Steel and Mana

Chapter 285 – Refinement

We were sitting within the throneroom of my Palace, having a meeting between me, Sasha, Mikan, Merlin, my ministers, Paxon, and Marca, the latter who was responsible for most of our alchemical solutions, including medicine. We have been in the talks since morning, taking a few breaks here and there as we were facing a problem I had no real solution for. Refining oil. I know it surprised my ministers at first, but I wasn't omnipotent. I knew what I wanted; I just didn't know how to get it at the moment.

Sasha listened attentively while I explained everything to my people, even though she heard it twice already. It was a simple, concise overview of our newest resource. I described everything I knew about oil and what we could use it for, mainly focusing on its possible use in enhancing our military vehicles or opening up the avenue for us to develop newer, better variants, including machines that could fly without magic. A fine backup is needed when magic is blocked before us. It was mostly the latter that made everyone so excited.

Mikan had already checked the barrels, examining their content from the point of view of checking for magical traces. It turns out they were indeed from ancient beasts because she was sure that she could sense a magical presence in them. It was faint, very faint, but she told me she was sure because it gave off the same feeling as Mikki-2 being suppressed within her soul. As for how that would change things... we will only know if we succeed.

Returning to the room after a brief coffee break, Merlin was leaning back in his chair, his fingers drumming on the table's surface, deep in thought. Across from him, Marca looked slightly out of place, her hands stained from experiments and her hair perpetually in disarray. She was scribbling on a piece of parchment, writing down everything that was said before and putting it away for later review. Paxon sat next to her, leaning over sometimes, looking at her writings, refreshing his memories as the information I had given out since morning was indeed hefty to remember at once.

In our previous break, I did what I was best at: I drew a sketch. It was a rudimentary representation of a distillation tower.

“This,” I began, breaking the silence between us, “is roughly how we could break crude oil down into usable parts. Still, there will need to be proper and careful tests and examinations."

This idea came from Marca. From her experience, oily substances could be refined, distilled, or separated. It is just the question of how sophisticatedly we can do it. Watching my drawings, she only hummed, reading them, and noticed that this one would be bigger than anything she had worked with before.

"We can make this. And quickly." Paxon nodded, affirming it for me after checking the rough estimates of materials needed.

"If I am right," Marca spoke up, "we need to heat the crude oil until it separates into different layers. The lighter compounds should rise to the top, and the heavier ones stay at the bottom. IF this black oil indeed acts like anything else that I worked with. Different substances have different boiling points—this is a core idea in distillation. But…” She scratched her head, smearing more soot into her hair. “I’ve never worked with anything like this one. We don't know what these layers are... What is the required temperature for separating? We will fumble a lot at the start. And the fact it has traces of magic...”

“I roughly have an inkling of these layers." I mumbled, doing my best to recall the relevant information from the depths of my brain, but how to reach them eluded me. "The lightest part is something like gas—volatile, quick to burn, but not what we’re after. The middle section should be something called kerosene or diesel, which would be already good enough to power the engines I want to make. They could be refined even further, but we don't need to bother with that yet. The heavier parts—tar and asphalt—should be considered byproducts but still useful for other things. Like building roads.”

“How much of this stuff do we need to make?" Paxon asked as he frowned, crossing his arms. "Refining sounds labor-intensive, and even if we succeed, how much would we make from a barrel?”

“Start small,” Merlin interrupted, his voice commanding attention. “Before you worry about scale, we need to understand the process. If we can produce even a small amount of refined oil consistently, we can expand from there.”

"And we must consider safety." Sasha nodded, agreeing with him. “Heating such volatile substances… If something goes wrong, the consequences could be catastrophic. This refinery must be built elsewhere, where an explosion is not going to hurt Avalon.”

Her words made us fall silent once again. True. There could be accidents, especially if we are unsure of what we are doing. Edmund was lucky that he didn't blow up the school, but we can't bank on being lucky all the time. Mikan, who had been silent until now, finally also spoke up.

“Leon, have you considered using magic to stabilize the process? We can make formations that can regulate temperature or contain pressure. Even if you wish to avoid heavy reliance on magic in our production, small applications might make the difference between success and failure.”

“I’ve thought about it," I nodded, "but I’m wary. There are two reasons why. I want this process to be replicable even in places without magic-sensitive individuals or CC. I can't and don't want to establish a refinery in a foreign country in the future and have to send people and my magic technology over just for them to steal it. The second reason is more simple. You confirmed it has traces of magic in it. What if it reacts to interference and becomes even more volatile?”

“That’s fair,” She answered, “but we shouldn’t dismiss magic entirely. A formation to measure and regulate heat could act as a safeguard, especially in these early experiments, and it should be more useful than detrimental. Then, when we know more, we can phase it out.”

“A containment formation might also help with fumes." Marca agreed. "I don’t know much about this type of oil, but I imagine heating it would release vapors—and those could be flammable or toxic.”

“Exactly. Or both." Sasha also chimed in, agreeing, "Fumes are a problem. We need to vent and neutralize them safely while maintaining control over the heat.”

“Let’s talk practicality. We can add formations after the main structure is in place." Paxon leaned forward as it came to this, "If we’re building this distillation tower, what materials are we using? Stone? Metal? Both? Which one would not contaminate the process or could withstand the heat, pressure, and everything that comes with it?”

“Metal,” Merlin answered without hesitation. “Stone would crack under the heat, and we need something that can handle pressure.”

“Steel, then,” Paxon repeated, writing it down. “We’ve got plenty coming from the Silver Regions. But crafting a tower like this will still take a bit of time. It’ll require precision work, so I will need to drag out expert builders from our... current projects.” He said tactfully, trying to mention our hidden manufacturing place as little as possible.

“Of course.” I waved my hand, authorizing it immediately. "We’ll need to assemble the best craftsmen. Marca, you’ll oversee the chemical side. Paxon, coordinate with the blacksmiths. Sasha, can you design the tower in proper detail?”

“Yes.” She smiled, happy that I was entrusting this to her. “But I’ll need Marca’s input on the specifics. We’re dealing with temperatures and reactions I can’t fully predict." Listening to them, Merlin tapped his fingers on the table, his expression thoughtful, drawing my attention to him.

“Leon, you said the middle layer—kerosene or diesel—is what we need for engines. Could we refine the process to target just that?”

“Not easily,” I answered, but that was only my guess. “The process is about separation, but it’s not exact. We can't target only one layer; we need to reach it by continuously doing it. We’ll get a range of products no matter what. I know for a fact that we will have to do it over and over to get what we want.”

“So we must find uses for all the byproducts.” He concluded, hearing my explanation. "Even the flammable gases."

“Exactly. That’s how it should be done." I chuckled, happy that we all agreed on it without me needing to remind them, "Nothing goes to waste in Avalon.”

"We should make sure we secure Atuvia's oil fields." He continued, his eyes stern and commanding. Maybe it was a bit of his previous incarnation showing in his manner. "If we succeed, this is going to be just as invaluable as coal right now. We can't dilly-dally!"

“I thought of the same.” I hummed, scratching my chin. “It seeps to the surface in certain areas under the Goldlight and Quickfeet guilds' command. The supply should be sufficient for our initial experiments, but that is why I mentioned that I wanted it to be magicless. I will strive to get them to agree for us to build our refineries right at the source.”

“Then we move forward from here! Leave it to us, My Sovereign!” Merlin declared decisively. “Marca and Paxon, begin preparations. Lady Mikan, please work on a basic containment formation for safety reasons.”

“Will it really be this magical, Leon?" Mikan asked, turning to me with a curious expression. "Why do we need engines that use oil? Can't we just use the same as in the mechs? Or on the train? You’ve introduced so many advancements already. Steam should do the same... no? Why not continue with those?” Listening to her, I couldn't help but smile as my gaze turned distant.

“These types of engines are the next evolutional step. Steam is powerful, but it’s limited. With the newer engines, we can build machines that can travel farther and faster with more power. While in regular use, steam can be widespread, these new engines will boost our military prowess so we can stay on top. I can build single-person planes that can cross great distances, just as fast as Ishillian ships. Or faster. Of course, they wouldn't be as durable as magic-boosted constructs... but they would be dominating over regular armies nonetheless. Imagine if, from our future airship, little ones can fly out and do a much better reconnaissance than our current balloons? And that is only one example. And we can do this without magic... or in places where magic is suppressed.”

A silence fell over the room as they absorbed my words. It was a vision that felt both fantastical and inevitable, a glimpse of a future they could barely imagine. In the end, Sasha broke the reigning silence.

“One step at a time.” she smiled serenely. "We will get there. But, for now, we focus on refining the black blood of the earth!"

Hearing her say that, everyone rose, saluting towards us, their roles clear and defined. As they left the chamber, I lingered, already thinking about making some old—very old—car models. I always liked the look of those long-gone days when blocky yet colorful cars filled the streets. Heh... I wonder, if I call the first car I build Ford, would a third reincarnator suddenly pop up in my city, being very angry with me?