Encyclopedia #4

The adventurers guild is just an association of numerous influential organizations that spans all over the continent. The guild's buildings and pubs are meant to act as an information hub for various adventurers from different organizations to group up, and military personnel of different national armies.

The adventure's guild was am association beneficial to everyone, and numerous influential organizations support it, so rarely did anyone challenge it.

Other than that, wealthy people, companies, or merchants would regularly post quests or subjugations in different areas for a high price, of course. The militaries usually take large subjugations for practice and to gain military funds form the rich who had assigned(to lessen the pressure on the national treasury). And, they could sell the materials and carcass from dead monsters to wealthy merchants, alchemists, blacksmiths, enchanters, etc.

But the military typically gains more talents as their talent hunt is on a much larger scale and are less exclusive than the ones by organizations. Not only that but the lure of receiving a fiefdom or noble title is quite enticing to hot-blooded youths.

On the other hand, organizations are like freelancers or mercenaries, in other words. They have powerful elites and usually fights for the highest bidder, though there are exceptions.

Joseph POV

I was in my lab utilizing the soul method I've brought with me. Other than that, I've been recently looking through some records containing information about fire mages and metal aura users. In some research I've done, I've concluded that it would be efficient for fire mages to help in manufacturing the metals for the flintlock or any future weaponry. But for the fine details in designing and creating the parts, it would be best to leave it for metal aurers (aura users) and their precision, since their specialty is accurately striking one thing at a time.

However, a problem has occurred to me: most mages and aurers, if not all, are militarized or battle endowed. Nations drilled war and fighting into the minds of aurers and mages with elements. On the other hand, people with no elements are either civilians or, if they can conjure aura, they could be fighters in an army or an organization (mana needs at least one element). But they are usually marginally weaker in terms of war, strength, ranking potential. Still, most without elements but can be warriors have chosen the adventurer or military route, given the fact that both give out numerous incentives for people to join.

The main reason for this recruiting campaign is that the mind of an adult is hard to change; to break this mentality, it would be better to provide education to children at an earlier stage. Eventually, they could help support my research in creating more weapons or they could learn the usage of future weaponry. After all, an army needs to be intelligent in both mind and weapon. It would be a plus if I could also start schools to improve the education of the nation. Brilliant ideas of science and magic combined could further strengthen the infrastructure and economy, for solely military can only do so much for the benefit of the country.

Also, another reason to recruit younger children is to not conflict with the military's recruiting campaign pre-teens at the age of twelve (they would have already passed the elemental phase when people may or may not have received their elements). However, our campaign is much more liable to weaker talents as it isn't one-hundred percent that each child we recruit will have an element or can even manipulate aura at the bare minimum. But I'll prove to everyone that anyone, whether they can manipulate energy or not, can be useful and are valuable.

I've told my mother that the drafting should be limited to one-thousand children, as too much could cause problems in both cost and or the organization of large numbers would be too difficult. I've also decided to talk in batches of a hundred for more accessible communications. These children would eventually doubt or question my intentions, and I would have to dispel them, but it wouldn't be suitable to have too many people argue at the same time.

Another thing I'v planned was to give them options of either joining my army or plan to work with me in research, work, and or assembly of weapons, though both options would still include education; education would, however, vary in each option. But I think that many would join the former because the latter sounded more skeptical and is akin to being manual labourers. And I also chose to provide more incentives and benefits of the military option as this field of work is significantly more dangerous.

'All this thinking hurts,' I thought. I should probably educate some of the older children to form a department for human resources to reduce my responsibility. And I think it is eventual for the need to start making civil tools to generate money and improve living standards; a business department is essential. Hmm... for now, I should teach some of the more willing soldiers in the ways of the guns, and they could pass that down to the youths.

Suddenly, I felt a breakthrough within my soul, and it was my first one in my entire existence; it wasn't possible in my other universe because it was too late for my age at the time. My soul was growing more prominent, more significant than that of a twelve-year-old. There was a door-like entrance within my soul that weakened. I felt that as soon as I reach the age of eight (the start of the period when everyone would potentially gain an element or gain the ability to manipulate energy), it would unlock and let in either aura or mana inside. As for elements, there might be a higher probability I'll receive at least one, but there is a chance I might not gain one at all. Not only that, but I think with this improvement, I would be able to contain are a more considerable amount of energy. It's like my soul is a container of water, but this growth of my soul is like an upgrade from a cup to the size of one and a half.

Then, out of nowhere, my mind was filled with more knowledge that was locked and hidden before as my soul was too young. And so, I only had relevant information of the early 17th century. This is another reason why my research for higher grades of firing mechanism hasn't been developing much. I'm missing too much information, such as the table of elements to create other specific solutions, like smokeless gunpowder. And manufacturing methods of weapon parts, such as the reloading mechanism of a carbine wasn't feasible yet. I could deduct the creation of these products, but with the limited technology, it hampers my experiments. Another obstacle is that mass producing items isn't my forte, and having the information I've read in my last life would be very helpful.

Now, I'm forced to mass produce the flintlock as one of the essential and relevant knowledge I received from my soul improvement is the method of mass production; my memories only expanded to information of late 17th century.

If possible, I might be able to convince older mages and aurers to help me in developing this large-scale production system. Why older ones? It is because advancing ranks become much more difficult. The younger the person is, the more they focus on meditating or becoming more powerful as a mage or aurer. Those who are older begin to lose hope in advancing, and they tend to focus on other things in life. If given enough incentives, it might work.

Oh yeah, I had to give Tellon and Kall a small vacation because of some... incident that had happened, for lack of better words. Now they probably think I'm into BDSM. Or a maniac that might kill them with explosions. And they may or may have not repeatedly complained to my mother. But damn to them! What I'm researching is essential and something that would save their and the nation's asses. ...why am I thinking something wrong with the word "asses"? It certainly does not have anything to do with BDSM. Nope.

Suddenly, someone barged through my lab's door; It was my mother. As she came in, her disturbance broke my thought, but I wasn't annoyed. Instead, I got up and ran to her and hugged her. Recently, I've been doing this activity because it gives me calm in life. Being in my mother's arms provided a sense of safety and serenity in this world of suffering. You can call me a mama's boy, but I don't care. It's what keeps me sane.

It's like it filled the void I had during my first few years of scientific research in my past universe; she has become my mother that I desperately needed to cope with what was happening.

I looked at her face, and I noticed my mother's happiness with her bright and beautiful smile, so something good must've happened. And I was right.

"Joseph, I've got some good news for you."

"What is it?"

"Well, our campaign doing well, especially with some support from your father. We already have more than one hundred recruits."

"Thanks, mother," I replied with a smile.