Chapter 105: The Railroad.


    After his meeting with his master,


    Delicate ss began to be invited to various ces.


    I knew you would be a great sess. His Majesty was very pleased with the steamship, wasnt he? At least you wont have to worry about research funding anymore.


    Are you thirty years old this year? There are only a few people who have achieved such a feat at such a young age. Im sure youll get one of the medals of the year. Ahem, by the way.


    Are you still unmarried? Do you have any interest in meeting my daughter?


    Haha


    From the first gathering he attended, Delicate ss received an enormous amount of attention.


    He had a hard time adjusting to this unfamiliar interest.


    And this continued wherever he went.


    The schrs of the Imperial University wanted to meet Delicate ss, who had invented and built the first steamship at a young age.


    My research must have been really sessful.


    He felt the difference in treatmentpared to before.


    He didnt mind the situation where people couldnt praise him enough.


    Thanks to that, he felt like a real genius.


    But Delicate ss shook his head and brushed off his prideful feelings.


    I cant be satisfied with just this.


    This interest would fade away over time anyway.


    Delicate ss wanted to obtain a huge reputation that wouldst forever, rather than this fleeting attention.


    Like his master, who started a new research after creating the great invention of the steam engine.


    His masters actions were a great lesson for Delicate ss.


    Thats why he joined the research on the sharp teeth after finishing his busy schedule for a few days.


    However, on his first day of joining, the researchers eyes were not very friendly.


    Oh, you must think our research is very easy since you achieved such a great sess at a young age. You said you would help us until your ownb opens.


    Maybe you can solve all the problems in a short time since youre a genius.


    Ha! This guy, I feel sorry for him.


    The researchers negative nces and whispers.


    The problem was that they spoke loud enough for him to hear.


    Delicate ss frowned.


    I dont mean it lightly. I just want to help my master


    It would have been a lie if he didnt have any pride, but that wasnt his essence.


    He wanted to convey his feelings, but he didnt because it sounded like an excuse.


    But not everyone was like that.


    Try to understand them. Theyre all sensitive because they keep failing and they dont see any hope for the research. Ill warn those who badmouthed you earlier, so just do your best.


    Thank you for your concern.


    Delicate ss felt some relief from the senior researchers constion.


    It was understandable that they would be frustrated if there was no progress in the research.


    The senior researcher kept his word.


    When Delicate ss returned after leaving his seat for a while, he didnt see any hostile attitudes anymore.


    Thanks to that, Delicate ss was able to check the research results so far with ease.


    Hmm


    And the more he checked these results, the more he empathized with the researchers despair.


    Theres no answer at this rate


    Especially recently, there was a new animal called a horse that could pull carts better than mas, and it was rising as an alternative fornd transportation.


    The steam lotive seemed even more useless.


    Do you see how hard it is?


    To be honest, yes.


    Delicate ss nodded at his masters question.


    His master smiled bitterly.


    It would be better to make the steam engine smaller and increase the size of the steam lotive, but thats not easy. Miniaturizing the steam engine is not something that can be done by wishful thinking, and increasing the size would damage the paved roads, even if we put rubber on the wheels. What do you think?


    I think thetter option is more feasible than the former, if we consider the possibilities.


    Making the steam lotive bigger, you mean?


    Yes.


    They both felt that there was no hope with the current small steam lotive.


    But erging the steam lotive was not only difficult because of the damage to the paved roads, but also because of theck of production technology and the risk of idents.


    The paved roads were always crowded with countless carriages and people.


    If arge steam lotive passed through such aplex ce


    It would kill many imperial citizens who are walking.


    Especially if it was a steam lotive that was still hard to control.


    Lets keep thinking of ways.


    Yes, master.


    After that, Delicate ss continued to have many conversations with other researchers, including Sharp Fangs, to find a solution.


    Thanks to that, his initial frustration subsided, but as time passed, he became more anxious.


    Theres not much time left


    He wondered if he could put his name on the development of the steam lotive within that time.


    Then one day.


    Delicate ss visited the architecture department to get some advice on the paved roads.


    But he didnt get a satisfactory answer from them. He just felt once again how hard it was to erge the steam lotive.


    Delicate ss left the deans office without any significant results.


    Im sorry I couldnt give you a satisfying answer.


    Its okay. I kind of expected this anyway.


    He said that and headed straight for the exit of the architecture department.


    At that moment.


    Wow. That building is very tall. But is it okay to build it so high?


    That one over there?


    Yes.


    The giant whale who volunteered to guide Delicate ss smiled as if to reassure him.


    Haha. Its very sturdy, you know. Do you see that?


    The giant whale pointed to an unfinished part of the structure, and Delicate ss squinted his eyes.


    And he saw it.


    The existence of numerous steel bars embedded inside the concrete.


    Recently, a lot of research has been done on thepatibility between concrete and steel bars. We call this method reinforced concrete construction. With this researchpleted, we will be able to easily build high-rise buildings that were difficult before.


    Wow. I see.


    Of course, its still far away.


    The giant whale sighed slightly.


    It was hard to use reinforced concrete construction unless they could producerge and uniform steel bars inrge quantities.


    Delicate ss listened to these detailed exnations and immersed himself in his own thoughts.


    Hmm. Supporting concrete with steel


    Steel was indeed an amazing material.


    Look.


    It was holding up a tall building without copsing.


    Thats why it was.


    Apletely new idea came to Delicate sss mind.


    What if Iy those steel bars on the ground instead of paved roads? Then maybe I could erge the steam lotive without breaking them.


    That thought crossed his mind for a moment.


    It felt like a random thought at first


    Wait.


    He thought for a moment and realized it wasnt entirely impossible.


    Whoosh!


    Why are you doing that? Do you feel unwell somewhere?


    Sorry, but I need to think for a bit.


    ?


    Delicate ss stopped in his tracks and immersed himself in his own world.


    What if Iy iron rails?


    He vaguely remembered hearing something about it.


    He heard that in the mines, they used wooden or iron rails to transport minerals more easily.


    Delicate sss mind spun rapidly.


    Ah! Why didnt I think of this before? I just need to make the iron rails bigger!


    That seemed to solve the problem of scaling up the steam engine, which had been holding it back.


    Of course, making the steam engine bigger would create a tremendous load, and he would need a lot of high-quality steel to support it, but


    Its worth a try.


    At least, it seemed like a way out of the current deadlock.


    ***


    What? You want toy iron on the ground?


    Yes, Master.


    As soon as he arrived at theb, Delicate ss hurriedly found Nalkaroon Ippal and told him his idea.


    Huh, what kind of


    At first, Nalkaroon Ippal was dumbfounded by his words, but after listening to Delicate sss exnation, his expression turned serious.


    His opinion sounded usible enough.


    Iron rails


    In the past, when the steam engine was first used to pump water out of the mines, Nalkaroon Ippal had worked in the mines for a while.


    And he had seen the rails himself.


    At that time, he was so focused on operating the steam engine for its purpose that he didnt pay much attention to it, but now that he thought about it again, it felt different.


    Haha. Im such a fool. Howe I didnt think of this when Ive seen it myself?


    He realized that the principle was the same whether he moved a cart on the rails with only the power of the steam engine or made arge steam engine that ran on iron rails that fit it perfectly.


    He had missed such an easy solution.


    He had also failed to solve the most important part when hepleted the previous steam engine. His brain couldnt keep up with it.


    But no matter who came up with it, the important thing was that he found a good solution.


    Hahaha. Youre amazing. Youve only joined theb for a short time and you came up with such an idea!


    Im d I could help, Master.


    This was how the concept of railway and steam lotive was first proposed and soon spread among the researchers.


    Of course, there were many people who were skeptical about it.


    This was becauseying iron rails would cost too much.


    It seems impossible to support the weight of arge steam engine with ordinary iron.


    Thats right. We need solid steel.


    Plus, we need to make them very precise to prevent derailment. If theyre even slightly off It could cause a terrible ident.


    Making the steam engine bigger would also require a lot of steel Even though the production of steel has increased thanks to the electric furnace, can we really meet this huge demand?


    The researchers were shocked by the amount of steel required when they made a rough estimate.


    It was fortunate that they had an electric furnace.


    If they didnt have one, they wouldnt even be able to imagine such an amount.


    As the focus shifted to the astronomical cost, Delicate ss raised his hand and argued.


    I admit that it will cost a lot at first. But if we make the steam engine run on iron rails, we can solve most of the problems that we had with it.


    Thats true.


    Also, once we make them, the efficiency will be different from what weve been doing withnd transportation.


    Swish!


    He unfolded a blueprint that he had brought from his pocket.


    There are many things connected behind the steam engine.


    Youre right. The steam engine will run on rails anyway. If we attach cargo cars behind it, we can move a lot of things at once, dont you think?


    Indeed.


    It seems possible.


    The researchers acknowledged Delicate sss n favorably.


    If we can move a lot of things onnd with only the power of the steam engine, it will save us a lot of money. The initial cost will be offset over time.


    Delicate ss clenched his fist and recited with a strong tone.


    Imagine it. A world where railways connect the maind. If that happens, the world will surely change!