Chapter 112 — Talent and Population

Rebecca's eyes rolled half a circle. She wanted to ask whether, since the girl could not fire great fireballs, she could climb trees to rob nests and roast grasshoppers—but fearing a beating, she dared not voice the thought. Gaoyang, seeing the girl's expression, understood profoundly that no matter how gifted this child was, her flighty nature could not be changed (and her head had been caught in a door besides), so he had to speak plainly: "The friend I mean is not someone to fool about with you—she is someone to do research with. Her name is Jennie Perot, a member of the Hundred-Person Aid Corps, a rune master of the fourth rank. She has a gift for mathematical calculation as high as your own, and her way of studying magic complements and shares much with yours..."

To keep the girl from losing her head again, Gaocen laid out Jennie Perot's circumstances in one breath.

Rebecca listened, blinking in bewilderment, and then suddenly clapped her hands. "You mean she developed a technique to construct rune blueprints by calculation instead of by spellcraft?"

Though the process had been winding, Gaoyang did not explain at length now. "More or less the same idea."

"Ooh! I want to meet that person!" Rebecca's face lit with real delight, as expected. "She sounds amazing!"

Gaoyang was glad to see Rebecca so thoroughly interested, but before the silly roe deer could bolt, he offered a reminder: "Don't let it hold up the development of the magic-energy engine and the 'cement.'"

"Don't worry! I know!"

"Then we'll leave this matter here," Gaoyang said with a satisfied nod, then turned to Amber. "Amber, make another trip and bring Sir Byron here."

Amber looked thoroughly unwilling, but her figure nonetheless faded slowly into the air. "Ah, what a life of toil."

Soon Sir Byron, who had been resting in the barracks, was brought into the tent. This middle-aged knight of mercenary origins saluted Gaoyang. "Your Grace, you sent for me?"

"Are you familiar with the serf market and with displaced folk?"

Sir Byron was briefly startled, then nodded. "I know serfs well. I once went on Miss Rebecca's father's behalf to buy slaves in other noble domains. As for displaced folk... I can't say familiar or unfamiliar. They are people who drift from place to place, little better than wild men—over by the old mine north of Tamsan Town and the abandoned Goring mill..."

Gaoyang cut him off. "I don't mean those who have already turned to banditry. I mean those who are still, for the moment, of clean standing."

"Displaced folk have no clean standing. But I think I take your meaning—you want those still lingering around the towns and villages, who have not yet given up on earning a living in the civilized world?"

No wonder he had once been a mercenary, dealing with all manner of poor folk and scraping a living through the gray margins of the world—Byron grasped Gaosong's requirement at once and promptly offered a suggestion: "My lord, if you truly mean to take in refugees, then I have a proposal: why not try posting mercenary commissions in Tamsin Town, stating that you wish to buy slaves in great numbers—at less than thirty percent of the market price. It would cost no more than sending out criers to paste notices everywhere and negotiating with the nobles and lords of every region, and the efficiency would be far higher."