The Hidden Extra: The Lazy Prince Refuses to Ascend The Throne

Chapter 844: Mega Project: The Railroad

”About that...” Nolan paused briefly. ”Don’t worry. I’ll prepare the antidote recipe. Just distribute it for free to the nobles who were affected.”

He asked for some paper and a pen. Luna quickly brought them over and handed them to him.

Nolan then wrote down a recipe to treat the irritation and rashes caused by perfume contaminated with Acidia flower poison.

”Take this. Produce as much as you can and distribute it to everyone who’s been affected. Also, include a letter of apology and a twenty percent discount voucher that can be used at any of our stores. At the very least, it’ll help restore their trust and put their minds at ease. And...”

Nolan crossed his legs and leaned back on the sofa.

”Don’t tell anyone the real cause yet. Just say there was a problem during production. In the meantime, quietly investigate everyone working at the stores that sold the contaminated perfume. Take it slow, so the people behind this don’t catch on. You know what I mean, right?”

The incident had definitely hurt Blue Moon’s reputation, but it wasn’t enough to bring the company down.

After all, they supplied almost all of the empire’s daily necessities, from soap and shampoo to countless other products.

More importantly, the effects of the Acidia flower weren’t fatal, so most customers would still be willing to forgive the company.

Shion wrote down everything he said, then gave a slight nod.

”I understand. Thank you for the solution, Master.”

Nolan smiled faintly.

The two chatted for a while before Shion brought up something that had been on Nolan’s mind for the past few days.

”Master, what about the permit? Have you taken care of it yet?”

Shion was referring to the permit for building an intercity transportation route, one of Blue Moon’s biggest projects.

Nolan fell silent for a moment before answering, ”Not yet. I still have a few concerns, and I’d like your opinion.”

Shion nodded seriously.

”Go ahead.”

”How confident are you that this project will succeed?”

Shion took a sip of her tea.

”About forty percent. I’m still not entirely sure about the approval process, considering this is a massive national project,” she said helplessly. ”We have to obtain permits from various parties, especially the imperial palace and the noble families who govern the cities along the route. That’s already giving me a headache. Besides...”

She looked at Nolan meaningfully.

”The Red Rose Trading House is working on the same project. Their plans might already be finished, while ours still aren’t. Who knows? By the time we’re ready, they might’ve already started building. Once that happens, it’s only a matter of time before our interests clash. If things get out of hand, it could even turn into a direct conflict.”

If the Red Rose Trading House were just another trading house, Blue Moon wouldn’t be too concerned. But it wasn’t. It was backed by the Asbourne family—the family of the Dark Hero.

They were also backing Cedric in the fight for the throne, which meant they had close ties to the prime minister.

Because of that, carrying out the project wouldn’t be easy.

”Your analysis makes sense,” Nolan said. ”But you’re wrong about one thing.”

With a meaningful smile, he opened his palm. A blueprint scroll appeared in his hand.

”I’ve already prepared the blueprint.”

Shion’s eyes widened in shock. Her mouth fell open wide enough to fit an egg.

”Take a look.”

Nolan handed her the blueprint.

Snapping out of her daze, Shion quickly took it, unrolled it, and spread it across the table.

Luna quickly moved Shion’s teacup aside.

”Brother Nolan, what’s a blueprint?” Eliza asked as she sipped her cold chocolate milk.

Nolan patted her head and explained, ”It’s a detailed design for a large project. Take a horse-drawn carriage, for example. A long time ago, people didn’t know how to build one. Then someone came up with a blueprint that showed how all the parts fit together, so people could finally build it.”

”Oh...” Eliza nodded. ”So you drew this blueprint?”

She pointed at the blueprint lying on the table.

”Yep. I did.”

”Wow!” Eliza’s eyes lit up. ”You’re amazing, Brother Nolan!”

Nolan simply smiled and gently pinched her chubby cheek.

He then turned his gaze to the blueprint.

It was none other than the blueprint for a train.

Yes, he had drawn a blueprint for a train, one almost identical to the trains from his previous life.

The Frey family had been one of the largest conglomerates in his home country. They were involved in many massive government projects, including real estate and public transportation.

The railway system was one of the projects managed by the Frey family.

As the family heir, Nolan had naturally studied the designs and plans, giving him a general understanding of how trains were built.

Of course, his knowledge was far from complete. Building a train was incredibly complicated. Without expert help, it would’ve been almost impossible.

Still, he wasn’t worried. With magic, many of those challenges could be overcome, including the power source for the train shown in the blueprint.

”M-Master, what kind of vehicle is this?” Shion asked in amazement, pointing at the blueprint spread out before her. ”Why does it look like a snake? And... and...”

She trailed off, not knowing what else to say. It was hard for her to imagine such a vehicle even existing.

Nolan smiled faintly. He wasn’t surprised by her reaction. It was like someone from the early Middle Ages suddenly seeing an airplane.

They would surely mistake it for a dragon. Since this was a fantasy world, it was only natural for Shion to think the train’s long body looked like a giant snake.

”It’s called a train, and its capabilities far surpass those of the conventional transportation the Red Rose Trading House is developing,” Nolan said meaningfully.

He then explained how the train worked, including its role as a means of public transportation.

The explanation lasted more than twenty minutes. Eliza and Luna listened attentively as well, their faces filled with curiosity about this vehicle called a train.

”That’s the general idea.”

Nolan finished his explanation and took a sip of his tea.

Shion sat there in a daze. A moment later, however, her face flushed with excitement. The train project was an enormous undertaking.

Instead of being intimidated, she was excited to get started.

”I understand,” she said, trying to contain her excitement. ”Leave it to me. With these blueprints, we can complete the construction in a few years and have it operational within five.”

Nolan waved his hand dismissively. ”There’s no need to rush. Perfection is our goal. I don’t want any incidents or accidents that could damage our reputation in the eyes of the public. I’ve set aside fifteen years for this project. Just take your time.”

Money was no longer Blue Moon’s primary goal. They were aiming to dominate the market across the entire continent.

It wasn’t going to be easy. There were countless trading houses all over the world.

Even though they weren’t as big as Blue Moon, many of them dominated their own kingdoms and empires. Without innovation, overtaking them wouldn’t be easy.

Nolan was confident that, sooner or later, they would achieve that goal.

Shion carefully rolled up the blueprint and nodded.

”As you command, Master.”

Nolan smiled in satisfaction before turning his gaze to Luna.

”By the way, Luna,” he said, ”you haven’t visited your grandmother in several months, have you? How about going back with someone?”

”Someone?” Luna asked in surprise. ”Who?”

Nolan took a sip of his tea before replying calmly, ”The Singularity of Chaos.”