Chapter 436 - 436: Prototype

After handing the prisoners over to the nearest garrison and returning Alexander and Cael to the Royal Academy, Lucen headed straight back to Ironhold.

War with Inevir was about to begin. It had arrived later than it had in the game, but it had arrived all the same.

'With the guns, artillery, trains, and airships, the current power of Norvaegard is greater than before... Yet, despite all that, I think we can make more improvements. Seeing as, unlike in the game, the people of this world are much stronger. So what I have might not be enough.'

Lucen was already thinking about how to improve their military. At present, ordinary soldiers possessed weapons capable of dealing with lower-ranked mages and aura users.

A concentrated volley could break weaker magical barriers, while even an aura user would eventually be overwhelmed if enough bullets were fired in their direction.

However, the situation changed once they confronted those who had reached the middle circles and mantles.

Their defenses were stronger, their senses were sharper, and they possessed enough power to kill dozens of ordinary soldiers before being brought down.

The problem was not whether rifles could harm them. The problem was surviving long enough to fire.

A fourth-circle mage could cover an entire formation in flames. An aura user at the fourth mantle could cross the distance between two armies before most riflemen had time to aim properly.

Norvaegard could produce larger rifles with heavier bullets, but doing so would increase the weapon's weight and recoil. At a certain point, ordinary soldiers would no longer be capable of carrying or firing them.

The obvious solution was artillery. A direct hit from one of Norvaegard's heavier cannons could destroy a magical barrier and kill the mage behind it. Even powerful aura users would not survive if they failed to avoid the shell.

Unfortunately, artillery possessed problems of its own. The heavier cannons were difficult to move once deployed, and repositioning them in the middle of battle required considerable time and manpower.

Lucen tried to solve this problem by placing heavy artillery on the trains and airships. Those solutions worked, but only under the proper conditions.

Artillery trains could transport several heavy cannons at once and possessed enough firepower to devastate an army.

However, they could only travel wherever tracks had already been laid. Destroying even a small section of railway could prevent them from advancing, and Inevir would always know which routes they might use.

Airships possessed far greater freedom of movement. Raining artillery fire down from above sounded effective, but the current cannons were painfully inaccurate at such heights.

Firing several naval guns at the same time created another problem. Their combined recoil could push the airship off course, forcing the crew to stabilize it before they could fire again.

It was far more practical to drop iron spheres filled with explosives.

For that matter, they could simply throw boulders over the side. From a sufficient height, even an ordinary rock would strike with enough force to crush men, horses, and defensive structures beneath it.

That made airships excellent for bombarding fortresses and large formations. They were considerably less effective when attempting to eliminate a single mage or aura user moving across an active battlefield.

If the airship remained high enough to avoid retaliation, its attacks would become less accurate. If it descended to improve its accuracy, it would enter the range of Inevir's mages.

'The trains have enough firepower, but they can only move along predetermined routes. The airships can travel anywhere, but they cannot provide accurate support without placing themselves at risk. It was also difficult to provide support once enemy and allied forces became entangled in close combat.'

It was at that moment Lucen thought of an invention in his past life that could solve that problem.

'Right, what I need now is a tank.'

It was not the first time Lucen had considered creating one. He had begun drawing designs shortly after Ironhold produced its first functioning locomotive.

Although Lucen was not particularly knowledgeable about military history, he remembered that several early armored vehicles had been powered by steam engines.

Unfortunately, knowing what a tank looked like was not the same as knowing how to build one.

Neither his Gun Knowledge skill nor the novels he had read contained detailed instructions for constructing tanks.

At best, Lucen understood the basic principles. A tank required armor thick enough to protect its crew, linked metal treads that allowed it to cross difficult terrain, and an engine powerful enough to move everything.

It also needed a mechanism that allowed the crew to steer, a suspension system that prevented every uneven surface from shaking the vehicle apart, and a rotating turret capable of supporting a heavy cannon.

Knowing that those things existed did not tell Lucen how to make them. Fortunately, the weapon itself was the simplest part.

Lucen's Gun Knowledge allowed him to understand how the cannon should be constructed, how much force its mounting needed to endure, and what type of ammunition it could fire. The vehicle carrying it was another matter entirely.

He had already attempted to create a smaller experimental version with Robert and Durik. It possessed neither armor nor a cannon, only a steam engine mounted upon a reinforced frame with linked metal treads on either side.

The first problem had been fitting everything inside the vehicle.

Ironhold's steam engines could pull enormous amounts of weight, but locomotives had plenty of space for their boilers, fuel, and machinery. Their wheels also moved across smooth metal rails designed specifically for them.

A tank would need to carry its engine inside an armored hull while crossing mud, slopes, rubble, and uneven ground.

The smaller engine Robert had created could move their experimental frame. However, once they accounted for the armor, cannon, ammunition, fuel, and crew, there would be little space remaining and no guarantee that the vehicle could navigate difficult terrain.

The other problems had proven no easier.

The mechanism controlling the treads had broken during their first test. One side stopped while the other continued moving, causing the experimental vehicle to turn sharply and crash through the wall of a storage building.

Even if they solved that, the completed vehicle would be far heavier. The rotating turret and the cannon's recoil would place even more strain upon its frame.

Lucen had previously assumed that they lacked the technology to create a tank. Of course, that was before.

'I made the same mistake again. This is a f*cking fantasy world. Treating the same problems like that from my past life was wrong from the start.'

Lucen entered his personal workshop; Robert, Durik, and a few others were already present.

In the middle of the workshop stood Fenrir, their first fantasy-style tank, named after the wolf destined to devour Odin.

It bore little resemblance to the tanks Lucen remembered.

The vehicle was wider and taller, with layers of dark enchanted steel covering its hull. Broad metal treads surrounded several rune-engraved wheels, while a short, heavy cannon extended from its angular turret.

Robert, who was checking something, noticed Lucen's presence and spoke. "So it's war."

"Yes, it is." Lucen nodded his head in acknowledgement. "So, how's the progress on Fenrir?"

"Well, it's better than before, but it's not battle-ready," Durik answered, shrugging his shoulders and drinking ale from a mug.

"When can we get it battle-ready?" Lucen asked, direct to the point.

"I don't know. The mana crystal and steam engine have enough power, and the design you gave us can handle most terrain, but the treads are still giving us trouble."

Durik put down his mug and walked toward Fenrir. "Moving straight isn't much of a problem anymore. The trouble starts when we try turning the damn thing."

He kicked one of the broad metal treads.

"All this weight presses down on them. When one side slows, and the other keeps moving, the wheels underneath take most of the strain. We've already cracked three axles and bent more wheels than I care to count."

Robert adjusted his glasses. "We could use gravity spells to lighten the materials, but that would require a lot of power from the mana crystal and the rune enhancements. I'm assuming this wonderful creation of yours will be used by normal soldiers."

"That's the plan."

"Then we cannot rely too much on rune enhancements, as if a problem arises, ordinary soldiers won't be able to fix the problem. Only a dwarf or a mage who has a lot of understanding about rune engravings would be able to fix the problem then."

Lucen stared at Fenrir for a moment before an idea came to him.

"Then don't make them repair it."

Hearing what Lucen said, Robert raised an eyebrow. Lucen pointed toward the rune-engraved wheels.

"Make the enchanted parts replaceable. Instead of engraving the runes directly onto everything, put them on separate metal plates. If one breaks, the crew removes it and replaces it with another. As for the mana problem, we can just use more mana crystals we get from the monster waves."

"Hahaha! As expected of you, that's a brilliant solution! We have once again stepped forward into the never-ending unknown future!"

Durik merely sighed before refilling his mug again with new ale. "That just means more work for us dwarves."

After saying those words, Durik's lips curved upward as he drank his ale. "But since this is about creating such a masterpiece like this, any dwarf worth his beard would find this worth the trouble."

Lucen smiled and looked toward Fenrir. He could not help but imagine the looks on the enemies' faces when they saw this moving fortress.

'Once again it's time to smash the enemies with the hammer of civilization!'