"Your Highness," I wanted to ask as I entered, "Hog said, his voice finally settling after drinking the ice water from the barrel." The painting in the hall... I doubt it was created by an ordinary artist. Both the realism and the aerial perspective are extraordinary. "He paused, lowering his voice." Is this... the Witch's work? "Roland glanced at Margery, who nodded." Your Highness, rest assured. Hog is an old friend I've known for years, and he holds no ill will toward the Witch. "" You're right—it was indeed the Witch's creation," Roland said. Two days earlier, after sightseeing near the beach in a hot air balloon, he had wanted to preserve this magnificent view. With the castle's reception room being sparsely decorated and lacking any wall hangings, he had Soroya transform the stone wall behind the main seat into a massive mural. The artistic backdrop instantly elevated the hall's ambiance.
"I knew it," Hogg sighed. "Though they're branded as the Devil's henchmen, their bizarre abilities are truly enviable. Ordinary people can't fly like them or paint such exquisite murals." "You only got the first half right," Roland shook his head. "Even without Magic Power, ordinary people can fly—higher than eagles, faster than swifts." "You're hilarious," Hogg laughed. "Unless we get extra wings and become lighter than birds." Margaret froze. "Really?" "Of course," Prince said with a smile. "I can prove it to you." Letting merchants see their inventions is a great way to build relationships and expand trade routes—whether it's mugs or liquor. Whether they sell it is another matter. After all, caravans stay in towns for days, and the standard negotiation process should be eating, drinking, and signing contracts. Plus, Anna's keen interest in hot air ballooning trips gives her a chance to take a break from her busy work—it's a win-win.
The 'Wangyao' balloon was quickly inflated. For this voyage, Roland boldly invited Witch, who had missed the last hot air balloon ride. When Lucia hesitantly asked if she could bring her sister along, Roland readily agreed.
As the balloon ascended slowly, Margery covered her mouth in surprise, while Hog clung to the basket's edge, unsure whether it was excitement or fear. Ling, too short to see the view outside, had to be lifted by Lucia and placed on her shoulders. She approached the basket cautiously, urging her not to move. Lightning, the navigator and rescuer, hovered around the hot air balloon, occasionally giving Ling a mischievous look.
And so, the hot air balloon once again glided along the southern coastline, completing its aerial sightseeing tour.
...
Back at the castle, Hogg's legs still trembled as he stammered, "I never imagined looking down from the sky could be so terrifying. It felt like I might fall at any moment." "Just fly a few more times," Roland chuckled. "Anyone who's ever left the ground for the first time will have this illusion—like someone who's never been to sea might vomit on a rocking ship." "You're absolutely right," Margery exclaimed. "The view today was incredible. The horizon from the air looked like a blue arc." "But Your Highness, I don't think I'm wrong," Hogg took a sip of chilled wine. "Ordinary people might have flown, but it's still the witches' doing. Without them, this giant wouldn't have risen." "No, my old friend," Margery interrupted before Roland could speak. "Didn't you notice? Miss Anna was just releasing flames. I even asked Lightning. She told me that by filling the airbag with hot air, the Voyager could ascend on its own. Flames aren't the witches' exclusive privilege, Your Highness, am I right?" No wonder the fjord merchant who had established himself in the capital possessed exceptional observational and reasoning skills. Roland nodded with a smile. "Hot air rises, cold air sinks—that's why it's called a hot air balloon." "Really, just a fire pit?" Hogg asked in confusion.
"That won't work, because to keep it floating in the air, it needs constant heating. Wood is inherently heavy and can't support much weight, so we need to find a special solution to this problem." "Can you do it?" Margery asked eagerly.
"Uh... it should work," Roland mused. "Just a bit of a hassle." "That's perfect," she added. "I'd like to buy four or five hot air balloons from you. They don't need to be huge—just enough for one person." "Do you want to use them on the ship?" Hog asked.
"Though masts can't stretch indefinitely, hot air balloons can. We just need to secure a rope beneath the basket to keep it from drifting away. With these balloons, lookout men can spot nearby pirate ships earlier. For seafarers, aside from unpredictable storms and tsunamis, the greatest threat comes from pirate hordes." "But the cost won't be low," Roland mused. "I estimate over a thousand Golden Dragons." Without Witch heating, the balloons would require gaseous fuel—gas being the most accessible. Unfortunately, Graycastle's coal mines in the Cold Wind Ridge are too distant from Border Town for current transport. Switching to hydrogen balloons would be easier, but the storage tank issue remains—without flexible filling and releasing, they'd be useless."
"Thousand golden dragons per balloon—what do you say?" Margery countered. "If you could actually produce such items, I guarantee every merchant caravan traveling through the fjords would want to buy a couple." "The Crescent Bay caravan didn't come this time, otherwise they'd have placed a massive order," Hog gulped down his liquor. "I don't need that. While hot air balloons look absolutely divine, they're useless for Silverlight City's mines. All I want is my steam engine ASAP." Roland was thrilled by the offer—the thousand golden dragons represented a fivefold premium over his original estimate. He never expected the counterparty to readily accept twice the price of the steam engine. But then again, a single merchant ship's cargo likely exceeded that value, let alone the entire fleet and crew. As long as they could avoid pirate raids, the deal still made sense for the seafarers.
Moreover, the Thousand Gold Dragon isn't a one-time deal. Both hydrogen and gas are consumables that need to be refilled in town after use, creating an additional income stream... Of course, bulk purchases of gas cylinders might qualify for discounts or free refills. In this regard, 4S dealerships and the two state-owned oil companies serve as his role models for emulation.
Roland hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded and said, "Alright, then."