A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 367 Even in hardship, adults shouldn't be the only ones to suffer.

A moment of silence fell over the room. Mr. Hasse, trembling, asked, "Then, is the source of this information reliable?"

Before the war, the small expeditionary force, which was comparable to the "Holy Expedition," was quite intimidating. The Holy Kingdom believed that the Church of Order would inevitably win once it entered the fray, and even elevated it from a "national salvation" movement to a "recapture of lost territory" movement.

The holy city, which was once occupied by believers of the invisible god, was reclaimed through the "Holy Expedition." The southern part of the continent, which had been invaded by alien races and demons, was cleansed by the church and believers. So, several hundred years later, a wave of classic re-creation will take place to rebuild the authority of the church of faith and order in an empire filled with heretics and unbelievers.

From the "patriotic nobles" of Valuana to the devout believers of the Eternal City, they all prayed to God and clashed with their enemies.

Within the empire, there were various sentiments. Some believed that the Church Army was nothing more than a backward army armed with cold weapons, with few divinely favored individuals among them, while our army had accompanying mages and advanced weapons, which would surely defeat the enemy.

There was even discussion about whether the Empire should conscript all registered spellcasters within its borders to test their loyalty. What's truly troubling for magic is the proliferation of similar pronouncements in the media.

So when Rorschach announced that the "Little Expeditionary Force" had been wiped out in one battle, Hasse couldn't even believe it.

"I saw it with my own eyes," Rorschach added casually.

Even though he's been meeting with Mr. Hasse and Andrei every day lately, Rorschach is so certain that Hasse will also firmly believe that Rorschach has truly witnessed the outcome. His previous questions were more like expressions of surprise.

The meeting proceeded as normal, but Hassai was somewhat worried: "Since cooperating with the military, we have indeed obtained a stable supply of sugar raw materials, and the new formula for Fanta will soon be launched on the market." Even without the raw material from the Holy Kingdom, business still had to continue, especially since Hassai hoped that the Imperial Army would purchase the purple soda with its stimulating effects.

He went on to report, "But other orders weren't meeting expectations. Logistics seems to think the canned goods are too expensive, and the fragile ceramic jars are inconvenient to transport. They've got their eye on this one."

At his signal, the person in charge of Fangda Food Factory took a paper tube out of his bag.

Rorschach took it; the paper tube was labeled "Bean Chowder Sausage," but it felt like a solid, firm substance, wrapped in waterproof waxed paper. Inside, it was a compressed, yellowish-green powdery paste, likely made from boiled beans that had been ground into powder and then compressed, with a little spice, animal fat, and plenty of salt mixed in.

"Just put it in water and boil it, and you'll get a hot and fragrant bean soup. You can also cook it with other ingredients. It's selling quite well in the Kingdom of Bain right now. It's cheap enough and has an authentic country flavor, so it's acceptable to everyone from the cook to the moneykeeper."

It's still a good source of plant protein. Rorschach weighed the vegetarian "sausage" in his hand and nodded: "Well done. Reward the inventor according to factory regulations. As for other orders, don't rush them; I'm afraid the war won't end so soon." The Empire's blow to the Paladins reflected the General Staff's strategic thinking—concentrate forces and defeat the enemy quickly and in large numbers.

According to the Empire's assessment, despite long preparations, the finances and reserves could only sustain the entire army for three months. Therefore, the Kingdom had to be conquered within this timeframe, at least Valuwana. During this period, interference from other powers also needed to be guarded against.

However, Rorschach was not so optimistic. No matter if they were top politicians or military geniuses, they could only decide when the war started, not when it would end.

Mr. Hassell continued, "But aren't we hiring too many workers now? It's alright in the winter, but in the spring there will likely be a lot of labor to be put into agriculture, especially now that the situation is tense. And this round of expansion has swallowed up large tracts of farmland and ranches in Lanster and Kempson."

"Don't worry, the new factory in Basif will soon be in mass production of fertilizer. How are the statistics on the children of the families who have recently joined the factory?"

"Some people harbored hostility, especially newly freed serfs, who thought we were after their children."

“That’s true, we are after the children.” Rorschach slammed his hand on the table. “But not to send them to the factory, but to get them into school!” In the Holy Kingdom, the failure of the Valois Higher Normal School had become a hurdle in Rorschach’s mind. Now that he was in charge, he had to pick it up again.

Businessmen always have to balance gains and losses. Hassai was taken aback: "But there are too many families! If we build more schools, we'll have to invest even more. Although Fonda and Basif have positive cash flow, the investment in the steel mill is enormous. You've already solved the housing problem; there's no need to build more schools, is there?"

The former vice president, however, had a different opinion. He was delighted: "The guild originally had its own school to educate our children and provide intensive training for apprentices in reading, writing, and basic skills. After the new factory is established, the remaining seven workshops certainly won't be able to keep up. We originally planned to raise funds to maintain them ourselves, but now Lord Rorschach has this intention, and we can expand the old school."

"That's a good idea. We'll definitely need to expand enrollment later, and divide education levels according to age groups."

Seeing Rorschach's attitude, Hassa decided not to directly object or mention money, but instead asked another question: "How many students do you want to recruit?"

"The more the better, but we can waive tuition fees for the children of our own employees."

"That way, families in Kempson and even those in the surrounding towns with a little money will send their children here, and the school will need a lot of teachers." Currently, the Empire's education system consists of public schools, which are equivalent to primary schools and can enroll a limited number of students, as well as higher education institutions like universities, with guild schools in between.

If Rorschach were to establish an expanded version of the guild school, other middle-class families would certainly be willing to enroll their children, since the Empire has no church monasteries, and if they wanted to fill the gap between "public schools" and "universities," they would have to hire expensive private tutors.

"Then where do we get so many teachers?"

If they try to run a teacher training program like the Holy Kingdom, they'll be out of luck. Of course, Luo Xia will look for all-around college students: "Isn't that easy? Andrei was complaining to me the other day about not having enough people to teach literacy, bookkeeping, and research and development. These all require a good education."

"So the asking price will be very high," Mr. Hassai cautioned.

Asking for a price? When did college students start having a price? Rorschach immediately started to have a wicked idea: "Don't Munik and Wirtz have a lot of universities? Those students study poetry and music all day long, while outside the campus, some people are starving and freezing, and there is constant war outside the kingdom. I think this is not good."

"Mr. Hasai, let's suggest to His Majesty that we require graduating university students to work in a trading company before graduation to test the effectiveness of their learning in translating into practical skills. Let's call it practical learning."

"The term doesn't need to be too long. If the trading company thinks the student is qualified, they can issue an internship certificate or directly sign an employment contract. If the student is not qualified and cannot obtain a graduation certificate or degree certificate, they will be sent to the front line to defend Bain!"

"Another very important point is that, in order to prevent unscrupulous companies from exploiting students or students from obtaining certificates through improper means, the Kingdom must carefully review and determine whether a company is qualified to serve as an internship unit and issue certificates."

"Only high-quality companies like ours can issue internship certificates! Mr. Hassai, shall you propose this to His Majesty, or shall I write the letter?"

Hasai, his eyes wide open, immediately waved his hand: "You should sign it. Such a great idea must be signed by you."

After the meeting, Rorschach kept Andre behind: "To test the magical talent of every child who enrolls, we need to develop a convenient and accurate process."

(End of this chapter)