Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 795 Michael the Wizard's Surrender and Locke's Research Assembly Line

In the director's office of Solas's Barefoot, the director of the Holm Moon Ring looked at Michael, the chief wizard shoe designer of the first ring of Solas's Barefoot, and questioned him, "I'm asking you, in the past month, have you made any new progress?"

"The Black Hummingbird Pineapple Wizard Shoes sold for another ten million magic stones in Arthas within a month."

"In other words, this year, the top three best-selling wizard shoes on the Arthas list will most likely be the Augustus Wizard Shoes. Currently, two super-selling items have already secured their positions on the list."

“I don’t think the Blue Ribbon Store Alliance can come up with any solutions. They even came to me for help yesterday, asking me to give them some ideas.”

The wizard Holm said, "As the chief designer of our Soras Lightfoot, you are a genius we have carefully selected."

"They're considered the chosen ones. What's your opinion?"

Michael the Wizard hesitated, then stammered.

"The Black Hummingbird Pineapple Wizard Shoes have excellent performance in all aspects, and their overall level exceeds the design level of our existing first-ring wizard shoes."

"Even if I unlock the previously sealed frozen technology resources, it would be difficult to increase the quality by an average of 10% in a short period of time."

"This……"

Holm, the main piper, said: "Absurd. It's just the work of a breeder... an amateur, yet it's forced our entire Solas Barefoot Design Team to a standstill?"

"It's just nonsense."

"I'll give you another month, is that enough? No, half a month, I'll give you half a month."

"Can you design the shoes right away?"

Michael the Wizard's eyes were vacant as he began to think.

"This requires manpower, money, additional investment... and time. Half a month is far from enough."

"I only completed performance testing of the black Hummingbird Wizard Shoes this month."

"Manager, those black hummingbird wizard shoes are truly amazing. It's unbelievable that they're pure magical plant wizard shoes. I don't have a good idea right now..."

Holm said, "You're the chief designer of our first ring, don't you have a good solution?"

"Is a month enough?"

Michael the Wizard suddenly realized that Holm had never actually worked on the front lines, nor had he ever spent a single day in a designer's position; he had been in an administrative role from the very beginning.

Wizard Michael bowed to Wizard Holm.

“Teacher Holm, I really can’t do it. Don’t even mention giving me a month, even if you give our first-ring wizard team a year, I can’t guarantee that we can make a first-ring wizard shoe with performance comparable to the Black Hummingbird Wizard Shoes.”

Wizard Michael sighed.

"Now that things have come to this, I'll accept your accusations. As the chief designer of the first ring of Solas' barefoot, I couldn't compete with him in designing the first ring wizard shoes, even though I had ample data and technical surplus."

"It is my responsibility."

The head of the Hormuz Moon Ring glared.

"I don't want something to be comparable to; I want you to produce a pair of first-ring wizard shoes that can completely crush the Black Hummingbird!"

Michael the Wizard suddenly felt a sense of relief.

When you feel that the leader's task is completely impossible to complete, it's as if the responsibility on your shoulders has disappeared, and you feel completely relaxed.

Michael the Wizard said, "I'm sorry, Professor Holm, that's really not something I can do."

The wizard Holm was enraged, his eyes blazing with fury.

"As a rising star in the Rose Council and the lineage of the Rose Throne, a genius weaver, you actually admit that you cannot create better wizard shoes than the amateur breeder."

"This is a disgrace."

“Wizard Michael, I will contact your mentor. Do you intend to bring shame upon our Rose Throne?”

Holm's fury seemed poised to engulf Michael, the wizard before him, like a tidal wave.

Just as Wizard Michael was feeling terrible and unsure of how to deal with it, Wizard Holm suddenly calmed down.

The wizard Holm said, "You may leave now. As punishment, I have activated the rules of Solas and deducted all of your bonuses for this year."

"Furthermore, you are very likely to be transferred from your current position in the future. I hope you are mentally prepared. This is a reasonable action I must take as the head of Solas Barefoot."

"The chief designer of the first ring represents the century-old honor of Solas Barefoot, and means that you, the Magic Shoemaker, are almost the best in the first ring stage. Therefore, as a Magic Shoemaker, you absolutely cannot lose to a breeder."

“Michael, I’m very disappointed in you. I don’t even want you to continue working for me.”

Michael the Wizard felt bitter.

He knew that if he walked out of the office now, he would be branded a marginal figure by Director Holm.

His rank will no longer be able to be promoted, and may even be demoted.

His future prospects are completely ruined.

Even geniuses, unless they reach the point of completely disregarding conventions, absolutely need to rely on a platform.

Only true geniuses are absolutely unstoppable.

However, ordinary geniuses need a lot of resources to grow up quickly.

But he wanted to stay and ask Director Holm if he could design a better shoe than the Black Hummingbird within a month.

Michael the Wizard thought for a moment, and then felt even more desperate.

The design of the black hummingbird wizard shoes lingered in his mind.

He tested the wizard shoes for a whole month.

As a magic shoemaker, he was originally filled with pride.

He initially viewed the design of the wizard's shoes through the lens of the Shoemaker's Standards and used the Shoemaker's System to measure the design and craftsmanship of the shoes.

But soon, he was amazed by the wizard's shoes.

He even secretly put on the wizard shoes in a secluded corner. The reason he became a magic shoemaker was because he had loved shoes since he was a child.

His love for shoes has become an obsession.

He knew that even if there were no people in the world, some things would still exist there.

But shoes are different.

Without people, there are no shoes. Shoes serve people.

Shoes are a product of our time, a symbol of civilization. For millions of years, shoes and civilization have complemented each other, and at a certain stage, the place where shoe prints are found is the place where civilization is found.

A good pair of shoes doesn't necessarily show its quality when worn on an everyday basis.

However, if you wear those good shoes to do certain extreme sports, or go to places with harsh and difficult conditions, then the difference of having a good pair of shoes will become apparent.

Shoes are his favorite thing.

He had secretly put on those black hummingbird wizard shoes, and then he became obsessed.

Yes, these wizard shoes aren't very comfortable.

The stress analysis was not done well enough, and the foot shape was not made in accordance with standard human biological characteristics.

The gait cycle is also poorly designed, and may not have been designed at all; the toe roll angle design was not taken into account.

The humidity and thermal conductivity of the material were not taken into account.

The artistry of these wizard shoes is very low.

It's clear that the wizard who designed these wizard shoes didn't have extensive experience designing wizard shoes.

But the black hummingbird wizard shoes are still the best, so good that they frighten him.

Because these wizard shoes return to the original purpose of wizard shoes—functionality.

It's hard to imagine that a pure magic plant like Wizard Shoes could reach such a level.

Michael the Wizard even thought with some regret that if a magic shoemaker had helped Locke Augustine design a pair of wizard shoes, could they have created something like the exceptionally good shoes made by Solas the Barefoot and Melochy a hundred years ago, before the market was unified?
Those works that truly drew him into the industry?
Michael believed he couldn't make shoes that surpassed the performance of those wizard shoes in a short time, so he could only turn around and walk out of Solas's director's office.

Holm gave Michael a cold, sweeping look.

"Humph."

"I really don't know if it's because you're incompetent, or if those wizard shoes are truly superior. Or maybe you're deliberately trying to antagonize me and blackmail me."

"This person can no longer be used."

The wizard Holm thought to himself, "Since he can't be used by me, I'll marginalize him."

The wizard Holm tapped the table with his fingers.

"But now Your Majesty and all the teachers of the Three Rings are about to leave Yunze Wetland and head to the Southern Boundary."

"Lord Solas will also be leaving. The level of oversight will decrease significantly, which will increase my power, and many things will be possible. No, this can't continue. Otherwise, the Solas family business will remain intact, but I will lose my position as manager."

Wizard Holm pondered, "Before I replace Michael, I can't fully control the people in the first-ring design department. So, the best solution is to transfer a second-ring wizard to design a pair of first-ring wizard shoes, bypassing the department and the level above."

"This is against the rules, but it's the best way to handle it right now."

The wizard Holm pondered the feasibility of this path.

Solas's barefoot technique was originally strictly prohibited, and the second-ring wizard designer went to the first-ring department.

But now, with the Genesis academic conference underway, it seems that this loophole can be secretly opened.

Holm thought to himself, “Based on the discussions at the last technical seminar, the second-ring designers unanimously agreed that it would be impossible for Locke Augustine to create second-ring wizard shoes that could be mass-produced within fifty years.”

"Therefore, the real war is only within the realm of the first-ring Wizard's Shoes. I only need to hold this position."

"Therefore, the resources of the Second Ring Road design department are currently superfluous, and some of them can be allocated to the First Ring Road design department, which needs support the most."

After much deliberation, Holm finally made up his mind and secretly wrote a document by hand, preparing to quietly transfer people from the Second Ring Road design department.

"We just need to find a designer from the Second Ring Road who has free time and doesn't have any design projects of their own."

"There shouldn't be any problem. Even if the board asks, as long as I produce results and it doesn't affect the Second Ring Road design department, it won't be a mistake, but a merit."

Manager Holm pondered, "It was my insightful judgment that allowed me to defy the majority opinion."

"With so much debt on my hands, losing this position wouldn't be a big loss in terms of the apparent income. But those people who used to give me gifts every year would probably never visit my office again. That would have a huge impact on me."

"Therefore, Solas's position as manager must not be lost."

The wizard Holm directly contacted an ordinary second-ring designer using the Ganoderma lucidum plant.

"Hey, Wizard Hick. I remember you haven't been busy lately, have you? Hmm? You're about to start a design project? Well, it hasn't even started yet, has it? Why don't you put it aside for now before you begin? I have something..."

"Hmm... I'm giving you a peacock calcite magic stone mine in a mid-level world, the Rock Spirit World. All you have to do is help me design wizard shoes that surpass the Black Hummingbird's as quickly as possible."

"Yes. Don't worry about that. I've already arranged for technical experts to meet and for multiple departments to discuss the matter. We've determined that Locke Augustine doesn't have the corresponding technical reserves to find a way to reduce the cost of the imaginary root within fifty years."

"Unless he gets a special grant or something similar that would allow him to get into a key laboratory. But he probably won't get that kind of project in the short term."

"Yes. So, even if one of you is transferred from the Second Ring Road design department, it won't have any impact. Neither of us will be punished by the board of directors."

"Okay, it's a deal."

……

At Golden Crown Mountain, Scarlett the Witch informed Locke that their Black Hummingbirds had once again achieved a resounding success, generating millions of magic stones in revenue.

Locke spoke with her for a while and they agreed to go to the White Wizard Association a week later to collect the shop alliance's business license and pay the wizard tax and license tax.

Scarlett the Witch seems to really hope that the Augustus Shop Alliance can be established and become a famous brand, a dark horse that breaks out in a market that is completely monopolized and where the elite wizard shoe shop alliance has a solidified class structure.

Locke glanced at the tens of millions in revenue and nodded.

“I currently have 20 million on hand. If I don’t do research, that’s a lot. If I do, it should be enough to cover my expenses for a few months. In that case, I can go all out to launch the projects I have on hand. The two projects in the southeastern region need to be started as soon as possible.”

"As for the imaginary root, I can also begin a two-month library borrowing period, and in the process, I can use my clone to conduct experiments. Let me come back after my clone has settled the southeast corner region."

Locke's eyes were full of confidence. "Through the Evolution Month, I can shorten my plant cultivation cycle. Using the blooming and withering of flowers will allow me to quickly obtain improved samples for large-scale verification."

"With the blooming and withering of flowers, the combination of the magic cube and the descriptions, I can quickly obtain a large number of magical plant subspecies. I can find a lot of useful things from their plant essence. Perhaps, if I make good use of these two months, I can really find a way to mass-produce second-ring wizard shoes."

He has already preliminarily built a complete system for himself that can accelerate the results of the Second Ring Road project.

This system is the most valuable part.

Because it can also be used in other projects.

(End of this chapter)