A few weeks passed as Bastion settled into a steady rhythm of training, smithing, and enchanting.
For training, he sparred with Elyra, who could easily outmatch him. In single combat she was so far ahead that he could fight with full intent to kill, knowing she could survive anything he threw at her. Even when Bastion went all out, using Reinforce and Amplify nonstop to push past his limits, she still held the upper hand.
For smithing, Bastion claimed a room much like Seraphina and Lilia had and set up his own forge and golem-powered assembly line. He hadn't stopped producing bullets since the day he arrived, and he had no plans to stop now. Scrap metal was plentiful and cheap thanks to the steady supply from dungeons, which meant he could freely churn out as many bullets as time would allow.
For enchanting, he worked alongside Lilia to create magical equivalents of modern technology. Their first project was a rudimentary telephone built from paired crystals. The crystals vibrated in sync, so when one was spoken into, the other reproduced the sound. It was crude, but the concept worked.
Their next idea was to use a telepathy spell, enchanting earrings so that linked pairs could transmit thoughts directly. Unfortunately, the range was still limited, so it was more of a prototype than a finished product. Still, Seraphina was satisfied. She only wanted to use it to talk with Bastion anyway, so for her, the short range hardly mattered.
A longer-ranged version was in development to connect the two, but progress was slow. There was little connection between thoughts and auditory vibrations.
Today was different, however, as Bastion finally had the time to travel through the territory and see all their ongoing operations, from the mines and dungeons to the farms, villages, towns, and cities, as well as the logging camps, fishing grounds, and hunting sites.
He intended on dedicating the rest of the year to visiting as many places as possible and keeping an eye on the nobles. Some corruption, nepotism, and self-interest were acceptable since they helped secure loyalty, but if word spread that the new duke was a pushover, then he would have no choice but to crack down.
To his surprise, Lilia chose to accompany him. She was eager to see how he would carry himself as duke, and Bastion valued both her company and her perspective. Coming from a commoner's background, she could point out practical details he might otherwise miss.
Their first destination was the wide expanse of farmland to the west of Diamondhart Castle, stretching toward Aurenthal. It was the territory's primary source of food, producing enough to not only sustain the local population but also supply the empire.
In fact, this farmland was Bastion's most valuable resource in the territory, since it provided the means to meet the annual tribute of 5 magic crystals required by the empire, while the rest of the operations helped pay off the territory's debts. It was also the most significant investment made by the first duke, ensuring the territory's prosperity for thousands of years.
The payment went into creating perfect arable land. Mountains and forests were cleared, the ground was leveled and irrigated, and the soil was infused with Rank 4 dragon dung through a massive ritual to ensure its fertility.
Since only Apprentice rank crops were grown, the setup guaranteed prosperity and sustained use for thousands of years.
"What exactly are we doing out here, Bastion?" Lilia asked as they passed through empty stretches of farmland, broken only by the occasional lone farmhouse.
"It's harvest season, so I'm here to see how the work actually takes place," he replied.
"If you wanted to know how they farm, you could have just read a book."
"Reading isn't enough, Lilia. You have to witness it firsthand."
The carriage rolled on until they reached fields in the middle of harvest.
A family of five worked the land, cutting the crops by hand. The labor was slow and exhausting, the kind of backbreaking work that proper equipment could have handled with ease.
"This is the reality of farming, Bastion," Lilia said. "It's backbreaking work. They toil for years, yet the pay never lasts, and before long they're forced back into the fields again."
Yet, despite the effort, Bastion could see the satisfaction and pride they took in raising their crops well. They would likely enjoy the fruits of their labor.
Bastion nodded along as they continued on their way. The more harvests he saw, the more convinced he became of what he needed to do for the territory.
Further along, he noticed a lone worker with only one arm, struggling to keep pace. His movements were slower, his face drawn tight with frustration, but still he pressed on.
"Poor man," Lilia muttered. "He probably turned to farming just to survive. He works three times harder than the others, yet he'll likely miss the optimal harvest window and end up with poorer crops."
Yet, despite the seemingly arduous trial the farmer faced, Bastion could see hope in his eyes. He toiled so that one day he would earn enough to find a way to fix his disability, whether through a high-ranking spell, skill, potion, ritual, or procedure.
The last type of farmer they encountered was a wizard who, with a single spell, harvested the entire field. He packed everything neatly into his space bag and returned indoors without a hint of effort.
"These are the only farmers who truly thrive here," Lilia said. "Most of them just want to be left alone with their research, so they take up farming for the easy money and the privacy it gives them."
Yet, despite the efficiency, Bastion noticed that the surrounding mana was noticeably thinner. Something here was actively draining the ambient mana.
They spent the next week traveling across the farmland, seeing as much as they could before finally returning to the castle, where Bastion began drafting letters requesting policy changes for how the farms should be managed.
At dinner, Lilia couldn't hold back her curiosity. "So? What policies did you put in place? Are we going to create any gadgets to make farming easier? Come on, you've been quiet all week. I want to know what you're planning."
"Well, there isn't much more I can do to improve farming. Any changes I can think of would only help a little. That said, I believe I can raise the income, though it won't affect us with the debt being so large."
"What do you mean?" Lilia asked.
"Bastion," Seraphina interjected, "I've read up on farming practices, and even I can suggest significant improvements. A tractor, for example."
"Using what fuel? Gasoline? Coal? Electricity? Those all require entire industries to produce and maintain which would lead to pollution. We need stability and prosperity in the territory, not destructive growth."
"What about mana?"
"That would eventually drain the land dry if used improperly, which I do not want to risk in the long run. Like I said, our priority is stability and prosperity, which also means keeping the people happy. Adding tractors now will lead to skyrocketing profit, but do you really want to remove 90% of the farmers in our territory?"
"What about magic spells?" Lilia asked. "Couldn't they speed up growth cycles so we get more crops in less time?"
"It drains the land," Bastion replied. "In the long run, it shortens the farm's lifespan. That's why there's already a policy preventing magically accelerated growth cycles. We want these farms to last as long as possible, so we have to be careful not to overwork the land."
"As for the wizards, the fields they worked on had far less mana, drained for their own uses. That's why I set a new policy. From now on, if a field's mana falls below the average without reason, the farmers will be replaced. If wizards want mana, they'll have to find it elsewhere."
"Then, what ideas do you have?" Seraphina asked.
"The best I can suggest are manual combine harvesters to make farming easier. They would run on the farmers' own mana without draining the land and be limited in capability to keep the number of farmers per area stable. It's a small convenience that would slightly reduce profits, but it would let more people qualify as farmers and help those with disabilities manage the work."
"I thought you said we would gain income from this," Lilia pointed out.
"My other idea is outdoor vertical farming with drip irrigation for all vegetables, herbs, and berries to boost yield. The system will preserve soil nutrients, rotate potting soil back into the land, and use fertilizer to prevent exhaustion. More farmers will be needed for upkeep, and while the setup is costly, this year's profits from the stampede should cover it."
"A large portion of the land is used for herbs for potions, so the added income would be considerable," Seraphina noted. As an alchemist, she was attuned to the sources and movements of raw materials of all kinds.
"Exactly. It's enough to double future profits, and as a bonus, it creates more jobs for farmers. That's a win-win in my book."
"I never thought conveniences could be a bad thing," Lilia said, feeling dejected for relying too much on magic.
"Don't beat yourself up, Lilia," Seraphina said. "In our world, progress mattered more than people. Leaders only lived about 80 years, compared to your 200 before ranking up, so they mostly looked out for themselves."
"Don't worry about it," Bastion added. "As the 4th Duke of Diamondhart, I need the territory to prosper within the limits of Rank 2. That means keeping people happy, not chasing profits that would be swallowed by the 10,000 magic crystal debt. Paying it would take a thousand years, and we don't plan to stay that long."
"I guess I was just too focused on the conveniences of magic," Lilia said, cheering up slightly. "So, where's our next destination?"
"We'll go from the most significant sources of income to the least. I've already taken care of the army and the farms, so our next target will be our greatest source of raw materials."
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