CH 46

It’s Ko-Fi Supporters’ chapter (2/23), enjoy~

Three days after the men’s meeting, the troops assigned to liberate the Merinard citizens departed from the front-line base. One unit consisted of twelve people. All of them were armed with crossbows, with a well-balanced mix of those who knew the land, those who had skills as scouts, and those who excelled in combat.

The purpose of their mission is first to liberate a remote village and second to gather information. The plan is to refrain from fighting the Holy Kingdom’s army as much as possible.

Six units with a total of seventy-two people left the fort, leaving the front-line defense suddenly quiet. This is because about half of the people have left the fort. Sir Leonard, Qubi, Worg, and Indy also went out. Danan, Sykes, and I were on standby.

After the Liberation Army left, what we were left to do didn’t change much. We’ll take care of the fields, train, make new stuff, scout the area, and exterminate the Gizma if there are any. If they come close to the fort, they are a good target for the ballista. With the right shot, it could be a one-hit kill.

Do I have to go out there? I consulted with the others.

“Using Kosuke’s power will certainly help the operation. However, even if we succeed in the operation by using a special power that only Kosuke can use, it will only be an irregular case. We won’t be able to accumulate any know-how on how to carry out the operation.”

This is what Danan told me. Hmm, I can understand it, but not quite.

“Kosuke’s power is indeed useful, or rather versatile. But the liberation mission is something that can be done by personnel other than Kosuke. I think Kosuke should do what only Kosuke can do.”

“Hmm, I see. But the only thing I can do now is make arrowheads, preserve food, and develop new items.”

“If we have plenty of supplies, it will definitely come in handy in case of emergency. You never know what kind of unforeseen circumstances may arise. In the worst-case scenario, the Holy Kingdom’s army stationed in the Merinard Kingdom could attack this fort. If that happens, there’s no limit to the number of arrows and preserved food you can have.”

“It has become clear to me that alchemy and magic technology go well with Kosuke’s abilities. If we develop our abilities in this direction, not only our abilities but also the technology of this world may develop dramatically. Even so, we are few in number. Rather than going to the front, Kosuke should move in the direction of securing a technological advantage.”

This is what Sylphy, Melty, and Isla told me. I think it’s not a bad idea to play an active role in the front-line.

“If I were to say it this way, Kosuke is our keystone. Honestly speaking, your personal safety is more important than mine. No matter how much Kosuke wants to go, we can’t send you to the front.”

“Hmm, well, I guess you’re right.”

The main base and this front-line base both have a certain amount of production capacity, but even with both combined, my crafting ability is far superior in production capacity. Indeed, Sylphy and Danan can’t risk losing me like that. If I were in their shoes, I would do the same.

“Thanks to the equipment Kosuke made, the Liberation Army is well equipped. It’s Kosuke’s job to believe in them and wait for them while making better ones.”

“That’s right. It is Kosuke’s job to protect everyone’s place of return.”

And just like this, I was told that I should exert my capabilities in the rear. So, while the liberation army was fighting on the front lines, I was immersed in developing new items with Isla, Sykes, and other engineers side by side.

So, the next day after the liberation force went out.

“Are golems easy to make?”

I asked in the workshop of the engineers at the front-line base. The people here were Isla, a former court mage who knew a lot about magic and alchemy, Sykes, an alchemist, and others with specialized skills in magic, alchemy, blacksmiths, woodworkers, and metal carvers. Except for Sykes and me, all of them are women.

“All I can say is, it depends. Tell me what you want to use it for.”

“No, I thought it would be easier to operate a ballista or crossbow if we could leave the pulling of the strings to the golem. There’s an image of the golem as being powerful, and if it’s just pulling strings, it’s very simple to command, right? It could even be a golem with just arms.”

The alchemists groaned at my suggestion.

“This is innovative. Normally, a golem is a humanoid puppet that moves. Even if it’s just to make it walk, you have to set up a formula in the core that takes care of things like balancing it, recognizing what’s around it and making sure it doesn’t collide, and so on. As Kosuke mentioned, if the golem is only used for pulling strings or turning something, then the number of formulas to be written in the core will be small.”

“I think we can cut costs quite a bit in terms of materials. If it’s just to write simple commands, it might be possible to get by with inexpensive materials, and if it’s just to pull something or turn something, the size of the golem can be reduced.”

Isla and Sykes responded positively to my suggestion.

“Actually, I was thinking about using the principle of leverage to pull strings. I’ve drawn up a blueprint for it. I think this could also be used for a ballista.”

The Lamia blacksmith said and spread out a sheet of blueprints on the table. We all looked at the blueprint. I see, a lever is attached to the crossbow so that the string can be pulled using the principle of leverage. Since the lever would be attached to the top of the crossbow, would it be difficult to aim? But I guess it can be modified with a better sighting device and lever shape.

“I like this lever-type crossbow. But what about adding a golem mechanism to a crossbow carried by an individual? Is it possible?”

“I don’t think it’s possible to put it on a normal-sized crossbow. However, ballista-sized crossbows are no problem.”

“Let’s try to modify the crossbows and ballista that are currently deployed.”

“As for materials, we still have iron and wood in reserve, so I don’t think we’ll have any problems. What is the golem’s core made of?”

“I think the copper and mithril alloy used for the heating element will be enough. As for the material for the main body of the golem, we can try using clay and stone that have been given magical powers.”

The blacksmith and woodworker decided to modify the crossbow using the principle of leverage, and the mage, alchemist, and sculptor decided to make a prototype of the golem mechanism to be attached to the ballista.

If the prototype works without any problems, I’ll start mass production with item creation. For example, in this case, I would be responsible for the crossbow modification kit and the mass production of the sculpted golem core.

It’s also my job to provide ideas for new items based on the knowledge I’ve acquired from my original world, games, anime, and manga.

“Kosuke’s ideas are interesting. His point of view is different from ours.”

“That’s true. This simplification of the golem seems to have a lot of applications.”

“It might be a good idea to use golem power instead of waterwheel power. The problem is the cost of magic power?”

“Yes. It’s also a question of how much it actually costs to run. If it’s the main base, we can pump an inexhaustible amount of magic power from the vein holes, but it’s not so easy here.”

“Why don’t you just provide the magic power from the shooters? Well, I can’t use it, though.”

“I see. If we just pull the strings of the ballista, the consumption might be surprisingly low. Let’s think of an absorption mechanism as well.”

Everyone nodded at Sykes’ words and began to take action. First of all, I added a tentative golem core element made of mithril and copper alloy processed into a sphere to the crafting list in Item Creation, and made some on the modified workbench, and gave them to Isla and the others.

I joined the group of Lamia’s blacksmiths, who had brought me this modification plan, and I decided to participate in the discussion of the modification plan for the improved crossbow. I don’t know anything about magic, but I can be of some help in discussions about mechanical mechanisms like this.

I feel like I’m getting some mysterious looks from the people in this group, but I’d like to think it’s just my imagination. I think Lamia’s blacksmith’s tail is rubbing my leg to keep the others from finding out, but I’m sure it’s just my imagination. Other than that, I feel like there is a lot of body touches from everyone in general. I’m sure it’s just my imagination, right? I tell myself that and suddenly turn my gaze to Sykes.

He’s firmly flanked on both sides by engravers and alchemists, and he’s being talked to at an absurdly close distance, which makes him tense. Hang in there… super hang in there. I can mention Sylphy’s name in case of an emergency, but I can do nothing to help you. How helpless I am…

After much discussion and prototyping, the crossbow was quickly modified. By using the principle of leverage, the ability to fire repeatedly was improved, while the power remained unchanged. The mechanism is simple, so there are few malfunctions, and the levers and other parts are made to be sturdy, so there have been no problems so far.

It’s a little heavy for me to use, and the fact that I can easily reload it by command action means that I didn’t get any benefits from it. Oh well, I guess it is what it is. The golem mechanism for the ballista took a little longer, but I still managed to complete the prototype in about five days. This one was more than effective, and combined with a modification that used the same principle of leverage as the crossbow, it was able to fire a tremendous amount of shots. The added bonus was that it could be operated by one person.

With the armament upgrades steadily progressing like this, the first group of the liberation army finally returned to the front-line fort, with the latest news from the Merinard Kingdom.