####
White Harbor,
"Ha! Just as I thought he would!" Lord Manderly said with a booming laugh, his belly shaking. He laid the letter down with a smile. "That's a true Northerner for you. Careful as a cat in snow, and twice as cautious."
"What did he say?" asked Wylis Manderly, the father of Wynafryd.
"Ha! Said he's no trouble with his boy wedding my Wyna. But he won't press the matter by tying them early. Says he'll foster the lad at White Harbor once he's grown enough. If the two take a liking to each other, then he'll give his blessing with a smile."
Wylis Manderly nodded softly, feeding himself as his father. "He struck me as a careful one."
"Good for us. We don't have a fool as our neighbor. He knows how far to reach, when to reach, and when to stand back. Lad's got a bright future ahead."
That was it. They didn't even discuss the matter of ships. The two things were never tied to each other. In a way, it was Lord Manderly's test, where he had nothing to lose, no matter what Wylis would have chosen.
####
Ting!
[Trueborns & Bastards Triggered!]
That was the eleventh time in a week the ping had chimed. Since he'd impregnated all those women in a single giant orgy, their delivery times weren't that spread apart either. And since none had any complications or premature birth, they all gave him healthy lads.
Lads, yes. Every single one of the women gave him sons. They were pretty, robust, with good vitality. No accidents where he had to urgently deploy life points.
Why am I more prone to having sons?
Putting that thought to the back of his mind, he visited the women. Not all of them were in Ramsgate, however. A bit ashamed, he'd gone a bit wild that time in Stoney Sept, and a few women he did that night were married.
They couldn't just leave everything and move to Ramsgate. Heck, other than Anna, only two more women had chosen to stay. All the others either had husbands or other kids back in Stoney Sept.
Wylis didn't stop them. Nor did he try to buy their loyalty with gold. What they had given him was literal life. For that, he offered them financial aid to set up their trade, a shop, or anything they desired. And he'd commission them or trade through them soon enough.
It was best to create a giant ecosystem where all the women he slept with benefited in some way. It would leave nobody sour and perhaps… they'd be happy to give him a few more kids.
But beyond that, the best part was the 6 years he netted in that whole week. It warmed his heart to see his lifespan increase from 53 years to 59 years. Sadly, it was destined to go down again.
In his solar, all alone at night, he opened the store page in Tyrant's Squire and started to scroll through it. It seemingly worked on intent as he quickly found what he was looking for in that endless list that seemingly had infinite pages to scroll through.
With so many things to do. So much to plan. He wanted better strategy ability. Ability to plan industrialization in a phased manner. For that, he made a purchase.
[Business Management and Strategy Mastery - 2 Year]
After that, he focused on the ability that would let him earn the most coin in the shortest time.
[Deep Sea Exploration Mastery - 1 Year]
[Diving Mastery - 6 Months]
[Treasure Hunting Mastery - 1 Year]
Beyond that, there was also Banking Mastery that he wanted to buy. It would let him open and run a bank in ways the Braavosi Iron Bank would vomit blood. But he didn't have enough gold to enter that industry yet, so he postponed it. Perhaps once he'd have enough gold reserves and Lannister gold mining deals done, he would.
What he did buy in the end was not something he was keen on, but circumstances had forced him. He used to be the top dog back in his old life. He didn't need to use politics. But now, with the Boltons scheming and more, he had to.
[Politics Mastery - 2 Years]
Fucking expensive. But holy Sun Tzu Machiavelli!
Concepts and ideas appeared in his head that he didn't even know existed. Using gold to destabilize the market in a particular region to ruin the rulers. To use propaganda and sway the smallfolk, strip the enemy lands of all able hands.
I can do all that.
Also, he realized a mistake. Yes, Ramsgate will one day be overpowered. But the Northern Houses won't necessarily be happy about it. He needed them to see him as an ally they can't offend or afford to lose. He needed to become so important to their little economies that they'd raise their blades to defend him even at the cost of their own lives.
A trading partner like no one else. What he needed wasn't just military might but deep ties with other houses.
Maybe Brandon can help me with this one. Didn't he and Barbary have a fling? She's widowed again and… she can lead me to House Ryswell, and they have some fine mares for Caliburn.
A plan started to form in his head.
But for now, it was night, and he chose to visit the gorgeous Ashara Dayne. He was really curious why only she gave him a daughter.
Also got that hot spring to work on. So much to do, dammit.
####
There were eleven villages in the Ramsgate fief. In total, they had a population of 4218. Ramsgate wasn't even barely successful. The people were poor. They survived on farming and some other types of barter. They used the wood around them and hunted wild animals for food.
But the search for greener pastures was always there. Young or old, everyone hoped for a better life. Everyone sought a more comfortable life. More coins, actual coins, and not some barter.
So when the crier passed by the villages, all ears were perked up. There was work in Ramsgate town. The new lord had taken on a grand project that needed thousands of hands. A magnificent wall and the town's expansion.
Simple work, one-time meal, and actual coin as payment. It was enough of a promise to leave homes. So, many young men and older men who could work left their homes to their wives' care. They didn't cultivate much, but the houses still needed some care.
And so began the not-so-great migration of Ramsgate.
####
The high stone walls around his castle were coming out strong. Tall, robust, and quite decent to look at. It wasn't as fast as he wanted; he could've made them in a single night. But still, hundreds of people found work due to it.
He also cheated here and there. Going out in the dark of the night to lift the wall a few stones so there was less for the smallfolk to do. Besides, he had already worked on the foundation of the wall, so the work was greatly reduced. He just came up with some bullshit that the original Ramsgate had planned to have this wall, hence the foundation.
As the walls were coming up, he worked on the personal hot spring and made it private with some plants. A little paradise in the struggling fief of Ramsgate. After that, he went to the dungeons, inside his own little workshop, and started working on a very simple, yet revolutionary machine.
All he needed were a few gears, flat surfaces, some specially crafted metal frames and, of course, paper and ink. None of it was hard to make for Wylis. But for Westeros and the entire world, it was a revolutionary thing.
"M-M-My L-Lord… This!"
Qyburn fell to his knees to worship the machine.
Too dramatic? Wylis eyed the ex-Maester.
"If such a wonder had graced the Citadel, my years as an acolyte wouldn't have been wasted copying dust and rot!" Qyburn cried, his eyes wild with fury and awe. "My Lord, never grant this divine marvel to them. Let them rot in their ignorance as they made me do!"
"..."
Wylis was half expecting Qyburn to ask him to send it to the Citadel. But clearly, the old man held some grudges.
"I've no plans to. This invention will stay secret until my house and lands are strong enough to stand on their own. The Citadel and the Faith won't take kindly to it once they see how easily anyone can reach for knowledge and books."
"Indeed, my Lord. I expected as much. They delight in their own cleverness, hoarding knowledge as a serpent coils round its hoard. In truth, they are serpents still. But, if I may ask, my Lord... what use do you intend for such a thing?"
"I told you that I wish to build a school for greater knowledge. It's impossible to do that if we don't have books to fill the libraries. These machines are fast; a single man can use his foot to turn it, and his hands to feed it paper. In mere days, a few of these machines can compile dozens of books of the same content and quality." Wylis walked over to the machine and showed him how it worked.
"Typesetting takes time. I'll find a standardized way to produce them as well."
"Typesetting, my lord?"
"Come here, I'll show you."
______________________
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