On the second floor of the West Tower, the urging voices of foremen big and small rang out intermittently. Workers were busy moving daily necessities up to the third floor to clear space for conversion into new workshops.
The short and stout Wess, accompanied by his ugly spotted dog, held his large head high, his fleshy, bulbous nose almost pointing at the ceiling. He strode energetically among the workers, frequently berating those who were slow.
Not only the workers, but even some foremen looked down on his appearance of a small man intoxicated by success.
When workers saw Wess, they often showed a mix of hatred, disgust, and fear, but most of the time they still seemed cheerful.
The third floor had been converted into dormitories. However, after incorporating William's ideas, the dormitories were outfitted with quite modern amenities. The workers were very satisfied with their new living environment. The foremen's roughness and the hardship of the work seemed less important in the face of this small happiness.
This was the scene that greeted William when he arrived on the second floor accompanied by Ravender.
Seeing William appear, Wess made an exaggerated expression, trotted over, bowing and scraping before him, his face full of fawning flattery. He incessantly spouted phrases like "thank you for your recognition, my lord," so excited that the boil under his lip seemed to glow red.
William was a bit perplexed, but still chatted with him cheerfully for a moment, encouraging him to work hard.
As they walked up the stairs, William quietly asked Ravender beside him, "What's the deal with this Wess?"
Ravender also looked back amusedly at Wess, who seemed even more excited. "You might not remember, my lord, but you once mentioned him to the West Tower steward. When expanding the workshops required promoting a new supervisor from among the junior foremen, the steward thought of him. Wess must have heard about it from somewhere and started acting as if he were your trusted confidant."
William found it amusing and laughed heartily.
Reaching the top floor, he first spoke with the sorcerer about the magical steam engine.
Encouraged by William, the sorcerer had been continuously refining and improving his concept and had already begun considering miniaturization.
In his new idea, after using runes as the power source, the massive auxiliary systems would no longer be necessary. A single machine paired with a small steam engine would allow for more flexible design and manufacturing for both, broadening their applications.
William, of course, praised this highly, even allowing himself to fantasize that if the sorcerer continued this research, he might manage to create steam-powered Gundams in Westeros.
Then, asking about the progress of the second steam engine's construction, the sorcerer confidently declared that it would absolutely be installed and operational by the time the Earl returned from Riverrun.
This tangible achievement excited William even more than the distant prospect of Gundams. Unlike the first steam engine, many of whose core components were made at the Citadel, this second engine was being built down to the last screw right in Harrenhal.
Coupled with Ravender secretly starting to train mechanical maintenance personnel, this meant Harrenhal was achieving independence in the most fundamental technical areas, its fate no longer in others' hands.
Finally, the sorcerer brought out various prepared materials. William enchanted the materials, producing a batch of magical metal. Currently, only he could create magical metal, which was a source of frustration for William.
After taking his leave of the sorcerer, William and Ravender walked downstairs. On the second floor, they encountered Archmaester Mollos coming up the stairs, accompanied by several apprentices.
William quickly stepped onto the same step as him. "Greetings, Archmaester."
This Citadel archmaester, strong in both theory and practice, was one of the founders of Harrenhal's industrialization. William always held him in high esteem and gratitude.
Mollos also greeted him courteously and exchanged pleasantries. William noticed the atmosphere between Ravender and the other apprentices was somewhat strange.
The apprentices looked at Ravender with all sorts of emotions: envy, jealousy, resentment. Ravender's gaze was shifty, seeming somewhat timid and hesitant.
William understood immediately. Harrenhal's sponsorship of Ravender to switch to self-funding and then leave the Citadel had stirred up everyone involved. Remembering Ravender's suggestion to poach more apprentices, William felt this atmosphere was not conducive to further operations.
William pulled Ravender down from the step above to stand before Mollos. Smiling, he said, "Ravender, aren't you going to greet your teacher? Even though we've left the Citadel, we must not forget the teachings of the archmaesters."
Although the maneuvering regarding Ravender's departure from the Citadel had been handled smoothly, with procedures clean and showing no obvious issues, who among the teachers and classmates living side-by-side at Harrenhal didn't know the reality of the situation?
Thus, Ravender had always felt guilty, not daring to face them directly, especially Mollos, who had shown him much kindness.
Now, with an opportunity to mend the relationship with Mollos right in front of him, Ravender's heart beat wildly, and his face flushed red. But he finally mustered his courage. "Hello... Archmaester."
Mollos looked at the apprentice he had once highly valued, then at William, who was so adept at 'digging' (poaching). He patted Ravender on the shoulder and sighed. "Hello, Ravender."
It was as if the frozen surface of a river had suddenly been cracked open. The atmosphere instantly became lively. The apprentices also began exchanging greetings with Ravender, and one who was on good terms with him even cracked a joke.
William walked around the second floor with Mollos, discussing the arrangements for the new workshops.
Taking advantage of being alone, Mollos asked in a low voice, "Is the cooperation with the Citadel coming to an end?"
"Why would you say that? Is there something unsatisfactory about the workshops? I'll have them rectify it immediately."
Mollos glanced back at the apprentices, chatting and laughing as they walked. He shook his head. "Most of them have little future at the Citadel. With Ravender's example, I'm afraid they'll all soon become Harrenhal's people."
"Oh, that's not necessarily a bad thing. You can always request new apprentices from the Citadel," William said with a grin. "I've heard that since the first batch of apprentices earned their links, many have wanted to come to Harrenhal. As you said, they have no future at the Citadel. Staying in Harrenhal would be a perfect solution for everyone, wouldn't it?"
"You know what I mean, William. Harrenhal can now build machinery independently and has over a dozen apprentices proficient in mechanics. Does it still need the Citadel?"
"Of course it does, Archmaester!" William replied without hesitation. "You've watched this place grow day by day since the workshops were established. Aren't you the one who knows best whether Harrenhal needs the Citadel? As long as the Citadel is willing, Harrenhal will always provide all the conditions for the Citadel to put theory into practice."
Harrenhal lacked research and development capabilities. Technological updates and iterations still relied on the Citadel. Therefore, as long as the Citadel did not abandon Harrenhal, William would not take the initiative to end the cooperation. Harrenhal's industry was still at a very primitive stage, with immeasurable room for improvement. How could he be content to stop now?
Unless he could poach Mollos and several other archmaesters related to industry, along with their assistant maesters.
"I'm glad. In fact, you understand the power of machinery better than most at the Citadel, and, even more rare, you have the ability to practice and promote it. You should have been our ideal..." Mollos's expression turned somewhat bitter. "...Pity."
William knew that his title of "Magic Knight" might have a negative connotation among the Citadel's upper echelons. But he felt the main issue was that these people's thought processes were a bit... peculiar. Aiming to create a world without magic, they not only failed to develop education and promote technology but instead engaged heavily in knowledge monopoly and technological blockade. It was like "heading south by driving the chariot north" – completely counterproductive.
Seeing that Mollos seemed displeased about this, William said, "Don't worry, Archmaester. The situation at Harrenhal is gradually improving. Just focus on your research here. If the Citadel doesn't send new apprentices, I'll have Ravender and the others continue to assist you. Even if the Citadel does something more extreme, Harrenhal will support you as always."
Mollos couldn't help but laugh. "You... I wanted to warn you to be careful of the Citadel, but it seems I should be warning the Citadel to be careful of you instead."
William shrugged, feigning nonchalance, but his heart sank a little. 'Am I already on the Citadel's blacklist? It seems I need to agree on ciphers for correspondence with some important people.'