This was Ethan’s first day officially taking on the role of Yue’s chief physician. Shortly after the first diplomatic meeting ended, the two met at the agreed time outside the parliament building. Ethan seemed to be in good spirits, and it appeared that his dream vision hadn’t greatly affected his mindset.
After being restricted from going to sea, he focused his attention on studying Steam Technology.
Lily followed behind him. The head maid was always by his side—except when Yue was in class.
"I’ll wait for you here."
Reaching the imposing structure made of gears, bearings, and steel, she stepped back to the doorway.
The sky over the entire city district was forever shrouded in a gray mist, with a unique smell permeating the air.
This building was far more majestic than the Grand Artisan Association of the imperial capital, resembling a palace situated in the center of the Southport district. He learned that in Ophira, steam technology technicians were the most respected profession, and in a sense, they were the inheritors of the Master of Tides.
This was another form of inheritance.
The Master of Tides did not leave a concrete path but passed down their power through knowledge and machinery.
The technicians were easy to identify, often equipped with cutting-edge mechanical devices. Multifunctional mechanical arms were the most common modification in Southport, and their fingers could transform into various tools depending on the environment. In an era still rooted in Steam Technology, people of the Western Continent had already begun modifying their bodies.
Yue responded eagerly with ambition. Follow current novᴇls on novelꞁire.net
Although he was the son of the councilor, in the realm of Steam Technology, he was truly just an apprentice. Compared to those who joined the "Artisan Brotherhood" from a young age, he was considered a very late starter.
The Brotherhood accepted his application out of respect for the councilor, skipping a series of complex theoretical exams and talent assessments and allowing him to start as an apprentice. But that was all.
Unlike other districts in Ophira, Southport seemed like an independently existing world.
Politics couldn’t penetrate here, and within the Brotherhood, gaining others’ respect relied solely on one’s skills. Every master recognized by the Brotherhood had created their own technical system. Now, the leader of the Brotherhood and Yue’s nominal mentor, Mr. Gelb, had gradually gained his status through "anti-Magic technology."
Mr. Gelb was quite short, yet he had a temper completely contrary to his stature.
During the first class, Yue was reprimanded, and Lily, considered irrelevant, was ordered to leave the mechanical castle. Gelb sarcastically remarked that only craftsmen who focused solely on their work belonged there, and a young master who needed a maid’s care was not suitable.
Lily was a little afraid of Gelb, and after being chased out once, she didn’t dare enter the mechanical fortress’s gates again. Whenever Yue went in for class, she would wait in the corner outside until the class ended. Only when Yue, covered in dust and oil, emerged from the gates, could her tense nerves relax.
With Ethan in tow, Yue entered his "workshop," where a steam-driven car was being assembled.
"Old Sen, your timing isn’t great; today’s the exam deadline."
Yue was hard at work. If it were any other day, he could personally introduce Ethan to the mechanical castle. However, now, he didn’t want to fail his first exam, especially when most of the participants were children around ten years old, predominantly children of craftsmen exposed to steam technology from a young age.
Yue, however, had his trump card—after gaining the ability of dream vision from a nightmare, he could keenly perceive the fundamental operational mechanics of steam-driven cars.
In fact, this was exactly what Ethan wanted to see.
The process from assembling to using a steam-driven car.
The imperial capital had similar steam technology products, but they were mostly transported from the Western Continent. Only high-ranking nobles like Margaret and Freeman could acquire one.
The Artisan Association had always wanted to study these novel products, but unfortunately, their low status meant no noble would allow them to tear apart these new wave products from the Western Continent.
He observed carefully, and so far, everything appeared normal, still within the realm of science.
Fuel burned to heat water, generating steam to drive the engine.
This steam-driven car could already move, but Yue was evidently not content with just that—for this exam, getting the car to move was merely the most basic step, securing only a minimum of 60 points. He heard from other craftsmen’s children that the final score was determined by its speed and stability while driving.
And their competition began with the very first exam.
Apprentices were divided based on their results. Those deemed talented by the craftsmen would be nurtured as true students, while those without talent would become the lowest-level assembly workers, engaged in monotonous basic production.
The first exam was crucial in determining their fate.
The craftsmen of the Brotherhood believed that truly talented individuals would emerge in their first exam of life. Only a very few could make a comeback after failing their first exam.
Now, Yue encountered a problem.
His mentor, Mr. Gelb, had only taught him the most basic knowledge. Anything beyond that, Yue had to explore on his own. The craftsmen believed that creativity, rather than just basic knowledge, was the true cradle for nurturing masters.