A/N: Only you, Cato, could be creating the foundations of magitech computers while rolling on the ground and doodling with your girlfriend.

Errors in terminology or structure of the proto-computer can be attributed to Cato only knowing the bare basics of how computers work.

Cato wiggled the pencil, feeling too lazy to grab the eraser to rub out his error. Across the paper from him, Landar stuck out her tongue as she added more lines to their diagram. Her legs poked up as she swung them in the air.

Scratch, scratch. Alright, that was the registers done. He glanced up to see how Landar was doing on the input circuits.

Doing quite well, even if she was in a slight trance. Landar always liked being in a creative mood and her focus was ridiculously high during that time. Rather than restrict her, Cato had elected to help stop her from going to excess.

Like now. He sighed as he reached across the paper to pop the end of her pencil out of her mouth before she could chew on it. It was Cato's fault that Landar had picked up that bad habit, but he wasn't about to let her eat wood. Landar didn't even notice that action and scribbled down another set of circuits onto the hard paper, but Cato had learned that if he interrupted her occasionally, it would stop her trances from getting too deep.

"Ugh, this is hard," Landar whined as she frowned. Addition and multiplication were easy. Subtraction was a little harder and division was giving them problems.

Half a calculator in magic circle diagram was laid out across the matted floor of the Iris family room. Feeling supremely lazy in the morning before lunch, and without their usual business in Minmay city, the both of them were just lying on the floor and working on a fun blue sky project.

So far, the proposed calculator design would hold two ten digit numbers for one of the four basic operations, plus an output and a button to copy the output into the first number slot. Typing numbers left to right? Ha! You had a manual indicator that you moved to each digit's position to change that digit. This rudimentary calculator was looking to be somewhere around the size of a cupboard and high in magical power consumption. Oh, and it would probably break every month or so.

Still, it would calculate faster than you could push the buttons, at least so they hoped. That would be useful in Minmay's record keeping department.

What was more important than its use was developing a proper computing circuit. Their calculator had the essentials of a computer, a tiny four number memory and an instruction set. Plus four fixed 'programs', though the word was too generous, that ran each of the mathematical functions. The calculator was the useful toy built on top.

Base ten memory was not something Cato wanted to see, but Landar insisted that she could make each bit hold ten values and that binary made her brain hurt. The other proposal was to use base six, though that was based on available magical groups that would make memory storage simpler. What the Fukas called 'colour'. In any case, this was just the first attempt and there would be later opportunities to convince Landar.

Shortcuts, simplifications and other compromises dotted their diagram, like how the working memory was hardwired into the instruction set. It would never be anything more than a calculator, and would need significantly larger space to do anything else. A good proof of concept, nothing more.

Cato looked back down to his section as Landar absentmindedly pulled her shoulder sleeve back up.

They continued their scribbling to the chirping of birds in the distance and the soft midday sun glowing just outside the door.

Oh, that was a mistake she just made. Cato tapped the end of his pencil on the spot where she missed a jump and Landar rubbed it out without a word.

It felt an age later that a knock came on the door and Landar's mother came in.

"Oh, is it lunch already?" Cato asked. Landar didn't even look up, instead starting work on the division instructions. Cato pushed some of his work over for her to reference before rolling on his back to sit up.

The woman just giggled, "she used to like lying on the floor like that when she was young. Always chasing a dream no one else could see. "

They looked at Landar, who was still absorbed in the project.

"Ari, I haven't done anything improper, have I?"

She shook her head, "it's nothing. Lunch is ready. We need to go over the procedure for the dinner later, please join us. "

Cato nodded. Of course, the duty of breaking Landar out of her trances also fell to him now.

King Ektal flung open the doors with a dramatic bang and strode into the room, guards trailing behind him. "What exactly is the problem here?"

He did not appreciate having to come down to solve some minor issue that the craftsmen were facing. The room full of the fools turned to face their king, some of them partially blocked by the stacks of paper on the groaning table in the middle. No one said anything, only people avoiding his gaze.

"Tully," he addressed the woman Cato had sent down from Minmay to establish the branch university in the capital. "Explain why the capital ironworkers and woodcrafts guilds have not achieved this 'interchangeable parts' goal. You gave me a timeline that is now six months overdue. "

Ektal had been told that making guns of the same quality that came out of Minmay was impossible without the experience in making lesser things like tables and screws. They couldn't even achieve that.

Tully nodded to him, "sir, we could not manage to match the correct tolerances as the guilds refuse to-"

"We don't need you to tell us how to do our jobs, woman!" Came a shout from across the table.

Tully fired back scathingly, "If your 'experts' cannot even follow instructions-"

And the room descended into predictable chaos.

"What does it matter if the gun works? And ours shoots straighter than Minmay guns!" shouted one of the gunsmiths.

"When the barrel of your gun needs replacing, barrels from Minmay or Allie won't fit!" Tully shouted back.

"Then they just have to bring it us and we'll-"

"Enough!"

Ektal's roar silenced the room. He glanced at them and the guards placed hands on their swords, none of the craftsmen or Tully were willing to meet his gaze.

"Tully, explain what is wrong with their work. I have seen a gun made by the workshops and they work fine. "

He watched her look at his guards nervously. She gulped, "Sir. The reports I submitted state that the measurement tools and standards of the following classes-"

The king sighed internally. The woman did not respond well to intimidation and perhaps he had been a little too heavy handed. He spoke in a gentler tone this time. "Please, relax, stand up and tell us clearly what is the problem. "

Tully nodded and rose. "Minmay has used calibrated measuring tools and standards and production methods to ensure our products are of high quality and interchangeable. The problem is..." The woman glanced at the craftsmen hesitantly, who were starting to look indignant again.

"You are speaking to me," Ektal half-growled. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the craftsmen who settled down again.

"Sir. The guilds are not purchasing the standards or using the production methods that the Ironworkers in Minmay used. The guns the smiths make individually have slightly better performance than the guns made in Minmay, this is true. " She had clearly decided to try to pacify the craftsmen by flattering them a little. Tully did not believe what she was saying. "But each of those guns requires a precise fit between the different parts of the two rails, stock and trigger. Each gun has to be made individually, slowly and carefully by a master smith. Each gun's parts, if damaged or worn, has to be replaced by a smith by adjusting stock parts until they fit. "

From the grimaces and the righteous superiority on the representatives of the three smithing and ironworker guilds, this assessment was essentially accurate. He nodded for her to go on.

"Furthermore, we required our production process to be strictly controlled. Each person makes one part, practicing using their tools and the calibrated measures to make them as similar as possible. We also strictly reject any part of a device that does not match the specified tolerances. The production floor as a whole is also subject to quality checks that are developed to identify errors. This is the process of Interchangeable Parts. "

At every sentence, the representatives looked more and more sour. Certainly it sounded impressive and nothing at all like the expert craftsmanship that Ektal was familiar with. He looked at them, silently passing them the right to speak.

The most hot-headed representative, the one from the Ironworkers shot up as if waiting for his chance. "This is just a scam to make us waste good steel and time! They would have us discard a launch rail if it's a hair too thin! And every measuring standard comes from Minmay itself and we have to send ours to be calibrated by the University branch every three months! They're costing us money for a stupid piece of paper that says our rulers are the same length over and over! They're just after our coin!"

Ektal sighed. He didn't understand what was required to achieve this standard Minmay was setting but he wasn't about to let his capital fall behind that of some border city. The Ironworkers were craftsmen first and foremost and they already didn't like Tully for telling them what to do when she couldn't work a piece of steel to save her life. Perhaps what was needed was a strong hand to keep them working together instead of trying to undercut each other. A noble with sufficient authority perhaps.

Which noble to pick, someone powerful and ideally was in a position to view this as owing the King a favour? Roose town was near enough to the capital and the unusual Baron-Mayor double position gave the noble in charge a very strong hand.

"Since both sides clearly cannot work together, I shall just have to make you. I will delegate this matter to Baron Roose, who will take a position of the Leader of Industry. He will be authorized to impose monetary penalties if you fail to obey his instructions. "

Ektal could tell that they were both rather unhappy with his decision but come what may, the King would have his manufactories! The Ironworkers might be powerful but after being an embarrassment for failing for so long, he could get away with pressuring them a little despite the Nurren Agreement. He would have to advise the Baron strictly to not press them too hard to avoid the other guilds thinking they were next, but the Ironworkers didn't need to know that.

"What about the matter of the Research Group?" Tully cut in, "I assure you that Minmay has reaped great benefits from the cooperation between his guilds and companies. "

"You are obviously trying to steal our secrets," sneered the Ironworker. "Minmay's schemes are transparent. "

Ektal sighed as yet another argument looked to be starting. Were they just forgetting that his soldiers were right behind them? It looked like he would be here for yet another round. Sometimes he was tempted to just execute them all, but that would cause more trouble than it was worth.

Not even a King could operate a country if all his guilds abandoned him. But if he could just find replacements, then this bunch would be the first to be thrown to the monsters.

The dinner was not the formal sitting of the Inath noble parties, but the Tsarian clan meeting was nevertheless filled with the same wheeling and dealing that Cato was familiar with. The companies in Minmay loved to invite Cato to various dinners between partners and sometimes rivals, and what Cato was seeing as the families were getting seated was similar.

The six main clans were to sit on the floor, tables surrounding the central open area were laden with vaguely oriental dishes, or so they appeared to Cato with their pungent spices and promise of tongue searing heat. The less important families who were nevertheless important enough to attend an engagement announcement of the main branch family.

"So, you're the man of the evening?" came a voice from behind him.

Cato turned around to see a tall woman dressed in figure concealing Tsarian robes. Her unquestionably Tsarian features, the nose and straight black hair, made her look like Landar's relative. Though obviously all of the main families in the Iris clan would be interrelated. He glanced at Landar out of the corner of his eye, she was busy talking to another older man a few steps away. A cousin, if Cato remembered him right.

Another row down, Kupo and Yan were besieged by eager summoners wanting to learn the new techniques. No help from them either.

He bowed and greeted her formally, "If Cato is that man, then I am, madam. May I have your name?"

She scanned him, with concealed derision in her eyes, "you can call me Chi. Tell me, how much of the new training methods are your work?"

It was quite obvious to Cato that the woman was antagonistic, but not knowing who Chi was made it impossible for him to tell why. "It was a joint effort by Landar's family and Kupo, built on work on the nature of magic done by Landar and I. So the training methods were inspired by my work on the measurement of magic. "

"Very well. "

And with that, the mysterious Chi walked off to join her political allies. That left Cato wondering if he had made a mistake.

It didn't take long before the dinner began. Cato and Landar were seated next to and just behind Yan, placing them clearly in his faction.

"We are here today to celebrate the engagement of my daughter, Landar, and this man, Cato," Yan began, raising a plate full of a fried meat to attract attention, "together, they have made great contributions towards our training programs, in the Iris search for greater power. It is thanks to them that I have surpassed the level of magic needed to use a Ritual stone, by myself. Without tools to aid. "

Landar's father looked around the room slowly, each of the six most important families seating around the central area. The arrangement was somewhat odd, since the third, fourth and sixth branch families were sitting together directly opposite him. Yan had a bad feeling, Sati from the third branch shouldn't have been sitting with Chi, his main opponent. He'd have to try harder to win her support back, and remind her who was the first branch now.

"If there are any objections to the engagement, speak now. " Yan said the ritual words. It was mostly a formality, no one would interrupt-

"There are. " The clear voice sent a ripple of shock through the Iris gathered in the dinner hall.

Chi. The woman from the fourth branch family stood up, attracting all the attention to herself. Yan had known she was going to be trouble, but to actually interrupt the declaration ceremony? Madness. Even her allies looked surprised. Did Chi not even tell her allies about this?

"There is a question of suitability," she said boldly, "Landar is a summoner of middling strength, but still a summoner of one of our core families. How can you say Cato here is worthy of her? He comes from outside the clan, has no magic. You're only diluting your bloodline, and the first branch cannot be allowed to do that!"

Yan immediately put a hand backwards to push down on Landar's legs. Just in time to prevent her from blowing up. Still, he let his voice take on a hard tone in his reply.

"You know as well as anyone here that the Iris have always accepted people of exceptional achievements. Cato's investigation into magic lead to the discovery of the overcharge training method. I say it is good enough, and you know as well as I that the only permission Landar needs is her parents'. "

Chi fired back with a sneer, "indeed, such a discovery is worthy of an achievement that could make him an acceptable partner to the clan. If it was really his at all. From what I understand, this method was developed by Kupo working with you. The only participation Cato had was in the construction of the power measurement devices. And while useful, those boxes are not sufficient to convince me. It seems to me that Kupo should be the partner of your daughter, not Cato. "

"Let me refrain from that. " Kupo spoke up from behind. She was seated further back, outside of the circle of the main families. Despite Yan's invitation, she had not wanted the scrutiny, saying that her research in the Summoner Clans were not her primary aim. "Even if most of the work was done by me, you have no idea how much Cato has supported my research and thus indirectly helped with this discovery. Besides, Landar is quite independent-"

Yan frowned as a bad feeling came over him. He could feel his daughter's growing smugness like an itch between his shoulder blades.

"-and it's not like she needs the Iris families' permission to get married. Chancellor Minmay will happily declare them married if you don't. "

Yan resisted the urge to massage his forehead. He had refrained from throwing that fireshell due to the inherent pride of the summoners, though Yan knew he himself was also subject to that flaw.

It turned out that the young researcher from the Order of Pastora had the same level of tact as his daughter. That is to say, none at all.

The rest of the dinner was completely overtaken by useless shouting.

Finding out that Landar had expected the other branch families to object and had instructed Kupo to say that made Yan want to drag his daughter down to the dueling grounds again. But first, there was damage control to do.

"Sati. " Yan stopped the third branch family head after the chaotic dinner. They were in a corridor leading out from the internal family meeting hall and the other branches had taken different paths.

The woman he thought was his ally turned around, waving to the rest of her family to continue walking away. "Yan. What do you want?"

"Chi wouldn't be so bold if you hadn't supported her this time. I would like to know why. "

"I saw her point. You know that the Clan has always valued strength, your daughter is not strong and marrying her to a cripple is nothing more than deliberately diluting the blood. " Sati sighed, "I understand, you want to reserve the option of using Clan resources for her benefit if your daughter needs it, but the Clan must respect strength or risk losing our advantages. If she insists on staying with Cato, then she will have to do so separately. If it helps, I won't oppose her leaving, you'll have the necessary four families' support. "

"So you don't believe that those of sufficient achievements are suitable?" That was just as important a tradition as raw magical strength. Despite the outward image of being concerned with nothing but strength, the Summoner Clans had maintained their political positions with outward marriages to key people if possible.

Their use as guards and Knights helped greatly in finding suitable partners too.

"I do, but Cato's achievements are not sufficient. Some of my cousins and lower families are not happy with the blatant favouritism towards your daughter," Sati said, "perhaps if he could gain some military record then I would be able to persuade my relatives, but without magical strength, I don't see how. I'm sorry, but my position as the branch head isn't secure enough for me to ignore their opinions so openly. "

Unspoken was that her support for him on this issue was not guaranteed if it came to a vote. The favour he garnered by supporting her rise to branch head was not worth risking that same position.

Or perhaps there was a way to get Cato some military exploits to have him accepted by the clan...

Arthur walked into the study of the Chancellor, feeling a little awkward. "Sir. "

Minmay looked up from the reports. He gave a small nod.

"Sir, the number of migrants arriving in Minmay city has decreased from last month. The companies are complaining about needing more people again. " Arthur saw his Chancellor sigh but continued anyway. "The Recordkeepers have found that the peasants in the farming villages have stopped leaving. Are you sure the migration policy is the right thing to do?"

The report in Arthur's hands contained the details but the butler knew he wouldn't need it. Minmay trusted him to understand these figures.

"It is," the Chancellor said.

The peasants in the villages around them had to make sure all the land was farmed, the countryside barons had been instructed not to let so many leave their villages that farming would stop.

With the seed drills, steel plow and steam engines for milling, the number of peasants needed to farm a given piece of land had drastically reduced, along with increased yields per area. With that in mind, Minmay had allowed a mass migration of peasantry to the city to seek their fortunes and serve as much needed labour force. However, each family could not send so many of their children that the land would go idle.

Occasional patrols were sufficient enough to deter whole families from just running away, they usually had children that could not travel fast. No matter how low the price of food was getting, or how much excess they had, they could not all leave. Subsidizing the cost of the farming tools helped there too. The end result was that the number of peasants in the villages in the Minmay Region had bottomed out and only a slow trickle to the city remained. Most of their incoming population came from peasants outside Minmay Region.

The industry in Minmay that were already shorthanded, constantly complained about the difficulty of finding workers. The steel and machines production that Cato and Minmay wanted to increase further, was eating up more and more labour and squeezing out the other firms by starving them of hands. The high quality of the steel parts the Ironworkers produced was in great demand and fetched such high prices outside of Minmay Region that the Ironworkers and their affiliated companies could pay the best.

Cato had proposed before that the peasants should be allowed to move to Minmay while making up the food shortfall from the Central Territory. The land there was more fertile, flatter and easier to farm, and they didn't have a strong industry to provoke the peasants to move to the cities. The bumper harvests in that region had completely destroyed the food market and there were rumours that they had so much food to eat that the windeyes were rotting in the ground.

With how much food could be bought for almost nothing, a single mana well drill from the Ironworkers could buy enough food to feed all of Minmay city for two weeks. The Ironworkers could make one drill per week, along with everything else they were also making. Transport might be an issue, but it was solvable by simply making and selling more carts. If the food sales were constant and in large volume, the merchant caravans would naturally expand to fill that need.

Everything made sense and it would solve the biggest bottleneck to expanding the profitable industries further.

But the Chancellor had decreed that the farming area in Minmay was to not decrease below the point that Minmay Region could not feed itself. The Recordkeepers estimated that this would need half of the population in the villages and the migration policy was the result.

Cato had left for Iris before he asked why that policy was made, but now the industrial leaders were asking it for him.

No one wanted to do the deed and eventually the Recordkeepers had pushed the role onto Arthur. He was a long serving and loyal servant of the Chancellor after all, not easily replaced.

Minmay put down his report when Arthur just looked curious. "Did you know? The Recordkeepers did an estimate for me. The Central Territory, if they focused on farming their fertile abundant river land and could achieve a yield improvement like Minmay has, could feed the entire population of Ektal. By themselves. With a good buffer for bad harvests. We could tear down all the other farming villages in the country. But that's not going to happen.

"King Ektal is jealous of Minmay's development. He fears that we will overtake the capital, especially with the problems he is facing from his guilds that still hold to the old methods of production that I purged here. If Minmay depends on Central Territory for food, they can easily pressure us with that supply. Yes, they are friendly to us right now, mostly because of Iris, but that can change and if we are vulnerable that way, then you can be sure King Ektal will expend all effort to woo them to his side. "

Arthur couldn't help but ask, "aren't you going to meet the King at Barin town again? We should be getting a more solid peace now. "

"We are. But an agreement is just a piece of paper. Unless something more drastic is done to seal an alliance. " Minmay said. Arthur and the Chancellor both knew that could mean one of the princes getting betrothed to Arisacrota. And Minmay was a doting father who Arthur knew did not want to sell off his only daughter. "Who knows if that will even happen. Even if an alliance is made, King Ektal still cannot allow the capital to be much weaker than a regional territory. "

The butler and chief assistant to the most powerful man in the Minmay Region shared a look with his master. Arthur gave him a short bow. He would have to explain to the Lesser Circle in private.

"By the way, how is the preparation for the trip to Iris?"

"The carriage has been outfitted with a new suspension, sir. I am sure your daughter will have a much easier time than her trip to Duport. There are no further problems in acquiring the needed supplies. "