NOVEL NEXT vol. 4 chapter 36 - Backbone
The revelation of Paraiso’s trump card—the export of Fuelstone—sent a shock through the Lepuitari Kingdom’s naval command.
Even so, that information was disclosed only to a very small, trusted circle. Given the magnitude of the matter, they wanted to avoid any risk of leaks at all costs.
And three days later—
The Lepuitari Navy decided to begin importing Fuelstone.
It was, admittedly, a hasty decision for one of national consequence.
But it was also true that they had no other viable choice.
The high-grade Fuelstone block Paraiso had presented as a gift was examined by a trusted, tight-lipped scientist—who confirmed without a doubt that it was indeed crystalline Fuelstone.
Fuelstone’s performance depends on its size: the greater the mass, the hotter and longer it burns.
Moreover, the clean, flat edges were a key factor—allowing for uniform pressure and easy control of heat output, and thus firepower.
According to the examining scientist, it appeared to have been cut from a much larger Fuelstone mass—and if such a large Fuelstone existed, it would be worthy of being a national treasure. He’d very much like to see it himself, he’d added.
Paraiso had brought it, and the origin of its mining was undisclosed.
Yet, it was undeniably different—fundamentally so—from what the Lepuitari Kingdom had been importing until now.
“There’s no denying it’s enticing. It’d skyrocket our steam engine performance.
But it’s also a devil’s bargain.
Once our industry and military become dependent on this, Paraiso will have us by the throat.”
Duke Amagio Silverhead warned of the dangers.
And every senior officer in the room understood exactly what he meant.
Standardized, high-grade Fuelstone—design an engine specialized for it, and performance would soar dramatically.
Load it onto a ship, and maximum speed, cruising range, and even fuel storage requirements would all improve.
Conservatively speaking, performance would double.
Resisting such allure was… difficult.
“Paraiso welcomes your nation’s decision. With this, more concrete negotiations can begin. Let us both proceed in good faith.”
“For our part, this will serve as persuasive justification domestically. May our mutual prosperity and closeness endure.”
Of course, the Lepuitari side surely had questions—where the Fuelstone was mined, how it was processed—but they could not directly ask.
“That said, having only this single trade item is a bit dull. To build deeper relations, I’d like to establish additional trade goods. What say you?”
“We agree. Our nation too has many specialties. For the time being, trade will remain state-to-state—we have no plan to open it to the private sector. Any objection?”
“None. Preparing multiple commodities is only natural. Fuelstone doesn’t take up much space. I agree that we should expand the list to use cargo capacity effectively.”
From there, discussions turned to the resources the Lepuitari Kingdom desired.
At this stage, the navy’s focus became how much they could draw out of Paraiso—and, more importantly, how much of their superior technology they could extract.
Yet, everyone fully understood the danger of depending on a foreign power for essentials.
To let another nation hold the country’s lifeline any further would be unforgivable incompetence.
“…Water?”
“Yes. Sealed to prevent spoilage and enable long-term storage. Your nation isn’t exactly lacking in water resources, but I understand it isn’t abundant enough to spring forth everywhere.”
Bulky, heavy, consumed quickly, cheap per unit—
Under those terms, Paraiso proposed a new item: long-term storage water containers.
“How you distribute it is a political matter for you. We can supply enough not to strain existing sources. Unlike continental water, it is tasteless, odorless, and pleasant to drink. We’ve served it at this very venue several times.”
At that, Amagio Silverhead nodded deeply.
“Our country’s water is soft. The continent’s is hard. Personal taste, but soft water’s easier to use. Marketed as a luxury import, it’d sell fine. Long-term preservation adds novelty. …‘Container,’ you said—what’s the capacity?”
“Two cubic meters in our unit. In yours, about 0.71 cubic Faar.”
That would be ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) about two tons of water by weight. Not exactly something for convenient transport—but made from hardened, sealed cellulose containers, it would be lighter than it appeared.
Stored unopened in a cool, dark place, it should last five years.
Low production cost, high brand value.
The ability to place long-lasting water in arid regions had its own worth.
“For now, best to market it to the upper classes. Nobles do love rare things.”
“You’re a duke yourself, Amagio.”
“And you too, Alban.”
Ha ha ha—
Only the navy’s top two officers actually laughed.
“Beyond that, we can also offer rolled steel sheets as industrial raw material—though sales volume will be limited. We’ll sell directly to your government. Their use is up to you.”
“…Steel sheets you manufactured?”
“Affirmative. Their performance is guaranteed. This trade is more in the sense of exchange for iron ore.”
“So if we export more iron ore, your steel exports to us will increase proportionally. Is that correct?”
“That understanding is fine. It’s simply a matter of raw iron quantity. We refine part of the imported ore and return it as product.”
For Paraiso, honestly, as long as they could import resources, nothing else much mattered.
If exporting overtechnology products triggered breakthroughs merely by showing they existed, so be it.
After all, any such breakthrough would never surpass Paraiso’s level of technology.
That said, there was no reason to give things away for free, nor to sell without limit. Ideally, they wanted healthy trade to last indefinitely.
Thus, the superintelligence of The Tree calculated and offered a strictly balanced exchange.
“We haven’t loaded samples of this on the ship this time. We’ll provide them on our next visit.”
“That’s appreciated. From our side, we can likely offer ores and foodstuffs early on.”
“For art goods, those from the Wheat Nation Weitzenland are suitable. Our own country tends toward practicality.”
“Each of our ships is equipped with large refrigeration units. We can purchase vegetables and similar produce as well.”
“I see. Cooling allows long-term preservation.”
“Refrigerators, huh… I wonder if we could implement those in our nation.”
◇◇◇◇
Thus, a trade treaty was concluded between the Lepuitari Kingdom and the unknown power, Paraiso.
The backbone of the trade: Fuelstone and metallic ore.
A few other goods were established, but in the grand scheme, their quantities were negligible.
Even so, nearly everything Paraiso offered carried some subtle implication—each item useful in its own right.
From here, the Lepuitari Kingdom would climb another step up the ladder of progress.
Even if that direction were one controlled by Paraiso.
“The local Strategic AI seems to be developing nicely.”
“Yes, ma’am—Commander-mam. We didn’t expect much at first, but it looks like it can serve as a backbone for local manipulation AIs.”
“Good. With this much distance, you really can’t relax unless you have an AI stationed on-site.”
The scenario had been written by Ringo, but it was the local Strategic AI that executed it.
The Brain Units crafted by The Tree clearly possessed exceptional baseline capability—its performance had been improving faster than expected.
“We’ll acquire a backup of the Strategic AI soon. Within The Core’s computation domain, we’ll optimize and template it.”
“Yes. You’re sending a freighter next, aren’t you? Bring the equipment along as well.”
“Yes, Commander-mam. I’ll proceed accordingly.”