Surveying

The following morning, a new sign appeared outside one of the temporary wooden buildings beside the construction site of Helmarte Machine Works.

Survey and Design Office.

The words were painted in black and still smelled of fresh ink.

Several workers stood outside, staring at it with confused expressions.

One of the machinists scratched his head. "What exactly do we do here?"

Ernest, who had just stepped out of the building carrying a stack of papers, looked at him.

"We solve problems."

The worker blinked.

"By building steam engines?"

"Among other things."

The answer only made him more confused.

Inside the office, tables had been arranged in rows. Maps hung from the walls. Measuring rods, rulers, compasses, ink bottles, and bundles of paper occupied nearly every available surface. The room looked less like a workshop and more like a place where scholars and merchants happened to collide.