Chapter 120: Naval Supremacy

November 26, 221 AD, Massilia Shipyards, Gallia.

While the sieges in the Alpine passes ground toward their inevitable conclusion, the construction of the *Oculus Network* was progressing at a terrifying speed.

Because the timber and iron bolts required for the optical relay towers were not particularly exotic or expensive, Lucius had decentralized the construction.

The responsibility was handed directly to the local Gallic administrative magistrates wherever the communication route passed.

As a result, construction commenced simultaneously in hundreds of locations across the province.

Naturally, immediate regional wood shortages were reported. Consequently, Aulus and the Ministry of Infrastructure were forced to hastily construct several steam-powered sawmills along the Rhone River to quickly process massive quantities of pine and meet the insatiable demand.

Within a month, the primary *Oculus* communication lines would be operational, with the sole exception of the war-torn Italian border, which remained unintegrated pending the final selection of forward military capitals.

Currently, Lucius Cassius had traveled south to the coastal city of Massilia.

He had been informed that a consortium of immensely wealthy Alexandrian merchants had finally agreed to build a battleship locally within the Syndicate, while formally transferring their advanced Hellenistic shipbuilding technology.

Lucius was profoundly excited by this prospect...

Even with the devastating firepower of the *Classis Ferrea*, the Syndicate was operating a ’green-water’ navy.

Their flat-bottomed ironclads were exceptionally lethal in the calm, coastal shallows of the Mediterranean, but they lacked the stability to survive the deep oceans beyond the Pillars of Hercules.

With the construction of true, deep-water battleships, that limitation would evaporate.

The Syndicate would officially enter the wider naval world, projecting their industrial power across the globe.

Lucius had officially entered the guarded premises of the Massilia Imperial Docks, an industrial sector where the Hellenistic Demetrios family held a significant minority shareholding.

As soon as Lucius stepped out of the carriage, he was slightly taken aback.

A long carpet had been unrolled, and a delegation of men dressed in incredibly lavish Alexandrian silk were waiting to welcome him.

Among these men was Demetrios, the patriarch of the merchant family and their primary representative in Gaul.

Demetrios, seeing the Forge Master approach, immediately executed a theatrical bow, sweeping his hands wide in submission.

Lucius laughed inwardly at the cultural clash.

He stepped forward and firmly grabbed the merchant’s forearm in a Roman military clasp, dragging the surprised Greek into a firm handshake before walking toward the docks.

Looking around the port, Lucius was genuinely amazed.

Lucius could see hundreds of skilled, newly imported Greek and Egyptian shipwrights working frantically on various hulls.

He could also see multiple shallow-draft steam-cruisers being welded in the expanded drydocks.

"Demetrios, did the shipyard expand again? It is significantly larger than my last quarterly report indicated," Lucius noted, his eyes scanning the horizon.

Demetrios, walking beside the Forge Master, beamed with happiness. "Of course, Forge Master. With the support of the praetorium, the shipyard has been expanded three times over. We have excavated four new drydocks specifically for the construction of your new battleships," he said, rubbing his hands together.

If the Demetrios from a year ago could see the current Demetrios, he would have been thoroughly shocked.

Even though Aulus had explicitly promised him a thirty-five percent permanent share of the profits, Demetrios had felt deeply uneasy, assuming the hand of the state would crush his profit margins.

However, his bitter disappointment had transformed into sheer delight.

He had only considered the drawbacks of nationalization, failing to anticipate the logistical benefits.

Once the Massilia Docks became formally state-run, the support they received was unimaginable...

Right before his eyes, tens of thousands of tons of steel plating, iron rivets, and purified coal were delivered to his gates at the absolute lowest baseline cost.

These were the exact same raw materials he previously had to buy at a 90% markup from corrupt Roman suppliers.

Now, the materials were so obscenely cheap it felt like outright robbery!

Watching his fixed industrial assets multiply in value day by day, Demetrios forgot his previous complaints.

By simply holding his minority 35% stake, his family was rapidly becoming richer than any patrician in Rome.

Thus, he had eagerly spent his own gold to import the finest Alexandrian shipwrights, ensuring the new labor force met the Forge Master’s exacting engineering standards.

Eventually, the two men reached the primary designer’s studio overlooking the harbor...

Lucius pushed open the door and saw a middle-aged Greek man intensely studying a set of architectural blueprints.

Curious, Lucius stepped behind the man and inspected the drawings over his shoulder.

He quickly realized they were the detailed schematics for the *Dominus*-class steam-cruisers.

"So, what do you think of the design of this warship?" Lucius asked casually, curious about the foreign expert’s unvarnished thoughts.

The middle-aged man, who had been absorbed in the math, jumped at the sudden question.

He spun around, staring at the unfamiliar man standing behind him.

Because Lucius was dressed in a plain leather tunic rather than imperial armor, the Greek architect had no idea who he was speaking to.

Fortunately, the designer didn’t say anything insulting.

He noticed the lavishly dressed Demetrios standing nervously in the doorway and deduced the man was someone of immense importance.

"This..." The designer stammered, unsure of how to answer.

Demetrios quickly stepped forward to save his master shipwright. "Kallikrates, let me introduce you. This is the Forge Master, Lucius Cassius, the absolute ruler of the Syndicate."

Kallikrates’s face drained of all color.

He immediately dropped to his knees, pressing his forehead flat against the floorboards.

"I beg your forgiveness, Dominus. Please forgive my impudence. I had no knowledge I stood in the presence of the sovereign."

The Greek was terrified.

In the Eastern Roman provinces, failing to recognize a reigning sovereign or speaking out of turn usually resulted in immediate crucifixion!

Lucius was slightly taken aback by the extreme reaction, but remembering the culture of the Eastern elites, he clearly understood the panic.

"Stand up, Kallikrates," Lucius said calmly. "You do not have to kneel in my presence. I take no offense to your ignorance of my face."

Kallikrates let out a breath of relief and slowly stood up, keeping his posture low and his head bowed.