Chapter 100 (2/2)
“Hm. Do we still have time? Distribute the weapons and let them have a quick practice session.”
“Yes sir.”
With Isaac’s order given, Rivelia pa.s.sed the order to the agents. Soon, the agents received the unfamiliar weapons awkwardly and began distributing the ammo evenly amongst themselves.
Their mood didn’t seem foul for knowing that they were using the very weapons that killed their friends in the past, but Isaac’s training had borne fruit. None of them uttered a single word, merely doing as they were told.
Isaac stepped out of the Humvee and took a big stretch to loosen up, when Noxvil came around with a stiff expresion.
“Why are you doing this? You should know they won’t be able to fight properly using weapons they’ve never used before. In fact, it will decrease our combat capability.”
“Huh? I’m surprised you’re here when you acted like you’d never tag along.”
Isaac looked with great surprise when he saw Noxvil. Noxvil had vehemently opposed using the cars and weapons in the warehouses. Noxvil continued, not bothering to hide the hostility in his eyes.
“Answer my question.”
“I swear, the hierarchy of this world is a complete mess.”
Isaac grumbled and climbed onto the car’s bonnet. He leaned back onto the winds.h.i.+eld and flicked the burnt cigarette off his finger as he answered.
EDN: A car’s bonnet is also known as a car’s hood.
“Why, are you suspicious I have ulterior motives? You should know I would never a.s.sist or cooperate with the Expeditionary Forces if you know where I’m from. Well, don’t worry. I have no intention of joining the Expeditionary Forces. I still have some work I need to do in this world.”
“Some work?”
“I need to play to my heart’s content before I leave.”
“… I will cut your head the moment you show even the slightest hint of treachery.”
“Sure thing.”
Isaac glossed over Noxvil’s threat nonchalantly. As he breathed in a freshly lit cigarette, gunfire echoed from the desert. It seemed the agents started their target practice.
Isaac looked at the agents and noticed that all of them were frowning. Isaac asked Noxvil, who was also looking at the agents with a fire in his eyes.
“Hey, old man.”
“… What?”
“I have a question I want to ask.”
“Say it.”
“How come your weapons are still the same when you’ve already stolen useful ideas such as airplanes and subways?”
“I thought they explained to you already.”
“Because it’s too strong and cruel? Well, I can just accept that argument for now, but I’m sure someone in Central would have suggested the idea in the past. Even if they didn’t, shouldn’t you take advantage of the goods in the warehouses? I’m just surprised that they’ve been untouched until now…”
“Do you think the honourable knights of the Empire would use the uncouth weapons of their most dishonourable foes? It is the path and honour of the combat knight to not rely and shackle oneself to convenience and efficiency, to carve a path of their own that through their own strength and skill that has been honed through endless training!”
Isaac gawked at Noxvil who jumped about as he spoke of honour and training before smirking.
“I guess it’s an annual festival – not war – if you only brawl once every 10 years.”
War was pouring all of one’s resources to achieve victory. n.o.body cared about the method in order to achieve that result. To steal the advantages of your enemy’s weapon, to create a stronger and more efficient and effective weapon was one of many basic steps taken to win a war.
Modern day weapons were a direct product of such steps followed since ancient times, and they weren’t at the pinnacle by a long shot. The development of weapons continued to this day.
Isaac had no clue as to how combat-proficient these combat knights were since he’d never seen them battle the Expeditionary Forces before, but if they could truly dodge bullets as they claimed, then fighting with comparable weapons would be far more efficient than fighting with swords.
Shooting from afar would cut out the time needed to dance about the battlefield just to get into melee range. Just the simple estimate that they could kill more enemies in a shorter time alone should have convinced them to give up on swords and move on to firearms, but the people of this world still proclaimed ideals such as honour and ran about with swords.
Then again, if the masters of these swords had this mindset, their students would follow their beliefs as they were taught. The timeframe of 10 years could be extremely beneficial in terms of logistics and manpower, but it was a lethal poison in a grand scale. It’s obvious they would use their old, standing strategy that had never failed before over an uncertain one to fight a battle that is but a mere ceremony. The higher-ups hate change, as usual.
Noxvil seemed to have caught fire as he raised his voice in explaining his beliefs and principles, and he ran over to the agents who were mid practice to lecture them about what the sword meant and such. The agents, although confused, had no choice but to stop their training to listen attentively to a rare lecture given to them by their respected Sword Master.
Isaac looked at the sight, displeased; perhaps they hadn’t been educated enough. Just as he considered reeducating his agents, Mazelan approached Isaac with a tired look and glimpsed at Noxvil before sighing and making his explanation.
“What Commander Noxvil says is an opinion of the combat knights. Truth is we have new weapons referencing the weapons used by the Expeditionary Forces. Everything from its ma.s.s production to their distribution to the armies has already been prepared.”
“Then how come you aren’t using it when it’s already prepared?”
“The problem is it’s too powerful for something so simple to use. The reason why the Empire practices provincial warfare is to maintain a pool of battle experienced soldiers readily available for the worst case scenario, but the casualty rate of those wars would rise dramatically if we allow guns. That’s why the plan to distribute firearms is under lock and key until the scenario when the Gate is secured by the Expeditionary Forces. Not to mention that the Expeditionary Forces isn’t the only enemy we are fighting against.”
Isaac smirked at Mazelan’s explanation and leaned onto the Humvee’s windscreen. It was true that the scale of casualties would rise to multiple digits if weapons like these became the norm. And with two other foes that needed attention, Central wasn’t going to increase their enemies’ combat capabilities just for convenience’s sake.
EDN: A car’s windscreen is also known as a winds.h.i.+eld.
Isaac also considered there were more complex, political reasons just by looking at Mazelan’s face, but he decided not to ask out of laziness. After flicking another cigarette to the ground, Isaac scanned the surroundings and muttered.
“Will this work?”
Isaac took out the pen from his finger and thought in his mind the magic circle to dig. Soon, the lens in his left eye came up with the image of such a circle, and his arm immediately set about to follow the lines on its own. The flat plain he was standing on quickly sunk to the point where a Humvee would be half-buried underground.
“Huuk!”
“How did you do that?”
Mazelan stared with wide eyes of disbelief. Even Rivelia who was coming over to give an update quickly dashed over when she noticed.
“It’s just magic.”
“Do you think a magic that destroys the basic foundation of magic like this would exist!”
“To me, magic itself goes against everything I know.”
Isaac shrugged as if it was unfair, when Rivelia muttered as if she’d realised something.
“Is it the Queen’s Artifact?”
“Ahh! That’s it! The Queen’s Artifact! Knowing you, you would have immediately taken off in that airs.h.i.+p to escape if you didn’t have any answers!”
“… You’ve been pestering me with hard facts for quite some time now. So much so that I can’t even argue against it.”
Isaac grumbled with squinted eyes, but Mazelan looked back with eyes full of hope as he spoke.
“There must be some kind of an answer that can turn this situation if it’s the Queen’s Artifact!”
“Wow! Is this the difference of reputation? None of you even pretended to believe in me when I spoke, but now you’re so optimistic when you’ve learned that there is the Queen’s Artifact?”
Mazelan didn’t seem to budge at Isaac’s comment and continued to smile excitedly, and even Rivelia gently stared at Isaac. Isaac smirked and shrugged, turning back to look at the hole he dug with a complicated look.
Although Isaac bluffed with confidence, he was just as confused in his mind. Although it turned out like he intended, something which he didn’t expect had happened as well. Isaac originally intended to create the magic circuit and place a mana crystal inside to activate it just as he had in the past. Because that was how it was supposed to be. But for some reason, the crater dug itself immediately as the magic circuit was completed. With a cigarette in his mouth, Isaac quickly put his brain to use in order to figure out why.
‘Where did the mana to activate the magic circuit come from? The mana inside the artifact? Or mana crystal?’
For Isaac, who didn’t know how magic worked, there was no way he could figure out why it worked. But he couldn’t just sit idly by, so he had to test it multiple times just to get a grasp on the reasoning of magic.
“Damsel, bring me a mana crystal.”
Rivelia immediately ran over to the Humvee without a word, shuffling through the pile of equipment before finding a fist sized mana crystal.
‘If it uses mana from mana crystal, it must have used one of the crystals in my coat. Does that mean it uses any of the mana crystals in the surroundings? Or was it possible for the pen to provide the mana required because it was a weak magic circuit?’
Isaac held the mana crystal in his left hand and stood up on his feet, thinking in his mind ‘use the mana crystal in my hand.’ He then mentally visualized to himself the strongest magic circuit in his memory, and designated its location at the agents who were listening attentively to Noxvil’s sudden lecture. With a ‘crack!’ the mana crystal lost its blue glimmer, turning into a black, grey rock.
At the same time, a wild screech could be heard, as a wyvern showed itself out of nowhere.
“What the! How did a wyvern suddenly get here!”
“Uhek!”
The agents immediately spread out in all directions at the sudden appearance of the monster. Despite the confusion, these agents reacted accordingly and fired at the wyvern.
Bang bang bang!
The sudden hail of bullets pierced through the wyvern’s scales, and the wyvern screamed in pain. It spread its wings in an attempt to escape to the skies, but Noxvil charged at the wyvern and shattered it to pieces in an instant.
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