The civilians who came to "cause trouble" were taken away by the soldiers. They would be assigned to the construction site in the Northport West District, where there were plenty of jobs that didn’t require much skill waiting for them. Their status would be "troublemakers punished with labor for causing disturbances." Considering their behavior, they would be sentenced to several hours of labor. For obvious, basic survival needs, they would also receive a hot meal, a hot shower, and a "meager subsidy for their hard work."

Victoria had never seen such an operation before.

"Sometimes rules are too rigid, so we need to improvise, especially in places like this that are far from the imperial capital and have unique local customs," Byron said with a shrug, glancing at Victoria, who appeared from the position distortion Force Field and was looking at him in shock. "These civilians were ’incited’ by local small aristocrats and viscounts; that’s how it started at first.

"The construction army’s action to build Northport evidently provoked some people—and the influence of the Wilder Clan made them not dare to act openly. So, they tried other methods to test our strength—they incited or bribed some uninformed civilians, who initially came here angrily, but they quickly realized we were more ’friendly and generous’ than those who incited them. The construction army has ample supplies, and the civilians need very little. They can do some simple work here to exchange for meals that they could only eat on special occasions in the past.

"But the bigger draw is the hot water; our communal bathhouse is the most popular place, more popular than I imagined. The camp now has two Waste Heat Recovery Centers and a central heat exchange station, and it’s obvious that the residents near this cold beach rarely have the chance to take hot showers. My military doctor believes that giving these outsiders baths can effectively prevent them from spreading diseases in the camp, and now they’ve grown fond of the ample hot water supply here..."

Victoria’s facial expressions changed more times today than in the past half-month. She frowned, looked at the "Imperial General" before her with a strange expression, and said, "So... these people frequently come over? They protest against you and then are ’arrested’ by your soldiers to work, ending up with a good meal and a hot shower..."

"And a small subsidy, you know. Empire law stipulates that those undergoing labor reform can receive a small amount of remuneration for their work. This is to encourage them to make a living through labor."

At this point, Byron paused before continuing, "Initially, only the men came. They were either seduced or bribed. After several forced labor sessions with pay, some tried to sneak food back for their families. I noticed, but didn’t stop them. It’s nothing, but those behind the scenes apparently didn’t want to see this outcome. They likely prohibited this behavior, and you can imagine what happened next—these people started bringing women and children from their families along. In fact, they even wanted to bring the elderly and young children, but that would be too dangerous; I couldn’t allow it..."

Victoria listened as Byron recounted what had happened in a lighthearted tone, but her expression grew serious. It wasn’t until he finished speaking that she exhaled and said in a deep voice, "So, now these people who were once incited... are completely on your side... and those who incited them haven’t realized the seriousness of the situation yet."

"Maybe they have realized it, but what does it matter?" Byron said indifferently. "A trend has already formed, and reversing it would require a greater cost than initially pushing it. The current situation clearly doesn’t allow them to do so—neither the Wilder Clan nor the Empire will support them, and no one else will either. Their very actions have already placed one foot over the red line. Will they take another step? Most likely not. Of course, I personally hope they go further—this beach lacks scenery, and the construction army’s flagpole needs some decoration."

Victoria finally shook off the absurd feeling inside her, as though she were reassessing Byron. A few seconds later, she slowly said, "I once thought I understood everything about this land, but now it seems... I’m not as resourceful as you, a newcomer."

Byron glanced at the Duchess and suddenly grinned. "Grand Governor, that’s perfectly normal—you understand the northern parts, but I understand civilians."

Looking at the graying-haired, carefree middle-aged knight, Victoria suddenly remembered his background and for the first time seriously considered all that had been overlooked about this seemingly boorish Imperial General—

He had once been a mercenary leader who had to deal with all sorts of people and even do "business" with bandits, leaders, merchants, and civilians simultaneously. In such a line of work, a truly boorish person would not survive. This man rose from a low background to become a knight and quickly integrated into the new order Gawain Cecil established. It’s said that he was adept at navigating the complex Administrative Office in the southern borders and had no bad relations with anyone.

Quite the opposite, Byron was friends with every major department head and had good rapport with nearly all mid- and low-level army officers and soldiers. Even those traditional knight officers who teased him for lacking "true knightly demeanor" actually got along with him very well.

And this person held firmly to his duties as a soldier—loyal to the Empire and the King, never overstepping authority. He had been stationed on this coast for a month, and his soldiers had never left the camp except for necessary tasks.

"I finally understand why His Majesty sent you here..." Victoria said softly after a deep breath.

"I don’t really think about that. I just want to get Northport built quickly," Byron replied casually. "The Typhon Empire is already ahead of us—we have accurate intelligence now that they’ve restarted their Mobius Port and have a bunch of mages building new long-distance warships. His Majesty said that with ’money ability’ support, the Typhon Empire’s production speed is just as fast as ours.

"And once Northport takes shape quickly, we can move on to the next plan and turn this into a bustling port city—what a great place this is, the largest non-freezing port in the north, with a calm and safe coastline. The Sacred Dragon Kingdom’s peninsular entry and Violet Kingdom’s islands shield us from the storms on the east and west sides. Yet the people here can only rely on their meager land and seal hunting to make a living. They shouldn’t be this poor.

"My next step is to open the southern district’s market and the merchant passage. At that time, I might need your help with influence—try to get more merchants to come over. This will help the town take shape, as His Majesty did in the Dark Mountain Range back then.

"Once the camp is firmly established and Northport’s influence expands, I will recruit locals in a normal way, and those people you saw today can come here to work with dignity.

"My only concern now is the local family forces... not those big aristocrats, but those who incite civilians to cause trouble, directly control the scattered land around Northport, and are small aristocrats without even noble titles, like those viscounts. They’ve already shown enough caution and cunning and have likely figured out the construction army’s bottom line, so I find it hard to really act against them. As Grand Governor and Northern Guard, you’re also in a difficult position to suppress them directly...

"These ’local bullies’ might become a long-term, hard-to-clear trouble for Northport."

Byron rambled on for a while, and after he finally finished speaking, Victoria broke the silence with a calm voice and unhurried pace: "You don’t need to worry too much. The Wilder Clan has ruled this land for seven hundred years, and we have some experience dealing with ’scattered issues.’

"Besides, you’re overestimating the trouble these local families might cause—they are indeed obstinate, but they also know how to observe situations. The old aristocratic order of the northern parts has already been mostly dismantled by me. Although these local families haven’t faced a major reckoning, they have witnessed the transition of order in this land. Their current actions seem short-sighted and blind because they are merely fearful and haven’t truly understood the Empire’s new rules of the game. They’re still using old experiences to avoid ’trouble’—once they figure out the real rules of the game and realize that Northport’s ’new neighbors’ are strong and aren’t going anywhere, they will likely become very hospitable."

Listening to Victoria’s calm tone, Byron gave the Ice Duchess a deep look, and then happily laughed:

"If it’s truly as you say, then I’m not worried anymore."

With those words, he withdrew his gaze and again looked towards the distant sea.

Under the clear sky, the ocean illuminated by the bright sunlight gently undulated. At this position, the unpredictable storms and mysterious magic tides were still far from the world of humans, yet a jetty had already extended from the shore. That jetty, fixed upon magical ice, seemed like a Knight’s lance, directing humanity’s determination and courage towards the sea.

...

A bright arc of lightning descended from the sky, sweeping across the tumultuous waves on the sea surface. The end of the arc bore terrifying, tree-like branches amid thunderous roar, as the massive waves were vaporized by chaotic turbulence, filling the space between heaven and sea with a pungent scent.

A ship, wholly covered in Magi-metal and shimmering with countless magical symbols, equipped with abundant magical devices, sailed amidst the terrifying waves. The surrounding seawater, as if possessed of its own will, rolled towards it layer upon layer, along with the lightning arcs from the sky, continuously assaulting the ship that appeared on the verge of collapse, but was continuously repelled by the numerous magic circles and layered barriers appearing on the vessel’s surface.

The entire ship seemed protected by over a dozen magical fortresses. Within that powerful energy field, the ship continued to sail against the waves.

Typhon Empire No. 1 Ocean Exploration Ship—Courage.

Inside this advanced vessel, protected by layers of magical power, Owen Dyson Earl stood solemnly in the command room. The illusion spell maintained by the Mage was projecting a clear image of the exterior scene in front of the Earl.

"So this is the ’Chaotic Turbulence’ in the ocean..." Owen Dyson Earl murmured to himself, "It’s truly eye-opening..."

Then he straightened his expression and looked at the control Mage beside him: "How is the condition of the ship?"

The high-ranking Mage responsible for monitoring the entire vessel was surrounded by layers of magic symbols, floating above the magic circle in the center of the cabin. He opened his eyes, filled with calm, nearly mechanical reflection of arcane magic: "Shields from level one to three have been penetrated, the shield controller temporarily lost spellcasting ability, the amplification array needs at least six hours of repair, the remaining shields are intact; the outermost anti-magic shell has ruptured, signs of elemental corrosion appeared at the ship’s bottom, it has been urgently patched with mithril—inner anti-magic shell is still intact, no immediate issues anticipated.

"All sails are retracted and have shielded against external winds, prototype Magic-Powered Engine has completely halted—severe mechanical malfunction, unable to start. Currently, vessel propulsion is maintained by the second crew tier’s spellcasting."

Owen Dyson Earl furrowed his brow: "How much longer until we can break free from these waves?"

"We have sensed the boundary of the unstable energy field—fifteen minutes to reach it. The ship can hold until then."

Owen Dyson Earl nodded and solemnly said: "Let’s hope we don’t encounter ’Chaotic Turbulence’ again on our return..."

"Earl, you shouldn’t personally undertake this voyage," the deputy captain standing beside Owen Dyson couldn’t help but lightly criticize, "You are the ruler of Mobius Port, even responsible for the entire ocean exploration plan..."

"Call me Captain here—I believe my talent in navigating at least qualifies me for this position," Owen Dyson interrupted the deputy captain, "This is merely an exploration of Tasos Island, the closest colony to the continent during the seafaring era—if even such a close voyage requires me to hide in a safe port, the Empire’s ocean exploration plan may never get on track."

The Typhon aristocrat with steely resolve spoke with grave determination, then shook his head: "But we indeed underestimated the ocean’s power... Seven hundred years ago, the outdated records in ancient books were chaotic and fragmentary, while slightly more recent information was rife with mistakes. The Dyson Family should bear responsibility for this. For recent generations, we’ve been busy maintaining the last commercial line in Mobius Port, though keeping observation and records of the ocean, the investment was far from sufficient, leading to a lack of truly reliable data, and now we are facing the consequences..."

"A year ago, no one foresaw that Aldernon would suddenly decide to restart Mobius Port and the ocean exploration plan," the deputy captain shook his head, "There’s no fault of yours, Earl."

Owen Dyson’s expression was solemn: "If this ship sinks, then that would be my fault."

Just then, the Mage responsible for monitoring the ocean suddenly shouted, interrupting the conversation between the captain and deputy—

"The waves are weakening!"

"We’ve entered a safe zone!"