Munitions Empire

The Elves, who had long been familiar with steam engines, needed only one glance to recognize the two tall smokestacks, to see the black smoke that seemed to connect sky and earth, and to know that there were two steam engines installed within this thing!

King Poplar XI of the Poplar Kingdom also stared at the painting, asking with some confusion, "A steam-powered warship? You mean to say, the Great Tang Group placed steam power on a ship...? Indeed, if such power can propel a ship forward, it certainly could replace the sea breeze."

Although he was aware of steam engines and the important technology, he indeed couldn\'t keep up with the specifics and the pace of technological progress.

There was no helping it; as a monarch, he had nearly all his skill points invested in domestic and foreign affairs, military, and other skills that could support his rule over the nation.

Augustine Reibert wasn\'t very familiar with technology either, but since he made his fortune through steam engines, he had a very good understanding of them.

Furthermore, due to his frequent contact with Shireck, he had learned quite a bit about the application of steam engines. In fact, he had just recently become aware of the use of steam engines in mining operations, but had not had the chance to promote them yet.

So at this moment, he explained to his sovereign, "On land, there are already steam-powered trains, so it\'s not surprising to have such ships at sea."

Then, he continued with a grim face, "However, when the opponent installs new types of cannons, new types of ammunition, coupled with new steam engine power on one ship... our numerical advantage in warships at sea is gone!"

He truly had not expected the obscure Great Tang Group to be able to introduce so many derivative technologies in a short time after trading the needle-gun technology and steam engine technology and quickly leave the entire world behind.

Shireck was now promoting C64-type cannons, lobbying Poplar Kingdom to purchase these cannons and using the sale of cannons to the countries surrounding Poplar Kingdom as leverage, preparing to regain control over Poplar Kingdom\'s military procurement.

The Augustin Family, which had been resisting Shireck\'s return to Poplar Kingdom, was indeed incredibly pressured and in total disarray.

Poplar XI sat in his seat, lamenting, "We once had 100 first-rate sailing warships! But now, they might be able to blockade one of our ports with just one such ship!"

Augustine Reibert also realized that the delay in intelligence could spell complete disaster for their navy, "Damn it... our naval commanders don\'t yet know what they will face! By the time our messenger reaches Osa Port, the naval warships would have already set sail!"

After all, he had just now learned that the opponent was not a sail-powered warship, but a new type of steam-powered warship.

He didn\'t know exactly how such a warship was controlled, but as the actual ruler of Southwater Port, he did have a certain understanding of naval equipment.

Facing new bursting shells and new cannons, the traditional naval warships were simply powerless—judging from the messages received, the innovative cannons that had performed brilliantly in the battle at Northern Ridge must have been equipped on this warship off the coast of Southwater!

The King was also frustrated as he realized their fleet might face defeat. So, somewhat agitated, he looked at Augustine Reibert, waiting for him to say something.

Reibert roughly analyzed the situation and felt that the fleet heading south was probably doomed.

Logically, the warships stationed at Osa Military Harbor wouldn\'t all head south, so the number of ships going south should be between 10 and 15.

This number was essentially everyone\'s guess, for the feedback from Osa Port was still on its way, and they could only rely on their own speculation to judge the situation.

Indeed, this was the impact of antiquated communication technology, which in ancient times often decided the outcome of a war.

For instance, in some ancient wars, the attacking force appeared to have hundreds of thousands of troops but lost, largely due to the lack of medical and communication technologies complicating command and decision-making.

Just like now, when the decision-makers realized the problem, the war at the front lines was actually over, and no matter how wise and powerful they were, they could change nothing.

Therefore, in a miserable tone, Reibert spoke the most likely outcome, "They will rush southward, heading to Southwater Port! There, their ships will be shattered by the enemy\'s warships!"

"Among these messages, it was mentioned many times that the opponent\'s speed is very fast, and they can even ram and break our ships..." he flipped through several reports, pushing the intelligence towards Poplar XI.

King Poplar looked down at the reports which seemed a bit alarmist, and finally looked up to ask Augustine Reibert, "Some say that the opponent\'s ships are made of steel, is this possible?"

Leibart had no choice but to steel himself and answer his sovereign\'s question, "Possibly, because our experiments in the pond have shown that steel can indeed float on the surface of the sea."

"Then why haven\'t we built ironclad warships before?" posed King Poplar XI, somewhat curiously.

"Because sails cannot propel a vessel so heavy; even if one were built, its sailing speed would be too slow to pursue any enemy ship," explained Augustine Reibert.

In fact, the Elf Race was also developing a new type of warship—this vessel had iron plates attached to its wooden hull to replicate resistance against fire and solid shot attacks.

However, this attempt significantly increased the warship\'s weight, directly affecting its speed and preventing it from keeping up with the other ships in the fleet\'s formation.

This directly impacted the efficiency of the new type of warship in combat, rendering it unable to join the formations of most other ships, and further affecting the Navy\'s established tactics.

To be honest, this was no minor issue; it had even begun to affect tactical execution and threatened to overturn previous tactics, destroying familiar strategic routines.

Therefore, the new warships had thus far only stayed at the stage of theoretical research and minor improvements. Some warships hung iron plates on their exteriors, which was the latest achievement in the development of the new warships.

A warship completely made of metal, such as those by the Great Tang Group, had never been seen before and would not be successfully replicated by anyone in a short period of time.

This also caused King Poplar of the Poplar Kingdom to feel a serious crisis—a dire crisis of losing control of the seas!

Seeing his sovereign\'s troubled expression, Marquis Augustine Reibert felt compelled to speak further, "No one knew that the other side could pile so many new technologies onto a single warship."

King Poplar XI drew out his words, confirming with displeasure, "So you\'re saying there\'s a possibility… that they used steam engine technology to enhance power and thus could employ a metal hull… and then, they also equipped their warship with new-type cannons?"

"Very likely, they have also utilized other technologies. According to the depiction on this drawing, the opponent\'s cannons are installed inside iron boxes; to rotate such large iron boxes, they certainly rely on complex transmission technology," Leibart added, before consoling his King, "Actually… our fleet might not necessarily be defeated…"

"If we could win, that would certainly be good," the King was reassured, feeling somewhat relieved. "However, shouldn\'t we possess these new types of warships too?"

Not waiting for Augustine Reibert to say anything further, he continued, "...Why, why have we become enemies with such arms manufacturers? Augustine, is there any way we can mend our relationship with them, find a way to have them sell all these technologies… to us?"

Augustine Reibert promptly responded, "I have already dispatched envoys. However, since we can\'t send ships south through Southwater, we can only honestly travel by land... It will take a very long time to reach the Leite Kingdom by land."

In this regard, he still possessed a bit of the nobility\'s wisdom. With his experience, he could see that maintaining good relations with the rising Great Tang Group was crucial for Poplar Kingdom to stay ahead in weaponry.

Nowadays, simply relying on the Shireck Consortium didn\'t seem so reassuring anymore.

The King was obviously not entirely satisfied with Reibert\'s plan. After pondering for a moment, he said, "What we lack now is time! Find a way to have that warship escort one of our emissary ships southward! You personally go back to Southwater and must… at any cost, maintain a good relationship with them!"

Leibart nodded slightly, then stood up and took his leave. "I understand! Your Majesty!"

Since being promoted to Marquis by the King, he had always remained in King City, rarely leaving. Now that the King had commanded him to return to Southwater, he felt a small surge of excitement.

After all, the King City was king\'s land, but Southwater was his foundation. Therefore, when issues arose in Southwater, he was even more anxious than the King.

Thus, he was eager to return. "I will depart immediately!"

Shortly after he had left the room, a servant entered, bringing bad news to his King, "An envoy from Bai Kingdom has arrived! Your Majesty! He has brought a message… Bai Kingdom has rejected our proposal and decided not to form an alliance with us…"

"What did you say?" King Poplar XI rose to his feet in agitation, exclaiming, "Why?"

------------

I\'ve wasted another day, the second update will be delivered tomorrow morning. I apologize.