Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World - Chapter 415

Chapter 415: The Textile Mill 2

TL: Etude Translations

Seeing Seviya’s puzzled expression, Ladi continued, “Take farmers as an example. Thousands of years ago, they toiled in the fields day after day, with little leisure time throughout the year. The majority of their hard-earned harvest had to be submitted to their lords. Thousands of years later, they still labor day after day in the fields, with barely any of their harvest left for themselves. To us, their lives seem monotonous and dull, but this is how they have lived for centuries.”

“And do you know what proportion of farmers make up in our human civilization?” she asked.

Seviya was stumped by Ladi’s question. She didn’t know the percentage of farmers in the human population, nor had she ever thought about it.

“Do you know?”

Ladi shook her head and said, “If we consider the entire human population, I don’t know the exact figures either. However, the Northwest Bay recently established a Statistical Committee led by Count Ganard, and they have provided a rough estimate for the region. Farmers, or the agricultural population, make up over ninety percent of the total population. I believe it’s similar in other parts of the world.”

“And in the remaining so-called urban population, if we exclude those whose situations are similar to the farmers, the so-called extraordinary people or the elite of humanity, I guess they make up less than one percent of the human population.”

With a laugh, Ladi added, “And yet, it’s these less than one percent who occupy most of the pages in our history books.”

After saying this, she looked intently at Seviya, “So, what do you think? Do the one percent of human elites represent the human world, or do the ninety-nine percent of ordinary people? And if you support the latter, as I just mentioned, the lives of ordinary people haven’t changed much in thousands of years. So, have we, the extraordinary ones, ever really changed history and the world?”

Seviya was speechless. “How would I know?”

She instinctively wanted to answer that of course the one percent of elites represent the human world, but something felt off. If there were no ninety-nine percent of ordinary people, could humanity still exist as a race? She pondered further, thinking about who would provide food and do physical labor if there were no farmers in the countryside and no laborers in the cities.

Ladi continued, “For thousands of years, kingdoms have risen and fallen, leaving countless grand and tragic epics. Evil has been vanquished by heroes, writing many legends. But what do these have to do with the lives of ordinary people? Who becomes king or hero doesn’t change their lives in the slightest.”

After thinking for a while, Seviya, considering the Azure Witch wouldn’t bring her here for no reason, guessed, “Then, do you believe the power you recognize is related to these machines here?”

“Yes, my sister,” Ladi answered without hesitation.

“Not just these machines, but also what they represent—a more abstract, deeper concept. It allows ordinary people to unleash great power and use it to radically change their lives.”

Seviya shook her head, “I don’t understand. Aren’t these machines just for producing more cloth? How can they change the lives of ordinary people?”

“Haha, perhaps for someone of your class, clothes are just something easily bought. But for those who can only afford to wear decent clothes on festive occasions, it’s not the same. And this is just one aspect,” Ladi explained.

Saying this, Ladi gestured towards the factory.

“Sister, look at the people working here. What characteristics do they share?”

Seviya began to observe as Ladi suggested.

“The workers here… more than half of them are women?”

Seviya quickly noticed the characteristic Ladi was referring to.

“Exactly!” Ladi nodded in confirmation.

“Since the beginning of recorded history, the domestic status of women hasn’t changed much. Women like you and me, who can choose their fate within a relatively free range, are rare. The reason is simply that in this era, which mainly relies on physical labor, women, due to physiological limitations, generate far less wealth than men.”

“Although weaving has traditionally been dominated by women, the inefficiency of traditional looms and the family-based production model meant that their earnings were still far less than what their husbands could make from farming or laboring. But now, things are different. With the introduction of these new types of looms, they can generate wealth worth ten times more than before, and their wages have significantly increased. This, in turn, leads to increased say and status in their families, making men think twice before raising a hand to their wives, considering that their wives can now support themselves without depending on them.”

“This is indeed a first in the history I am aware of.”

After careful thought, Seviya had to admit this point.

“Exactly. If new technologies like these, which can multiply labor efficiency, become widespread, their impact on humanity in terms of breadth and depth will be much greater than any heroic adventure or the casting of a few spells.”

As Ladi spoke of the significance, her gaze followed Paul’s figure; all of this was brought about by that man.

“My sister, Lord Grayman once told me that the events which truly have a profound impact on history often seem like trivial matters to the people of the time. In my view, the appearance of these machines is one such trivial matter. And in Northwest Bay, or more precisely in Alda, there are many more such ‘trivial matters.'”

Ladi’s mind flashed with images of telescopes, microscopes, papermaking, printing presses, harvesters, firearms, and other inventions by Paul.

“In the future, you will witness these in Alda, and these are the powers that ordinary people can wield. They don’t need noble bloodlines or magical talents. Just by forming a certain scale, they can unleash energy that we couldn’t have imagined before.”

She approached Seviya, who was still in a state of shock from her words, took her hand, and said earnestly, “I hope you and your companions can put aside the arrogance of being spellcasters and join me in witnessing and participating in the beginning of a new history. Then you will realize that our influence on this world is not much stronger than that of ordinary people, or perhaps… we are part of them.”

Seviya looked into Ladi’s sincere eyes and nodded solemnly.

“Although I still have some conflicts in my heart about what you’ve said, I will give it a try.”

The two shared a smile as they overheard Paul conversing with the factory owner.

“How are the sales of your cloth?”

“Very good. Our prices are too competitive. None of those small family workshops elsewhere can compete with us.”

…

Hi, our release rate for nor will be 4 chapters a week. If there is high readership, it will increase to 7/week.