Skyrim System In Westeros

After the maid led them to the study, Wright reflected on the time when Gunthor had helped him gather materials for the prototype while he was at the Citadel. Gunthor had been thoroughly impressed with Wright craftsmanship and had wanted to involve his family in the clock business, but Wright had refused.

After all, this was a high-tech creation, and the core mechanism had to be made personally, so it couldn't be mass-produced. It could only be considered a rare luxury item. Moreover, Gunthor had already bought the first prototype and placed it in his own home, so he wasn't particularly interested in showcasing it again.

The maid served them hot cocoa, and the maid who was allowed in the study was a relative of the Tyrell family. Over the generations, as the family grew, the branch families would send their younger children to serve the main house. The boys would become knights or squires to serve the male members, and the girls would serve as maids for the female members. Boys growing up in the main house would often be knighted, and girls could find a good marriage.

After chatting with the maid for a while, the Tyrells and Renly arrived at the study. Olenna was the first to speak.

"Impressive, Maester Wright! You've created something remarkable again."

Wright, fully aware that he would never be a maester, much less a grand maester, couldn't help but feel pricked by the old rose's words. He glanced at Renly, who wore a smile, and realized that Olenna had likely bought the clock on the spot, which made him feel a bit uncomfortable.

Wright didn't take the bait. "Good afternoon, my lady. This clock can be convenient for every household. Accurate timekeeping is essential: when servants wake up, when guards take their posts, when cooks start preparing meals, when banquets begin, when study sessions start, and when training starts—these things all have practical benefits."

"Well said, but at 7,000 gold dragons for a clock, do you want to become a Ironborn?" Olenna continued her jabs as the others took their seats.

"Taking by force is better than toiling away," Renly interrupted, quickly taking over the conversation. "Though I agree with the sentiment, they'll always just be a band of pirates, destined to be swept away by time."

Olenna glanced at Renly, then at Wright, and fell silent for a moment before changing the subject.

"You didn't come just to showcase the clock, did you?"

"My lady, do you agree with my earlier opinion on the clock? Do you think the nobility across the realm will buy it? I've come to discuss this matter," Wright replied.

"What do you propose?" Olenna asked, getting straight to the point. She was tired of the small talk.

Instead of answering immediately, Wright turned to Renly. "Renly, how many clocks can we produce now?"

Renly took a sip of hot cocoa, savoring the sweetness. "Now, Sir Donal Noye and his apprentices can produce five clocks a week."

In the original story, Donal Noye was a blacksmith from Storm's End, who had lost his hand during Robert's Rebellion and ultimately became a member of the Night's Watch. Thanks to Wright influence, his blacksmithing skills had greatly improved, and Renly had made him a knight to bind him more closely to House Baratheon. His apprentices had also received monthly pay increases, and Storm's End's forge had expanded considerably. In addition to weapons and armor, they were now making clock parts.

Wright spoke to Olenna, "A clock needs not only the core but also high-quality wood and decorative items. After calculating the costs, I can offer you a price of 5,000 gold dragons per clock. The selling price across the realm will be a fixed 7,000 gold dragons. For any customizations, we won't set a price—we'll negotiate those separately. We will increase production according to orders."

After a brief pause, he added, "But for now, we need to finalize the regional distribution rights."

Olenna thought for a moment, gazing into Wright' eyes. "The clock is expensive, but even if all the nobles of the Reach buy one, it won't make much profit. Why go through all this trouble?"

Wright stood up. "To be honest, my lady, the clock towers across the realm are the first step. I'm not making money from them—I only want to ensure that everyone has accurate time. The clock is the second step. After covering costs, it'll make a small profit, but the real benefit is bringing precise time into people's homes. The third step is where the real profit lies. I'm currently working on a pocket-sized clock, something you can carry around in your pocket—a watch. So, we're not just discussing the distribution rights for the clock, but for the clock, the watch, and everything I will create in the future."

Hearing this, Olenna, Mace, Renly, Gunthor, and several of the younger Tyrell family members all began to pay serious attention.

Olenna then made her position clear. "I agree with your price. I want the distribution rights for the Reach, the Westerlands, and Dorne."

"The Westerlands I can give you, but Dorne will be a challenge. The Reach and Dorne may have recently besieged Storm's End together, but your two regions have been enemies for thousands of years, with deep-seated grudges," Wright replied.

Given the current situation, he wanted to make money from the Westerlands without getting too closely tied to them. Since they wanted it, he would give it to them. While Storm's End and Dorne were also filled with centuries-old feuds, there were heavy forces at the borders, and his family was in a royal marriage with Dorne, so there were avenues he could explore.

"Then I have a proposal, my lady. The Tyrells will handle the Reach and the Westerlands. The Baratheons will cover Storm's End, the Crownlands, the Riverlands, the Vale, and the North. For Dorne, our two families can each take whatever we can manage. Gunthor's house will cover Oldtown. As for the Nine Free Cities, we will work together with Dorne as we do with them."

Gunthor had no objections; this had already been discussed with Wright. As the third son of his House, he had no significant prospects, so he had gone to study at the Citadel. He finally got in touch with Wright because of theirs classmate relationship. He didn't want to think too much and just do a good job in the family station and overseas. Others didn't have this opportunity.

Olenna glanced at Gunthor, thinking about House Hightower strength and mercantile skill. After a moment's thought, she agreed and summoned a scribe to draft the documents.

While the scribe prepared the papers and pens, Wright held up his hand. "By the way, add two more things: fountain pens and chocolate."

Lord Mace was puzzled. "Fountain pens and chocolate? What are those?"

Renly nodded to Wright, who gestured for him to open the wooden box he had brought, retrieving six fountain pens to offer to Olenna, Mace, Velarys, Garlan, Loras, and Margaery.

Everyone turned the pens over in their hands. The bodies were made of ivory, smooth, rounded columns with a metal band on them. They couldn't figure out how these pens could actually write.

Renly took out his own pen, which was similar in shape but made of bright white metal.

"This one is mine, sterling silver with gold inlay. I prefer this weight," Renly explained, revealing the luxury of his pen. In this world, ivory pens were more valuable than sterling silver with gold inlay.

The Tyrells finally realized that the metal band was actually for attaching the pen to clothing. The children also began trying them on their garments.

Lord Mace, noticing that Wright and Gunthor had similar pens with metal bands, had originally assumed the bands were purely decorative. They both removed their pens, and Wright was made of white steel, representing the Citadel's metallurgy studies. Gunthor's pen had a wooden casing, which looked more modest, prompting him to explain:

"I had to change the casing to wood because I write so much at the Citadel that my hand gets sore. The weight of the white steel casing was too much for me."

Renly walked up to the scribe, unscrewed the front and back caps of his pen, dipped it in ink, and began to write the agreement.

"The nib is made of an alloy Wright invented, and the ink reservoir is sewn from sheep gut. A single dip can write around 3,000 words. Don't let the simple design fool you—Wright has already figured out how to mass-produce it, and a copy made elsewhere would cost three to four times as much as the ones produced at Storm's End."

The scribe began writing the agreement. The pen's nib had a slight curve, creating beautifully ornate cursive writing, and it could continue writing without needing to dip the nib in ink after just a few words, making it far superior to a quill.

"As for the chocolate," Renly raised his cup, "it's made from cocoa beans. Cocoa is a drink, but chocolate is a solid block, much like sugar cubes. Cocoa cultivation was also introduced by Wright at the Citadel. Before, no one ate it. Only the mountain folk chewed the seeds raw."

Lord Mace took a sip and added, "In a couple of years, the new cocoa trees will start bearing fruit. Right now, the cocoa beans we use are bought from the mountain folk."

Wright beamed with pride. "It's a fine drink, isn't it? Grind the cocoa beans into powder, add some milk, and for those who like it sweet, you can add sugar. Both adults and children love it."

In this world, children only drank water. Milk was a luxury in homes that kept dairy cows. Having traveled widely and recorded local produce, Wright had collaborated with the Citadel to study agriculture.

The Citadel had no formal agricultural department, and farming practices in this world were still quite primitive. Although Wright had never formally studied agriculture, most people had a basic understanding of it. After entering the Citadel, he had applied reverse engineering to conduct numerous trials, and through methods like cross-pollination, grafting, seed selection, and fertilization, he improved the yield of short-growing season crops.

He also wrote a guide for selecting the best crops suited to different regions, called The Selection of Superior Crops, and thus agricultural science had recently been added to the curriculum. The harvests across the Seven Kingdoms were increasing year by year.

By now, the Reach had begun cultivating sugarcane and cocoa trees, Dorne was planting all kinds of fruit trees, and even the North had started growing peas, rye, and oats in large quantities, as well as selecting and cultivating pasture grasses. This was Wright' greatest contribution to this world so far.

"Does this agreement also include the sale of sugarcane and cocoa?" Olenna asked, noticing the additional details.

"Don't worry, my lady," Wright replied. "Our agreement doesn't cover raw materials or any other products made from them, only the items we've specifically agreed upon."

Olenna walked over to the scribe's desk and saw the beautiful script written with the fountain pen. "Add the fountain pen and chocolate to the agreement," she said.

With the major deal settled, everyone in the room felt pleased, and they moved on to more casual conversation. Wright noticed 4-year-old Margaery sitting alone, pouting. He approached her, cupped her face in his hands, and gently turned her frown into a smile.

"What's wrong, little Margaery? Why the long face?"

Margaery, holding the fountain pen, lowered her head. "I can't write yet. I don't like the fountain pen."

"Hahaha!" Laughter spread around the room. In this world, noble children usually began learning to write around the age of six, and Wright was an exception. Renly had learned at a very young age, tutored by Wright, and while he had once been resentful, he now felt superior. "I couldn't write when I was four, but I could already write hundreds of words."

"Boys like swords and knives, girls like dolls. Luckily, I was prepared," Wright said, pulling a metal brooch from his pocket and handing it to Margaery.

The brooch was shaped like a rose, with red petals and green leaves. It wasn't inlaid with jewels; instead, the metal was colored. The back of the brooch was unpolished, showing the original gray-black metal and smoky patterns.

Margaery smiled, intrigued by the beautiful object. While it wasn't a doll, young girls could still be attracted to pretty things. She turned the brooch over and over, noticing the inscription on the back and handed it to her grandmother, asking, "What does this mean?"

Olenna examined the brooch. Though it wasn't adorned with gemstones, its craftsmanship was exquisite. The patterns on the petals and leaves were finely detailed, matching the work of the finest jewelers. However, the inscription on the back, resembling characters scratched by animal claws, puzzled her. She then focused on the material.

"What is this made of?"

"I've been studying mysticism recently," Wright explained. "This brooch is made from Valyrian steel. The inscription on the back is High Valyrian, engraved to read 'Eternal life'"

High Valyrian, like the dragon language from The Elder Scrolls V, was something Wright had been studying at the Citadel. He had read many books on Valyria and even found some works on dragon language in the energy sphere, which had allowed him to become proficient in both Common Valyrian (English) and High Valyrian (Dragon language).

Valyrian steel was known for its rarity and expensive cost, with large items being especially rare. Smaller items made from it existed, but they were extremely scarce. The others gathered around to admire the brooch.

"You really put a lot of thought into this," Olenna said, looking at Wright, her mind racing with thoughts.

"Valyrian steel swords are very expensive, but there are still some fragments available for purchase. I wanted to practice making a mystical pendant, and since I was coming to Highgarden, I figured Margaery might not like the things I brought, so I made a brooch for her."

Wright truly had no romantic interest in little Margaery, especially as he was already betrothed to someone. His main goal was to establish good business ties with the Tyrells, using agricultural resources from the Reach. Storm's End didn't have much arable land; most of it was used for growing grain.

Olenna, sensing no need to continue the topic, called everyone to the dinner table.