CH 178

Chapter 178 – Side Story: And Waiting For Spring

Simon, I think you definitely misunderstand something.

Yes, there were a lot of extra orders for 45ACP ammo, but it was mostly consumed by Mir-neesan, and I only used a few dozen rounds in the MAC10.

Among the piles of firearms, he gave me as a service was an XDM 4.5, a new plastic-framed pistol that holds 13 rounds of .45 ACP. It has a rail in front of the trigger guard and even has a flashlight. It’s very cool. I’m very grateful for the addition of such a gun, but in this world where handgun ammunition is the only way to defeat enemies without armor, I honestly want a gun with less recoil.

As I was struggling with the .45-caliber pistol, Myrril-san gave me a strange look.

“What’s the matter?”

“The merchant I buy from thinks I love .45s, too.”

“You don’t like the .45, do you, Yoshua? That’s the one and only ammo worth risking your life for, right?”

Yes. It’s certainly powerful. The firearms that use it are also generally reliable and tough. It’s good ammunition if you think about it from the perspective of other people. It might be fine for a strong-armed dwarf, but the recoil of the 45 ACP is too much for me. I don’t really want to use it in a pistol, let alone a short machine gun.

I could give it to Myrril-san, but wouldn’t she look like a Musashibo Benkei with her UZI, Star, Alaskan, and XDM?

“Do you need the XDM?”

“It looks like a nice gun, but I’m happy with the Uzi and the Star. With the exception of the Arasukan,’ which is a good luck charm.”

Is that right?

You’re the single-minded type, aren’t you? I like that about you.

I’ll put this away for now. It may come in handy someday.

Another service item is Sturm Ruger… Mk2, huh? Very astringent choice, Simon.

It has a silver stainless steel body and is fitted with a heavy barrel with a silencer.

It uses 22 calibers long rifle ammunition. Although the name may sound like a big deal to those who are not interested in guns, the ammunition has less than half the energy of the .45 ACP used by Myrril-san, and depending on the manufacturer’s specifications, only about one-third as much.

This ammunition is cheap, easy to handle with low recoil, and has high accuracy, so it is widely used for recreational shooting, small animal control, and shooting competitions.

In a sense, it’s a great weapon.

Even though it has a low energy content, it has enough power to kill small animals and bare human bodies. In addition, the initial velocity is also low, making it highly effective in reducing sound. With a sound reducer like the one Simon chose, the only sound it makes is that of a machine operating. Depending on how you use it, it can be a formidable weapon.

I would be very grateful if I could use it. It will broaden the scope of my strategy in many ways. It would also come in handy when hunting small animals.

There were other items of service that I was grateful for.

A Browning Hi-Power, in fairly good condition. The year of manufacture of the gun itself is unknown, but the initial model was produced in 1935. Although not as old or well-known as the M1911, it is a masterpiece that will remain in history. Today, the performance is honestly nothing to sneeze at, but that is a result of the required standard of a modern military pistol.

It is also a pioneer of the double-row magazine, in which ammunition is loaded in two zigzag rows in the magazine, and it has a large 13-round capacity. The name “high firepower” was derived from a large number of rounds.

I have seen it used by members of the SAS, a special forces unit of the British Army, in books and movies, so I have a personal attachment to this gun, and I like it a lot. I’ll use this one myself. It also comes with a brand-new shoulder holster made of leather, which shows Simon’s care. That guy is good at pushing buttons but somewhat of a maniac.

The ammunition used in the Browning Hi-Power is the 9mm Parabellum bullet, which has now become the world standard for automatic pistol ammunition. The energy content of the bullet is not much different from that of the .45 ACP, but the bullet head is smaller and lighter, so the initial velocity is higher. Sorry Myrril-san, but the 9mm seems to be easier to use for me.

The problem will be the supply. With the number of types of ammunition used in Casemaian continuing to increase, two new types of handgun ammunition (22 long rifles and 9mm Parabellum) would be a problem to manage. Either keep them for personal use or reopen them and start modernizing the auxiliary armament. Either way, we have not yet deployed any firearms with pistol bullet specifications in Casemaian. We have no choice but to think about it while conducting trial shooting in the name of test operation. This is a big responsibility. I’ll have to think about it as we test-fire the weapons. I’m in deep trouble…

“What are you grinning about with guns in both hands?”

“I was just checking out the new stock. I’m happy to see that they are different from the ones I have so far, but I’m wondering about their future use.”

Myrril-san laughed with a puzzled look on her face.

“I used to make weapons myself, so I can understand. I can’t help thinking about it at times like that.”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“Even if you try to spread the word by forcing it, what disappears disappears. Even if you try your best to hide it and let no one know about it, what is sought after will be exposed to the light of day.”

Natural selection, huh? Maybe so. It might be fun for all of us to think about our future plans and pick out the equipment for them.

The thought of all the things that will take place in Casemaian in the spring makes me a little anxious for the end of winter to come.