Chapter 76
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Interlude: Paradox-Level Military Expert (2)
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Wargame.
A simulation that literally turns war into a game. In environments too difficult for actually deploying troops, it serves as mock training to gauge the battlefield.
Historically, it shone during the Franco-Prussian War through Kriegsspiel for studying strategy and tactics.
Whether that's accurate or not, I don't know.
It's often used for self-consolation, epitomized by lines like, "The Japanese navy is strong after all...!"
A true history nerd is born with genes that compel them to master every kind of board game and strategy game.
"Fine, let's do it."
I agreed right away, channeling Shinji riding Eva.
How could I resist this?
.
.
.
What I imagined.
A large table with a terrain map, pieces, and dice scattered about.
What I actually saw.
"To put it simply, we use illusion magic to command armies as if it were real, pitting our tactics and strategies against each other. Seeing is believing, so take a look."
Two crystal orbs.
One magic tool resembling a beam projector.
Place a hand on the crystal orb, and...
It was like playing Moon Orbits—no, Moon Battleship—in VR. A vivid illusion unfolded before my eyes.
Suddenly, my neck prickled, and it felt like cancer cells were growing inside me.
Heavy ships just defend the base, light carriers follow without proper scouting and spam strikes, our idiot allies fire into the sky while the enemy carrier bombers hit with pinpoint accuracy... Argh...
"You don't look well. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Just some bad memories resurfacing..."
As I writhed from resurfacing PTSD...
"You don't seem to have battlefield experience, so what bad memories? Haha, if you're scared, you can surrender now."
Navy Admiral Winston barked nonsense.
With illusion magic tech this advanced, why not just make a sleek VR game? Or disassemble a child-friendly one for analysis? Such stray thoughts vanished in an instant.
I focused on grasping the wargame conditions.
The navy's tech tree was roughly medieval-level.
Galleys made up a significant portion.
Ships with mounted cannons were rare.
Of course, there was something unique.
"We can deploy mages."
"Indeed. In an environment where magic works, do we need toys like thousand-pound cannons?"
I got the gist.
Mages fill the role of cannons.
Moreover, mages just need to provide covering fire until ships charge in for boarding.
Well-trained Sword Experts swing over to enemy ships, hack away, engage in melee, and victory is ours!
That was the meta of this war.
It was so boring I wanted to die...
The flower and romance of a navy is big ships, big guns.
It's academic consensus that well-raised steamships could stand against Cthulhu.
"...All full-rigged ships? No galleys?"
The prince raised a question mark looking at my fleet setup, but I silently prepared step by step.
Even the thousand-pound cannons were so undervalued that one mage's cost could mount broadside guns on five ships.
Shall we sample some line abreast formation?
Right after the wargame began.
"A newbie is a newbie, after all."
Winston scoffed, downplaying Ulysses' strategy.
The core of naval combat is boarding actions.
Once knights with superhuman strength board a ship, ordinary marines are just buying time to delay their takeover.
Of course, enemy mages often wreck allied ships with firepower, but in melee, most mages are helpless against knights' swords.
Thus, the key was...
How many knights you landed alive on enemy ships, and how much superiority your knights held in combat.
Full-rigged ships, heavily affected by wind and sluggish in maneuverability, had no advantages over galleys.
Yet this greenhorn thought he could do something with those toys.
He even cut back on Sword Experts to field more ships that would inevitably be captured—a shortsighted choice.
That's why newbies are newbies.
Winston focused his mind, parting the waves toward the horizon where the greenhorn's fleet awaited defeat.
And then.
He witnessed it.
Ships lined up like a massive boundary across the entire horizon, sides vulnerably exposed, mobility abandoned.
Tempted by their juicy profile.
"All ships, charge!"
Winston issued the charge order.
As the sharp wedge pierced forward.
"Stasis."
Ulysses had his mages cast slowdown spells instead of attacks, reducing the speed of incoming ships.
"All batteries, fire."
Then concentrated broadside fire, leisurely crossing the T to exploit the sudden speed gap.
Regrettably.
Attack spells' effective range fell short of cannon range.
Non-Sword Master Experts couldn't deflect all incoming shot or close in instantly with flat broadsides exposed.
In the first clash.
The outcome was decided.
.
.
.
Winston pulled his hand from the orb in a daze and looked up.
His eyes met the ominous black gaze of Ulysses, who had casually annihilated his fleet with a utterly calm expression.
Ulysses' lips parted slightly.
"Boarding actions exist for those who can't survive without clinging to them..."
A quiet voice emerged.
Watching the Second Prince flail in epiphany like he'd been struck by lightning.
Winston decided to grovel a bit more.
"One more game! Just one!"
There had to be a weakness. Surely.
No way to lose this pathetically...!
Thus, three losses in three games.
And even.
"Hm? It's over? That was more fun than expected. A moment to witness illusion magic's potential."
He lost to his cousin's sister.
- Hm, at this level, you'd have a good match with my cousin's sister.
Winston had fallen for the intolerable provocation, knowing it was unseemly, and yelled, "Bring her here now!"
The result was utterly devastating.
Wargames let you micromanage every soldier's movement with full focus—not just ships, knights, and mages.
But it's wildly inefficient, and mental limits hit fast.
"How... How can a person... do that...?"
However.
The red-haired woman before him.
Controlled every unit perfectly, without a single error.
Even micromanaging Sword Expert duels—dodges and strikes—while flawlessly handling battles elsewhere...?
Was this woman a goddess?
His face drained white.
Winston bowed his head.
A perfect defeat.
"Tin Can. Can't you make something like that?"
On the way back after shredding Winston and securing our era's peace.
Honestly...
It was fun. For real.
What entertainment does this fantasy land even have?
'Heroes Assemble' didn't top the imperial capital's board game rankings—and start selling nationwide—despite its gambling elements for nothing.
And now, a badass VR game like this exists.
"Building magic circuits is essentially programming, so with enough time, it's feasible. The issue is cost."
"Like magical theater?"
"Yes. Simply calculating the mana we used and converting to this world's currency..."
The horrifying number from Tin Can's mouth left me gaping.
To play one game...
Burn that much money...?
No wonder fantasy game novels don't slap billions on VR gear.
Though it's a bit different.
"Shame."
"If Kim Yul earns money harder, it might be possible."
"True..."
For some reason, a new goal emerged.
Until now, money was a byproduct of writing, for a comfy life.
"An awesome VR historical sim. How to resist?"
"Kim Yul couldn't."
Right.
Krr, can't resist...!
Motivation ignited.
Consider 'Heroes Assemble': Not stopping at novels, derivatives in other directions grab popularity and revenue.
Accounting for that.
Collaborating with Tin Can to release novel characters or scenarios into this world is the safest path.
Character-focused stories boost immersion.
"Charles Ponzi?"
I silently flicked Tin Can's forehead.
Are you insane?
Ponzi scheme and eat a real dragon breath?
"Tin Can."
"Yes."
"Let's live honestly. Scams are a no-go."
Live crooked, and someday Esthea turns gold dragon and blasts my head with serious breath.
Roselin shows up, demands repentance, and caves my skull with fists.
Clloe... Oh ho, she'd distance from death and scam with me.
Because it's classy.
"No matter how you think, history's full of figures with tragic ends."
"Yes."
"So, picking someone whose life was overall wretched might just be taken as genre flair."
Tin Can stared like I was crazy.
I brushed off the gaze.
"Tin Can, know how to write sheet music? Can you convert DB songs to scores?"
"I am the pinnacle of intellect, Historie. Easy."
"Good. Decided."
My thought process.
Not directly war-related, but can lightly comment via era figures when wars erupt.
Personal talent shines, wretchedness becomes character flavor, adds value elsewhere.
Historically.
French Revolution.
Lived through thick Western history events like Napoleon's conquests.
Admired revolutionary Napoleon.
Disillusioned by dictator Napoleon.
Witnessed the dissolution of a chimeric state—neither holy, Roman, nor empire.
Music's Eroica hero.
Ludwig van Beethoven.
"Expert tale, musician type. Beethoven had plenty of women too, so romance elements aren't bad. His wretchedness suits an artist, turning flaw to strength."
To shed the politics/war expert label.
Hard to find better material.
"Time to prep writing upon return."
"Shall I prepare plagiarizing all scores?"
"...Not plagiarism—remastering as tribute."
Never wrote expert tales in past or present life, so needs delicate prep.
But surely.
It'll be captivating.