CH 33

Chapter 33 – Thunder In The Distance

They said they were going to use the same ammunition in thirty-ought-six?

That was a lie.

Or rather, it was impossible. We couldn’t send men to the front line without automatic weapons where the enemy was 300 times larger than us. On the other hand, attacking from the top of the cliff was not enough to make an effective strike. That’s why we have the machine gun emplacements.

The M1919 heavy machine guns were placed far apart on both sides of the canyon entrance, and once they entered the area, it would be difficult to return after the war started. In the worst-case scenario, I would teleport over and retrieve them if something went wrong, but I decided to have a beastman guard at the gun emplacements, in addition to a dwarf gunner and a loader.

The problem is the weapons I have to give them.

The M1 Garand, which uses the same ammunition as the machine gun, had to be abandoned because I couldn’t get the right number of clips to hold each of the eight rounds, the BAR was in poor condition, and the six guns I had were being used as anti-aircraft fire on the side of the city walls, so it was impossible.

So I had no choice but to split the ammunition.

Speaking of which, I have to admit that if I had been connected to an American gun store instead of the black market, I would have been a thirty-ought-six warrior by now. Well, I’m just asking for the best.

I procured four more AKMs, the same ones I have, and two RPKs, light machine guns that can use the same ammunition and magazines as AKMs.

An assault rifle such as the AKM is a rifle with less powerful ammunition so that it can fire continuously, but it is not designed to be used like a machine gun, which constantly fires with a barrage. It is not impossible to use it, but it will soon get damaged.

It is a category between a light machine gun and an assault rifle, with a thick, replaceable barrel to prevent overheating and large magazines and belt feeding to reduce the need for frequent magazine changes. Today, it is known as a squad support firearm, and the RPK is, in fact, the ancestor of this category.

The RPK had a large number of mags that could be shared with the AKM, including 20 spare mags with a capacity of 40 rounds, 60 mags with the same 30-round capacity as the AKM, and four drum-type mags with a capacity of 75 rounds.

I also added 20,000 rounds of 7.62×39 ammunition, which was cheap in green steel casings. All the additional rounds will be divided between the two gun turrets.

I also asked for as many clips as I could find for loading the M1903. The M1903 doesn’t have a detachable magazine, so the clip makes a big difference in the speed and effort of loading. That would require more work before the war started, though.

Simon calmly replied to my lament that I should have gone with the M14.

“Even with the 7.62mm, you’d have less than half the equipment you could have with a NATO-issue weapon.”

Well, yeah. Most of the guns are still in service. The price will be high. I don’t know if it’s actually more than double.

I asked Simon if I could get a tank or something else for extra money, but the answer was not good.

“If you don’t pick the condition, there is nothing you can’t get. It’s just that I don’t think we can give it to you. In my father’s generation, he tried to send an infantry fighting vehicle to his business partner, but it didn’t work. He tried different things, different armored vehicles, but it didn’t work. Whether it’s weight, capacity, money, or the fact that it’s an armored vehicle, that may be the problem…”

“No, I got the armored plate and the microbus, right? I think it’s the weight limit. Can’t you manage it by taking it apart?”

“I’ll do it if you want me to, but I can’t give you your gold back just because I tried chopping it up, and it didn’t work.”

“I don’t care about that. Well, the car was fine, and it should be able to handle up to two tons.”

“How are you going to get it back together if I send it to you in pieces? From what I’ve heard, you don’t have the welding skills.”

As expected, I’m worried about joining them with bolts and nails. Even if he sent me the chassis and engine in pieces, I don’t think I could assemble them. What should I do?

“How about we try a car that’s just under the weight limit?”

“…That’s a possibility. What’s the lightest armored vehicle you can find?”

“I can get you a Ferret. It doesn’t have a turret, so it’s probably around three tons. Or I could give you the Humvee and then send you the extra armor separately.”

Ferret is a small armored vehicle that seats two people. The size of the car is about the size of a light car. Since the outer diameter of the car is the same, the interior is less than a light truck. It probably can’t carry a beastman. The Humvee, on the other hand, is not an armored vehicle but a big, flat jeep-like vehicle of the US military. Since it was produced and deployed in large numbers, there are a ridiculous amount of options for additional armor and armaments.

After some hesitation, I decided to go with the Humvee. There were a lot of them in circulation, so I was able to choose one that was in reasonably good condition, and above all, the automatic transmission was the deciding factor.

I had tried to get a beastman and an elf to drive the microbus, but they had trouble with the manual transmission. If someone other than myself could drive, I would have more options.

By the way, Myrril couldn’t do it because she couldn’t reach the pedals. She should drink more milk.

As it turned out, the Humvee arrived in good shape, and I was able to add extra armor, but it turned out to be difficult to use on the front lines where there was no rear ground.

No, that’s a lie; I really knew that and bought it. I just wanted something with better legs than a kindergarten microbus with a bear face.

If I get stuck, run out of gas, or get surrounded by heavily armed cavalry, I might end up in the Warring States Self-Defense Force, so I basically don’t take it out in battle. If I were on my own, I wouldn’t mind going as far as I could and being crushed.

Also, for some reason, Myrril seems to like that microbus more than the Humvee.

Oh well.

As we were making the final adjustments, we finally heard the sound of drums and flutes. As I looked around, I saw flags waving all around the kingdom army camp.

The kingdom’s army was on the move. There’s no declaration of war, surrender order, or name-calling, just war in this world.

Myrril looked at me and smiled. She seemed to be very, very happy. She smiled brightly, like a bride on her way down the aisle.

“…Now, it’s time to hunt.”