Argentina.
A documentary-style news report on Qua-Toyne was being broadcast on Argentine television.
"It has been four months since Argentina entered Qua-Toyne for the purpose of building a new port where our cargo ships can dock. However, how has the Argentine presence affected the inhabitants of this city?"
The images of the medieval city of Qua-Toyne began to be shown, showing the great variety of races in their daily life and then cut to a demi-human that belonged to the nobility or to some wealthy class.
"Thanks to Argentina, our country has gained access to the manufacture of cement and plaster for construction. With this and thanks to the simple working techniques of the Argentine workers, the works can be finished in a remarkably shorter period of time".
"How has Qua-Toyne been able to replicate the cement production successfully without the machinery?
"Let me show you."
After a cut, the scene shifted to a primitive cement factory of sorts.
"The grinding of the materials is done in this mill."
The camera showed a large windmill where several people were putting the raw material.
"Using the tear of the wind god we can make the mill powerful enough to pulverize it."
The camera focused on how this grinding was done and then moved on to another scene. In this one there were several magicians throwing flames of fire from a distance at a kind of spinning silo, also spinning thanks to the wind god's tear, .
"This is where the calcination takes place, the magicians continuously throw the fire into these openings until it reaches the right temperature to unify the components."
"But the temperature is 1500° Celsius! That is very dangerous!"
"Don't worry about that, we have wizards capable of healing!"
At that moment the scene changed to that of an older man in a suit in a library.
"Healing magic can only heal physical wounds, however it is not capable of healing things like a sickness caused by the environment or other reasons. Someone who has been exhausted by hunger or sleep will not see their energy recovered by magic. In other words magic is capable of healing deep burns but if a heat stroke leaves you on the verge of death then magic can do nothing."
As he finished saying that the scene changes to when the camera focused as one of the workers collapsed and was dragged away by another.
The cameraman was filming the workers who looked clearly exhausted. Then a voiceover began to narrate.
"This local cement industry is not the only impact Argentina has had. The presence of our country has had a strong impact on the guilds of the capital."
"The guild of builders and masons have ceased to exist." One craftsman spoke. "Not only because of the appearance of gray glue that facilitated the construction, but also the use of simple techniques of the Argentine workers to perform their work was the doom of those guilds. The influence and power of the guilds is based on the monopoly of their techniques and tricks to do the best job possible, so the guild with the best technique is also the most prestigious and expensive because they are the only ones to know it. But you Argentines don't seem to care that your secrets are revealed. Not only did you say how the cement was made but you also started to have local helpers not affiliated to the guild, learning the Argentinean construction techniques in weeks when learning to be a master in the guild takes a lifetime and then you did nothing when the lords hired those helpers, who not belonging to any guild were pressured to share those techniques. Now any lord, landowner or merchant can hire any inexperienced beggar at ridiculously low wages. No one uses the construction guilds anymore because anyone can quickly learn the simple Argentine construction techniques!"
The camera changes scene to that of a demi-human with canine features who claimed to be a craftsman in the masons' guild.
"What do you think of Argentina?" asked the journalist.
"The truth I have mixed feelings. On the one hand I have lost my job and I have to sell my labor force at 1/10 of what I was earning before, but then I find out that thanks to your country Louria has stopped trying to kill us demi-humans, so it is very likely that you have saved my life and that of my family. What I don't understand is why the Argentines were so careless with something so important."
Soon the scene changed again to introduce the man in the suit in the library.
"Medieval guilds, if we compare them with some modern association, fulfill the role of a workers' union. However, with the appearance of Argentina and the entry of new technologies and modern techniques of working to caused that the bosses can avoid the influence of the guilds. It may be that the manufacture of cement is expensive and the quality is expensive, however they recoup the investment by hiring anyone at a lower salary thanks to the little experience it takes to work with cement."
"But that means more people will have access to jobs." Commented the journalist.
"That is true, however the dismantling of the guilds also means that the new wage-earning class is exposed to precariousness and labor exploitation, and the more we get into Qua-Toyne the more guilds will be dismantled and we will be the indirect cause of the worsening of the living conditions of the population. It is a similar case to when the Spanish conquistadors brought cattle and other animals to America, Although these new sources of food were vital for the future development of the region also meant that the native population was decimated by diseases, only in our case instead of sending smallpox we will cause millions of people to end up working in semi-slavery conditions, without any labor rights in conditions dangerous to health just like in the beginnings of the industrial revolution."
"Do you think, then, that Argentina should keep as much distance as possible from the native nations?" The journalist asked.
"I don't think so, although it is true that our presence will cause suffering and celebration depending on who benefits or who is harmed, it is also true that keeping things as they are is not an option if we want to have a relationship of equals with the Rodenius content."
"What does that mean, Professor?"
"I will take the example of Quila, we seized large coal and oil deposits thanks to their ignorance about the potential of those materials. While not many have been scandalized by this due to the desperate situation of our nation at the time of being transported it is only a matter of time for people to denounce this situation for what it is: Imperialism. Maintaining the status quo means that outrageous agreements like the one in Quila continue to be made, in fact the government of Quila is already aware of the importance of those resources but is not able to pronounce against that treaty because they are afraid of us, we appeared on their shores with a destroyer and a helicopter and we showed them the great difference in power. That is why I am against the passage of the technological restriction law that the Senate wants to pass."
"They've already started talking politics." A middle-class man sits on his couch watching TV and changes the channel.
"During these 4 months there have been no major changes in the weather in Argentina even though we are in another part of the world, how is this possible?" Asked a journalist to a climatological scientist.
"The answer is simple, the answer is the Andes mountain range. The humid winds from the northeast collide with the mountain range and cause the humid wind to rebound towards the pampas region, while the humid air currents from the southwest collide with the mountain range and prevent them from entering Patagonia. This natural phenomenon is also something that was seen in our ancient world and is the reason why the north of Chile's climate is arid while the south was fertile, just the opposite of our country".
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"Does that mean that we can rule out the probability of some environmental disaster due to abrupt climate change?"
"Well, there will be some changes. Now our part of the mountain range has come into contact with the ocean. We are assessing the likelihood of sea water seeping through the mountains forming new rivers, flooding is likely to occur but we can..."
At that the television goes off due to a power outage.
"But holy shit, another power outage!"
Despite the continuous shipment of coal and oil from Qula, because the port had not yet been completed there was no way to send the necessary amount of resources to the country, so the energy crisis continued and scheduled power outages occurred in different parts of the country.
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Gahara.
"Mmm... Can't hear anything, we'll try this frequency. Try to tell us something again please." The Radio operator of the ARA Espora was manipulating the frequencies of the device.
"I'm getting tired of this, you humans can't communicate with us unless you are blessed by the dragon god." Said a deep and imposing voice that would make anyone who heard it tremble, a magnanimous voice that makes you shrug your shoulders and gives you the need to kneel as if you were in front of a divine authority.
The Argentines on the corvette who listened felt all that, remaining silent without believing what they were hearing. They were listening to a dragon speak.
"W-we made it..." Said in a trembling voice the radio operator. Then that fear turned to joy. "I found the frequency! We were able to hear you Lord Aquidah!"
"What?! Impossible!" The wind dragon sounded shocked and disbelieving.
"I can't believe we were able to communicate with a completely different species! If we were still on Earth I'd get a Nobel Prize for sure!"
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At night, while the humans slept, the wind dragons of the island gathered to begin debating among themselves.
"Mere mortals have gained access to our language! The humans of this island had to spend centuries under our wing before they could understand us!" commented a dragon with silver scales.
"Well if they managed to understand us in just one day then they are not mere humans." Replied a green and red feathered dragon.
"This doesn't make sense, I didn't see a trace of magic on those ships. They shouldn't even be able to have a communication device in the first place."
"Debating about this is not going to get us anywhere, we need to decide what we are going to do with the Argentines." Commented a red dragon.
"We must expel them, they have already made clear their intentions to tame us like pets!" One growled.
"They showed ignorance and a profound lack of respect by mistaking us for simple wyverns. However they apologized and tried to learn from us, I think we will be making a mistake if we expel them now." Commented the silver dragoness.
"I agree. the harvests in Gahara, Fenn and East Parlpadia were not very good due to the wet winds from the east not arriving. If we want to get food from Rodenius we have to get food to feed the humans under our protection, that means having a good relationship with the Argent." Replied the feathered dragon. "Besides, if we want to prepare for the inevitable arrival of the Ravernal Empire we can't continue to have the isolationist policy."
"What makes you think the Argentines can be of any help? It is clear that when it comes to magic they are as inept as the Muans are, besides we don't know if their intentions are good."
"I think I know how to solve the problem." Aquidah said. "Soon there will be the military festival in Fenn, we can bring the Argentines to the festival with those iron ships and then we can know if they are a worthwhile country."
"You're crazy! If the Parlpadians find out that the Argentines were in Fenn they could intervene, Fenn has not been able to meet the tributes because of the delay of the winds." The red dragon said in alarm.
"I agree with him, we cannot allow those Parlpadians to establish a military base so close to us."
"I know it's a long shot, but a clash between Fenn and Parlpadia seems inevitable, at least this way we can see how strong the Argentines are."
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Leiforia.
"After all that disrespect received in Paganda I never thought that in Leifor I would receive the Gra Valkas Empire so warmly." Prince Hilas said as he waited from a balcony for the naval demonstration to begin.
"Sir, you must keep in mind that they still see us as inferior." One of his aides commented.
"I know, but once they see the Ragna capital they will know our true potential. And with our new free trade agreement we can begin to expand our influence in this new world without worrying about getting some unpleasant experience with magic."
"I'm sure they proposed the free trade agreement because they think we have no industry of our own, what a surprise they're going to get when we take over their market for trying to take over ours." One of his officers laughed lightly.
At that, from the shipyard a ship covered in metal, with two smokestacks and combined masts was beginning to emerge.
"Th-that's an ironclad?!"
At that a voice began to be heard all over the place. Probably transmitted by magic.
"With a Beam of 23 meters, 100 meters long and a draft of ,8 meters. with an armour of 610 mm in the waterline belt 432 mm teak, 76 mm in deck and 508 mm in the citadel."
"Equipped with two turrets with two 406mm 80-ton guns with a range of 7,300 meters! Along with six 100mm guns and a range of 7,000 meters!"
Although that new ship shown was inferior to the Gra Valkas warships that doesn't detract from the fact that it impressed the delegation.
"They went from gunboats to a much more modern ship..."
"Still, these ships can't stand up to our fleet. Besides, they haven't said anything about torpedoes. They don't seem to know the concept."
At that, the ship began to fire its main batteries, hitting a mountain causing some large craters, the impact and damage caused was enough for the delegation to become alert.
"Wait a minute! Those cannons shouldn't cause that kind of damage, that muzzle-loading rifle could damage our destroyers! The obsolete ones sure but they still shouldn't have that power!"
Soon the doubt was answered by that voice that echoed throughout the place.
"The speed and range of the main cannons is, naturally, increased thanks to the mages! With their magic our ammunition can be lighter, which means it will travel faster and hit harder!"
"Magic in ammunition and weaponry, when I get back I'm going to write a report on implementing magic in the army and navy... I wonder what other surprises Leifor will have." Hilas said relieved that he had chosen the diplomatic route.
The naval demonstration continued, like the weight or the speed of the ship, 12 knots and that it is powered by coal engines.
"Gentlemen." The voice spoke again. "The demonstration is about to end, surely all of you still have many questions. But surely the main one is how many of these are we going to produce?"
As he said these words, out of the sea began to appear a great variety of these types of ships where before there was only water. It was as if a lens had been removed to show the presence of 20 ironclads similar to the one demonstrated.
Upon witnessing this, the Gra Valkas delegates felt a shiver run through their bodies, those ironclads had appeared as if it were a mirage, as if by magic.
"For God's sake! They used magic to make those ships invisible?!" One of the officers said trembling.
"With those new rifles and artillery they could cause us heavy casualties if they ambush us, a guerrilla war would be too costly for us if the use of invisibility magic is expanded to their land army."
"If we could get that magic... The glorious Atlastar appearing off enemy shores all of a sudden." One of the officers was imagining that scene.
However that was not possible, to turn something as massive as a ship invisible would require the entire crew to be made up of mages focusing on keeping the ship invisible, with no one to take care of operate the ship. This had only been a presentation with the purpose of generating surprise in the eyes of the world.
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Esthirant.
"Damn it!" Emperor Ludios threw down his golden chalice in fury, he was witnessing Leifor's presentation thanks to the magi-feed broadcast device. "Those Leiforian dogs want to take away our third power position!"
The emperor's anger made everyone alert, fearful of angering the ruler in some way.
"Your majesty, it is clear that, technologically, Leiforia has been able to surpass us, but we must not forget that the second civilization is quite inept when it comes to magic. All the nations of the second civilization have tried to follow the example set by the mechanic-technological nation of Mu, in doing so they neglected magical research and development. This added to the Muan paranoia about publicizing their mechanical advances has caused the third civilization as a whole to surpass the second. With this demonstration Mu to take further steps to prevent further leakage of its technology." Explained Elt, the director of the First Foreign Affairs Department.
"That's right your majesty, they may have stolen outdated technology from Mu but more importantly, our air force is still superior to anything the second civilization has to offer, including Mu. Our wyverns overlords are unstoppable in the sky and will tear apart any ship at sea." Said Imperial Navy Commander-in-Chief Barth.
"Exactly my Lord, the army is not afraid of those new Leiforian rifles either. Our land dragons can withstand point-blank shots just fine." Who was speaking this time was Arde, Supreme Commander of the Imperial Army.
Hearing this the emperor began to calm down, relaxing and breathing slowly. "I have done well to surround myself with wise people like you. I must not be disturbed by the small advances of our rivals. Changing the subject, is there any news about Argentina, Kaios?"
"No your majesty, however we have news about Fenn, apparently they will refuse to deliver the tribute this year. We plan to send the subjugation army during the military festival in two weeks, this way everyone will witness what happens when we are challenged."
"Perfect. First Argentina, then Leifor and now Fenn, we can't allow more nations, especially barbarians, to disrespect us like this."
"You are absolutely right, your majesty. I request permission to send an ultimatum to Altaras for the delivery of their magic stone mines the moment we attack Fenn. This way they will receive news of the attack at the time they have to decide so they will know what will happen if they refuse."
"Oh, why this interest in Altaras so sudden? Director Kaios."
"The magic gem mines are vital if we are to develop our military projects. However, I have discovered that Mu has opened an airport on Altaras. I fear that the longer we wait, the more powerful nations will appear to threaten our dominance in the Philiades."
As he said this, the room fell into a tense silence again for a few moments, now Mu was also getting involved in their sphere of influence.
"You speak the truth. What happened with Argentina in Rodenius has been seen as a sign of weakness. We must move quickly and seize Altaras immediately after attack Fenn."