Chapter 73
At the negotiation held that evening,
"We wish to dispatch our craftsmen to the Dragonian Empire to share technology related to firearms."
"...Dominic?"
"...!"
Dominic turned the negotiation room upside down with a single proposal.
While everyone in the conference room was silent in surprise,
"And, I intend to go to the empire as well."
"!!!"
His proposal didn't stop there.
"Dominic, what's this suddenly..."
Steven, flustered by Dominic's statement that he, a prince and firearms expert, would personally go to the empire, called out his name.
"...Was this arranged in advance?"
Even Erika, who was translating the dwarves' words, looked at Viktor seeking an explanation, but Viktor just shrugged with an unreadable expression.
Dominic stepped forward confidently.
"You all must know that I've been dedicating myself to gun development recently."
"..."
"It's embarrassing to say, but the progress of my research has been extremely slow lately. Despite having sufficient technology and a clear goal, I kept running into practical difficulties."
The dwarves were surprised by Dominic's openness about his shortcomings, but maintained silence so as not to interrupt his words.
"In the midst of this, I had a conversation about firearms with Viktor, who came from the Dragonian Empire."
Dominic nodded slightly towards Viktor before continuing.
"Contrary to our perception that he wouldn't know much about guns, he had extensive knowledge about gun manufacturing technology and principles. In subsequent conversations, he provided a new perspective while looking at the firearms I developed, which was very helpful."
"...Very helpful."
"It's lamentable that I can't show you the finished product here as it's not yet complete. I think without Viktor's help, it would have taken at least decades, or even longer, to develop."
"Oh ho..."
Reminded of Dominic's boasts when he first developed guns, Steven stroked his chin while waiting for Dominic's next words.
"Thanks to that, I was able to realize one thing. What I lacked was not technology or experience, but imagination. The Dragonian Empire is sensitive to changes on the battlefield, and their craftsmen must be constantly striving to adapt to those changes, so exchanges with them will have a positive impact on us as well."
"..."
"Moreover, since the empire's Empress has returned a weapon with our ancestor's touch, just selling a few weapons doesn't balance out. As it's impossible to secure the ordered quantity in time, I want to broaden my horizons by exchanging technology with them, and share the technology we've accumulated to respond to the goodwill shown by the empire."
Dwarves, as proud and dignified as they are, are sure to give and take clearly.
The dwarves in the audience chamber began to murmur at Dominic's words, but on the other hand, agreed with the opinion that they should respond to the empire's goodwill.
"I see... But we need you for mass production of firearms. The other craftsmen aren't as skilled as you yet."
"Of course, I can't be absent in a situation where a large number of firearms need to be produced immediately. I plan to prepare 8,000 guns and 20 cannons that Your Majesty mentioned yesterday, and move to the empire while transporting these."
Steven met Dominic's eyes as he spoke with his head raised, and could see the firm determination in them.
"How long will you stay?"
"I'll have to discuss it with the imperial side, but I'm thinking about 6 months."
After calculating the pros and cons in his head, he nodded.
"...Hmm. That much absence shouldn't be a big problem."
Steven thought that Dominic wasn't absolutely necessary for the kingdom as the Anchester Kingdom was not at war and had good relations with neighboring countries.
Rather, feeling indebted for receiving Votis as a gift, Steven agreed to Dominic's proposal.
"What does Viktor think of Dominic's proposal? We will transport the remaining 5,000 guns and 10 siege cannons as they are prepared."
"..."
The imperial negotiation team had a brief discussion after hearing Erika's interpretation, and,
"That's fine."
Viktor, having finished the conversation, clearly expressed his acceptance.
Afterwards, they discussed the details of the negotiation for several days, and,
"You can sign here."
"Alright."
The negotiation was concluded with Steven's bold signature.
---
With dwarf craftsmen, including Dominic, coming to the empire to exchange technology, we were able to secure not only gun manufacturing but also Anchester Kingdom's excellent metal forming technology.
They won't reveal all their secrets, and the equipment and processing methods used by imperial craftsmen will be very different, so everything won't go perfectly, but…
"...I can only say it's amazing. To move those stubborn dwarves."
"It would have been difficult to achieve such results without the gifts prepared by Your Majesty."
"You think I haven't tried? This is entirely your achievement, so there's no need to be modest, at least in front of me."
It's a great achievement to be able to exchange technology with dwarf craftsmen from the Anchester Kingdom.
Louise called us back separately and commended us, and also gave personal rewards.
Our delegation group dispersed to their respective positions, and,
"Craftsmen from the Anchester Kingdom exchanging...? I couldn't have imagined it."
"To think we'd have the opportunity to exchange technology with dwarves in our lifetime..."
Before the arrival of dwarf craftsmen and weapons, I arranged a meeting with craftsmen who would be in charge of producing firearms and related consumables.
Knowing that I had led the deal with the Anchester Kingdom, the craftsmen were very favorable towards me.
"I want to tell you what I learned while talking with the craftsmen from the Anchester Kingdom."
"Oh, is that so?"
When I set the stage by saying it was the dwarves' idea, the craftsmen held their breath and waited for my words.
"What impressed me most was the shape of the bullets they use. They used to use these spherical lead bullets too, but there were several problems with this shape of projectile."
"Hmm..."
It's regrettable that we can't use rifled guns right away, but engraving rifling in the barrel is difficult with current technology.
Instead, I mentioned bullets that could quickly show results with relatively lower technology.
"For the bullet to have maximum power, it needs to fit tightly in the barrel, so bullets were made with the same or slightly larger diameter as the barrel's inner diameter. Bullets made this way received the full explosive power of the gunpowder and exerted strong power, but loading speed decreased, and it also caused problems for barrels subjected to repeated impacts."
"...I've seen soldiers pushing in bullets, and it certainly looked difficult. They put a long rod into the barrel and pressed hard, it took dozens of seconds just for that time."
"The interior condition of the barrel wasn't good, so that was the reason..."
As craftsmen who had seen the use of pre-prepared guns added comments, other craftsmen quickly understood the meaning of my words.
"That's right. To solve this problem, various shapes of bullets were tested, and a dwarf developed a new shape of bullet."
I showed the craftsmen a meticulously drawn sketch of the bullet I had prepared in advance.
"...?"
"It's an unusual shape."
"They say this pointed end shape flies farther and more accurately."
"I see. Hmm."
The craftsmen's attention was focused on the unique appearance with a conical shape unlike the existing spherical lead bullets, and deep grooves carved on the sides.
"The characteristic of this bullet is that it's easier to load because its diameter is smaller than the barrel."
"Didn't you say that if the bullet is small, it might not properly receive the explosive force?"
"That's right. However, due to the grooves carved on the sides of this bullet, when the loaded gunpowder explodes, it compresses front and back and engages with the barrel. In the end, when fired, it becomes exactly the width of the barrel and is fired in a conical shape, showing high accuracy and penetration power."
After examining the design drawing and discussing,
"...Since you say it's designed by an Anchester Kingdom craftsman, it seems worth trying."
They quickly made a temporary mold and immediately entered into experiments.
A few days later.
We headed to the shooting range with bullets made according to the design.
"Oh, what brings the craftsmen here?"
"We're trying to test the dwarves' new technology. Would you like to watch it together?"
"Certainly."
"Ah, Corps Commander! I'd like to watch from the side too!"
When we arrived, those training at the shooting range also gathered to watch the experiment.
I loaded the new bullet instead of a lead ball.
"It must be difficult, so I'll... Hmm?"
"Did you make the bullet smaller? Hmm..."
The Red Dragon Corps officers and soldiers watched with interest as I finished loading without much effort.
After finishing loading, I aimed at a plate armor 50m away and pulled the trigger.
-Bang!
With a huge explosive sound, the bullet was fired, and,
"...My goodness."
"How did you do that...?"
"Didn't you use a smaller bullet? How on earth..."
Unlike the lead balls, the newly made bullet completely penetrated the armor.
Everyone was surprised by the obvious difference visible to the eye, and the cavalry who wore this plate armor had an even more intense reaction.
"We only need to make new molds, so mass production shouldn't be too difficult."
"To compress the bullet with the explosive power of gunpowder, the dwarves' ideas are truly amazing."
The craftsmen who saw this sight also discussed the new bullet.
And then,
"Corps Commander Viktor. What's the name of this bullet? Or can you tell us the name of the craftsman who developed it?"
When a craftsman approached me and asked for the name of the bullet.
I, with respect for the original creator,
"It was designed and produced at the 'Lorenz Workshop', so it has the name Lorenz bullet."
I revealed the name of the bullet to those gathered.