"I am going to break down the range into pieces." Lloyd's casual response came with a puckish smile.
Javier closed his mouth. He gave Lloyd a long look before speaking. "Did you... take any sort of substance this morning...?"
"No, I am fine," dismissed Lloyd.
"You did not suffer from a head injury?" asked Javier again.
Lloyd frowned. "I said I'm fine."
"Serious stress?" postulated Javier once again.
"I'm fine," insisted Lloyd.
"Or are you going through a midlife crisis?"
"Hey, I've got many years before that hits me."
"If not, have you started to lose clumps of hair by chance?"
"Hey." Lloyd stared hard at Javier.
"Yes?"
"I'm telling you. I'm fine."
“...”
"Trust me."
"Okay, I will trust you."
"Really?"
"Yes," Javier replied, his voice cynical and distant. "I should believe you since you are very confident. Yes, you did not consume any drugs in the morning, been in a carriage accident, been under a lot of stress, experienced a midlife crisis, or hair loss."
"Not that..." Lloyd sighed. "Can't you trust the very first thing I said?"
"Are you referring to the demolition of the mountain range?"
"Yeah."
"I believe you."
"Really?"
"I do." Javier indicated with a nod. He meant it. "You have always been this way. You propose an outrageous plan, and it works out in real life every time. That's why I am going to trust you now as well."
"Because I seem nuts?"
"Yes, because you seem like a madman," deadpanned Javier.
"A madman...?"
"It is a compliment," defied Javier.
"A compliment? That was a compliment?"
"It was," explained the knight. "That's the measure I use to determine whether I can trust you or not."
"Tsk..." Lloyd licked his bitter lips. It appeared he had failed to properly teach Javier. "I'm starting to feel that the more I act out, the more you trust me."
"You told me the same thing before," pointed out Javier. "That the more you act like a madman, the more I should trust you. And that is why I am doing this. You've never looked crazier than when you declared to destroy the range just a moment ago."
"Aha," remarked Lloyd. "That must mean you suddenly felt a strong urge to trust me."
"Of course."
Lloyd came to a decision. He had done a miserable job at providing guidance to Javier and had no clue what kind of impression the knight even had of him. The problem was that it was too late to change Javier's opinion of him now. "Well, I'm not saying that I'm going to demolish the whole range," Lloyd spoke, a bitter smile forming at the corners of his mouth. "After all, as you mentioned, the range is very steep. It's basically a giant cliff. So, I will shave down only a portion of it. Just a smidgeon."
"Enough to install a railway?" asked Javier dubiously.
"Correct," affirmed Lloyd. "If we recklessly shave down too much, the foundation could become unstable, so just enough for us to get the job done."
It was true. Lloyd's plan did not include demolishing the range or removing the peak because it would require too much labor, money, and time. Furthermore, destroying the entire mountain range would only benefit other people, not him.
The trade route should remain under the control of the Magentano House as long as it's operational. So a wide open road that's accessible to everyone would be less advantageous for the imperial family.
And Queen Magentano wouldn't want that to happen.
Of course, this is why I considered alternative methods. Such as boring a tunnel beneath the range, installing cable cars, or constructing a cog railway along the slopes.
But each of these options was problematic. For starters, the first option of the underground tunnel would be an extremely challenging project.
To do so, I'll have to investigate the entire foundation under the range. That will take a very long time to do. And what about the building? Even with Bangul, it will take several years before I can safely build a tunnel that stretches thousands of feet long.
The outcome of such a large construction wouldn't be worth the time, cost, and effort required for it. The project was not cost-effective, to put it simply.
And the main problem with a cable railway is with its safety.
Cable railways or cars used the same mechanism that was involved with pulling a bucket of water from a well. They worked by having a train car be pulled upward or downward with the help of a cable.
Yes, it's a simple system. And I wouldn't have to spend as much time polishing the terrain of the range. That's a clear advantage of the cable railway. However, it's also extremely dangerous and high maintenance. A single snag in the railway's cable would cause a disaster.
Lloyd's shoulders clenched in fear as he imagined the cable cars crashing to the ground as the cable holding them up snapped in half.
And the cog railway? It is impossible.
The technique was frequently used to build roller coasters in amusement parks.
The cogs tick and clack as the roller coaster slowly rises. The cogwheels underneath the roller coasters fit the other cogwheels planted in the center of the track and get pulled upward.
In some ways, it was the ideal railway for this kind of mountain range. The problems caused by the steep slopes of the terrain would be adequately mitigated by it, and the only drawbacks were the horrendous vibrations and noise it created. But neither of these two issues mattered since the road was going to be used for transportation of cargo. However, there was one major reason Lloyd did not choose this technique.
I'm not that familiar with it.
Lloyd exhaled a sigh. He was a civil engineer who had no knowledge of mechanical engineering. What cogs were used in this kind of railway, what their standard measurements were, and the principles behind pulling a car against a steep slope... Lloyd couldn't answer any of these questions.
For that tragic reason... The cog railway is not a possibility.
That eventually left him with only one viable option, which was to destroy a section of the range. The conditions of the range were favorable enough for it, much to his relief.
I have Yong Yong.
Its massive physique. Its power and endurance, which far exceeded that of an ordinary dragon. On top of that, its complete devotion to Lloyd. Yong Yong was a perfect excavator in every sense of the word.
So! It's time to buckle up and get my hands dirty!
Lloyd clenched his fists. There is no time for a break. Though he felt a wave of sadness and resentment for a brief moment, he jumped and got to work after pushing his thoughts away. His first task was obviously surveying.
It'll be best to check over the terrain with my own eyes rather than depend on old documents. Survey!
[Scanning will begin.]
Bzzt!
Lloyd scanned the vast expanse of land beneath Yong Yong's back. There was no need to survey the entire range.
Just about 30 miles from this spot.
Lloyd sharply surveyed the Pantara Range after activating his skill. The area he surveyed had a slight tilt toward the southeast from its center.
This is the best place for a trade route. It's also close to the original passageway in the east.
There wasn't a path across the mountains, but an older route that went around the eastern range did exist. Accordingly, Lloyd was surveying an area close to this original pathway.
That's what will allow me to build the new railway near the original pathway.
The thing was any new construction ought to be close to the existing facilities. Period. That was the unchanging truth. This was the case for South Korea, for instance.
People there were willing to go to great lengths to buy a home less than three minutes away from key infrastructure such as train stations, forests, schools, and supermarkets.
Why? This ensured rising house prices and a more comfortable lifestyle. The same principle could be applied here.
Obviously. It'll be troublesome and less efficient if the new trade route sits far from the existing pathway.
Moreover, building a trade route in this part of the mountain offered two advantages.
First advantage. It sits right in the middle of Magenta, the kingdom's capital city, and Namaran, the trade city of the northeast. This means that both cities will enjoy the benefits of the trade route. Port Cremo in the northeast will also indirectly benefit from it.
The second advantage?
This part of the range looks like it'll be the easiest to work with.
This was actually the biggest factor of consideration for him. Lloyd's eyes quickly raked over around three or four peaks in the range.
They look extremely narrow at a glance, but they actually aren't. It's only their peak that's narrow. The rest of the land is quite leveled. In fact, the width of a mountain range is wider than other types of terrains.
The Pantara Range was a hellish landscape with high, elongated, and narrow features. It was disgustingly tall and long in comparison to its sickeningly narrow width, and these characteristics gave it the appearance of a slew of window screens. However, the section Lloyd was looking at right now was slightly wider than the rest.
Similar in height. Broader in width. That's suggestive of a gentle slope.
However, it wasn't positioned perfectly enough for him to build a railway on it right away.
But who cares. This is the best spot no matter how I see it.
Lloyd found a cave to nestle in after two days of meticulous surveying and analyzed the gathered data in detail while grilling wild boar over the bonfire and chomping on it with Javier. He then went on to design it.
Let's see. What should I demolish before setting down the road?
Pondering intensely, Lloyd thought about a similar construction project on earth, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railroad.
It pretty much had the same conditions as this project. The railroad from Darjeeling to New Jalpaiguri was... What... 54 miles? I think? And the maximum elevation difference was 7,414 feet.
As a consequence, the elevation difference over the 54-mile journey was 7,414 feet. Even in today's modern world, that was outrageous. Lloyd's heart swelled with hope as he realized this magnificent structure was completed in 1881.
If those tea-loving people managed to pull it off, there's no reason I can't. Plus, they only took 26 months to complete the construction. So, I can definitely do it too. Of course, the terrain is rougher here, but I have Yong Yong and the fantastical creatures. The Skeleton Corps is also there for me. Javier, too.
Everything was in order. All he had to do was trust them and move forward. Lloyd continued developing his idea to destroy the range. His plan proceeded smoothly, and its execution was a breeze. This was all due to his Construction Guideline ability.
Ding dong.
[Design Skill Option ④: Construction Guideline has been activated.]
[Construction Guideline - The blueprint you have designed is marked in the actual terrain in the form of the guideline. This guideline will be visible not only to the designer but also to the workers on the site, and the workers will learn in real-time whether they are faithfully adhering to the blueprint (The Construction Guideline is synced to ② Floor Plan Marking (2D.).]
After opening the design data, Lloyd applied the data he obtained from running multiple simulations to real action.
Crackle..!
Lloyd felt his mana dip slightly as glowing blue lines drew around the range. These were the marks created by the Construction Guideline.
There. The rift between the peaks that look like ice cream cones and beer bottles.
Crackle!
Lloyd drew a line parallel to the rift between the two towering peaks. Following that, various engravings appeared on the gentle slope. Lloyd implemented his plan for the range with his design skill after some big and small cuts and fillings, as he considered the strength, direction, composition, and overall balance. It was then Yong Yong's turn to work.
"Yong Yong, you know what to do, right?"
Clack!
"Hey! You do? You sure of it?"
Crack!
Yong Yong nodded its giant head, gesturing with his hands and feet.
Claack! Craack! Crack!
"Hmm... Yes. Dig, carve, and fill in the rift along the glowing bluish lines. You're right. And?"
Creak! Craaack! Snap!
"Don't throw away rocks and soil in random places while you dig and put them aside in their designated spot... Good. I believe there are still a few more precautions?" asked Lloyd as if there were more.
Crack! Clack! Creak!
"Good. Fold up your wings when you're moving around. Don't abruptly rock your tail or swing it around when you pivot. There you go. That's it. You remembered everything."
Clack! Crack!
Yong Yong hula-danced in delight after receiving its long-awaited compliment. Lloyd was satisfied. He looked at Javier and said nonchalantly, "Now, I need you to hold down the fort here."
"Come again?" Javier retorted in annoyed shock.
"You need to hold down the fort here," repeated Lloyd with equal nonchalance.
"Young Master...? What do you mean?" Javier cocked his head to the side.
Lloyd gave a brazen smile. "I need to visit a few places. So, you'll have to supervise the construction site while Yong Yong takes down the mountain range."
"Me? Supervise the site?"
"Yeah. It's nothing difficult. You can use the construction guidelines. All you need to do is dig, carve, and fill in the area that has been outlined."
Javier was speechless.
"Just make sure Yong Yong follows the guide," added Lloyd, "If some areas aren't properly carved down or filled in, tell him to do it again or do a bit of shoveling yourself. Got it?"
"I see..." replied Javier hesitantly. "But where are you going, Young Master?"
"Me? The capital, Namaran, and Cremo.”
"What business do you have there?"
"What else?" Lloyd's shameless grin widened. It was as if he was going to meet up with a friend to retrieve what he had lent him or to a bank to withdraw money. "I'm going to empty the royal treasury," he said with a shameless smile and expression.
