A New Way to Measure

After the first few months of school, Van had summoned his measuring devices and wanted to incorporate them into his manufacturing. When the first school break approached he decided to spend some time in his workshop to check on how things were going and to invest some more gold into it and his workers.

The day of the break came and Van left the college campus for the Merchants guild to register his new "inventions". The precision ruler, the calipers, micrometers, and tape measure, the coil spring, and internal threads. The looks he got from the lady behind the counter were one of confusion. After looking over the diagrams she just shrugged her shoulders and filed them. His visit to the Magistrates' office got him the same reaction.

He shrugged off the reactions and headed to Erynnes Smithy. When he got there he noticed that she had expanded again and now she had 6 smiths working under her and the building now had taken over the neighboring buildings.

"Hello Erynne," Van said as he walked up behind the beautiful soot and sweat-covered elf.

"Hello, Van!" Erynne explained as she set down her tools and wiped the sweat off of her face. "What do you need?"

"Well, you. If you would be so kind as to come by my workshop when you get the time I have some new ideas and tools."

"Okay, I am just about done here. let me finish up and put out the fire and I will be right over."

Van left and headed to his workshop. he had a little time so he gathered his managers and went over some things with the business. He found out that the kingdom has made a large order for the pencils and that it would take multiple months to fulfill it. Van couldn't think of what they would want all of those pencils for but hey money is money.

He went and looked at the contract and decided upon a price per unit of 2 silvers. His manager then informed him about a large order for weapons of war, and that he had accepted the contract for the spear shafts and ballista bolts. Making arrow shafts took too much time in the eyes of the manager. Van had him accept the arrow shaft part of the order also and hire more people to make them. He also informed him to make them sign the non-disclosure contract.

When Erynne showed up Van took her into his private office and presented her with new measuring tools.

"These tools will change the way this world makes parts for things," Van explained. "Also I have an ingot of a new type of metal and the formula and directions to make it. I want you to be the first to test it out. Make a sword and compare it to the iron swords you make." Van then handed her two 2 pound ingots of steel.

"How did you come up with this?" Erynne asked as she held the ingots in her hand examining them.

"It just came to me one night and I used the college facilities to make it. I suck at smithing so that is why I wanted you to do the skilled work." He lied.

"Once you learn how to make this metal I call Steel, let me know. I will buy the building where we will be able to smelt large quantities."

"Why don't you just do that yourself already?"

"Because nobody would believe that a woodworker came up with a new type of metal. But they will believe it if a blacksmith does. Plus if you want it I will give you this formula for you to register as your own. In return, I would require future partnership priority."

"You would just give this to me?" Erynne asked, absolutely shocked.

"With future partnership priority."

"T-Thank you," Erynne said wiping the tears out of her eyes. She then left the building with everything Van had given her.

Van then went out to his managers again and showed him the measuring devices and instructed them how to use them. he even wrote down directions on how to use them.

"You will no longer use the old measurement instruments, This shop will now transition over to these. They are more precise and easier to use. Please learn how to use these as accurately as possible and measure everything made. We will now standardize everything that is made in the shop."

Van was walking out of the workshop when he remembered something very important. he turned around and yelled to get everyone's attention. "ATTENTION!!" when everyone was looking at him he told them something that made each and everyone cheer. "For now on everyone will have two days off every week. The managers will see to which days they are. also, everyone gets a 10 coppers pay raise effective immediately. If you work 6 days or more you will be compensated with a day and a half pay per day." With that said he left the workshop and headed to the Magistrates Office to find properties that were for sale.

When presented with the properties 3 stuck out to him, one property was by the dock and was a warehouse, one was outside the walls on the river. it used to be an old waterwheel mill, and the last was an open field that had been labeled as barren. Van was about to go look at these properties when he noticed the time. He decided to go back to the college for the night.

The next day he went and looked at the properties and unfortunately none of them had what he needed or wanted. Granted he knew that the water wheel could produce electricity if set up properly, he wasn't at a stage where he wanted to introduce that. He settled for the barren field, it couldn't produce crops anymore so he got a 10-acre field for cheap.

The paperwork alone was a hassle because the city had never had someone as young as he was, try and buy property. Ms. Etta and Mrs. Cartwright had to vouch for him for the city to allow it. granted The property was under a conservatorship with the Merchants guild until he was at least 15.

The field was located just outside the city wall, but it was also had a lakeshore side. Building a dock wouldn't be too hard. The property was a rectangle shape with the short side against the lake. It had a slight slope towards the water and had hardly any grass growing on it.

After purchasing the property Van had to get measurements so he summoned a measuring wheel. Once he got his measurements he went back to the college and sat down to begin drawing up a smeltery.

He knew he could just summon the steel he wanted or used but he would never be able to explain where he got it without someplace that could produce it. Van had to be responsible with his summoning power for now. He had already measured to gold coins and committed their design to memory. If he had ever the need for the gold he could just summon it. He was the richest person in the world without being the richest person in the world.