Overwhelming Firepower

The king called Lucen and Vardon; alongside them were Sir Thalos, Robert, Harlik, and Mark. The group followed the royal attendant through a smaller side corridor.

The sound of the party could no longer be heard through the corridor. The group continued walking behind the attendant.

When the doors to the private chamber opened, the King was already inside, standing by the tall windows. The view overlooked the royal gardens, it was quite the sight to behold, especially to those of them that live in the north, were it was hard to find such scenery.

”Welcome, people of Thornehart. I wanted to meet you for quite some time now, Lucen Thornehart.” The King spoke with a smile on his face.

Lucen bowed with practiced precision. ”It is an honor, Your Majesty.”

Vardon gave a shallower bow, respectful, but with the weight of an equal who had earned his place on the battlefield.

The King’s gaze lingered on Lucen a moment longer. ”I have heard many reports about you. Many sounded absurd at first, but it turns out every word was true.”

As the King spoke, he eyed the wooden boxes that Harlik and Mark were holding. ”There was also the report that you have created new kinds of weapons. A weapon that harnesses the power of thunder and lightning. Can you show me these weapons?”

”Of course, Your Majesty.”

Lucen gestured at Harlik and Mark, who walked forward with wooden boxes in tow. While the two were opening the wooden boxes, Lucen spoke to the king.

”I did create new weapons, your majesty, alongside Robert, and the craftsmen. Actually, two of said craftsmen are here.”

”What are their names?”

”Oswin and Holz.”

”Did you hear that? Please bring them back here, do so with utmost respect.” The king spoke to one of the royal guards, who saluted and left.

Harlik and Mark stepped forward, laying the opened boxes on a low table between them and the King. Inside, nestled in fitted compartments, the arquebuses.

”This is the weapon I, alongside everyone else, created. It is called an arquebus. It doesn’t use the power of thunder and lightning; it uses the power created from alchemy to fire. It doesn’t need aura or mana to use this weapon.”

The King studied the weapons in silence, his fingers hovering just above the polished wood and cold steel as if gauging their weight without touching them.

”No aura... No mana...” He murmured. ”Meaning even a farmer’s son could wield it.”

”That is correct, Your Majesty,” Lucen replied. ”With training, of course. A disciplined formation of soldiers could use these to devastating effect. I have personally seen it.”

”Yes, I heard about that as well, your fight with Viscount Drenwick.”

Lucen, who was using Acting Adept while talking to the King, almost frowned the moment he heard the King say his fight with Viscount Drenwick was but a fight, a simple word from him without changing expression.

So many deaths, the bloodhounds, the villagers, and even the bandits, to describe the entire thing as just a fight between him and Viscount Drenwick, made Lucen unsure of what to feel.

Despite Lucen showing a neutral expression, it felt like the King understood what he was truly thinking and spoke.

”... Battles between nobles are more common than you think, and in those battles, usually it’s not the nobles who bleed but the common men and women of the land. Even as king, I cannot stop all nobles from their own private battles. Which is why I hope you and the other nobles, fights between us are simply making Norvaegard bleed its own.”

”I will keep that in mind, Your Majesty.”

The king then took out one of the arquebuses from the boxes.

”Can you show me how this weapon is used?”

”We need to go outside for that, Your Majesty.”

”Very well, let’s head out.”

The king in the lead, followed by the Royal guard, Lucen’s group followed close behind them. They exited through another side passage, this one sloping downward until the polished marble gave way to gravel and packed earth.

A small training ground awaited, enclosed by high stone walls. Several targets of straw and wood stood at varying distances.

”Clear the grounds,” the King ordered, and the royal guardsmen stationed there withdrew to the edges, their eyes lingering on the unfamiliar weapon in his hands.

Lucen stepped forward with a leather pouch and small powder horn. ”Your Majesty, if I may, this weapon requires preparation before each shot.”

The King handed the arquebus to him, watching closely as Lucen measured the powder, loaded the ball, and tamped it down.

When the arquebus was ready, Lucen got into position and aimed at one of the wooden targets, and fired. The booming sound of the Arquebus, like thunder, echoed throughout the training ground.

The power of the current Arquebus was unlike what it was before, with Robert and the others always improving it, and the power had increased. The wooden dummy in the shape had its head clean off its body.

The royal guard who watched the entire thing felt no aura or mana being used. That meant it was the weapon itself that produced such power. They who had been trained to never show any emotion on their faces were truly surprised.

Seeing their reactions, Lucen remembered the first time he showed the Arquebuses to the others. The same as that time, the King showed an expression similar to Vardon’s back then. One not of surprise, but of cold calculation.

The King stepped closer to the shattered target, running a gloved hand over the splintered edge where the head had been. His fingers came away dusty with powder and sawdust.

”How far can this arquebus be used?”

”This current version of the arquebus has an effective killing range of three hundred skael.”

When the people heard Lucen’s answer, they were once again shocked. A weapon that didn’t need mana, aura, or even mana crystals was able to produce such a powerful projectile at that distance.

Even Vardon, Sir Thalos, Harlik, and Mark were stunned by the number they heard. The last time they asked how far the killing rang was, it was just two hundred fifty skael, now it has improved again. It was only Robert who had helped in the improvements, who didn’t show much reaction.

While everyone was still in a state of shock from hearing Lucen’s answer, the royal guard, who had left before, came back with Oswin and Holz.

”I have returned, Your Majesty. I present the master blacksmith Oswin and the master Carpenter Holz.”

The King approached the two craftsmen, who quickly knelt on the ground.

”We greet Your Majesty.”

”Stand and answer me.” The King pointed at the arquebus in Lucen’s hands. ”How many of these arquebuses can you make if you have the forge in the Capital, and a hundred blacksmiths and carpenters?”

Oswin exchanged a glance with Holz before answering. ”If the forge runs without pause, Your Majesty, and the craftsmen are trained in the work… perhaps fifty in a month. Fewer, if quality is not to be sacrificed.”

The King’s eyes narrowed slightly. ”And if I do not care for the expense?”

”Then we could double it,” Oswin said, his voice steady despite the weight of the gaze upon him.

Holz nodded in agreement. ”But the stock and fittings require seasoned wood. The best pieces take months to cure. We can hasten the work, but haste makes for cracks and warping.”

”Your Majesty, even if they can make that many in a month. The materials needed to make the powder are limited. Also, only Robert and I know the precise amount to create the black powder needed to make the arquebus work.” Lucen informed the king.

The King’s gaze shifted from the craftsmen to Lucen, the faint smile gone from his lips. ”Then it seems, Lord Thornehart, that you hold the key to this weapon’s true power.”

Lucen inclined his head slightly. ”It is not a secret I give lightly, Your Majesty. The wrong hands would not hesitate to turn it against the realm.”

The King stared at Lucen for a few seconds before speaking. ”I understand... I won’t ask you how to make the black powder, but I need you to create as much as you can. I also need you to teach many more people how to use this weapon.”

”Why, your majesty?” This time it was Vardon who asked the question.

The King turned from the shattered target, his boots crunching lightly on the gravel. His gaze swept over each of them in silence, one heartbeat, then another.

”Why else does a kingdom gather weapons?” The King’s eyes swept the training yard. ”Because one day... Someone will make us use them.”

Everyone could guess what the king was implying and became silent for a while. It was Duke Vardon who spoke first.

”Who would make us do so?” Vardon pressed, his voice lower now.

The King’s smile had vanished. ”Actually, right now, nothing is clear yet. But there have been some reports about our neighbor, the kingdom of Inevir, buying weapons from the Rocton Empire. Not only that, but our spies have reported that they have been training their soldiers harder than normal.”

The king paused for the information to sink in.

”As you know, our two kingdoms have always been at odds with each other. We are simply at peace with them for now, but that peace can change at any time. We don’t know if it would end tomorrow or a decade later, but we need to prepare just in case. Which is why I wanted to train our men to be able to use the arquebus.”

Even though the king made it sound like it was not that big of a deal, the silence after was heavier than the arquebus in Lucen’s hands. Even Robert’s usual indifference cracked; his brow furrowed, lips tightening. Harlik shifted his weight, knuckles pale. Even Sir Thalos’s posture shifted, weight settling into his heels as though bracing for a blow.

It was only Lucen who had expected it, but even then, he was also quite surprised. In the game, which was set a decade from now, there was indeed a war going on.

’I’m sure that in the game, the invasion of Inevir started a decade later, but now hints of it starting are showing much earlier. Also, there was no mention of the Rocton Empire. What even is that?... Did my small actions here truly change events so much?... Is this the true butterfly effect?’

Lucen had not expected such a drastic change in the timeline. What action did he make that warranted such a change? It was like tossing a pebble into a pond, only now, the ripples were crashing back as waves.