Chapter 105 – The assassin conducts a secret experiment
Chapter 105 - The assassin conducts a secret experiment
Translator: VALIANT
I rested up well and woke up to a pleasant morning.
After taking a shower, I got dressed up and went to the kitchen to pick up a basket.
I had prepared lunch the day before.
We had planned to go out in the morning, so we needed to bring food with us.
When I went outside, the others were already waiting for me in their casual clothes.
[I can hardly wait for our picnic.] (Tarte)
[Today, we’re going to fly up in the sky, right?] (Dia)
[I’m also curious about the other interesting stuff you mentioned.] (Nevan)
I had two objectives today.
The first one was to fulfill my promise to let the girls fly with my hang gliders once we were back in Tuatha Dé.
There was a small hill in the back of the mountain from which they could glide peacefully.
The second one was to conduct an experiment.
[We don’t have much time, so let’s make haste. We’ve got a favorable wind today.] (Lugh)
The direction and the force of the wind are perfect for flying.
Looks like they’ll be able to fly comfortably today.
I used magic to produce hang gliders, then I explained how to fly it.
[Now, fly.] (Lugh)
[Eh!? You can’t expect me to know how to fly just from hearing your explanation!] (Dia)
[They do say learning by doing is the way to go. Based on your explanation, it should be simple enough, so I have no complaints.] (Nevan)
[I’ll be giving instructions from down here, so don’t worry.] (Lugh)
This way of teaching was pretty sloppy, but it was the fastest.
The reason I could afford to proceed like that was because those two were the ones learning.
If I had been teaching regular people, they would’ve been at risk of losing control, crashing, and winding up severely wounded or dead.
However, if my disciples were those two, who were capable of enhancing their physical abilities with mana, then they would be able to deal with any trouble, and even if they got injured, I would be able to heal them.
Therefore, I decided to give them Spartan training.
[Just make sure you keep your radio devices on.] (Lugh)
[S-Sure. It’s our lifeline, after all.] (Dia)
[…I truly wish I could bring this technology home with me and spread it.] (Nevan)
They both put their radio devices on.
As long as they had them, I could give them advice from the ground.
[Come to think of it, I remember you stating that they have an effective range of about 100 m.] (Nevan)
[Yeah, as long as they’re portable and provide two-way communication, that is. This mountain will be my testing ground. For this prototype.] (Lugh)
As I announced that, I summoned an object from the ground.
It was a large, rectangular magic tool made of steel, as tall as I was.
[With this size, this thing can amplify and transmit sound signals. It has a range of 2 km, 20 times that of the portable version.] (Lugh)
Since it only amplified and transmitted signals, it merely has an extended transmission range, so the signals emitted by their slave devices wouldn’t reach me if they were more than 100 m apart from my metal box.
Even if it was a one-way transmitter, the fact that it could provide communication over such a long distance was still astonishing.
[I am more impressed than ever. With this device, we could transmit all sorts of information to an entire army in an instant. If we used it in war, we could have an overwhelming edge in information warfare. No conventional army could ever hold a candle to us!] (Nevan)
An army of 1,000 or 10,000 could be perfectly unified.
It would indeed magnify the military’s combat power by dozens.
[I told you already. I didn’t build all this for military purposes. If the nobles of our kingdom ever caught wind of this, I have no doubt they would gleefully use it to invade other countries.] (Lugh)
Many of the Alvanian nobles were ambitious.
If that bloodthirsty bunch was to get their hands on more power, they would inevitably use it for conquest.
[And whatever is the problem with that? It would bring more prosperity to the Kingdom of Alvan.] (Nevan)
[I find that to be in bad taste. If I wanted this kingdom to prosper, I’d rather achieve that by developing what we have than by taking away from others.] (Lugh)
I wasn’t a pacifist, but I had no intention of spilling another’s tears and blood pointlessly, or even let anyone do that.
As for me, the Tuatha Dé domain was all I needed.
Although, I didn’t want to go along with someone else’s greed, and I didn’t want to have a hand in a massacre either.
[Your lack of ambition may be your one and only flaw, Lugh-sama.] (Nevan)
[I don’t see it as a flaw. I just don’t ask for more than I need. But never mind that, get flying already. Before the wind dies down.] (Lugh)
[O-Okay, let’s go then. If I get in trouble, come to my rescue, okay?] (Dia)
[Well then, we’ll see you later.] (Nevan)
Dia and Nevan took off from the top of the hill.
They rode the wind, glided, and flew far away.
Both of them were maneuvering while sticking to the basics, and didn’t encounter any danger.
[Both of them are smart and catch on quickly, after all. I knew they’d do just fine without me.] (Lugh)
[I agree. They got used to it much faster than I did.] (Tarte)
Even when a side wind blew, they were able to immediately recover from it.
Since they understood how a hang glider was structured, they knew how to fly theirs properly.
However, since they couldn’t use wind magic, their altitude was slowly dropping.
And an ascending wind conveniently blowing their way wasn’t exactly a common occurrence.
After a while, they landed. The two of them strengthened themselves with mana and came running back to us.
Actually, no. Something else happened.
Dia had a mischievous look on her face.
…I have a bad feeling about this.
[That girl…] (Lugh)
She dashed as fast as she could, then she jumped with everything she had.
At that kind of altitude, she would have to fall back soon.
However, Dia was chanting.
Normally, when you were in the middle of chanting, you would focus all your mana and resources on chanting your spell, leaving you unable to strengthen your own physical abilities, but the application of【Quick-Chant】enabled her to use【Multi-Chant】.
Dia can’t use wind magic.
What’s she up to?
[Kyah…!] (Tarte)
A violent explosion occurred behind Dia.
Carried by that blast, the hang glider gained altitude and accelerated.
The explosion was so loud that Tarte, who was right next to me, screamed.
And that wasn’t all. She used【Multi-Chant】to cast a spell in addition to her explosion spell.
Then her spell activated.
[…This is all too insane.] (Lugh)
There were flames coming out of her feet.
No actually, those weren’t flames. By gathering air from her surroundings, pressurizing it, and burning it, she produced a powerful jet of high-temperature and high-pressure gas to use as a propelling force.
In principle, it was similar to a jet plane.
She was faster than Tarte and I when we controlled the wind.
[That’s amazing! She’s way too fast!] (Tarte)
[Although, I don’t think I want to try and copy her. The spell to create that fire pillar is pretty complex and hard to control. One slight mishandling, and the airframe would end up burning up in flames. It’s not really fuel-efficient either. If anyone other than Dia or I used it, they’d instantly run out of mana.] (Lugh)
Moreover, Dia, who couldn’t use wind magic, used a terribly inefficient method to gather and pressurize the air around her by using non-elemental magic to grab the wind and solidify it.
Nevertheless, it was a great spell.
If I were to cast it, instead of grabbing the wind and hardening it, I could use wind magic to bring the wind to me.
When she showed me that spell earlier today, I thought it was meant for offense, but I guess it was actually for this.
After that, Dia landed next to us.
[*Pant…* *Pant…* *Pant…* How was that? Even if I can’t use the wind, I can still fly fast!] (Dia)
[You really surprised me there. Guess I’ll have to build a special airplane just for you.] (Lugh)
[Thanks. I’ll look forward to it.] (Dia)
[But next time we go to the royal capital, don’t fly on your own.] (Lugh)
[T-That would be a bit hard for me…] (Dia)
After all, that spell had a super low fuel efficiency.
No way she could reach the royal capital with it.
After a while, Nevan came back with her hang glider.
[*Pant…* *Pant…* I finally made it back. Flying with this thing is fantastic, but bringing it back is exhausting. It’s so heavy.] (Nevan)
She was unusually sweaty.
[Um, Dia. I have a favor to ask you.] (Nevan)
[Sure. What is it?] (Dia)
[Could you create a spell that uses light as a propelling force?] (Nevan)
[I’m sorry, but I can’t really picture how that would work.] (Dia)
I’d seen the mechanism of converting light into propulsion in science fiction, but wind never heard of it being put to practical use.
To be precise, I heard that the theory behind it was complete, and some specialized institution announced that it was indeed feasible.
But even I didn’t feel like I could replicate that with magic.
[That’s unfortunate…] (Nevan)
Magic was useful, but not omnipotent.
There were some things it could do, and some things it couldn’t.
After enjoying the flying session, we had lunch.
We still had a little more time before that stuff arrived.
[I’m so glad to be eating your food again today, Lugh-sama.] (Nevan)
[Lugh, I think you should cook for us every day.] (Dia)
[Um, that would actually make me sad.] (Tarte)
When I opened the basket, the sandwiches inside came into view.
There were standard egg sandwiches, hamburgers made with boar meat, and the special dish of the day.
[Lugh, you lied again, didn’t you? Ugh…! I wanted to eat a gratin!] (Dia)
Dia gave me a reproachful look.
[Um, a gratin for lunch would have been a bad idea… I mean, once it gets cold, it doesn’t taste good.] (Tarte)
[What is a “gratin?”] (Nevan)
Dia proudly described to Nevan what a gratin was.
[It’s really delicious. First, you simmer some short pasta in a one day old cream stew, then you top it with cheese and bake it in the oven. It’s my favorite dish because it’s rich in flavor and very filling.] (Dia)
[My! This sounds exquisite.] (Nevan)
[And yet…] (Dia)
Once again, Dia looked in my direction.
[I don’t want you to jump to conclusions, but I assure you, I did make it. Just try the sandwiches first.] (Lugh)
That’s right, I did make a gratin.
I was Dia’s boyfriend, and I wanted to satisfy her wishes. But just making regular gratin wouldn’t have been appropriate for our lunch box.
So I made a gratin in a way that would make it tasty even when it was cold.
[You say that, but there are only sandwiches in there, right?] (Dia)
[Anyway, let’s eat!] (Tarte)
[Agreed.] (Nevan)
I smiled and poured some soup from my water bottle.
Then, we began our meal.
[Oh my! This egg sandwich is slightly sour and rich in flavor. I have never tasted anything like this before.] (Nevan)
Those were just half-boiled eggs I mashed and mixed together with homemade mayonnaise, but mayonnaise was a seasoning that wasn’t found in this world and gave it an innovative flavor, and it was always well-received wherever it was served.
[The hamburger’s seasoning is so fragrant and sweet, it’s delicious.] (Tarte)
The hamburger was made with teriyaki sauce. Even when it was cold, teriyaki was delicious.
And finally, there was the special dish of the day.
[Ah… It’s gratin. It really is gratin! It’s so good! So very, very good!] (Dia)
It was a gratin croquette sandwich.
The croquette was made by adding meat and macaroni to a simmered cream stew, and then deep frying it.
The croquette was dressed in a thick tomato sauce I had boiled to the utmost limit, and sandwiches between two slices of bread.
Its flavor was so strong it tasted great even when it was cold.
[So this is gratin. It’s absolutely delightful.] (Nevan)
[It’s my favorite!] (Dia)
[Yes, I like it too.] (Tarte)
With the macaroni dipped in white sauce, dressed in batter, deep fried, and sandwiched between bread, this dish was the carbohydrate concentrate.
And yet, it was delicious.
…A similar menu was popular in my previous world, but it seems to work out in this world as well.
[Phew, that was great. You really are the best boyfriend ever, Lugh.] (Dia)
[I see you’re in rather good shape, Dia.] (Lugh)
Dia hugged me, and I patted her.
If this lunch made her this happy, then it was worth the effort.
[By the way, you said you had another crucial experiment today besides flying hang gliders, right?] (Dia)
[Yeah, it should begin soon.] (Lugh)
I took a look at my pocket watch and noticed that the appointed time had come.
Soon, the greatest experiment of the century would begin.
The experiment to create a tool that would give me information about the demons as soon as they were found.
There it comes.
The large black communication device that also served as a radio device trembled.
And then…
『Lugh-niisama, can you hear me? This is your little sister sending you a love call from Milteu.』(Maha)
I heard Maha’s voice.
In real time, fIn real time, from approximately 400 km away.
[I can hear you. The experiment is a success.] (Lugh)
『Fufu…! I’m so glad. Now I can hear your voice whenever I want.』(Maha)
The experiment was a success.
What I wanted to create was a phone.
In fact, I had been working on the phone creation project itself for the past 2 years, with the prototype having been completed 2 years ago.
However, it took time, money and hard labor to create a communication network, and even with full use of Orna’s power and funds, I could only make it happen now.
Everyone was in a state of shock.
Even being able to communicate within 2 km was astounding to them. So I suppose they would’ve never imagined that the same could work within a distance of 400 km.
Time for me to reveal the secret.
I was going to explain how we could hear Maha’s voice from 400 km away, despite the fact that my radio device only had a maximum range of 2 km.