Chapter 285: Essentials
The Techno Wizards inspected what they were expected to work with, then nodded.
"Alright, give us some time. Most of this is easy to do, but we will need plenty of clean clay, and time to make the copper tubing for so many showers.
The inserts for the fireplaces, we usually make of clay as well. Just kiln fired clay, painted to look like logs, with a fire spell orb embedded in them."
Dominic smiled. "You know, we’ve got plenty of people looking for work who can help you with the nonmagical parts. There has to be someone who can do basic pottery."
The old man nodded. "I will put up a notice looking for them. It will even cut down on the cost if I don’t have to do it myself."
"How hard is the fire creation orb to make?" The architect asked.
"A chip of semi-precious stone and a single circuit. I can make one an hour without much difficulty. So, we can have fireplaces done in two weeks, and the showers should be about the same.
Less if we hire someone who can use a spell orb and hammer. They would just need to create the copper tubing, and I have obtained a jig for that already. The difficult part will be connecting it all to the water lines without any leaks."
The architect shrugged. "I will teach the mages how to do it. We’re going to run the lines right to the bathroom anyhow. But that’s another item we will need. Water valves for the buildings, in case of leak."
Then he turned to Dominic. "This might take a bit, but we will get it all worked out, if you have other things to do, My Lord."
Dominic nodded. "Good point. I need to check in on the guards training, and then get to work on making them some more weapons. That’s something that I can’t pass off to anyone else.
I will catch up with you later this week, but you can ask me if you have any troubles.
Also, we have a steam fitter. They can make you any valves you might need, and they might already have some in stock.
No need to double up on capacity that we already have. They likely even have the ability to make the tubing. Let everyone get a slice of the pie."
"Yes, My Lord. We will get as many shops as needed involved. Even the woodcutters will happily start felling trees for us. They’ve been living on a thin margin, with so few needing firewood."
Dominic waved them farewell, and headed for the training grounds, where the militia and the men chosen for the standing guard were practicing their sword work. They were all obviously professionals, having been trained by the army at some point in the past, and the sight immediately assured Dominic that the Duchy wouldn’t suffer too badly from wild monsters.
His first stop was with General Alator, who was overseeing the troop training, with a few former Captains doing the actual instruction.
"General, how is the family?" Dominic greeted him.
"As well as can be expected. Grateful for the extra income and the regular visits from the Merchant’s Guild. You couldn’t ask for a better friend than them, and they’ve managed to find everything that I requested." He replied.
The retired General’s face wrinkled as he smiled, and he motioned toward the troops.
"It might seem wrong to pick mostly town guard from a Dagos occupied territory for our town guard, but they’ve proven loyal, and they’ll be honest enough when it comes time for them to start working." He added.
"Excellent news. I have fancier uniforms coming for them. Similar to the militia uniforms, but distinct enough that everyone will know who they are. It’s regrettable that I haven’t been able to get them fully equipped yet, but I will have some time over the next week." Dominic explained.
General Alator nodded. "That’s fine. They’ll be grateful for everything that they get."
"And that brings me to the most important point. How many of them have a Skill Core? They’re going to need one to be proper Guardsmen by Cygnia standards, but I know that Dagos was way behind on anything magical."
The General frowned. "Only officers got one in the Dagos Army. The Captains and myself all have Warrior Cores, which are good for bonus physical conditioning, but that’s about it. A few blade skills and combat styles will only get a man so far."
Dominic winked at him. "You’d be surprised. But in your opinion, would it be better that you make them all Warrior Cores, or should I ask the Sheriff to make Gunslinger Skill Cores for them?"
The General ran gnarled fingers through his thinning hair. "No, I think it’s better that I make them all warriors. It will let them use pistols well enough, but most of the town guard’s duty will be breaking up fights and such. If they’re drawing pistols, things have already gotten well out of control."
The General made a good point. Encouraging the guardsmen to shoot people was not a good way to run a town.
"Alright, I will let you do that. Ask whoever you need, if there are others who can help. I honestly don’t know how long it takes to make one." Dominic offered.
The General chuckled. "It’s not hard. Well, if you’ve got enough magic, that is. Even at my age, I won’t suffer for it, but I’ll ask the Captains to help. They’re both skilled enough."
With that finished, Dominic headed to the forge to check in with Pops. He had seen the old man at breakfast, but they hadn’t had time to talk. Besides, it was more comfortable to work in the forge, and he had pistols to make.
Hopefully with decent quality metal, now that he’d gotten some levels into [Clay to Steel].
It wasn’t going to be perfect, Pops had said that he’d likely need to be level fifteen or higher before it was as good as tool steel or the usual gun steel. But Dominic was into level twelve now, and that might not embarrass him.