Chapter 770: Expanding Needs

The deal that Jadis had made with Hraustrekr was honestly more than Ahlstrom Aviation was capable of fulfilling, at least in its current form. Five Leviathan-class airships built within four months was possible, but only if she dedicated the entirety of her work force to the task, ignoring all other projects and responsibilities. The twenty windless naval vessels were an even bigger problem, since Jadis’ company wasn’t actually capable of making sailing ships at all. That was to say, the work crews that Ahlstrom Aviation employed probably could produce seaworthy vessels, but making watertight ships wasn’t the same process as crafting airships, and even disregarding the differences, Jadis didn’t have access to a drydock to build the ships and launch them from.

At least, not yet.

Eir’s father, Einer Aedraheill, was the Margrave of Aedraland, a territory on the southern coast of the empire. Aedraland was south of Glitnir, the city that rested on the mouth of the Brandrvald, the same river that Eldingholt was on, which fed into the Southern Ocean, and it wasn’t too far from the western edges of the Kalters Wall mountain range. The local economy was largely focused on producing glass products, with a large population of hereditary craftsmen who concentrated on making the purest quality of clear windowpanes that non-magical means could produce. And, in some cases, the sort that only magic could craft as well. However, while Aedraland was centered on glass as its primary export, it still had other craftsmen who worked on a variety of other commodities that were mostly traded locally, or at least no further than neighboring counties. As a coastal territory, shipwrights were counted among those craftsmen, which was a particularly fortuitous circumstance for a future daughter-in-law with a business who needed to employ a labor force that she could trust, and that could also handle a sudden and large influx of production, given the right motivation and compensation.

“We aren’t going to move any of our enchantment production to Aedraland,” Jay explained conversationally. “Well, maybe a few of the minor enchantments that don’t require Sabina or Violetta to make. Depends on who they have in Red Hall. All of the ones that are required to make airships fly or windless ships go are going to still be produced here in Eldingholt. But the actual vessels will be made in Aedraland.”

“Do they have enough craftsmen to make that work?” Severina asked from her seat across from Jay in the slowly moving carriage. “Aedraland is somewhat rural, to my understanding. I wouldn’t think they have enough population to make that sort of economic and manufacturing shift.”

“Einer assured me that they can,” Jay replied confidently. “He told me that the demonic invasion depleted a lot of his younger population thanks to the need for soldiers, but at the same time he’s had a lot of older folks, some crafters and others farmers, who left their less protected villages and moved to the Aedraland capital, Red Hall, for the safety. Those people could use the work. Most of those workers might not be shipwrights by trade, but there are enough who are ship builders in his territory that they can guide the rest of the workers.”

“That’s excellent news, then,” Severina smiled her reserved smile, both hands resting on her demurely crossed legs. “The Aedraheill family has done well to partner with House Ahlstrom. I can see that their fortunes will be reaching far greater heights than they could have possibly expected when Eir entered the temple’s service.”

“Definitely,” Jay agreed with a chuckle. “Though, that begs the question. Is House Lumen interested in joining Ahlstrom and Aedraheill in their ascent?”

Severina’s blue eyes flashed at the mention of her noble household, before a different sort of expression crossed her face. Jay did her best to keep her face straight as the Seraphim regarded her with growing suspicion, as well as an expanding pink flush across her features.

“What, precisely, are you asking me?” she finally said.

“I’m not asking you that. Not yet. I promised everyone that I would officially ask at the same time, since that’s the only fair way to do it.”

Jay watched the mix of relief and disappointment flitter across her lover’s features. Holding up one finger, she continued before Sev could respond.

“However, I do absolutely intend to marry you, Severina. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of our, hopefully, very long lives together, with lots of little Seraphim and Nephilim babies running around us. Flying, too, I guess.”

The instant change from pale to pink cheeks was adorable, and she was extremely tempted to lean forward and kiss the beautiful blush coloring Sev’s features, but Jadis pushed on.

“So, with that in mind, I feel like I should be offering a similar deal to House Lumen as I’ve made with House Aedraheill. It’s not just fair, but practical.”

Pausing her composed and business-like speech, Jay leaned forward and gave the justicar a knowing grin. Her next words were spoken in a conspiratorial tone that matched her mischievous mood.

“I mean, I haven’t even met your parents yet, Sev. At this point, I’m starting to think you’re hiding them from me.”

“I’m not hiding them from you,” Severina managed to sputter out around her dignified outrage.

“Then you’re hiding me from them.”

“No! Stop making such ridiculous assumptions!”

“Sure, no problem,” Jay shrugged as she leaned back in her seat. “Then, when do I get to meet them?”

That caused Severina to close her mouth with noticeable speed.

Jadis was glad that she had Sev with her for her current errand, and not just because she was having fun teasing her. Things were moving fast and having someone like the justicar at her side while navigating the treacherous rapids of nobility was a big help. Having just returned from her trip to the frontline to meet with Prince Hraustrekr and visit with Ammy, Jadis had a limited amount of time to act before her next major appointment, namely Cobbler’s trial, began. Then, so long as she could get everything in order, Jadis planned on fulfilling her intentions of doing some long-anticipated exploring of areas she had, up to that point, only heard of.

While Jay waited for Severina to collect her thoughts, she pushed aside the heavy curtains that covered the carriage window on her right so that she could take a look outside. Not that she didn’t already have a good view of her surroundings thanks to the two of her selves who were flying overhead with Noct and Alex, but Jadis had never been to that specific area of Eldingholt before. Seeing the upper-crust neighborhood from the street wasn’t the same as viewing it from above.

The streets that the Nephilim-sized carriage was carrying Jay and Sev along were wide and clean, with a lane on one side of the road dedicated to runners and others with high Agility. Old trees and well-tended shrubs lined the walkways, creating a peaceful atmosphere that felt lush and comfortable. Most places in Eldingholt were habitually cast into shadow thanks to the massive tree whose branches stretched over the city, but this neighborhood was filled with the gentle glow of magic light that managed to illuminate without feeling harsh or artificial. All of the buildings were huge and, unlike most other areas, had large distances placed between them so that gardens could be planted. These were the mansions of the nobility, with some of the structures so old that they predated the majority of the city.

Vraekae’s home was a fine building, constructed with the kind of care and extravagance that most commoners never even came close to approaching. Eir and Severina both had family households that were old and prestigious, located not far from the area that the carriage was rolling through. But none of them, despite their wealth and luxury, were comparable to ducal households. These manors were, simply put, on a different level.

“My parents… are not ready to meet you.”

“You said they were fine with the arrangement we made,” Jay turned away from the window and raised an eyebrow.

“They are,” Severina huffed. “It’s just—please, you know that the arrangement we made is not the… reality that we have come to have.”

“You mean how you’ve fallen madly in love with me and want to live with me and my lovers and want to have my babies and maybe even put some babies in me and—”

“Yes! That,” Sev cut Jay’s torrent of teasing words off. “All of that… that. And also, all of you. And the others. My parents will understand. Eventually. But it is best that they are eased into the idea, rather than thrown over the cliff and expected to fly right away. I don’t want them to have a negative impression of you or the others.”

Clearing her throat, Severina looked away from Jay and took a few calming breaths. Jay waited, silently appreciating the little ways in which her angelic lover chose to show how much she cared, even if she didn’t like to admit the depths of her feelings. The reluctance to show her emotions really made the tender moments so much more special. Plus, Severina was just that much more fun to tease as a consequence of her reserved nature.

“Approaching them with a business offer isn’t a poor idea,” Sev muttered after a while. “It would be a natural and expected means by which we could show our increasing closeness. I’ll have to think about how I would broach the topic in my next letter to them.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Jay smiled at the Seraphim. “Assuming they are open to the idea, do you think we’ll be able to use your family’s territory for airship production?”

“Possibly,” Sev’s brows furrowed as she mulled the idea over. “Vaala primarily exports skoll furs and their antlers and bones, and the lumber of dynja trees. Snaer berries are exported too, but they are a wild harvest, not cultivated, so only during the winter and early spring when they fruit. The rivers in Vaala are too rough for ship travel and the lakes, while numerous, are small. The ships made there are nothing like the sea vessels that are made in Eldingholt or Glitnir.”

“What’s a skoll?” Jay interrupted Severina’s musings. “And dynja. And snaer. I guess I mean, what’s all of that?”

“Skoll are a species of magic beast. They are like elk, but they have heads like wolves and teeth to match. They hunt in packs and are dangerous predators that are immune to the cold and many forms of ice magic. Dynja trees are similar to pine, but they have red sap the color of blood and their cone pods explode when they get dry enough or are lit on fire. Snaer berries come from snaer bushes, a plant that thrives in the snow and grows fast in the cold while it is dormant in the summer. The berries are black in color and have red juices. They have a strong taste, like a sweet alcohol.”

Blinking as she processed the information Sev had given her, Jay decided to focus on the piece that seemed most relevant to her question about the viability of airship production in Severina’s homeland.

“If dynja trees are harvested for their lumber, that must mean they have a lot of logging capabilities, right?”

“That is correct,” Severina agreed with a slow nod. “However, dynja lumber isn’t used for crafting ships or in other large-scale building production. Dynja is mostly used for luxury products, such as furniture, because of its rich, dark red color. The sap is also used in the production of a popular lacquer. While I’m certain that any logger who cuts down dynja trees could easily switch to the sorts of hardwood used for making vessels, it would still be a significant shift in industry. I’m not sure how well we could accommodate that shift right now, especially with how low our current population is in Vaala. Unlike in Aedraland, Vaala did not have many elders from outlying settlements to move in and replace the young population that left to join the military.”

“Well, even if a shift in production isn’t possible, maybe we can still trade with your family for some of those exports,” Jay suggested. “I bet Sabina would have a lot of uses for the components harvested from skoll deer or whatever they are. Sorcha too, though probably on a much smaller scale.”

“Actually, we should get some snaer berries for Sorcha and for Meli,” Sev murmured as she tapped her fingers against her left vambrace. “I do wonder what their magics could do with them.”

“Maybe we can pick some up when we go to meet your parents.”

The dry look that Sev gave Jay made it hard for her to stifle her laughter, but somehow Jadis managed.

“Oh, looks like we’re here,” Jay said before Severina could respond with her no doubt biting commentary. “Right on time.”

The carriage slowed to a stop the second after Jay finished speaking, showing a supernatural coordination only possible because of Jadis’ other bodies watching overhead. As soon as the vehicle came to a complete rest, Jay opened the door and quickly exited. Turning, she held out her hand for Severina, her expression composed into a paradigm of gentile manners.

“My lady,” Jay waited expectantly.

“My molted feathers,” Severina muttered darkly while eying Jay, though she still took her hand and let her help her down to the cobblestone driveway. “Please, remember to keep such teasing jibes contained during this meeting, will you?”

Turning to gaze up at the front doors to Duke Colgrave’s city mansion, Jay’s smile turned sharp.

“Somehow, I think I’ll be able to manage that.”