CHAPTER 8.5: TANK

***Malvette, capital city of the Kingdom of Cherwind, three months later…***

The Royal Academy of Cherwind was a famous educational institution where many of the bright minds from all over the beastman realms and of the others were gathered to learn science, similar to the Conclave of the demon republic. It was led by the Chief Royal Scientist, Lady Salis of the Owls, and funded by the Queen of Cherwind herself, the Lady Ursura. Because of its reputation, it was the first in Kuro’s mind when he created the designs for his tank, meant to be deployed by the Elvish Expeditionary Force in their invasion of Cherwoods.

“…”

Of course, anything that had connections with the King of Cherwind was personally overseen by the Chief Royal Scientist herself.

“And here it is,” Salis unveiled the finished tank prototype to Kuro, in one of the hidden parts of Royal Academy. “Your very own tank, now existing in reality.”

“Hoh…” he never hid his astonishment to the armored vehicle. While he always advocated peace, Kuro was still a fan of military equipment like the tank. And looking at his ‘creation’ in the ‘flesh’, the duke couldn’t be anymore happier.

“The body is made from mithril, which—as we all know—is a metal sturdy enough to withstand bullet hits but light enough to make it climb to top speed in a matter of seconds,” the owl-lady explained. “We also installed the cannon, as it is in your drawing—loaded via the breech, so it’s pretty capable of hitting the enemy hard and fast.”

“What about the propellant?”

“You mean the demon powder?”

Kuro nodded.

“As of now, we have no way of producing a smokeless powder, so the crews will have to make do with the common demon powder,” then, she handed him a set of papers. “However, our scientists are already researching for ways to minimize the generation of smoke whenever a demon weapon is fired, mostly in the chemical composition of the demon powder. It will take time, but we’ll eventually get there.”

“I see…I think it won’t be ready anytime soon,” the human commented. “So, what’s your solution to the smoke?”

“The top side of the tank turret can be opened, and we installed wire mesh to keep the arrows off,” the owl-lady pointed. “But, it’s a temporary solution. Until we developed a ‘smokeless demon powder’, it’ll have to do. As for the crew, we’ll have them wear masks to minimize the exposure of their lungs to the smoke. After a few hours, they should also be granted permission to retreat to their lines to catch some fresh air.”

“Well, it’s not like we can do anything about it for now,” the duke gave Salis a head pat. “Still, thank you for your good work! By the way, speaking of safety features, how about the embrasures?”

“Yep, we got them,” she showed him the parts where there were small holes wide enough for gun barrels to shoot from. “As for where the soldiers will look, it’s the screens on the top of each embrasure.”

“I see…”

“I got you covered, Kuro,” Salis smiled. “There are a few design flaws in your original plan, so the genius me fixed that for you! That includes the steam engine…the one in your sketch is underpowered. We got new and better prototypes now, though yeah, it’s still in testing phase. Also, I think your ‘tank’ needs a larger caliber of cannon, so I adjusted it for you. No worries; we tested it before creating this one, and I assure you, the recoil won’t affect the vehicle that much.”

The duke loved to listen to the owl-lady’s explanation. They traded opinions and shared information on how it would be used in combat, as well as the better specifications, courtesy of Salis’ knowledge in engineering. And finally, when they touched the matter of economy, Kuro asked…

“How about the production costs for this vehicle?”

“I’d say the only problem we’ll have is the source of mithril,” Salis admitted. “See, because of its durability and rarity, mithril is highly-valued. A full-mithril armored tank would cost you a fortune.”

“Understandable…” the duke nodded. “As far as I know, the only source of mithril is the Avinus region here. And it’s also a main component in making the bolt-heater rifle.”

“Well, we can create the iron-mithril alloy,” the owl-lady suggested. “The price would still be high, but compared to the original costs, it’s way lower. And the speed capability is maintained.”

“Hmm…how about a full steel one?”

Salis shook her head. “I don’t think it’s possible without sacrificing the weight and speed of the vehicle.”

Of course, the duke wanted a group full mithril armored tanks spearheading the amphibious assaults of the Elvish Expeditionary Force. However, by then, he had to consider the budgetary constraints of his territory. Only the support of his friends and the Elf Saint’s admirers were keeping the war chest going; he couldn’t realign more money from his duchy’s treasury, as it would be unfair to his taxpayers, who had no business in his ‘personal’ war. The full steel tank was much cheaper, but, as Salis advised, the additional weight of that design would strain the vehicle itself, that could lead to higher maintenance costs in the long run.

So, Kuro had to choose the second-best option: the iron-mithril tank.

“Got it,” the owl-lady winked at him. “I’ll send our designs to Her Majesty, so we can start building. How many do you require, anyway?”

“Just a hundred will do,” the duke replied, expecting that his enemies in Cherwoods would only be armed with bows, arrows…and if they possessed any sort of ‘artillery’, probably catapults. In that case, that number of tanks was sufficient for a breakthrough. Then, he quickly added, “Oh, and about the payment—”

“No,” she stopped him from continuing. “If you’re putting your life on the line for us, then it’s only right that we do our part by shelling out our own finances.”

Kuro fell silent after hearing that. Though the owl-lady already told him their reason they won’t accept money, he still felt guilty to give work to them for free.

“I know that look,” Salis had a smug look on her face. “Well, if you’re really adamant to accept free help from us, then after all of these problems are done, we should go on a date!”

“We should,” the duke countered. “After all, I plan to take you as my wife when everything settles down…even if your people don’t believe in marriages.”

Now, it was the owl-lady’s turn to be speechless. She only stared at Kuro with her face red in embarrassment.

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***The shores of the Amaranthine kingdom…***

The recruits of the Elvish Expeditionary Force had gathered on the beaches as the first batch of tanks from Cherwind arrived by boats. As Chersea had no dedicated ‘landing ships’ yet, it gave the sailors a difficult time transporting those armored behemoths from ship to land. Nevertheless, because of its construction (made from iron-mithril), it was significantly lighter than a regular tank from Earth, though just as tough. That’s why, with the help of several elves, they carried it off the transport boat to the dry sands of the Amaranthine shores.

From a distance, the squad of Behrien and Glamden watched as the tanks were unveiled, and its crew was instructed on how to operate it.

“What’s that thing?” one of their friends asked.

“It looks like a walking fort,” another quipped. “With a rotating cannon at the top?”

Their commanding officer then explained, never hiding his excitement, “That’s called a ‘tank’, boys! They say it will help us attack our enemies, and that the Duke of Maverny invented it.”

“Sir, what’s that person doing?” an elf raised his concern on a man that borrowed a gun from a nearby soldier. Then, everyone watched in awe as he repeatedly shot at the tank—several times on one spot, yet the vehicle emerged unscathed.

“Oh! It really is impervious even to the demon weapons!” their officer commented.

Then, much to their surprise, someone brought several cannons over.

“No way! Are they really going to shoot at it with those things?”

“It won’t survive! What are they thinking?”

Behrien and Glamden remained silent as they observed the demonstration. When the artillery crews finished loading their guns, they pointed at it on the sample tank at point blank range. The elves watched ever more closely as the command was given to fire…

“!!!”

The cannons created so much recoil that the sands were thrown in the air. However, when the dust and smoke finally settled, the tank remained unscathed. If anything, the only component that was damaged was its paint, chipped by the cannonballs that crashed unto it.

Not even the mercenary veterans could believe their eyes; they went over the vehicle itself to touch the parts where it was hit. Yet, even with all the firepower thrown at its hull, the tank maintained its armor integrity.

A senior commander of the Elvish Expeditionary Force explained, “As you can see, everyone, this vehicle is called a tank! It can fit a crew of four, which we will elaborate to you later, and also take four to six elves in the middle of the battlefield. It can withstand bullets and cannonballs, and this will be your friend in the upcoming attack!”

The thought of having that ‘monstrous behemoth’ fighting on their side was enough to raise the morale of the elves partaking the invasion exercises. As such, their confidence in the leadership of the Duke of Maverny went even higher…