Day Three.
Morning.
The weather remained clear.
For the Northveil Directorate, going several consecutive days without a blizzard was already considered a stroke of luck.
Irina left earlier than usual.
The place they were heading to today was not an ordinary tourist area.
It was one of the true core facilities of the Northveil Directorate.
The underground geothermal zone.
It supplied most of the nation's energy and served as the power source for many critical facilities.
As a result, its access clearance was far higher than that of ordinary areas.
At exactly seven.
Irina arrived at the visitor accommodation area.
Not long after, Lucian also walked out of the building.
The two exchanged a simple greeting.
Irina handed him a temporary access pass.
"You'll need this today."
Lucian took it.
He gave it a brief glance.
The clearance level was clearly much higher than it had been over the previous two days.
There was even a time limit.
"Looks like this isn't an ordinary tourist area."
Lucian said.
"It isn't."
Irina replied.
"Many areas aren't normally open to the public."
"If special approval hadn't been granted."
"I wouldn't be able to take you inside either."
The two then headed toward the transit station.
The train departed soon after.
Unlike the ordinary lines, this route had very few passengers.
Most of those inside the carriage were staff members.
Along the way, they passed through several security checkpoints.
Identity verification.
Clearance confirmation.
Armed security patrols.
The entire process was far stricter than it had been during the previous two days.
Lucian quietly observed everything.
He showed no impatience.
Forty minutes later.
The train stopped.
A massive lift platform appeared before them.
Heavy steel structures covered the entire space.
After the staff completed the final verification.
The platform slowly descended.
At first.
There was little noticeable change.
But as the depth increased.
Lucian gradually sensed something unusual.
The temperature was rising.
It was not heat produced by heating equipment.
It was coming from the environment itself.
The surrounding air grew warmer and warmer.
Even the walls carried a faint warmth.
The numbers continued changing.
Underground Level Five.
Ten.
Fifteen.
Twenty.
The descent still did not stop.
Finally.
Accompanied by a deep mechanical rumble.
The platform slowly came to a halt.
The massive blast doors opened to both sides.
The next second.
A gigantic underground space appeared before them.
Even Lucian's gaze paused for a moment.
Because the scene before him was completely different from what he had imagined.
This was not an underground facility.
Nor was it a shelter.
It was a real city.
Wide roads stretched into the distance.
Multi-level structures were connected to one another.
Transport rails ran throughout the entire area.
Vehicles constantly moved back and forth.
Lights covered the entire space.
In the distance, residential buildings and commercial facilities could even be seen.
Countless people worked here.
Lived here.
Studied here.
Everything operated in perfect order.
It was as if a city from the surface had been moved underground intact.
Irina looked at Lucian.
She noticed that he was observing the distance.
"Surprised?"
she asked.
Lucian nodded.
"Much larger than I expected."
"Most people who come here for the first time say the same thing."
Irina replied.
"In reality."
"More than half of the Northveil Directorate's population lives underground on a long-term basis."
"The surface environment is too unstable."
"The underground is actually safer."
The two continued forward along the passage.
They passed through several different areas.
Schools.
Hospitals.
Commercial streets.
Maintenance centers.
Public service halls.
There were even small parks.
Children were playing in activity areas.
Elderly people sat on benches chatting.
Students carrying schoolbags walked toward their schools.
If it were not for the steel dome visible overhead.
It would have been difficult to realize that this place was underground.
Lucian took everything in.
He said nothing.
But his thoughts continued to turn.
What was the greatest challenge of underground life?
Energy.
As long as there was enough energy.
Lighting.
Heating.
Water supply.
Agriculture.
Everything could be solved.
And the city before him had been operating for decades.
That meant the Northveil Directorate possessed an extremely stable energy system.
They continued forward.
An agricultural zone gradually appeared in their field of view.
Massive artificial farms stretched into the distance.
Rows of lights hung from the ceiling.
Automated irrigation systems operated in an orderly manner.
Workers drove equipment back and forth on inspection routes.
All kinds of vegetables were growing well.
There was even a distinct scent of vegetation in the air.
"This supplies roughly thirty percent of the nation's vegetables."
Irina explained.
"There are several other farms like this in different areas."
Lucian looked at the equipment.
Then at the lighting systems.
"That's a huge energy consumption."
"Yes."
Irina nodded.
"That's why energy has always been the nation's most important issue."
They continued forward.
A transportation center came into view.
Rail transport vehicles constantly traveled back and forth.
Food.
Machine parts.
Medical supplies.
Industrial materials.
All cargo was transported along fixed routes.
The entire process was exceptionally efficient.
Lucian noticed one detail.
There were almost no unused areas here.
Storage space was utilized to its fullest.
Transportation routes had been precisely planned.
Even the paths used by workers were highly efficient.
This was the result of long-term optimization.
It was also a reflection of a nation's management capabilities.
Before long.
The two arrived before a massive metal blast door.
Bright red warning signs covered the entire wall.
GEOTHERMAL CORE ZONE
Access verification began.
After several rounds of confirmation.
The blast door slowly opened.
The next second.
A roar surged toward them.
Deep.
Continuous.
As if some enormous creature were breathing.
The air temperature rose noticeably.
Steam constantly erupted in the distance.
Massive metal pipes ran throughout the entire space.
They stretched all the way to the edge of visibility.
Countless machines were operating.
Monitoring screens continuously refreshed their data.
Warning lights slowly flashed.
Workers moved between the equipment.
The entire area seemed to possess a life of its own.
This was the heart of the Northveil Directorate.
The place that truly supported the entire nation.
Lucian stopped.
His gaze swept across the enormous facilities.
"What is the source of the energy?"
he asked.
Irina shook her head.
"I don't know everything either."
"I only know that it comes from deeper below."
"The exact mechanism is classified information belonging to the Energy Department."
Just then.
A voice came from the side.
"Because no one truly knows what's at the deepest level."
A middle-aged engineering supervisor walked over.
A senior engineer's identification badge hung from his chest.
He was clearly responsible for receiving visitors.
"Welcome to the Geothermal Core Zone."
the supervisor said.
He then led the two to an observation platform.
From there, they could overlook most of the facility.
Countless pipes extended in every direction.
Like blood vessels.
Connecting the entire nation.
"Several hundred years ago."
the supervisor slowly began.
"An exploration team discovered an unusually hot zone underground."
"The temperature was far beyond normal geothermal levels."
"After decades of development."
"It gradually became the energy system we have today."
He pointed toward the distance.
"More than eighty-two percent of the nation's energy comes from here."
"Heating."
"Agriculture."
"Industry."
"Residential districts."
"Almost everything depends on the Geothermal Core Zone."
Lucian looked into the distance.
"Will it eventually run dry?"
The supervisor smiled.
"That's a question every engineer asks."
"The answer is that we don't know."
"Throughout the several decades for which we have electronic records."
"Output has remained stable."
"There has been no obvious decline."
"At least, no one has discovered a problem so far."
At this point.
The supervisor paused for a moment.
His eyes turned toward the deeper areas.
"In fact."
"Even now, we don't know what exactly lies at the deepest level."
"We only know that it continues to release heat."
"And it has never stopped."
The air fell silent for a brief moment.
Lucian also looked into the distance.
Heavy facilities blocked the deeper areas.
Nothing could be seen.
Yet he remembered those words.
The unknown.
It often meant opportunity.
It also meant risk.
The tour continued for several hours.
During that time, they passed through several more control centers.
Maintenance workshops.
Backup energy stations.
It was not until the afternoon that the tour finally ended.
As they returned to the lift platform.
Lucian took one last look at the Geothermal Core Zone.
The enormous energy network was still operating.
It had never stopped for decades.
Like the heart of a nation.
Continuously delivering life throughout the Northveil Directorate.
By evening.
The two returned to the surface.
The last rays of sunset illuminated the snow-covered plains.
Irina escorted Lucian back to the visitor accommodation area.
"There are no fixed arrangements tomorrow."
Irina said.
"If there's somewhere you want to go."
"You can let me know in advance."
"All right."
Lucian nodded.
The two exchanged a simple farewell.
Irina turned and left.
The corridor returned to silence.
Inside the room.
Lucian stood by the window.
He looked toward the distant lights.
His mind replayed everything he had seen today.
The underground city.
The agricultural system.
The transportation network.
The geothermal plant.
None of these things were particularly remarkable on their own.
What was truly remarkable was this.
They had been combined into a complete nation.
A nation capable of continuing to operate steadily under extreme environmental conditions.
Its resources were not abundant.
Its population was not particularly large.
Yet its resource utilization was astonishingly high.
This was not wealth.
It was efficiency.
And efficiency.
Was often more valuable than resources themselves.
After a moment.
Lucian took out his communications terminal.
He dialed an encrypted line.
Several seconds later.
An elderly voice came through.
"Young Master."
"Has the inspection been completed?"
The Jace Family elder asked.
Lucian looked toward the distant lights.
He remained silent for several seconds.
Then slowly spoke.
"Not yet."
The elder was slightly surprised.
"Did you discover something?"
Lucian calmly replied:
"The value of the Northveil Directorate."
"Has been seriously underestimated."
The other end of the communication fell silent.
"Raise the investment rating."
Lucian continued.
"By two levels."
The elder clearly paused for a moment.
"Reason?"
Lucian looked toward the distance.
His voice remained steady.
"Limited resources."
"But extremely high utilization efficiency."
"Stable infrastructure."
"A stable social structure."
"An energy system with long-term value."
"Future returns are higher than expected."
The elder carefully recorded everything.
Then nodded.
"Understood."
"When will you return?"
Lucian was silent for a moment.
The underground city appeared in his mind.
The geothermal plant.
And the young girl named Irina.
Finally.
He slowly spoke.
"In a few more days."
"I still need to observe."
The communication ended.
The room returned to silence.
Outside the window.
The lights of the Northveil Directorate remained illuminated.
Like a flame in the middle of a freezing night.
Quiet.
Stable.
Yet far more dazzling than the outside world had ever imagined.