The river never stopped flowing.
Day after day.
Season after season.
It carried fresh water through Oakridge, feeding the fields before disappearing into the forests beyond Blackwood.
Yet beside that same river stood a mill that hadn't turned in years.
The giant wooden wheel leaned to one side, half submerged in the current. Moss covered its supports, while vines crept through cracks in the stone foundation. Every time the water struck the broken paddles, the wheel groaned, as if reminding the village what it used to be.
Kael stood silently, studying it.
He wasn't looking at a ruin.
He was looking at opportunity.
The young man who had introduced himself as Ethan scratched the back of his head.
"You've been staring at it for ten minutes."
Kael smiled.
"I'm thinking."
"About fixing it?"
"About why no one did."
Ethan laughed, but there was no humor behind it.
"That's easy."
"No one had the money."
"No one had the authority."
"And eventually..."
He looked toward the village.
"...no one had hope."
Kael didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he walked toward the massive wheel and placed his hand against the damp wood.
It crumbled beneath his fingers.
Rot.
Years of neglect.
This wasn't a repair.
It would have to be rebuilt.
Bram slowly walked around the structure, inspecting every beam like an experienced craftsman.
He crouched beside one of the stone supports before knocking against it with the handle of his shovel.
Knock.
Knock.
A dull sound echoed back.
"The foundation is still solid."
Kael looked over.
"You can tell from that?"
Bram nodded.
"My father built mills."
"I built them with him."
He stood and wiped the dirt from his hands.
"The wheel is finished."
"The axle is cracked."
"The gears inside are worn smooth."
"But..."
He looked around one more time.
"...the bones are good."
Kael smiled.
"So we don't need a new mill."
"We need to bring this one back to life."
Bram's weathered face broke into the faintest smile.
"For the first time in years..."
"I think someone finally asked the right question."
Ethan stared between the two men.
"You... actually know how to fix it?"
Bram shrugged.
"I know enough."
Ethan blinked.
"Then why hasn't anyone—"
"Because nobody asked."
The answer was simple.
Painfully simple.
By now, several villagers had gathered nearby.
At first it was only curious children.
Then a few farmers.
Then merchants closed their stalls for the afternoon.
Within half an hour...
Nearly thirty people stood watching.
Nobody interrupted.
They simply watched the strangers inspect something everyone else had long since accepted as dead.
An elderly woman stepped forward.
Her cane sank slightly into the muddy ground.
"My husband used to work this mill."
Her voice trembled.
"He said this wheel fed every family in Oakridge."
She smiled sadly.
"When it stopped..."
"So did the village."
Kael looked toward her.
"What happened?"
She sighed.
"The axle snapped."
"We asked for help."
"The Baron's office said repairs were too expensive."
"So they closed it."
"And that was that."
"No one ever came back."
Kael frowned.
"Did they at least send engineers to inspect it?"
The old woman laughed.
A bitter laugh.
"My lord..."
"They never even came to see it."
Silence settled over the riverbank.
Kael looked toward the villagers gathered around him.
Most had their arms crossed.
Some looked hopeful.
Others looked skeptical.
They'd been disappointed too many times.
He understood why.
Hope was expensive.
Failure had become free.
The system quietly activated.
"Analysis Complete"
Infrastructure Failure Confirmed
Primary Cause:
Government Neglect
Secondary Cause:
Administrative Corruption
Recommendation:
Restoration Project Viable
Estimated Cost:
Low
Estimated Long-Term Benefit:
Very High
Kael dismissed the screen.
He already knew his answer.
He turned toward the crowd.
"Does anyone here know woodworking?"
No one answered.
The villagers exchanged uncertain glances.
Finally...
An older man slowly raised his hand.
"I used to."
"What do you mean... used to?"
"My eyesight isn't what it was."
Another voice spoke up.
"I can shape timber."
A third.
"I worked with my father."
Then another.
"I repaired fishing boats."
One by one...
Hands began to rise.
Not because they believed the mill would be rebuilt.
But because someone had finally asked what they could do.
Kael smiled.
"There it is."
Edwin looked confused.
"What is there, Your Highness?"
"The beginning."
Lily stepped closer.
"I don't understand."
Kael looked around the gathering crowd.
"When people lose hope..."
"They stop believing they can change anything."
He pointed toward the raised hands.
"They still have their skills."
"They just forgot."
Walter arrived carrying two younger boys beside him.
"I heard what you're planning."
Kael nodded.
"I'm planning to repair the mill."
Walter rubbed his beard.
"You're missing one problem."
"What problem?"
"Timber."
"The forest belongs to Baron Halwen."
"No one is allowed to cut trees without paying his office."
Another obstacle.
Another fee.
Another chain keeping Blackwood poor.
Kael wasn't surprised anymore.
Everything led back to the same place.
He looked toward Edwin.
"How much woodland belongs to Blackwood Manor?"
Edwin thought for a moment.
"Quite a lot."
"Enough?"
"More than enough."
Kael smiled.
"Good."
Edwin suddenly understood.
His eyes widened.
"Your Highness..."
"You intend to use our own timber?"
"Why not?"
"The manor barely uses it."
"But..."
Edwin hesitated.
"The Baron may object."
Kael's smile disappeared.
"This is my territory."
"My family's land."
"If the law says I can't repair a village with my own trees..."
"Then I'll ask the Emperor himself whether that's truly the law."
No one spoke.
The confidence in his voice wasn't arrogance.
It was certainty.
A little boy tugged on Kael's sleeve.
It was the same child whose mother had been shoved aside during the tax collection.
"Mister..."
Kael knelt beside him.
"Yes?"
"Will the wheel really move again?"
The entire crowd fell quiet.
Everyone waited for Kael's answer.
He looked at the broken mill.
Then at the rushing river.
Then back at the child.
"It won't."
The boy's shoulders slumped.
Kael smiled.
"It won't..."
"...unless all of us make it move."
The boy blinked.
"What do you mean?"
Kael stood and looked at every face gathered before him.
"I can bring the timber."
"Bram can guide the repairs."
"But one man doesn't build a mill."
"A village does."
His voice carried across the riverbank.
"If you're willing to work..."
"I'll work beside you."
"If you're willing to rebuild..."
"So am I."
"No one will do this for you."
"But..."
He placed a hand over his chest.
"...you won't do it alone."
For several heartbeats...
No one moved.
Then Walter stepped forward.
"I'll help."
The old carpenter nodded.
"So will I."
Ethan smiled for the first time since Kael had met him.
"I know this river better than anyone."
"I'll help too."
One by one...
More voices joined.
"I'll bring tools."
"I still have my father's saw."
"I can cook for the workers."
"My sons are strong enough to carry logs."
The riverbank that had been silent for years slowly filled with conversation.
Plans.
Ideas.
Laughter.
Not loud laughter.
But enough.
Enough for Kael to notice.
Enough for hope to begin returning.
As the sun dipped below the hills, the villagers slowly made their way home.
Kael remained by the river.
Watching the water.
Watching the broken wheel.
The system appeared one final time.
"Hidden Objective Progress"
The First Companions
Progress: 1/12
A leader's greatest strength is not commanding people...
It is giving them a reason to stand beside him.
Kael smiled.
"So..."
"It begins."
Far away, high on a hill overlooking Oakridge, a lone rider lowered a brass spyglass.
He had watched everything.
Every conversation.
Every smile.
Every promise.
Without another word, he turned his horse toward the capital.
Baron Halwen would soon learn...
The forgotten Tenth Prince wasn't rebuilding a mill.
He was rebuilding the people's faith.
And that...
Was far more dangerous.