Chapter 857: Invention with Heart ( 857 )
Javier snapped his fingers. "Yes. But that’s nothing compared to what we can do with mass production."
He reached into his pouch, pulled out a small coin, and flicked it into the air.
"Now imagine this, each piece of chocolate costs around 20 copper to make. We sell it at 50 copper. So let’s say after paying for transport, packaging, shop fees, and everything else, we still make around 15 copper profit per unit."
Liana raised an eyebrow. "Only 15?"
"Now multiply that by 100,000 people. Or 300,000. Or a million, eventually."
He turned to them with a grin.
"Fifteen copper profit from one person doesn’t sound like much. But fifteen copper times a million customers?"
Gloria’s eyes widened. "That’s... 15 million copper...!"
"Or 1,500 gold coins," Liana whispered, quickly counting on her fingers.
Javier chuckled and folded his arms. "Exactly. And that’s every month. Not only that—because it’s affordable, people will buy it often. Again and again. Not once a year like nobles."
He walked up behind them and lightly poked both their foreheads.
"You two are thinking like nobles. I’m thinking like a merchant king."
Both girls blinked, then slowly looked at each other.
Then he cleared his throat, shifting back into his smug, business mode.
"Ahem. Anyway, like I mentioned earlier, there will be different tiers of chocolate," he said, raising a finger like a lecturer. "The basic version uses just three ingredients. Anyone can make it at home. It’s cheap, easy, and perfect for daily treats."
He pointed at the mold in front of them.
"Then we have premium types, with added ingredients like nuts, honey, milk, or dried fruit. Higher quality, better presentation, slightly more expensive."
"And lastly~ " he made a dramatic sweep with his hand "The royal-tier desserts. Perfectly shaped, decorated, boxed, and branded. Sold only at certain shops, made in Armand’s soon-to-be-built chocolate factory."
He paused, then gave an exaggerated yawn. "Which Father will definitely take over, because paperwork is a cursed art I refuse to master.~"
Liana and Gloria exchanged blank stares.
"...He said that so proudly," Gloria muttered.
"...And so casually irresponsible," Liana added.
Javier ignored them and continued cheerfully, "With factory production, we can create chocolates for all walks of life. Commoners, merchants, nobles, royalty. Different taste, texture, and price points."
"But, Young Master," Gloria asked, tilting her head, "if the recipe is public and the ingredients are simple... won’t that mean anyone can just copy it and sell it themselves?"
Javier grinned wider, then slowly leaned in.
"Ah~ but that’s where you’re both missing the bigger picture."
He tapped the table lightly.
"Sure, people can make it at home. But large-scale production? That needs ingredients. And where do those ingredients come from?"
Liana blinked. "From... the market?"
"And who supplies the market?" Javier asked, raising a brow.
They paused.
"...Don’t tell me," Gloria said.
Javier spread his arms proudly. "The Armand Region, of course!"
He stood up and began pacing like a smug merchant prince.
"Cocoa powder and sugar, those are the two core ingredients. And our land, as you both know, is massive. Towns and villages make up what? Ten to twenty percent at most?"
He pointed out the window, gesturing to the rolling forests beyond.
"The rest is untapped territory. Forested land just waiting to be cultivated. We can dedicate a portion to cocoa farms. Yes, it takes three years to bear fruit, but once it does, we’ll be the sole supplier of high-grade cocoa in the entire kingdom."
Liana’s eyes widened slightly. "So... even if others can make the chocolate..."
"They’ll be buying our cocoa to do it," Javier finished, smirking. "Which means we profit no matter what."
He flicked his fingers playfully. "Now, of course... other regions could try growing cocoa too. It’s not impossible. But growing the fruit is just the beginning."
He leaned forward, his grin widening.
"They’ll still need the machines to process it. And guess who’s the only one with those machines?"
Liana blinked. "Armand?"
Javier snapped his fingers. "They can try to process it manually, sure... but good luck with that. If~ they have the knowledge."
He held up a finger, counting off.
"First, they’ll have to ferment the cocoa beans from the fruit. Then dry them carefully, under controlled temperature, otherwise they spoil. After that? Roast them evenly, winnow them to separate the shells from the nibs, grind the nibs into cocoa liquor, press that to extract cocoa butter, and finally grind the leftover cake into cocoa powder."
"Or... they could just sell the raw fruits to us, and let our factory do all the heavy work. With my genius invention~" he puffed his chest and tapped it twice "the entire process is done in one go. Fast, clean, efficient. Not even half a day needed."
He leaned back, tone dropping to a purr.
"So if other territories want to profit? They’ll either sell to Armand... or pay us royalties to use our system. Either way~" he made a coin-spinning motion with his fingers "Cha-ching."
Gloria chuckled softly. "You sound like a greedy merchant."
"Hey," Javier grinned. "A visionary. Greedy is optional."
He straightened up, fingers laced behind his head.
"Oh, and let’s not forget the coconut oil. You both know how important it is for making the chocolate smooth, right?"
Liana nodded. "It gives the texture and gloss, right?"
"Exactly. And who owns most of the coconut farms on the southern coast?"
"...Armand," Gloria answered, realizing.
Javier smirked. "Correct. So not only do we control cocoa, we also control the oil used in production. Our monopoly is practically built in."
He chuckled lowly. "Heh... from fruit to oil, everything comes back to Armand."
Then, suddenly, his grin softened into a calm, serious expression.
"But more importantly," he said, his voice lower, thoughtful, "this project creates jobs."
Liana and Gloria blinked, taken aback by the shift in tone.
Javier looked out the open warehouse doors toward the farmers who were still tasting the leftover chocolates, their laughter echoing faintly in the distance.
"Once the cocoa farms and factories are running, we’ll need farmers, harvesters, inspectors, transporters, roasters, packagers... this opens up hundreds...maybe even thousands of job opportunities."
He turned back to them.
"If Armand’s current population can’t fill it, then we’ll offer the work to vetted refugees, those who’ve proven they live peacefully and have clean records."
His smile returned, softer now.
"No one should go hungry if there’s work to be done."
( End Of Chapter )