14-43. War Kingdom (1) Scientific Weapons
"Wheel Chief! We can see Makiwa Kingdom's capital in the front!"
"Stop. Operator, stop the followers too."
Steel box-like weapons of the weaselkin stopped on top of the cliff.
Although it looks like a golem carriage, it has a peculiar shape where there's a box on top of a flat box and a long and narrow cylinder attached to the top box.
The tiger and lionkin slaves on the vehicles are watching the surrounding.
After the slaves confirmed that there were no danger in the surrounding, the top of the top box opened, and a weaselkin man called Wheel Chief showed his face.
Wheel Chief sprawled on the clifftop and checked the capital using a magic tool that looked like two attached tubes to see from a distance.
He's not wearing armor despite being a soldier, only sturdy looking clothes.
From here to the capital, it's about half a ri in weaselkin's unit, and around 3KM in earth unit.
"The Rocket Raccoon unit and Iron Hopper Cavalry have spread out in front of the capital huh.... As expected of the mobile corps."
100 Rocket Raccoons as big as three adult men and 3000 Iron Hoppers as big as a horse are lined up in front of the capital.
Screw-like suspicious magic tools are attached on top of the monsters' heads.
The riders in the box on the back of the monsters are probably using those magic tools to control them.
"Captain, will Makiwa knights come out?"
"Oh they will."
The one next to a Wheel Chief called Captain was a young Wheel Chief of a trailing vehicle.
"--Rather, if they don't, the Rocket Raccoons and Iron Hoppers can just jump over the wall and devastate the capital."
"They're in the palm of Tacticican-sama aren't they."
Captain looks sullen, it seems he doesn't like the Tactician.
"We're a bit too far from here. We'll move to the ruins of hunting mansion over there."
"Understood."
By Captain's order, the vehicles move again.
Buzz, buzz, clang, clang, while spreading strange noise that won't lose to their appearances, they move while leaving strange wheel tracks.
If there were a modern Japanese man here, he surely would call the vehicles.
--Tanks.
◇
"Wheel Chief, we got a new message from headquarter. The scouts who had infiltrated the capital could only identify 『Water』 and 『Earth』, the 『Wind』 and 『Fire』 weren't there."
"Alright!"
Wheel Chief grinned and struck his fist at his palm.
"This war--we've won."
"Is Fire--the Crimson Wand that Marquis Dasles had really that dreadful?"
With his military shoes, Wheel Chief trampled the bored loading officer's head who interrupted.
Marquis Dasles territory in Makiwa Kingdom is the closest to the weaselkin territory, but the weaselkin never tried to invade it even after utterly destroying Lionkin and Tigerkin Kingdoms.
And, it's widely known how the mentioned Lionkin Kingdom tried to invade Makiwa Kingdom many times only to be repulsed by Marquis Dasles for generations.
The story about how they killed enemy troops who invaded the territory but never once pursued the troops who got out of the territory out of mercy is also famous.
"Even General ordered us to retreat without attacking if Marquis Dasles appeared."
"What did Tactician-sama said?"
Wheel Chief once again trampled the loading officer's head who implied that the tactician was greater than the general.
"Listen okay? Dasles isn't someone to be afraid of. The Crimson Wand he has is."
The Crimson Wand handed down in Marquis Dasles house is famous as a treasured wand which contains flame spirit, but at the same time it's also said that it's a cursed item that makes fire monsters gather.
Including Marquis Dasles's Crimson Wand, this Makiwa Kingdom has four lords with elemental wands.
Holding the Roaring Vibration Wand that rules over earth, Earl Jizaros of the north.
Holding the Surging Wave Wand that rules over water, Earl Mizaras of the west.
Holding the Typhoon Wand that rules over the wind, Earl Muzaris of the south.
According to the contact earlier, it appears Earl Jizaros of the Roaring Vibration Wand and Earl Mizaras of the Surging Wave Wand are in the royal castle.
Their easy-to-be-confused names seem to be infamous among diplomats and young people who aspire to enter into military service.
"This tank and cannonball are weak against fire. It can't defend against Crimson Wand with just fireproof magic enchant."
The operator thought that it was just another of the mighty elemental wands of the four house with a different element, but he wisely judged that it would only bring the Wheel Chief's shoes onto his head if he said it out loud.
"A report from the ratkin keeping watch! A super huge golem three time as big as the outer wall has appeared."
"So it appeared at last. There's no water dragon huh?"
"Yes, it's just the golem."
"Good, activate the engine! Order the soldiers outside to hide in the bush! Operator, tell the other vehicles to get ready."
"Understood."
The soldiers get ready as the war begins.
"Is there still no signal?"
"--There it is! Two black balls, permission to engage."
Wheel Chief gave his order as a report from the observer came.
"Good! Take the aim. Gunman, you don't need to aim at the legs, just shoot at the golem's huge chest!"
"Wheel Chief, what to do with Captain's wait and see--"
The loading officer stuffs a huge long and thin cannonball into the barrel, the gunman turns the handle and adjusts the cannon's angle.
"The era of huge golems in battlefields has ended. Exposing such a stupidly huge target--"
He checks the slide rule result in the scope.
"I'm aiming, I'll aim at ya, alright, here! Aim and shoot!"
With the gunner's shout, the steel cannonball flies over one kilometer away.
The super huge golem that was peerless against the Rocket Raccoons and Iron Hoppers stopped moving with a roaring sound.
It tried to balance itself after a bit, but it couldn't stand the countless cannonballs shot at its chest as its ankle broke, and fell behind while breaking the capital's wall.
Earth, sand and dust overrun the capital with terrific force.
"Alright, you did well! The knights are coming out next! Prepare the buckshots."
"Captain, a new report from Tank #2. They want to start the 『Magic Eater』 experiment, so they ask for an escort."
"Hoo, so it's finally time for the 『Magic Eater』 experiment huh--The top might be thinking to meddle with Shiga Kingdom too eh."
Wheel Chief licked his lips when he heard the operator's report.
"Captain, how should we reply?"
"Tell them understood. Inside the 『Magic Eater』, only we, Scientific Tank Unit can fight properly--"
"Knights without physical reinforcements are just tasty meatballs. We'll run and kill them over the caterpillars."
Hearing Wheel Chief, the silent pilot laughs dryly 'kehi kehi'.
The tank corps started their attack on the capital while being wrapped in complicated mood.
◇
"From the north gate, there's 10 knights, 500 light knights--this is bad! The water dragon appeared from the west gate!"
"We're leaving it alone, first we need to pluck the feathers of Magic Beast Units to prevent them from flying."
"You sure are some careful guy."
It seems destroying units with the ability to fly is a normal practice in this world.
"Captain, don't you think it's strange?"
"What is?"
He ignored the loading officer and asked back the operator.
"Earl Jizaros of Roaring Vibration Wand isn't summoning the next golem. It should have been about time for his magic power to recover enough with magic potion...."
"Come to think of it, that is strange--tell the HQ. They probably have realized it already, but just in case."
"Understood."
Wheel Chief ordered after pondering the operator's words.
It's the HQ's job to think about the whole picture--looks like that's what he's concluded.
"Water dragon's breath is coming."
The after-wave of the water dragon's breath graze the tanks.
"--Damage minimum. Several desant soldiers are deserting."
"We can collect them later. Right now charge!"
It seems the life of Tank Desant's soldiers are light in this world.
"Signal balls--three red balls. They're invoking 『Magic Eater』."
"The vibration suppression machine will stop. Careful not to bite your tongue."
A vehicle with round ring attached on it got close to the capital and shot out black ripples.
The vibration on the tanks became intense the moment those ripples touched them.
"To the front, knights are coming."
"Gunman! Rout them!"
"Ou! No need to aim! Eat this!"
The tank's barrel spouts out black smoke, a different cannonball from earlier approaches the knights.
"Advance while ignoring the missed shots!"
"""OU!"""
The knights are pressing on while ignoring the cannonball which is coming toward no one, but then the shell disperses in the air, scattering innumerable buckshot.
"Such feeble pebbles are nothing against magic armors, my 『Vajra』 and tempered muscles--"
The knight in the lead died without being able to finish his words.
They died without noticing that their enchanted armors became mere metal armor and their proud skills had been neutralized until the very end.
Even the lucky knights who survived were either ran over by the caterpillars or got their hearts stabbed by the tankmen's spears.
The magic beast corps whose movements become dull cross over the main gate to attack the capital.
"Don't fall behind them! Shoot fire bombs at the royal castle from the cliff before the west gate!"
Wheel Chief is burning with ambition to leave a military record of damaging the capital, which is usually protected by defensive wall from the City Core, from outside.
However, the world is not that easy.
◇
"CCaptain! It's badbadbadbad"
"Calm down!"
The head of the gunner who shouted like he was broken was kicked.
--GWLOROOOOOUNN!
The soldiers who heard the roar stiffened from fear.
The hardened Wheel Chief forcefully moves and opens the hatch, turning his head toward the blue sky.
A flock of dragons are flying in the sky.
There's even a more than 80 meter long lesser dragon leading the four.
The white dragon in the back is only 30 meter long, but that's not a consolation.
"Why are the Silga Kingdom's dragons here...."
If the people of the country muttered by Wheel Captain heard that, they would shake their heads.
'Our country's dragons-sama are not that big', or so they'd say.
"--Captain."
The white dragon is swooping towards the tanks.
"Rotate at once. We're escaping once we surprise it!"
"Captain, it's no good."
"Loading fool shut up. Right now our top priority is to bring the tank back to the home town."
"--Not that."
"What is not that!"
"That's not just a dragon, it's a Dragon Knight."
"Impossible...."
That's an unrealistic existence that only appears in fairy tales about heroes.
During the last 1000 years, there were only two existences that were called Dragon Knights, Shiga Kingdom's Ancestor King Yamato and Silga Kingdom's Wandering King Riui.
"All four of them are Dragon Knights?!"
There's no more reliable existence if they are allies, but they're nothing but nightmare if they are enemies.
Their only chance to win is--.
"Captain, let's do it! We have 『Magic Eater』 right now."
"That's right! If we use all the experimental anti-aircraft high explosive projectiles, even if we're up against the invincible dragons!"
"Alright, let's wait and bombard them! Gain the time for the consort plane to escape!"
It seems they're betting on the slight possibility even though there are people who are in despair.
"I'll be watching their faces the moment they're wounded now that there's no magic wall defending their proud scales."
The white dragon is assaulting while a lizardkin child on its back swinging its tail buzzingly.
"That's an awfully small lizardkin isn't it?"
"Shoot!"
"--Eat this!"
The cannonball shot at 50 meter short distance blasted in the air, scattering piece of metals.
It's a certain kill distance even if the opponent is a dragon.
"--That was surprising, nanodesu."
The lizardkin child jumped down in front of the dragon and repelled all the metal pieces.
The sword would have been broken if it was a normal sword.
"It's nothing compared to Tama's shuriken nanodesu."
Swing, the lizardkin child who landed in one revolution, shutan, takes a strange pose.
"Pochi will forgive you if you surrender nodesuyo?"
The caterpillar blows backward, and then accelerates with that recoils, rushing toward the lizardkin child.
"Pochi punch, nanodesu!"
"Not noticing the 『Magic Eater』 is your lost! Regret after getting ran over!"
In a situation without magic power, a small fist is crashing into tons of iron lump.
There is no need to narrate the result.
--Or should have been.
◇
The next time Wheel Chief who was sure of his victory came to himself, he was on top of a mat along with the other tankmen with a burning tank nearby.
Even though the front of the tank was squashed flat, the pilot was uninjured lying nearby. For some reason he's not wearing trousers, but it doesn't seem like it's hollowed out.
"Have you come to desuka? Pochi recommends surrendering nodesu."
"Okay, we surrender. My uncle is in the senate. Please ask the ransom money to the senate."
He agreed to the advice of the lizardkin child, whose tail swings like a dogkin, to surrender.
It seems he's judged that people of a country with no science won't be able to understand the principle behind the tank with how bad it's burning.
"....Tell me one thing."
"The war is over already nodesu. Pochi doesn't mind one question nodesuyo?"
"How did you wreck the vehicle we were riding on?"
"Of course it's because of this thoroughly tempered steel body nodesu!"
It's a squishy hand that doesn't look like a steel at all--beastkin's hand?
When the Wheel Chief looked at it again, it had come back to lizardkin's hand.
"Pochi forgot that the glove was off nodesu. Pochi's identity was almost exposed nodesu. Allies of justice are better unidentified nodesu. Miserable hell where even tears of blood freeze over waits for people who know the secret nodesuyo?"
Wheel Chief shakes his head vigorously toward the glittering eyes.
"--It's fine if you didn't see it nodesu."
In order to varnish over it, Wheel Chief forcefully turned back the topic.
"Magic power?"
"That's right, how did you do it in a place where magic power is sealed."
"That's easy nanodesu! Fighting in a space where magic is nu is the basic of the basic nanodesu. If you can't do that much, you'll be toyed with by the Ropper Rokkun in the labyrinth's lower layer nodesuyo."
Wheel Chief dryly laughed at the dogkin child wearing lizard costume who was nodding.
Apparently, there are existences outside of his common sense in this world.
Thus, the battle between the first deployment of Weaselkin scientific weapons VS Makiwa Kingdom, the unreasonable fantasy victory ended.
The identity of the mysterious Dragon Knights who saved Makiwa Kingdom this day is wrapped in mystery with no one knowing.
Further, the Wheel Chief who saw the only glimpse of their identity takes the secret to his grave.