Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

Southern Castel.

This was the designated location for the future shipyard. For now, it was nothing but a wasteland, with not even the faintest sign of shipbuilding activity.

The shipyard hadn't been built yet, but a ship had already arrived.

Hughes stroked his chin as he looked at the vessel dragged back by the Banshees. He turned to Richard and asked, "Well? Have you inspected it?"

"The hull is mostly intact. The lower deck needs some work, but with a bit of modification, it should be usable. I mean for ordinary sailing. Since we currently have no experience in refitting ships, please don't set your expectations too high."

"No problem, let's give it a try."

How to convert a half-built sailing ship into one powered by a steam engine—this kind of knowledge was far too niche. Even Hughes had no experience in the matter and could only approach it by trial and error.

Fortunately, ships weren't exactly intricate machines—at least not the kind Hughes intended to make.

He had even prepared for the worst-case scenario: if no ships could be found at all, he would try building one from scratch using steel.

The only downside would be the time cost. Now that they had this hull, installing a steam engine directly should make sailing feasible without much issue.

"Get it refitted as soon as possible. I'll have the factory cooperate with your team. Castel urgently needs a window for external communication. This ship is crucial to us."

After seeing Richard nod in agreement, Hughes turned to the Banshee who had dragged the ship back and asked, "How did the exploration of Gem Bay go? Aside from the Black Stone you mentioned, what else did you find?"

The Banshee's expression turned odd. "We later went to several other islands. The entire Martha Archipelago has no more natives. Most of the buildings are still intact though. We did a rough search through them."

"How was it? What kind of supplies did you find?"

"There are plenty of food reserves, mostly dried fish and such. The coal reserves are smaller in number—seems like the Martha Archipelago doesn't produce coal."

"No coal? The entire Martha Archipelago doesn't produce coal?" Hughes was a bit surprised.

"Yes. We found some account books in the warehouses. The coal was almost entirely imported from outside. We found a lot of mines on the islands, with all kinds of ores—but not a single coal mine. Not even one."

No coal mines?

That was rather strange. It was normal for an island not to have high-quality coal, but to have absolutely none—that was almost impossible.

Coal wasn't like oil; forming coal seams only required large-scale plant matter in the past. If it was just one island lacking coal, Hughes could accept that. But the entire Martha Archipelago?

You had to understand, the Martha Archipelago spanned a massive area. Though most of the islands were remote, collectively they formed a vast expanse. And yet no coal deposits at all?

Were these islands generated out of thin air? How could that be?

"Maybe the area was just poorly explored. Coal mines usually show up if you dig around thoroughly enough. It's just a matter of quality."

Hughes wasn't particularly concerned about this. Castel's current industry didn't rely on coal at all. It would be nice to find coal, but not finding any wasn't a dealbreaker.

"Any other discoveries?"

"Well, there are quite a few strategic stockpiles too—steel, firearm powder… Here, have a look at this."

The Banshee handed over a notebook—it was a compiled list of various materials.

"Oh? That's quite a lot. Looks like the Pirate King didn't just sit on his hands. He must have had quite a few smuggling channels." Hughes flipped through the pages, speaking with interest.

"Not much steel though—only a few dozen tons in the whole of Gem Bay? That's barely enough to repair weapons."

"Plenty of wood, though. The Pirate King really put in some effort. This quantity is enough to build another fleet."

"What's this? Moonlight Sand? Ever-Burning Soil?"

The Banshee shrugged. "We don't know either. That's just what the labels in the warehouse said."

Suddenly, Richard leaned in. "My Lord, may I have a look at that?"

Hughes passed the notebook over. Richard gave it a brief glance, and his eyes lit up. "These are all supernatural materials—and quite rare ones at that. They were probably collected by the Church of the Sea God. Since they were backed by the sea, other factions' supernaturals rarely entered their domain. Over time, they must've stockpiled this many."

"Supernatural materials?"

That was a little outside Hughes' field of expertise.

"Yes. With these materials, more people can undergo advancement. We'll soon have many more supernaturals!"

Hughes was taken aback. He had assumed these materials were only used in rituals—perhaps to summon some Heretical God for the Moths Chasing Fire or something. He didn't expect them to increase the number of supernaturals?

"Supernatural advancement requires these materials?"

"Of course. And the materials are extremely valuable. Many poorer organizations can barely afford to support even one or two supernaturals. The only exception is the Church of the Sea God, since what they require is Entity Pollution—you know that already."

That did intrigue Hughes. "So in other words, supernaturals have to rely on organizations to get resources? There are no lone, self-made supernaturals?"

"Naturally. The supernatural materials have long been monopolized by the major churches. Many cults go to war with them just to fight over those resources. As for individuals gaining access to the supernatural? Almost impossible."

"I thought that one could become a supernatural just by using their will to break through the wall of reality and enter the Sea of Unawareness. Without these materials, what would happen if someone entered the Sea first?"

"They would die."

"Huh?"

"Many Moths Chasing Fire died this way. They were too obsessed with pursuing knowledge. Even if it meant crossing the limits of mortals, they did not hesitate." Richard's expression dimmed, as though recalling something heavy from the past. He sighed. "Luckily, now that we've found these materials, my companions don't have to suppress their thirst for knowledge any longer."

Hughes nodded, his gaze somewhat complex. Pursuing knowledge in this world was just far too dangerous. Simply maintaining curiosity could unknowingly get one killed.

Sometimes, he even suspected this world harbored malice toward human civilization.

"By the way, haven't you found the Pirate King's treasure yet?"

The Banshee's face became even more peculiar. "No, and—"

She hesitated before continuing, "We didn't find many valuables either. It seems those were deliberately hidden—and hidden very well. We searched through most of the buildings and still came up empty. You know, *Fossil to Mud*."

You searched the whole island?

Hughes rubbed his chin, falling into deep thought.

If it wasn't on the island… then could it be beneath it?