The Barony of Ironspur mine was a death trap built on bad faith and worse geometry. The main shaft plunged deep into the mountain, forcing miners to haul heavy, low-grade ore up a steep, muddy incline. Every trip was a massive expenditure of man-hours and energy.
Elias, armed with chalk, a measuring cord, and the ever-present MAOI floating in his vision, spent the entire morning in the mine, ignoring the damp chill.
MAOI Analysis: [Mine Transport System] Efficiency Rating: 7%. Critical Flaws: Incline Angle Unoptimized, Friction Loss: 65%, Manual Labor Reliance: 90%.
"Seven percent! That's an insult to inefficiency!" Elias raged, kicking a loose rock.
Sir Kaelen stood patiently beside him, his armor miraculously dust-free. (Internal Monologue): "My Lord is speaking in percentages again. I believe this is a new form of dark summoning. I should be fighting a dragon, yet I am here counting his sticks."
Elias ignored his knight's silent judgment. He looked up the main shaft. The solution was simple, beautiful, and utterly reliant on physics: The Inclined Plane and Counterweight System.
He began barking orders: "We are going to divide this shaft into two parallel lanes. On the left, a cart of raw ore goes up. On the right, an empty cart, weighted with a massive iron counterweight, goes down. The descending weight will provide the potential energy needed to haul the ascending load!"
The miners, led by the bewildered but now slightly less skeptical Gark, were set to work carving grooves into the rock floor. Elias meticulously directed the construction of a simple axle and brake system at the top of the mine, demanding perfect circularity and minimal friction loss.
"The wheels must be perfectly aligned! If the angle is off by even one degree, the energy transfer will be ruined, and the whole mechanism will fail!" Elias yelled. His passion wasn't for mining; it was for optimal output.
By noon, the axle was spinning, the brake was calibrated, and the two massive carts were connected by a thick, treated rope running over the axle. The men were about to test the system when a commotion started near the mine entrance.
A blinding flash of shimmering, blue light preceded a figure striding into the cavern. It was a handsome young man, draped in silken robes embroidered with arcane runes, carrying a staff that glowed faintly.
"I am Arch-Apprentice Zephyr of the Azure Tower!" the man announced dramatically, his voice echoing. "I was sent by the neighboring Lord to investigate rumors of heretical energy signatures emanating from this region."
Zephyr immediately spotted the Baron, covered in sweat and chalk, and the immense, gear-driven transport system.
"Good heavens!" Zephyr exclaimed, pointing his glowing staff at the axle. "What crude, barbaric magic is this?!"
Elias stared back, his expression a mixture of fatigue and utter disgust. He scanned the wizard.
MAOI Scan: [Target: Arch-Apprentice Zephyr] Efficiency Rating: 48%. Critical Flaws: Energy Source (Mana) Unstable and Inconsistent, Excessive Use of Fragile Decorative Materials, Unoptimized Footwear.
"Magic?" Elias scoffed. "There is no magic here, you brightly-dressed lump of inefficiency! This is physics! It's clean, predictable, and doesn't rely on some volatile, invisible fuel source."
Zephyr's face twisted in offense. "Physics? The laws of base matter? We Magi control the very elements! We summon fire and teleport across vast distances! You are wasting energy on gears and ropes, when a simple Levitation Spell could lift that ore cart with a flick of the wrist!"
Elias smirked, the Scum Tier 1 persona taking over. "And how much does that flick of the wrist cost, boy? How much does your mana regeneration rate slow when you're doing heavy lifting all day? Physics is free! Gravity is a tireless, unpaid worker! And my axle never unionizes!"
Zephyr was speechless. He turned to Kaelen, seeking validation.
Kaelen, whose own armor was powered by a low-grade magic enchantment, shifted uncomfortably. (Internal Monologue): "The wizard is arrogant, but the Baron is correct. The Baron's machine requires zero magical energy. Is this efficiency... purer than my sacred oath?"
"Watch, mage," Elias challenged. He instructed Gark to load the ascending cart with a full ton of iron ore. Then, he ordered two other miners to fill the descending cart with the precisely weighted iron ballast he had calculated.
Gark gave the signal. Elias nodded. He released the brake.
With a loud groan of rope and wood, the entire mechanism lurched into motion. The weight of the descending ballast cart pulled the rope, smoothly and continuously hauling the full ton of ore up the opposing shaft. The only sound was the rhythmic squeak of the axle—a noise that was, to Elias, the sound of pure, unadulterated profit.
The miners erupted in genuine cheers this time. They didn't see magic; they saw less back pain.
Elias pointed a grimy finger at the stunned Zephyr. "There! The full ton was raised in 2.5 minutes with the force of three men on the brake. How many of your precious, volatile mana points did it cost me? Zero! We have achieved a Mechanical Advantage of over 500%!"
Zephyr sputtered, his staff glowing brighter in anger. "I… I shall report this crude, materialist blasphemy to my Tower! You rely on mud and wood, Baron! What happens when the stone walls collapse? A simple Stone-Mend spell could fix it instantly!"
Elias laughed, a harsh, grating sound. He tapped the cavern wall nearest to them. "The stone will not collapse, wizard. Tomorrow, we use the pumped water to start mixing our new formula for Tension-Grade Structural Cement—a material that strengthens the surrounding rock and doesn't require a fussy mage to babysit it. Now if you'll excuse me, you're standing in my critical path. Get out of my mine."
Zephyr retreated in a cloud of offended, ineffective smoke.
Elias turned to Kaelen, his eyes twinkling. "See, Kaelen? Why fight a war with magic when you can just win the logistics battle?"
He grabbed his chalk and walked deeper into the tunnel. "Now, let's talk about ventilation. We need to introduce pressurized airflow. I need more timber, Kaelen, and this time, I need it curved. We're building a goddamn fan."