Chapter 324: The cannon

Two days later, Eldrian took a long break from the back-breaking practice. Unable to understand how just thinking and using magic, which was also thinking, could leave him drenched in sweat. 

So far he has gotten to the point where he can comfortably use Frost Needle along with Mana Examination. No longer limited to a few seconds, but rather nearly a full minute. 

This allowed him to learn more about how the mana was sent from his body to the icicle. He also went ahead and did the same with Vrachos, finding that the spell lasted far longer before requiring new mana. 

The most likely reason was that there was no need to keep the icicle cold. However, the difference felt too big for it to be just that.  Maybe the need to gather and form the ice?

Other than playing with these two, Eldrian had also continued to meditate. This was in fact where 70% of his time had gone. Slowly he had come to be able to slightly move the pathways inside of him again. 

This was extremely taxing. Far more so than creating them had been. Eldrian had also found why this was so. 

His mana was moving incredibly fast, and chaotically to boot. Due to their being just one pathway, mana came and went sporadically. Eldrian had never realized this until now, and now he realized just how much inefficiency this created. 

Instead of being like proper roads for the mana to take, it was more like a direction in which it could come and go like waves. The reason Eldrian had missed it before was due to the speed of it coming and going. 

Condensing his mana to follow a specific route had sped up its movement. That alone had been hard enough. He only found the problem when trying to move it again. Finding the difficulty to ebb and wane massively. 

After finding this, he  started trying to create one pathway for the mana flowing in and another for out. As of yet, he has had no success with this plan. Eldrian even contemplated doing it in his soul-state. However, he recalled the warning from both Pelaros and the system. 

So he decided to struggle for a week more. If he saw no growth by then, then he would risk it. The need for growing stronger far more than his worry for doing something incorrectly. 

The reason for Eldrian's long break today was that the gunsmiths were going to be streaming their cannon. Finding a quiet spot at the walls that had been fully repaired early morning after the surprise attack. Eldrian headed to the forums through the interface and started following the stream. 

He was a bit early, having stopped half an hour before. He did not want to get lost in training and miss the show. 

His being early did not do much though, as the gunsmiths were busy showing off. When Eldrian joined, they were showcasing their royalty arms. Flintlocks with gold engraved to make them look exquisite. 

Surprisingly the gold was not just for show, but actually increased the gun's toughness. While also increasing the explosive power of gunpowder. However, the reload time was horrendous as with all flintlock weapons. 

Eldrian continued to watch, thinking back to when he just started learning blacksmithing and how little he had actually learned. Even so, he could enjoy the effort that must have gone into each piece. Each was unique, crafted by someone who had spent hours upon hours to form the metal. 

In fact, there were only ten flintlock pistols made thus far. Which the streamer made sure to mention, as well as when they would be placed up for auction in the player shops. 

Smart. Eldrian smiled slightly as he saw their shamelessness. He was curious if they would manage to make guns a staple for this world. Or if it would just be a toy for nobles. 

There was quite a debate on this, especially now that they had gotten some backing and were no longer just a few players playing at making guns. They now had a real shot at actually making them for real. 

Some players were against this, feeling that guns should not be part of a fantasy world. That it would ruin the fantasy aspect and just turn this into another messed up world. 

The others were in full support. Generally, those in support were also closer to the NPCs. They just hoped that it would help them protect their kingdoms. Which would also ensure the game continued. 

The protesting group naturally argued against this, stating that they would be the heroes and that the NPCs just needed to wait. Which then quickly became a heated argument. None knowing of the hurdle to come at Tier 5

As for the guns themselves, a major problem remained. Bullets were too small to be enhanced. Even if one managed, the material limited the strength of the enhancement. This does not sound like much, but it is of vital importance to injure or kill stronger enemies. 

That is why most arrows, especially high Tiered ones, are an entires arm's length.  It allowed far more power to be placed, or rather carved, onto them.

Finally, the true event was going to start and the streaming player, Cadhan, the leader of the gunsmith alliance, spoke. "Dear viewers, please be patient and stay with us as we witness the power of our creation. We are extremely excited to see what it can do."

For the test, the cannon has been installed on the wall. Aimed at a nearby woods to see what damage it could cause. Nearby, however, might be the wrong word. The woods was over a kilometer, but Cadhan was confident it would hit. The target also spread out for kilometers, thus their target was large, a miss unlikely. 

"The cannon is very special, similar to the flintlock pistols, we have enhanced its barrel. We also added a small array to light the gunpowder with magic. As such the pressure we can deliver is similar to that of modern cannons, if not more."

Saying this, Cadhan finally showed the cannon. It did not look impressive to say the least. There was no beauty in its appearance, just functionality. 

This was likely the reason why so few nobles had come to see the test. Having sent their servants, and upon hearing the lackluster appearance of this 'miracle weapon' they decided to skip the charade. 

"If this does not work!" A man in black and red noble clothing started, interrupted by one of the twins, the sister. 

"Dad! Stop it! It is going to be amazing. Just wait, you will be able to rub it into the faces of all those who decided to ignore your invitation." The sister had a petite body and was only as tall as Cadhan, who was a dwarf. However, she still had a few years of growth ahead of her. 

The man humphed in angry acceptance, looking at the cannon with little hope. Believing the 100 gold he had invested had been wasted on ale. Something dwarves were known to do, at least the untrustworthy ones. He certainly thought the player before him was such a one. 

"Mister Ivensevi, I can assure you that it will perform wonderfully." Cadhan said, "Has everyone arrived?"

He too felt slightly worried by the lacking appearance of nobles, however, the number of players in the stream assured him. He had full faith in the cannon they had spent weeks on. 

Magic made the crafting process easier than it would be in medieval times, however, it still had taken them four days just to finish the barrel. What took the most time was the runes and arrays they had added. 

Unlike handguns, the cannon was spacious enough for both. Muskets generally had to either have runes or arrays. Unfortunately, runes were not designed for guns. They could borrow some that would generally be used for bows, but that did little. Since those mostly focused on making the wielder stronger. 

After getting a nod from their investor, Cadhan sighed and turned to his crew. A mix of dwarves, men, and the odd elf. Nodding to them, they quickly started loading the cannon. 

The cannonball they placed into the barrel drew everyone's eyes. It shined in the sun, the silver carvings on the ball catching everyone's attention. 

"Is that Mithral?" Dravko Ivensevi asked, unable to cope with them shooting something so expensive. 

"Yes, it is. The cannon has been enhanced to allow for maximum power and resistance, while the cannonballs have been enhanced for maximum damage." Cadhan replied, adding after a slight delay, "You might want to cover your ears."

Upon saying this he signaled for those at the cannon to set it off. This took nothing more than inserting a mana crystal. An expensive fuel source, but one which made the explosive power a hundred times more. 

The aim of this show was not to prove a concept but to awe. As such, they had gone overboard in nearly every aspect. A single cannonball cost 10 gold, the cannon 75, and the crystals each 5 gold. The crystals being the point where they had taken the cheapest they could find. A fingernail-sized crystal.

As the crystal entered its spot, the entire cannon lit up. The runes all glowing in a sharp white color, followed by a light blue and orange. The lighting soon disappeared, followed by a deafening boom. 

The explosion was so powerful that just the shockwaves sent those next to the cannon off their feet. Losing over half their HP and coughing blood as they just barely managed to not be thrown over the wall. 

Even the nobles, fifty meters back, were sent onto their backs. Before they could recover another massive boom sounded, like the loudest thunder in a thunderstorm. 

Recovering his footing, even Cadhan was left without words as he looked at their target. A 50-meter creator in the center, with the following 100 flattened and the next 500 ablaze. The fire quickly spreading to the rest of the area. 

"Oh god, what about the animals?" He mumbled, realizing that he had underestimated the damage it would do.