Traxler

Chapter 29. Emotions

'Silicon dioxide, feldspar, kaolinite, illite, montmorillonite, calcite, mica, dolomite, gypsum, iron oxide,' I thought, touching the ground beneath Archwizard Roman's feet. 'Separate.'

A massive ripple shot from my hands, creating a wave through the ground. The dirt came alive as it shifted like a gold pan, pushing the silicon dioxide—the sand—to the top.

"What are you doing?!" Archwizard Roman yelled from above, feeling the ground shifting beneath him. As he sank into the sa...

Character Dev Chapter

I'm going to write a character dev chapter in the near future. Please vote on what you'd like!

Note: Depending on the story, there will likely be an Unfiltered version, as subtle things happen (or don't happen) between the two versions, so the story must reflect that. 

Ch.28 [Both] Dynamite and Warfare

A/N: Siege warfare: in medieval warfare, the fight ends if an army cannot breach a fortress’ walls. There’s literally nothing for soldiers to do except wait for a retreat. Range: Cannons can shoot 450 to 900 meters (1,800 for siege cannons), and ballista can shoot ~300 meters. The Goldenspire troops are just over 200 meters away. ]

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The representatives overlooked Goldenspire's vast army from the walls. There was a fleet of griffins, thunderstags, and shadowmantas, flying blac...

Ch.27 Nitric Acid Manufacturing

[Disclaimer: This book is a work of fiction. Any depiction of chemical processes or materials is purely fictional and should not be attempted in real life. The author does not endorse or promote the creation or use of dangerous substances or illegal activities. Readers are advised to consult appropriate experts and follow legal guidelines regarding the handling of potentially hazardous materials.

The author has also purposely limited the fictional processes to dissociate fiction from re...

Ch.16 Cement, Concrete, and Conflict

For the next week, I imported ballistae, steel swords, axes, shields, and spears into Silverbrook. Carter and Timothy arrived, mass-producing waterwheels and blast furnaces before teaching people how to make steel and ballistae.

I silently annexed Silverbrook. With their consent, it became an independent kingdom known as a "vassal state." Vassal states are independent kingdoms that pay taxes to a powerful entity in exchange for protection. However, in our case, we provided the illusion ...

Ch.15 Deflation and Nationalization

After Thea's birthday, we loaded a skywhale with key people and various pelts, food, specialty soaps, and steel supplies and headed to Silverbrook. When we got there, all hell broke loose.

"Lord Everwood!" a panicked redhead exclaimed, rushing over with a mad sprint.

"Is everything alright?" I asked. "Please communicate quickly and clearly, Quinn!"

Blood drained from her face when she realized the sense of urgency she had created. "Y-Yes, everything's fine. I mean, maybe," Q...

Ch.14 The Printing Press

The trip back to Valeria wasn't that exciting. Once we reached Leeshmar, commerce was king, and everyone began wheeling and dealing with us. However, we didn't trade our wares unless Thea or I wanted something, which was almost always books.

I traded anything I had for books and amassed a small collection, despite how much I spent on even pathetic books.

The reason was simple: the books taught me everything I needed about literacy, how characters were drawn, and other factors. It ...

Ch.13 Coffee and Supply Lines

After a good night's sleep, I walked out to the fields where we would make chocolate that day. The early morning air hung heavy with the intoxicating scent of cocoa, filled with the earthy perfume of ripening cocoa pods. The sky was a watercolor canvas just being touched by the brush of dawn, hues of pink and gold interweaving seamlessly, reflecting gently off the vast emerald sea of leaves that spread out before me.

Everywhere I turned, I could hear the vibrant hum of life, the percuss...

Ch.12 Cosmetics and Chocolate

It was a hot morning with humidity that made me feel like my clothing was constantly sticking to me, despite being loose. Before me was a large bowl of shea paste, which I had emulsified the night before by mixing the ground shea kernels with water and stirring.

"Now it's time to extract the butter," I said, placing a small pan into a larger one filled to a point where the first pan didn't touch the water. Naturally, the Soracans treated me like I was crazy for the bizarre spectacle. 2023-07-08 07:41:37 +0000 UTC View Post

Ch.11 Food Preservation, Fermentation, and Trade

It was chilly when I walked outside, overlooking our small village. While it wasn't technically a kingdom, it might as well have been. After all, we were self-sufficient and had adequate trade, and Valeria could not invade us.

My father exited his house and stretched his arms as my mom swarmed me, pinching my cheeks and praising me.

"It's way too early for this, mom," I muttered, promptly getting ignored.

Leon shot me a tranquil smile. "God, it's so nice to have quality alon...

Ch.10 Gunpowder and Steel: Ages 13-14

In King Redfield's audience chamber, Chamberlain Rockwell kneeled with a strained expression before the king. "Speak," the king commanded. "It's been a year. What is the progress of Baron Everwood in Elderthorn?"

"Right away, Your Majesty," Chamberlain Rockwell swallowed. "While I'm not sure how, the barren land in Elderthorn has become fertile, and crops are growing using strange methods that our informants describe as 'miraculous.'"

"What type of magic is it?" King Redfield aske...

Ch.9 Agricultural Science: Age 12

A barony is a territory that a king grants to high-ranking nobles. Far from being an empty plot of land, the territory has farms, towns, and often cities on it that the baron must manage.

Despite being the lowest rank of the governing nobility, barons had to govern the territory, collect taxes, resolve disputes, maintain law and order, and contribute knights for warfare. In short, a baron was like a king in their region but a middle manager in the greater power scheme.

However, on...

Ch.8 Insecticides and Acquisitions: Ages 10–12

Two weeks passed by in a flash, and the production improved smoothly.

The first 5,000 bars of soap were scented with the essential oils and VOCs I gathered from common flowers and colored using the dyes that came from grinding and boiling the petals.

Since Peggy already owned the Silverbrook Soapmakers Guild, the largest soap-making guild in the region, she had clientele we immediately sold to. After reducing the price from a silver to twenty coppers, an 80% decrease, there was a ...

Ch.7 Mass Production, Waterwheel, and the Assembly Line

Dark clouds hung over the bustling city of Silverbrook. While everyone was out and about, they spoke in whispers when they saw new people, reflecting the fear of the recent sickness.

"Thankfully, it hasn't spread far," I noted, observing a quarantined slum that had been barricaded off. "We have to ensure that people start washing their hands with insecticidal soap immediately."

The bubonic plague is spread through fleas, so my soap will contain high levels of stearic acid from bee...

Ch.6 A Black Death Homecoming: Age 10

On my tenth birthday, the banquet hall bustled with guests, its ancient architecture glowing under candle-lit chandeliers. The king, amidst a feast, held court at a grand table.

Fawning nobles praised my achievements and commerce promises until a disturbing conversation seized my attention.

“It’s not my fault,” a drunken noble reeking of wine and resentment said, his twirled mustache wet with alcohol. “They just keep dying! All of them. Dead! Dead, I tell you. Dead!”

Ch.5 Magical Tutoring: Ages 5–10

There was an awkward banquet after the audience, followed by an introduction to the suitor’s competition, about which I couldn't care less. I wanted results, and so long as the kingdom gave me access to what I wanted, I didn’t mind if I married the princess.

After all, I didn’t dislike a noble society where everything was structured. Therefore, if I had real power, I could revolutionize this country with a ruthlessness not seen since Peter the Great viciously beat nobles and milit...

Ch.4 The Patent System: Age 5

After creating the soap, I confirmed via pigeon messenger that I was interested in becoming a suitor for the crown, provided I could receive lessons in magic. A reply informed me that King Redfield aimed to find the strongest candidate, with a tournament to be held for all suitors aged fifteen or older to compete for the position. Therefore, learning magic and swordsmanship was crucial, and competition among various kingdoms would be intense.

It was perfect.

I submitted my applica...

Ch.3 Modernizing Sanitation: Making Soap

The events that succeeded the dire wolf incident were as follows:

Rema spent two days with us, watching me in the courtyard, practicing sword fighting with my father, interacting with other nobles, manipulating the shit out of people—you know, proper noble stuff. Obligated by my father, I displayed my violin skills, recited poetic verses, and accompanied her through our flourishing garden, discussing the properties of each plant species.

On paper, I was the embodiment of perfect...

Ch.2 Molecular Separation: Ages 3–4

The nobility conducted most hunting expeditions on horseback, a much more agreeable method than hiking for the corpulent nobles who rode with us. Most aristocrats were not warrior mages like my father; they preferred to be surrounded by skilled mages and knights who would protect them from beasts and monsters while they hunted foxes, rabbits, and other small game with bows and arrows.

It was finally my turn, and I lifted the bow, which I practiced with my father, zeroing in on a small f...

Ch1.Reborn as an Aristocrat: Ages 1—3

It was a beautiful night. The stars streaked across the sky, piercing through the light pollution of Seattle, Washington, a city usually shrouded in clouds. Even though the recent drizzle—refreshing but slightly depressing—left a misty taste in the city air, the stars lent an air of perfection to the scene.

I had just left an underground vaccination and pharmaceutical facility funded by a renowned tech tycoon billionaire at midnight, knowing I'd return in seven hours. It was a sober...

Ch.26 Water Pump and Water Tower

A few weeks later, the day had finally come. I looked at the water tower we had built with a slight smile. "Such a simple structure, with such remarkable benefits."

Imagine a large orange water cooler. The water inside shoots out of the nozzle when a person twists it, allowing them to fill a water bottle or cup. Gravity drives the water down with pressure, allowing that to happen.

Water towers work the same way. The massive tank on top of our tower, hovering 60 feet in the air, ho...

Political Borders

Here's a map of the political boundaries. I'm not a map maker, and there's not a tool on this software to do this, so it's a bit shoddy. Still, it's helpful to visualize.

It's important to remember this map isn't to scale. Valeria is far larger than it appears here, and Everwood Territory, as a margrave territory, is far thinner. Once again, I'm not a map maker and this is only meant to show you the relative location of these places. 

Regarding Nightshade Forest, it's like, 5...

Ch.25 Plumbing and Water Treatment

A few days later, Carter and his workers begrudgingly returned to work, building the pipes and creating new piercing rods and lathes to handle the necessary work. Each pipe had threading that allowed the two pipes to screw together before applying a sealant. It was time-consuming work, but it gradually sped up until they started producing a hundred pipes a day.

Over the following week, I recruited blacksmiths from the territory and beyond who were willing to work under the internationa...

Ch. 24 Education Systems and Pipe Manufacturing

While awaiting Priest Aelius' response to the attack on Duke Revington, I focused on my two primary objectives. First, I would build a library before my infallible memory. My memory would still be strong, but strong isn’t the same as perfect. Doing this would enhance my education system and serve me for a lifetime.

Second, I needed to work on our city's plumbing system.

Thankfully, Carter's Steelworks only needed direction on mass-producing pipes, and assembling plumbing parts w...

Sundell

Sundell Capital. This map isn't to scale and doesn't represent realistic city planning. It's just to visualize the city and where things are as it's being built.

I'm not an artist. I make these things and provide periodic images just to help with immersion. Oh, and if you zoom in, you can see cannons and ballistae. :]

Ch.23 Interchangeable Parts: The Lathe and Milling Press

After an extra day celebrating Dragon’s Peak’s partnership with the Everwood Kingdom, Thea, Zenith, my guards, and I returned to Sundell with 2,000 low-quality ball bearings and other parts I had ordered, including bushings and die-cutting tools.

It was time to trigger an industrial revolution. The goal: interchangeable parts.

Interchangeable parts, introduced by Eli Whitney in 1798, revolutionized weapons manufacturing by allowing people to fix their weapons and ensure they d...

Ch.22 [Unfiltered] Thea’s Swimsuit (Open for All Patrons)

[Warning: This chapter has mild sexual themes and insight into Thea's hormonal, yandere-like mind. It has great character development and a good way to gauge whether you'll like unfiltered. Thea's 19 and loves Ryker. I don't think that's very controversial, but some people do. If you're amongst them, just enjoy the regular story. Reader Discretion is advised.]

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"As expected of a gangster," I sighed, watching them file in. "At least he prioritizes money over racial supremacy."

Ch.22 Ball Bearings

[Disclaimer: Read the announcements on Unfiltered chapters before drawing conclusions on them. This chapter is 6k+ words. The Unfiltered is 9k+ words and has slower pacing. You're not losing anything by reading the main story.]

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When people think of fantasy dwarves, they think of mining, blacksmithing, and alcohol distilling. And, of course, short stature.

Well, the Dwarves in Dragon’s Peak were indeed short people famous for mining, blacksmithing, and alcohol distilling....

Unfiltered Chapters [Please Read!]

The Unfiltered chapters are not fan service. Sexual themes are exclusive to Unfiltered, but Unfiltered isn't necessarily sexual. It contains the quality humor, character development, and sexual themes I cut from the story to ensure it remains enjoyable for most readers.

Sexual content and humor are notorious for ruining novels for readers. Therefore, I've separated it from the main story. You may be about that life, so here's some info on what it is and...

Ch.21 Zenith

It was now springtime, and Sundell's construction was underway. During the previous fall, I had people working around the clock to dig ditches for plumbing pipes and future sewer drains. It was time to create the equipment necessary to bring everything to life.

Plumbing is a remarkably simple concept.

Imagine a water cooler. There's a large barrel filled with water, and at the bottom, there's a dispenser. When a person twists it, it allows water to flow with gravity—that's how s...