"Huh? Isn't the drawing on this blueprint that... whatchamacallit?" Annie propped her small hands on the desk, standing on her tiptoes to look at the blueprint on the table.
She had some impression of it, but just couldn't remember the name for a moment.
"A bicycle," Nicole said.
"Right, it's called a bicycle." Annie's eyes lit up slightly. She remembered seeing a bicycle the first time she entered the inner storehouse.
"Master, are we going to produce this bicycle?" Nicole asked, putting down her water glass.
She knew many things in the inner storehouse were used as references, and once the technology was up to standard, they would begin production.
"Yes, but we are missing some materials," Lucas sighed. The most crucial missing material was rubber, which was needed for the bicycle's tires.
He had already had people plant rubber trees, but it would take a long time before they could produce rubber. In this era, no rubber trees or plants that could be made into rubber had been discovered yet. Perhaps the area he had explored was simply too small.
Rubber had many other uses, such as sealing rings and heat insulation, and it would also be needed for steam trains in the future.
"What raw material?" Nicole asked softly.
"Rubber. It can make the wheels move much easier and more conveniently," Lucas briefly introduced.
"Master, should we issue a bounty to have people search for it?" Nicole suggested. It was her first time hearing of this 'rubber' thing.
"We can do that. I'll give you some specific characteristics, and we'll put up a bounty of one hundred gold coins." Lucas thought about it; this was indeed a good way to find things.
Nicole pondered for a moment and asked, "Master, should the bounty be published in the newspaper?"
"No, give it to the underground bounty guild. Doesn't our city have one?" Lucas turned his head to look at the cat-eared girl.
"Yes," Mina replied softly.
"Have those people made any moves?" Lucas's eyes narrowed slightly.
He knew about the establishment of the bounty guild, and he had tacitly allowed it; otherwise, Mina would have sent people to wipe it out long ago.
What he wanted was intelligence. Based on the intelligence gathered these past few days, this bounty guild was far from simple; there was a massive intelligence organization backing it.
This was also the second underground faction he had encountered in this world, the first being the Black Iris organization. He intended to leave this line intact to dig out the faction behind it.
After all, once he unified the Siacan Kingdom in the future, he would have to face these monsters and demons sooner or later. By laying out his plans now, he could wipe them all out in one fell swoop later.
"No, they're just transmitting some of our intelligence outward," Mina said coldly. She didn't welcome these people very much.
"How long is their line?" Lucas said evenly.
"We've already found fifteen strongholds, two of which are rather special," Mina said coldly.
"How special?" Lucas asked curiously.
"The strongholds are heavily guarded, and the masterminds behind the scenes never show their faces. I believe there are important figures there," Mina said coldly.
"Just have people keep an eye on them. Don't act rashly," Lucas instructed.
"Understood," Mina said seriously.
"I'll write down a few more things to put up for bounty," Lucas said, thinking of a few other necessary items.
"Alright," Mina complied.
"By the way, what have Jones and Freya been up to recently? Are they still studying?" Lucas asked.
"They are currently following the special forces to learn wilderness survival," Mina said with a smile.
Lucas fell silent for a moment before asking, "Lucy hasn't gone out lately, has she?"
"No, she's been staying in her room studying novels," Nicole replied softly.
"That means the two of them are currently free." Lucas rubbed his chin, wondering if he should transfer the two of them over to help out.
Jones and Freya were primarily responsible for protecting Lucy and Annie. Since both of them were princesses, it wasn't easy for him to force them to do things.
"Master, do you have something for them to do?" Annie asked in a crisp voice.
"Mm, I want to send them to lead a team to explore the Forbidden Mountains, taking advantage of their free time right now," Lucas said softly.
The Forbidden Mountains were so vast that they undoubtedly had a complete range of species. Perhaps they could even find rubber trees within the mountain range. After all, they had even found ginseng. The two worlds definitely shared some similar species.
"Freya should be fine. We have Gaba following us now," Annie quickly said.
"As for Jones... she'll probably agree to it," Nicole said hesitantly.
The leopard-eared girl's personality was even colder than Rhea's.
"Let's ask them tonight," Lucas said with a smile.
"Master, let me be the one to tell them," Mina spoke up. She didn't welcome those beastkin who only took advantage of them. If the other party refused, she would properly persuade them.
"Alright," Lucas nodded. He turned to Annie and asked, "Annie, is there any passageway over to the Forbidden Mountains?"
"Huh?" Annie looked at Lucas in astonishment. Why was he suddenly asking this question?
"We have to understand the situation, don't we? Perhaps the ice and snow over there have receded?" Lucas said softly.
"Uh..."
Annie and Mina were both left speechless. The two exchanged a glance, a trace of emotion flickering in their eyes.
"I promised you girls that if there was a chance, I would take you back to your hometown to take a look," Lucas said gently.
"Master, there's no rush," Annie said softly.
"That's why we need to understand the situation now and make preparations in advance," Lucas shook his head.
"There is a passageway in the Forbidden Mountains, right over by the Chaotic Lands," Mina said softly.
"What kind of passageway?" Lucas asked curiously.
"It's not exactly a gap. There's a swampy area, and when it freezes over in the winter, it becomes a natural passageway," Annie explained.
"Oh? So we have to wait until winter?" Lucas frowned; this wasn't very good news.
"Yes. In normal seasons, if you want to cross the Forbidden Mountains, you have to traverse through the dense forests," Annie sighed.
She remembered that quite a few beastkin had charged into the Forbidden Mountains; she feared that the majority of them had already died within the mountain range by now.
"If that's the case, we'll just have to carve out another path," Lucas frowned. Swamps were not easy to traverse.
Moreover, crossing the Forbidden Mountains in winter would consume even more resources. If the supplies they brought were exhausted within the mountains, they might not even make it across.
As for taking a hot air balloon over the Forbidden Mountains, he didn't know how vast the mountain range was. If they didn't bring enough fuel, it would be even more disastrous.
"Master, are you planning to have Jones and Freya lead a team to carve out a path?" Annie asked in surprise and doubt.
"Let them explore first. There's no rush to carve out a path," Lucas shook his head. He was calculating whether the airship could be built by next year. If they succeeded, they could simply fly straight over in the airship.
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