she had been too ambitious, trying to hatch too many eggs at once.
'If I make it smaller, it'll work!'
By reducing the space, she could maintain the optimal conditions more easily. Even if the incubators were smaller, they'd still be much larger than the farmers' small ones.
'This time, I'll definitely succeed!'
Revitalized, Vanessa began drafting new blueprints.
When Claude learned she planned to dismantle everything and start from scratch, he caused a scene, but Vanessa ignored him and pushed forward.
'I'm sorry, head butler… I swear I'll make this work, even if it kills me.'
Outwardly, she showed no sign of it, but internally, she was crumbling.
'We've already gathered so much data from the smaller models. As long as we don't scale it up too much, we can use that data effectively.'
With another significant investment, Vanessa began constructing a large incubator composed of multiple smaller chambers.
Each chamber needed individual temperature and humidity control, making the project more resource- and labor-intensive than ever.
They collected every egg available in the territory, nearly 3,000 in total. If this failed, the losses would be catastrophic.
The mages and dwarves, with bloodshot eyes from lack of sleep, monitored the incubator's condition relentlessly.
When the scheduled day arrived…
Crack!
Crack, crack!
Eggs began breaking open as chicks eagerly wriggled out. It was just like the trials with the small incubators.
"Wooooaaahhh!"
The mages and dwarves raised their hands and shouted in excitement. Except for the few eggs with pre-existing issues, the hatch rate was nearly 100%.
There was still a slight delay, but they had successfully hatched thousands of chicks in a single attempt.
"It's a success! We did it! Hahaha!"
The news of their success spread, causing an uproar throughout the territory.
Never before, across the entire kingdom, had so many eggs been hatched at once with such a high success rate.
Even local officials and farmers came to witness the incredible spectacle, cheering in amazement.
"It's really done! Look at all these chicks!"
"Quick, move them to a warm place and take good care of them!"
"I can't believe this actually worked!"
Watching this, Ghislain smiled contentedly and spoke to Claude.
"See? I told you it'd work. If you keep at it, everything gets done."
"...."
Claude had nothing to say. Now that it had worked, he felt a little guilty for berating Vanessa so much.
Still, he was just as thrilled as everyone else about their success.
Meat overflowing? This alone could become a powerful weapon for the territory.
Feeling both joy and guilt, Claude quickly changed his attitude.
"Wow! Vanessa did it! She's amazing! I always believed in her! Vanessa, you're the best!"
Wendy shot him a look of disdain from the side, but Claude pretended not to notice.
With Claude leading the cheer, everyone began chanting Vanessa's name.
"Vanessa! Vanessa!"
"The mage of meat!"
"Truly the hand of miracles!"
Vanessa blushed, unsure of how to handle the praise.
While the dwarves had contributed significantly to the development, without her determination, the project would not have succeeded.
Even Galbarik and the other dwarves acknowledged this, giving her a round of applause.
Alpoi, of course, couldn't sit still and watch this.
"I was the biggest help!"
Determined to receive his share of the credit, the self-proclaimed genius mage made sure to highlight his contributions.
Since everyone had indeed worked hard, they also applauded the mages and dwarves.
Feeling slightly mollified, Alpoi started boasting to Ghislain.
"See? It was bound to succeed once I got involved. I took the lead on this… uh, what's that?"
Ghislain, nodding absentmindedly, asked.
"Yeah, good work. But what's that you're holding?"
"This is… 'Koko'… my pet chicken."
Looking slightly embarrassed, Alpoi replied.
In his arms was a plump rooster. It was the first chick he had successfully hatched and had raised himself as a keepsake.
Over time, he had grown attached, even giving it a name and bringing it everywhere he went.
"...Well, take good care of it."
Suppressing a chuckle, Ghislain turned to address the gathered crowd.
"Alright, today's a day to celebrate! Everyone who worked on this project, eat and drink to your heart's content! I'll ensure you're handsomely rewarded as well!"
Ghislain was firm in rewarding success. His words elicited cheers from everyone involved.
"Woohoo! Let's feast!"
With plenty of grain in stock, cheap liquor was abundant. Moreover, many of the chickens that had been hatched and grown during the experiments were available.
It was more than enough for the workers to enjoy a day of celebration.
"That's great. Since everyone worked so hard, I'll help organize everything."
Belinda, taking care of the workers, personally oversaw the preparation of food and drinks.
Though it wasn't an official banquet, the laborers preferred the informal setting. Groups gathered near the incubator, slaughtering chickens, drinking, and enjoying the rare occasion.
While everyone else immediately started eating and drinking, Alpoi, being slightly obsessive about cleanliness, couldn't join in right away. He had to wash off the accumulated grime first.
"Ah, it feels good to finally be clean. Now I can go have a drink. Koko, you're coming with me too… Huh? Koko? Where's Koko?"
Freshly bathed, Alpoi checked the coop and panicked as he realized Koko was nowhere to be seen.
[T/L: Please support me and read 205 extra chapters: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]