Only when the three of them had left the research lab and were away from the apprentices did Mr. Hasse speak. "Mage Rorschach, do you believe this product has good prospects?"

Pierre, already a complete Rorschach admirer, chimed in, "Please don’t question... the consultant’s judgment!"

"Yes, I believe we’ll have no trouble with sales once it’s launched." Rorschach observed Mr. Hasse’s nervous, round face, understanding what the merchant was truly asking.

"Then when do you think we should begin mass production?"

"As soon as possible. At the latest... before this winter." The moment the words left his mouth, Rorschach felt even winter was too slow. "Regardless of whether I’m still in Bayern, I’ll be monitoring the progress of its implementation. If things fall behind, I’ll get involved in the research and design."

It finally dawned on Pierre. "Is there going to be a war?" Although the Nixingen name had been on the rise in Valuva’s circles of fame and fortune for the past six months, he was merely nouveau riche and not particularly attuned to such developments.

Aside from figures like Bishops, powerful Nobility, and Great Mages, those with the keenest sense for war were the merchants of steel, grain, and textiles. But holding such priceless information, they always secured the most profitable positions for themselves first. Only then would they leak it to their associates, or their movements would be noticed by others, like logistics merchants.

By the time the common person caught on, the news of conscription orders and tax hikes would have already arrived.

Rorschach made a hushing gesture and spoke as they walked. "I never said anything of the sort, and I can’t be certain. There’s no need for you to panic, and you absolutely must not spread panic. War or no war, once we’ve made this, people of vision will inevitably recognize its value."

"Right now, the headquarters in the Holy Kingdom is funding this operation. After the factory in Bayern produces the canned goods, the production process and technology must be summarized and shared with the Holy Kingdom as well."

"The technical barrier for this isn’t high. Once the secret is out, imitators are bound to appear." Rorschach reminded the two men that they should follow the example of the Guilds and establish technical standards. They needed to proactively propose and specify metrics for their buyers, such as shelf life, spoilage rate, and solid-to-liquid ratio, and then strive to make theirs the best on the market.

"Even if the military doesn’t have a massive demand, the shipping industry is so developed now that ocean-faring vessels will need it. And if that unfortunate day does come..." Rorschach took the hands of the two merchants, one from each Kingdom, and gave them a warm smile. "Then the soldiers on both sides should get to eat a little better, and we, in turn, can earn a little more."

After bidding farewell to the two entrepreneurs, Rorschach finally had time for his true purpose in visiting the factory: to collect the Dulled Transmuting Dust that had accumulated during production.

In the basement were two workers on duty. They weren’t maintenance apprentices but rather two of the cleverer workers from the factory floor, chosen and instructed to memorize the procedures for starting and stopping the equipment, how to weigh and record output, and how to spot abnormal operations.

Their final safety instruction was to touch nothing but the levers and the tower crucible. If the equipment acted abnormally—the simplest sign being a needle pointing where it shouldn’t—they were to run for their lives. If the basement didn’t explode, *then* they could ask an apprentice to come and see what was wrong.

"Lord Mage." Seeing Rorschach enter the basement, the worker on duty shot to his feet.

"Playing cards, I see. Don’t mind me." Rorschach motioned for them to relax. "Carry on. Just remember to take samples on schedule and keep an eye on the gauges." He took out a logbook, recorded that he had taken all of the output, and received a little over a pound of the Blue Crystals.

’Piling it up like this isn’t safe,’ Rorschach thought, ’and releasing too much at once will only devalue it.’ He changed his mind, packing some into glass vials and keeping the rest for himself. Before he left, he added a new rule: each product batch was to be boxed separately and not piled together.

’If this were mixed with powdered Oscillation Crystal, could it be made into a Magic Interference Bomb?’ Rorschach had a sudden flash of inspiration as he portioned out the crystals.

He instantly thought of two possible designs, pulling out his small notebook to sketch them out.

The first, a "bomb version," would have a three-layer charge. From the inside out, it would be packed with gunpowder, Transmuting Dust, and the powdered crystal. The gunpowder explosion would shatter the stability of the Dulled Transmuting Dust. The released Ether would then be absorbed by the Oscillation Crystal, which would erupt with a wave of Ether interference.

Another concept considered that only a certain amount of impact was needed to destabilize the Dulled Transmuting Dust. A shell could be fitted with a forward firing pin; upon impact, the pin would shatter the Transmuting Dust, releasing the Ether. For an artillery shell, the payload of powdered Oscillation Crystal could be made very large, and the effect would likely be astounding.

However, Rorschach quickly put his sketches away after finishing them. Ultimately, these were all methods that would "allow ordinary people to counter Casters and Divine Benefactors." ’Should something like this be made public?’ This wasn’t a question of being willing to donate a hypothetical cow; this was a question of whether he should hand someone else the knife to kill the cow he actually owned.

’I hope the day never comes when this is needed.’

Still, Rorschach wasn’t the only one who had seen the Mysterious Baron’s research on Oscillation Crystals and Magic interference. If a high-performance, disposable energy storage material like Dulled Transmuting Dust became widespread, similar designs were bound to appear sooner or later. Of course, for the time being, both the theory and the materials were firmly in the hands of the Mages.

It was very likely that in the future, Rorschach would have to consider whether to become his own gravedigger, earning himself the title "Inventor of the Luoyang Shovel."

’Ah, I shouldn’t overthink it for now. Time to follow the plan and make my third attempt on the Tower of Secret Techniques!’ Rorschach could only shelve his stray thoughts and head for the Forbidden Book Collection Room. This time, he was determined to succeed.

The Tower of Secret Techniques still stood as majestically as ever, but the Mages and apprentices, fresh from the celebration, seemed to have undergone a major change in spirit.

As soon as Rorschach entered, he heard the Tower Guardian Beast, the Red Dragon on the Golden Throne, complaining about being left out of the fun. "Princess! Rorschach, you and those other bastards in the tower didn’t say a word before you left! Now they’re back and bragging all about it... And you ran off with Mage Elizabeth!"

"That was her own choice, and she’s only temporarily serving as a Court Mage." Judging by Old Sir Kou Bo’s age and the rate of Ouyeni’s aging, a Great Mage’s lifespan was significantly longer than an ordinary person’s. By her own account, becoming a Court Mage was simply a temporary measure to protect her niece from an unknown threat.

After bidding farewell to the chattering Little Red Dragon, Rorschach stepped inside and was taken aback. The entire atmosphere within the tower had changed. In the dormitory area, it seemed many of the doors were adorned with "May Trees." The materials weren’t limited to birch branches; there were also magically-infused boughs of elder and holly. All of them were tied with silk scarves that fluttered despite the lack of a breeze.

Even the Gargoyles that constantly shuttled between floors had been decorated with paint and hats, looking as if they had evolved into Little Elves.

"Rorschach?" someone greeted. Between his two previous visits and the collaboration for the wedding performance, he had become a familiar face to many of the Mages and younger apprentices.

"What is all this...?"

"They’re May Trees." The Mage assumed Rorschach was an outsider who didn’t understand the custom and briefly explained it before adding a crucial piece of information.

"We don’t have many single ladies here, so most of the scarves you see were tied by the male apprentices for each other. If anyone is foolish enough to take one down, the Small Spell on it is guaranteed to give them a ’surprise’."

"Right. Thanks for the warning." Rorschach stated his purpose. "I’m still hoping to visit your tower’s collection room. You see, I’ve brought..."

"Not possible," the Mage said with a smile, rejecting him once again.