2
Chapter 2
I spoke with confidence, but war isn't something you can simply start on a whim.
It requires resources and, more importantly, a justification.
Without a cause, a war is viewed as nothing more than an unprovoked invasion by madmen.
There's also the matter of public support and soldier morale.
No matter how much of a victim we are, if we strike first, we can't avoid the condemnation of neighboring nations.
Furthermore, my weapons are still in the prototype stage; I need a standardized mass-production system to arm an entire army.
But before all that, there was one major hurdle to overcome.
'I'll need to get permission.'
"Ian..."
My brother, who had been staring blankly at the blueprints, sighed and finally spoke.
"Everyone knows you are brilliant and skilled with your hands. Your inventions have been a great help to me as well."
"I know."
"But this isn't a business venture; it's war. It means knights losing their heads and territories being burned. With Father incapacitated and me managing the state, I cannot decide to go to war against the Empire and the Duchy based on a few unverified drawings."
At my brother's firm words, the ministers, who had been tentatively watching from the sidelines, began to chime in.
"The Crown Prince is absolutely correct! The battlefield is nothing like the trade of a Merchant Guild!"
"A knight's Aura can slice through a steel shield like butter! There is no way these toys could possibly turn the tide of war!"
It was a natural reaction.
After all, I had only shown them blueprints.
It was only reasonable for my brother and the ministers to hesitate.
They were people of a fantasy world who had never smelled gunpowder or heard the deafening blast of a gun.
"Brother, have you ever seen any of my inventions fail?"
"Well... I suppose not. Even the plush beds and those flush toilets ended up becoming luxury items that even the nobility scramble to buy."
"This will be the same. You won't understand it through words, so I'll let you see for yourself."
My brother narrowed his eyes at my confident tone.
Is he biting?
"See for ourselves? And how do you plan to do that?"
"One week. Just give me one week, and I'll bring you something real."
"Sigh... Fine. If you can bring me something capable of defeating a knight within a week, I will help you persuade Father."
"Good. It's a promise."
I left the office with a light step.
As soon as the door closed, I heard a sigh from behind me.
'I feel slightly bad about that...'
As I walked down the hallway, I asked Elisha, who was following close behind.
"Elisha, is that thing I left in the workshop still in good shape?"
"Yes, Master. I have been oiling and maintaining it once a week."
"That's my Elisha. Your work is always flawless."
"Thank you for the compliment. But is one week truly enough?"
In response to her question, I gave a confident smile and nodded.
"More than enough. The blueprints are finished, and most of the key parts are already machined. The only issue is mass production... but I'll be able to get support for that once the demonstration in a week is over."
Our steps naturally led us toward the workshop on the outskirts of the royal castle.
The workshop had originally been an abandoned stable and warehouse.
Having always dreamed of owning a private studio, I had thrown my first-ever tantrum as a child to convince my father to give me that warehouse.
Since then, it had become the base for my hobbies and a personal laboratory where I tested all sorts of inventions before revealing them to the world.
'Those were the days.'
Lost in thought, I soon arrived in front of the warehouse with its massive steel door.
Standing before the thick iron gate, I gripped the handle with both hands and pulled with all my might.
"Nngh...!"
This thing never opens easily...
Once technology advances enough, I really should install something like an automatic door.
"Ugh... Elisha, give me a hand."
"Yes, Master."
Elisha stepped up beside me and lightly placed one hand on the heavy iron door.
Screeeech—!
The door, which hadn't budged even when I used all my strength, swung open with ease.
I felt a blow to my pride as a man, but it's not that I'm weak—it's just that Elisha is incredibly strong.
As I entered the workshop, I was greeted by the familiar smell of grease and the faint energy emanating from mana stones.
The spacious interior looked like a cross between a blacksmith's forge and an alchemist's lab.
The walls were packed with magic tools of all bizarre shapes, and unidentified scraps of metal and failed prototypes lay scattered in the corners.
And then there was the wide workbench sitting right in the center of the room.
I can't even count how many hours I've spent here...
In this world, there are no bosses to answer to, and I can build whatever I want instead of following a company-mandated project.
It's a paradise created just for me.
Shaking off my thoughts, I walked over to the workbench in the center of the room.
Laid out upon it were rugged components, glistening under the lamp's glow.
A wooden stock, still rough without a finish but carefully shaped for a comfortable grip.
A barrel with precise rifling inside to give the bullet spin.
And the core component that would control both the explosive power of gunpowder and the flow of mana: the Mana Stone Trigger.
These were the disassembled parts of my first ambitious project, which I had named the Magic Musket.
"Not a single speck of dust."
"Hehe... that's because you entrusted the maintenance to me, Master."
"Thanks."
I grinned, stroking the components on the workbench.
Now, all that remained was to assemble them perfectly.
But before I could start assembling, there was one major problem to solve.
"Elisha, you've fired this before, right?"
"Yes. Mana users like me can use Physical Enhancement to control the recoil... but for most people, their collarbones wouldn't survive."
"Exactly. Knights or mages might be fine, but if someone who can't use Physical Enhancement—like me—fired it, they'd be carried straight to the temple after one shot."
Unlike modern guns, the musket I built was specially designed to pierce through knights protected by Physical Enhancement.
Since the recoil increases in proportion to the firepower, it's impossible for ordinary soldiers to fire it.
As this weapon would be the foundation of the war effort, a structural recoil control system was essential so anyone could use it safely.
"Then, will you carve a magic circle into the part that touches the shoulder to absorb the recoil?"
"You mean the stock? That would be great, but the unit cost would be too high. We're planning to mass-produce these; I can't hire a mage to carve every single one. I need a solution using cheap, common materials."
I unfolded the blueprints and pointed to the joint between the stock and the receiver.
"I'm going to hollow out the stock and insert a recoil spring. Then, I'll fill it with processed low-grade slime as a damping fluid."
"Using slimes, I see. That would certainly solve the cost issue immediately."
"Right. I need to finish everything from the additional design to the prototype within a week. You'll help me, won't you?"
"Of course."
With Elisha's answer, a week of sleepless nights began.
@@@
Crown Prince Rowen's office, after Ian and Elisha had departed.
The Chancellor, who had been staring blankly at the closed door, finally couldn't hold it back any longer.
"Your Highness! Why did you indulge the 3rd Prince's stubbornness instead of shutting him down!"
Starting with the Chancellor's outburst, the other ministers, who had been sighing in frustration, rose in unison, their faces flushing with anger.
"He is right, Your Highness! No matter how much the 3rd Prince has contributed to the royal treasury with his ingenious inventions, war is not a business transaction!"
"A military conflict against the Empire and the Duchy! His Majesty will never permit such a thing!"
"Once the demonstration of that strange toy is over in a week, I beg you to reprimand him severely!"
Rowen watched the ministers shout and protest in a frenzy, then pressed his throbbing temples.
"Enough."
Rowen's low voice instantly chilled the atmosphere of the office.
"Do you truly believe I gave away a precious week simply because I was played by my immature brother's whims?"
As he spoke, Rowen looked down coldly at the scrolls scattered across the desk, detailing the absurd demands.
"Our Espada Kingdom is the wealthiest nation on the continent. Yet, solely because our military power is weak, we have had to bow our heads to those barbarians time and time again."
Rowen's fist tightened.
"Do you remember the Karvan Estate, which was unjustly seized by the Empire?"
At the mention of the 'Karvan Estate,' the Chancellor and the ministers flinched.
The Karvan Estate.
A fertile granary in the north of the kingdom.
Land that the Empire had seized after deploying troops under the guise of subjugating magic beasts.
It was a painful wound and a symbol of humiliation that every citizen of the Espada Kingdom carried in their heart.
"There is a limit to how long we can appease them with money. They may make even more outrageous demands in the future. Eventually, they will try to swallow our entire kingdom whole."
"B-but Your Highness... the practical issues—"
"That is exactly why I am taking this gamble."
Rowen's words cut the minister short.
Rowen continued, his gaze fixed on the musket blueprints Ian had left behind.
"Ian is a genius. I am not saying this simply because he is my beloved brother. If that weapon can truly allow an ordinary soldier to pierce the body of a knight..."
A flicker of unprecedented longing crossed Rowen's eyes.
"...then this war. Wouldn't it be worth fighting?"