The Villainess's Reputation [Kingdom Building]

Alice flipped through her ledger with practiced efficiency. "While our treasury can support the expenditure three times over, procuring flowers for any large scale spell presents another problem." Her finger paused on a column of figures. "Even small orders take three to four days to arrive from the mainland. We simply don't have—"

"Unmanned ships."

Ravenna's sudden declaration silenced the room. All eyes turned to where she stood by the window, backlit by the dying light, her silhouette sharp against the gathering dark.

A slow, calculating smile spread across her face.

"We'll send unmanned ships."

"Unmanned ships?" Hughes asked rubbed his chin, the metal of his gauntlet scraping against stubble. "You mean to tell me we'll fight the Imperial Navy with... ghost vessels?"

Ravenna's smile sharpened as she pushed away from the window, her silhouette cutting through the sunlight coming into the room. "We have a fully operational steam engine factory, a shipyard at capacity, and coffers deep enough to make merchants weep." Her finger tapped the war map decisively. "Quantity has a quality all its own."

She traced a line across the painted sea to their island's shores. "These won't be proper ships—just hulls packed with our worst steam engines, the ones even Nille's apprentices wouldn't trust for city transport." A dangerous glint entered her eyes. "We'll fuel them with the oil tar from our western reserves, no safety valves, no pressure regulation. Just pure, explosive potential sailing straight into their formation at full speed."

The room absorbed this in stunned silence until John suddenly slammed his palms on the table. "We could mount flamethrowers! Trigger them with clockwork mechanisms!" His youthful enthusiasm shone through as he sketched imaginary designs in the air. "We've perfected the winding mechanisms for the new tower clocks, the timing could—"

"—be precise enough to ignite them on impact," Ravenna finished, her mind already racing through calculations. "Between our rapid-fire ballistae covering the port and a swarm of these fire ships..." She trailed off, the strategic possibilities unfolding before her.

Then Alice cleared her throat, her spectacles catching the sunlight as she peered over her ledger. "They'll have mages."

The reminder landed like a bucket of ice water.

Hughes grimaced, his armored fingers drumming a war rhythm on the table. "Steel bolts might breach magical hulls through sheer volume of fire, but their battlemages..." He shook his head. "One well-placed wind spell could divert our entire swarm. A fire spell might even turn the flames back on us."

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Sarah adjusted her hair nervously. "And their communication spells mean they'll adapt faster than we can adjust tactics."

Ravenna's gaze grew distant, her golden eyes reflecting the storm clouds gathering beyond the arched windows as she watched the distant harbor through the gathering gloom.

"Hot air balloons," she murmured, more to herself than to the room.

John blinked. "Your Highness?"

Ravenna turned sharply, the sunlight catching the determined set of her jaw. "They can't combat what they can't reach," she declared, striding back to the war table. Her finger stabbed at the map. "No naval mage keeps enough flower reserves for sustained wide-range wind spells. If we take to the skies—"

Hughes' armored bulk shifted uncomfortably. "With all respect, your highness, how exactly do you propose we fly? Last I checked, none of us have sprouted wings."

A ghost of a smile played across Ravenna's lips as she reached for a fresh piece of parchment. "Hot air rises, Hughes. The same principle that carries smoke up a chimney can lift a silk envelope filled with heated air." Her quill flew across the page in quick, precise strokes as she sketched. "We'll need Nille's best artisans, the ones who worked on the steam engine and Jessica Taylor's clothing factory's help, making large quantities of lightweight silk."

Sarah was already moving toward the door, her administrative instincts overriding her shock. "I'll summon them immediately."

Ravenna opened the reputation system and continued sketching, her design taking shape—a basket suspended beneath a massive inflated sphere, lines indicating some manner of heating apparatus. "We'll arm them with modified flamethrowers and timed explosives. The balloons will drift over their formation, raining fire where their mages can't reach."

John leaned in, his youthful face alight with understanding. "And without proper anti-air defenses—"

"—they'll be helpless," Ravenna finished.

Meanwhile in the streets of Kim City, Kim Island, Ancorna Empire

The bustling marketplace stretched before them, alive with the rhythmic clamor of merchants hawking their wares and the rich aroma of sizzling street food. Marie's hand gripped Ken's tightly as she pulled him through the throng, her boots skidding slightly on the cobblestones.

"Come on, this way!" Marie called over her shoulder, her braids bouncing with each excited step. "There's a new restaurant near the square—they make these amazing honey-glazed dumplings that crackle when you bite them!"

Ken giggled as he stumbled after her, his cheeks flushed pink from both the chill sea breeze and laughter. The boy's emerald-green tunic, a gift from Ravenna's own tailor—flapped like a banner behind him as Marie expertly wove between clusters of shoppers.

Aurora followed at a more dignified pace, though her lips curved into an amused smile as she watched the children. "You're quite the enthusiastic guide, Lady Marie," she remarked, sidestepping a vendor rolling a barrel of salted fish.

Marie whirled around, nearly causing Ken to collide with her. "Of course I am!" she declared, her eyes sparkling. "Master almost never lets me leave the castle except for lessons, and when she does, it's always with a dozen guards to patrol along them!" She puffed out her cheeks in an exaggerated pout before brightening again. "But today I get to show you all the best places!"

Ken tugged at Marie's sleeve. "Do they really crackle?" he whispered, wide-eyed.

"Like firework spells!" Marie confirmed with solemn authority. She leaned in conspiratorially. "The chef uses some special trick with boiling oil and—" she paused and said mysteriously "a secret ingredient!"

Laughing, Aurora shook her head and followed, the sunlight glinting off the gold embroidery of her dress as they disappeared into the vibrant tapestry of Kim City's streets.