CH 167

Chapter 167 – A Red Useless Oni And A New Weapon From Here

The next day, after we finished harvesting the crops, we split up into two improved airboards and started moving to the rear base.

“Oh, it’s so fast. It doesn’t even shake, and it’s so comfortable.”

Shumel was in a very good mood as she boarded the improved airboard that I was piloting. I think it’s because she can avoid Grande Airways, which she really dislikes.

“It’s not as fast as flying, but it’s still pretty fast.”

Grande seemed to be looking out the window from the very back seat.

The improved airboard looked like a big sled that floated and moved. I made a covered wagon type and a box wagon type, and I put a glass window on the box wagon type airboard so that the passengers could look outside.

By the way, Grande is in the back because her tail gets in the way of the others. Ms. Zamir will probably be riding in the back seat of the covered carriage-type airboard over there.

“Sounds like you have fun driving…”

Bella called out from right behind me. Stop whispering in my ear in a resentful voice. You useless demon.

“Do you want to drive?”

“Of course, I want to!”

“Then I’ll let you drive a little when we get to the rear base. But if you crash it… fufu.”

I’ll dress you in a super micro bikini or a frilly magical girl outfit that only covers the tip. In addition to that, I’ll have her hang a board around her neck again, and this time I’ll have her parade around the rear base.

“I’m afraid I’m not going to say anything. I’m getting goosebumps.”

“What a stunning goosebump.”

“It tickles!”

I wondered if Capri had caressed my skin. Certainly, it would be ticklish to have your skin gently stroked by those wing feathers.

There are a total of five people on this airboard. Me, Shumel, Bella, Grande, and Capri. The carriage-type airboard operated by Isla has six people on it: Isla, Pirna, Ygrett, Eyja, Ms. Zamir, and Tozume. This one has fewer people, but it has a higher weight capacity.

The Oni are big and heavy, and the Harpies are light in weight. One Oni is heavier than three Harpies. I didn’t say this one was heavier because I wanted to save my life! It’s strictly forbidden to talk about weight with women. No matter which world you are in.

☆★☆

Now, the distance from the excavation site to the rear base was a day and a half on foot, but with the improved airboard running smoothly, we were able to reach the rear base in about an hour.

This doesn’t mean that we were at full speed. In terms of power, it was less than half of its maximum output.

Why aren’t we running at full speed? Because safety comes first. It’s not like we’re in a hurry. I did some experiments at the maximum speed. I think it was close to 200km/h. I think it’s too slow for a jet engine propulsion system that nullifies wind resistance. There must be room for improvement in the propulsion system. The current one is just a tube.

I wonder if it would be better if the shape of the propulsion nozzle could be modified or if the direction and thickness of the nozzle could be changed. Well, I think there are thrust deflector nozzles on fighter planes. I’ll give the Research and Development Department a rough outline when I delegate the research to them. I don’t know if it’ll ever be put to practical use.

I mean, wasn’t that supposed to improve mobility in aerial combat? I don’t think it makes sense to put it on an airboard instead of a car. I mean, it’s not like it’s going to make you that much more maneuverable. Well, but is it useful for anything…? I guess it’s not a bad idea to tell them. The only thing needed is to be able to deflect the power to the left or right, so it wouldn’t be too difficult.

Where do you think the future of airboarding is headed…? Why don’t we just make a technical one with an onboard machine gun? A technical airboard that glides around the Holy Kingdom’s army in formation with legs faster than a horse’s while taking machine gun fire… like hell or something?

But let’s make it. I’m a person who shows no mercy to my enemies.

Too one-sided, you say? There’s nothing wrong with being one-sided when it comes to killing each other. Just because you’re the enemy doesn’t mean you can’t kill everyone, but it’s better that no one dies on your side. If you don’t want to be killed like that, just surrender and don’t come to war in the first place.

But yes, I agree. Let’s give them a warning before we send them in. I have that kind of conscience. Hahaha.

“Isla and the others went to take over…”

“…..”

The useless red demon is looking at me with a sparkling gaze. What is it that you love so much about airboarding? Do you like to ride?

“All right, don’t crash it.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Never crash it. If you wreck it again, I’ll punish you severely, okay? I’ll traumatize you for life, okay?”

“That’s really scary… I’m getting the shivers.”

I said it with a straight face, and she was terrified. Good. You should be scared, cower. But I won’t forgive you if you crash it. I will put her in a super micro bikini or a frilly magical girl outfit, have her carry a board around her neck with a description of her crime, and drag her around the back of the base.

Perhaps sensing my seriousness, Bella’s driving was very cautious. She accelerated like she was sliding, cornered without any sense of inertia, and stopped at the designated spot.

“What can I say? If you do it right, you can do it.”

“Eh? Is that so?”

I saw Bella turn around with a smile on her face, and as she did so, the right throttle opened fully forward, and the left throttle opened fully backward.

“Oh… Maaaa!”

“Oh!”

The airboard began to spin at a tremendous speed.

“Aaaaaaaaa super crawler spiiinnnnnnnn!?”

It’s not a caterpillar, so it’s not a super-crawler spin. It’s more like a rat firework. But that doesn’t matter. The problem now is that the airboard with Bella and I on it is spinning at a ridiculous speed.

“Hieeeee!”

“You better get the throttle back, you idiot!”

“Yes, sir!”

With a bang, Bella put the throttle back on. The thrust was lost from the propulsion system, whose output had been cut, and the aircraft’s rotation gradually ceased.

“Geez, I’ve had a rough time of it.”

“You little bastard…”

“I’m not a bastard.”

She said that with a smug look on her face, so I gave her a rather serious chop on the head. Ah, I’m saying that, but this girl can take it easy.

“I’m not going to let you drive here. I can’t trust my driving to someone who will do a super-high-speed spin just because someone calls out to her.”

“No way.”

Even if you say it in a depressed tone, it’s no good. Whenever you see something that catches your interest, you might want to go for it.

“I need just one more chance! I’ll do anything; I just want a chance!”

“Hmm? Did you just say you’ll do anything?”

“Oh… yes.”

I made Bella, who was twitching, listen to what I would make her do if she had an accident and threatened her like hell. I’ll also make sure to explain what a micro tiger print bikini and a frilly magical girl outfit look like.

“I’ll definitely drive safely.”

“That’s what you should do… or rather, what is it about airboarding that attracts you so much that you want to drive after receiving such a threat…?”

“Airboarding is cool! They’re fun to drive!”

Bella’s eyes shine, and she clenches her fists as she makes a powerful argument. I try to convince her, but she just doesn’t get it. Her vocabulary is too weak. But the enthusiasm was palpable. If she’s this enthusiastic, I guess I can leave it to her.

“…The members I gathered are about to be taken by your husband?”

“That’s what Kosuke-san does.”

“Because that’s what Danna-san does.”

“It is a woman’s nature to be attracted to a husband who is a talented engineer and a man of character.”

“…..”

Shumel and the Harpies are saying something in the distance, but don’t worry; I’m not trying to do anything to Bella. I think she’s a good girl, silly and friendly, but I don’t want to have that kind of relationship with her, and I don’t think Bella does either.

“I mean, Nee-san, the way you say it, it sounds like you are trying to drag me away too?”

“Yesterday, you were happily building an airboard with Kosuke and Isla, right?”

“It’s… It’s not like that.”

When pursued by Shumel, Tozume awkwardly averts her wide-open eye. I wonder why Tozume also likes to make things. Maybe her Cyclops blood is stirring. I don’t think she has a thing for me either, so I’m sure she’s fine.

But it might be a good idea to talk to Isla and the Research and Development Department so that she can show up when she’s free. I think it’s valuable to have someone who knows a wide range of things and has the skills to create something concrete.

While I was teaching Bella how to fly the airboard by myself, Isla and Ms. Zamir came back. The handover seemed to have gone off without a hitch. And Ms. Zamir is carrying something that looks like a gun. What’s that?

“Welcome back. What’s that?”

“Hmm, it’s a prototype magic gun manufactured in the rear base. I had to take it back to Erichburg with me along with the materials.”

Then Isla lifted up a thick bundle of documents that appeared to be development documents and showed them to me. I see. And then, I received the prototype of the magic gun that Ms. Zamir brought.

“This is…”

It seems to be a front-loading type gun. The shape is very similar to the musket gun that I gave as reference material before. However, it seems that all of these guns are made from scratch by craftsmen in this world. The firing method is… I’m not sure about this one. Some parts look like a firing pin. The tip looks like a tiny magic crystal or something.

“Also, several supplies are to be transported from the warehouse in the rear base to the front line.”

“Oh, I see. All right, I’ll go.”

“Hmm. I’ll look through the files.”

“I’ve trained Bella to take the controls, so you won’t have to drive next time. But be careful; reading material in a moving vehicle can get you dizzy.”

“Hmm, okay.”

I left Isla, and the other members nodding and moved into the rear base. Ms. Zamir, carrying a mithril spear meteor, followed me. No, I don’t think I need an escort in the logistics base… but I’ll let her do as she pleases.