Before I could blink, spring had arrived. The 3 months since my trip to the Narrows have been busy, to say the least. And the ever-growing to-do list showed no sign of slowing down. Between upgrading my gear, designing armored carts, managing my forge-smithy, training new apprentices, raising a wolf mana-beast puppy on the down low, hunting for mana crystals, and inventing a knockoff of the MG-42, I hardly have any time left to sleep.

  Natalia had 239 employees of the Galahad Trading Company. However, only a few dozen of them were able-bodied men. At this point, it was more accurate to call the Company a battered women’s shelter slash temporary orphanage than an actual company. After the company meeting, only 184 of the employees had expressed interest in “moving out of the city” with Natalia. The rest of them (mostly men) wanted to strike out elsewhere in Carnwennan, perhaps thinking that this city was the best they could ever realistically hope for. I suspected that once she told them that “out of the city” meant “into the Wilds”, that number would further plummet.

  After all, the people who would come were likely hardcore believers of Natalia’s vision of equality and community, or helpless orphans/battered wives that put their fate in Natalia’s hands simply because they saw no better alternative. We were already down to roughly 2 dozen adult men, so the apparent combat strength of this group was low. My goal was to engineer a way to safely transport this ragtag group of mostly orphans and women through a hostile death jungle under the noses of all the nobles in the city. Not exactly an easy task. Fortunately, I had made a couple of massive upgrades to my field inventory to somewhat improve my long odds.

  After going through the loot I’d gotten from the slain Witches and ordering Sapphire explain all of them to me and Emma, I had massively upgraded my field inventory:

  1. I’ve decided to install a time elemental Beginner-level crystal into my armor as a way to improve the accuracy of my firearms. The Witches use those crystals defensively as a means to supernaturally dodge arrows and sword blows, but I prefered to use them offensively to ensure a perfectly aimed shot, especially at melee situations. Guys, I know Gun-fu~

  2. I’ve also mounted the spyglass on Severance Pay so I can better look at what I’m aiming at long distance. Comboing with <>, I increased my effective range to 250 meters. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the material to make better optics or more spyglasses. So Severance Pay became my spyglass. Since Severance Pay was now a strictly long range rifle, I’d decided to abandon the bayonet concept entirely. With the added scope, I would consider Severance Pay to be more of a M1D Garand knock-off.

  3. The fight with the Witches taught me that slowness is a death sentence in a battle of that caliber, so I’ve modified Aurelia to have a flared magwell to facilitate the reloading process. I’ve also increased the number of magazines and en bloc clips. The spare ammo I had stored in the Sequoia Locker was now with me at all times thanks to the space elemental mana crystals!

  4. The fight also inspired me to craft a parrying dagger from one of the mithril daggers I looted. Those things were daggers with deepsquare serrations along one side of the blade, resembling the barbed teeth of a comb and designed to entrap an opponent's blade. Since I preferred to shoot with my right hand, I could use my left to parry sword strikes from arming swords if I ever had to bust out my gun-fu. With <>, parrying those sword thrusts was not as hard as one would think. In true chuuni fashion, I’d dubbed mine, Swordbreaker.

  5. I’ve attached an Adept-level earth mana crystal, an Adept-level life mana crystal, and a Beginner-level time mana crystal to give my dragon leather armor <>, <>, <>, <>, and <>. I’d also incorporated 2 of the storage bracelets into the armor set, so all of my spare ammo, Expert-level crystals, stash of miscellaneous crystals, captured loot, and perishable supplies are with me 24/7 in <

  >. Much thanks to Stanfur and Ser what's-his-face for their respective contributions.

  6. I’ve also made crystal-modified dragon leather boots from my loot. My boots are fitted with Adept-level air and space mana crystals to have <>, <>, and <. I‘ve lined the boot with wolf fur (courtesy of the pup’s biological mother) to increase comfort and reduce noise.

  Of course, I didn’t just enhance my combat capability. I’d also upgraded the inventory of my allies. First, I gave away my now obsolete leather armor and boots to Sapphire. I still have some doubts about her, but I promised to look after her safety. So, I had no qualms about increasing her defense and healing capability (arming her with offensive mana crystals was another story~).

  I gave my bow and the 2 dragon sinew bow I looted to Skera. I’d also given her the shields and the melee weapons I had no use for. I was sure she’d find a better use for them in her guard corp. On that note, she was in some serious need of a gear upgrade herself. As one could imagine, no mainstream forge-smith wanted to be associated with a woman Knight, even one with a monstrous 8-star talent. As a result, she had to make do with third-rate garbage. Hell, her steel armor had no functional mana circuits or built-in mana crystal. Well, thanks to me, those days of undergearing were fucking over!

  In addition to the top-of-the-line sword and shield I gave her, I also upgraded her armor thanks to the looted armor I took from that one noble brat. It was a real pain in the butt to modify the armor to fit her, add additional slots for more crystals, and connect the mana circuits, but it was worth it. She now had a set of armor that gave her the same capability as a traditional Knight armor. And nobody would know it used to be the armor of a dead guy~

  In addition, I’d also added Adept-level earth and fire mana crystals into the armor in addition to a Beginner-level time mana crystal. I’d also adapted Adept-level air and space mana crystals into her boots. I gave her access to <>, <>, <>, <>, <>, <>, <>, and <>. At last, Skera had gear that could truly tap into her immense potential as a 8-star talent. If she could beat up noble brats in decked-out armor with the shoddy crap she had, consider the beast unleashed with her new gear~

  Natalia’s crystal-modified dragon leather armor set had Adept-level fire and earth mana crystals with Beginner-level time mana crystal. The boots I’d made for her had the same configuration as mine: Adept-level air and space mana crystals. I felt pretty confident that Natalia would survive the trek to the Narrows in this armor. After all, if she were to die, my harem plan would definitely go down with her.

  Last, but certainly not least- my Emma. For her mage kit, I focused on getting her Adept-level fire, ice, and earth mana crystals for her dragon leather armor and Adept-level air and space mana crystals for her boots. I’ve also added a Beginner-level time mana crystal in her armor, giving her the ability to <>. Due to a lack of time, I couldn’t properly forge Emma an engagement ring. However, forging her top-tier armor was way more romantic than buying a piece of rock dug up by some poor kid in a dreary African mine~.

  On top of that, I gave 4 of my 5 Beginner-level life elemental mana crystals to the crew as a necklace (Yes, even Sapphire). Sure, <> was only good for shallow wounds, but its first-aid capability was crucial in a battle. I kept the remaining Beginner-level life elemental mana crystal in my stash.

  Lastly, I gave 1 storage bracelet to Emma and the remaining 2 to Natalia to help the Company transport eyebrow-raising amounts of cargo without raising said eyebrows. I thought about attaching those precious mana crystals on their armors for added security (like I did for my 2 crystals), but I ended up against the idea since wearing armor on city streets would attract unwanted attention.

  All in all, we were now sufficiently decked out to fight one of the noble factions in a full-on turf war and win a battle or two. And if that was all we had to do, I would breathe a sigh of relief and go on vacation. Sadly, that was not the case. Considering the dangers that lie before us in the next 3 months and beyond, this was not nearly enough.

  We needed more.

  ***

  After I knocked on the door to her study, I heard a faint reply form inside. “Please enter.”

  “Pardon me.” I opened the door and entered. Then I shut it tightly while stuffing the bottom crack with damp cloth. One could never be too wary of eavesdroppers. After all, the plan to sneak out to the Wilds relied upon total secrecy.

  Natalia gave me an amused smile. “Rummy, your paranoia will never cease to amaze and amuse me.”

  “It’s not paranoia if someone is out to get you.” I casually replied. Over the last 3 months, the facade that Natalia wears as a proper Lady of a prestigious founding house has slowly faded in our private meetings. Of course, when we’re in public, the typical decorum applies. But in private, we spoke casually to one another.

  Ever since I’d met her, I suspected that Natalia and I were kindred spirits. Given the massive difference in our respective circumstances, I thought my instincts were dead wrong. But after these past few months, I’d realized the sad truth- we’re both very lonely people.

  I, mostly by personality or circumstances, have only 1 surviving friend in Mike. For the past 12 years, I had mostly lived in isolation. Even when I was a part of a Ranger squad, I kept most people at arm’s length. While my other comrades were drinking with each other on their days off (enjoying what little leisure their pitiful lives afforded them), I would venture into the Wild alone to hunt for crystals. It’s not that I disliked them. We just had different goals. I had a path to walk, and it was a path I knew almost nobody in this world would willingly walk. I did cherish the few friends I’ve made along that path (RIP Roshan and Arminius), but those people are few and far in between.

  Natalia had a different type of loneliness. It was the loneliness of an empathetic leader burdened with the fate of so many helpless souls. It was the loneliness of a pragmatic leader who was struggling against the overwhelming odds against her. It wasn’t a burden one could easily share with her subordinates, who saw her as an infallible beacon of hope. So despite being surrounded by so many people who shared her vision and adored her commitment to the just causes of equality and community, Natalia too walked a lonely path. After all, she had to gracefully smile in front of them no matter how bad things got. As their leader, she could never let them know just how backbreaking this burden was.

  With me, Natalia had no such obligation to smile for my sake. She knew that as a third-party contractor, I didn’t give a shit either way. I had my contingencies. In fact, she expected me to take good care of Emma in the Wilds if this whole thing went tits-up. Like me, she was also a realist who wasn’t deluded by idealism and fantasy. She could freely share her problems with a former engineer who prided himself in being able to solve problems.

  Natalia was slumped on her desk, crumpling a paper portrait of some fancy noble boy. “Give me some good news, Rummy. It had been a very trying day. If I have to see that smug face of his again this week…”

  Ah, she had to be referring to Ser Gaius of House Mordred and his rush-delivery courtship. I’ve never met the man, but according to Natalia, she would rather face off against a pack of wolves in the Wilds than to go on another match interview with her father and this ‘arrogant blowhole'. Needless to say, the 7th son of House Modred had not impressed or charmed her in the slightest.

  “Well, I have some good news, but not the good news you’d prefer.” I responded with a wry smile. I took out a wooden box from my storage bracelet and handed it to her. “First, I’ve secured the steel necessary for building our future city walls.”

  If Natalia was excited about this, she sure didn’t show it. Guessed she didn’t understand how important steel-reinforced concrete walls were if we ever find ourselves in a zergling rush or a siege scenario. Understandable, considering she had never seen a pissed-off Elf summon a fucking horde of monsters and command them to attack a castle wall. Well, let’s hope she never has to.

  I pivoted to the topic she’d be more interested in. “Besides that, I’ve completed your pistol, Natalia. You are now the world’s 2nd operator of this era-ending weapon!”

  Natalia suddenly sat up, visibly excited. She’d been asking for a pistol for weeks, and I felt that she needed more than upgraded armor to maximize her odds of survival. Her eyes shone with anticipation as she opened the wooden box next to a leather holster. In it, she saw a white Colt 1911A1 with a suppressor (also painted white). The grip for this gun was made of ivory from Champion wolf fangs. It was as smooth as it is white. The box also contained 3 magazines, all painted white. As a nod to the fact that women leaders were few and far in between in the ancient world, I’ve decided to name this pistol, “Cleopatra”.

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  After teaching her the basics of the pistol and recommending her to practice shooting with Skera to mask the noise the shooting would make, I grabbed a couple of wooden targets from my bracelet and hung them on the walls. I then took the portrait of Gaius and clipped it on the target.

  “Here, something to help you vent your frustration.” I took Aurelia out of my holster and activated <>. Time slowed to a crawl as I carefully aimed using my iron sights.

  *Pop*

  Gottem! Right between the eyes!

  Natalia giggled in delight. “Thanks Rummy. I can’t begin to tell you how much I needed that…” After that outburst of happiness, her expression turned grim. “The peace talks are proceeding much faster than I expected. The stubborn upstart nobles that doggedly refused to even parlay with Father suddenly played nice when Gaius rolled into town. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they’re in cahoots with one another…”

  “Let me guess, Gaius proposes to give the upstart nobles new seats in the City Council in exchange for paying the reparation cost of the street war?”

  Natalia smiled at me. “Close. In exchange for paying the reparations, the upstart nobles want to give the new Council seats to the Yellow Shirts, supposedly as a compromise.”

  Oh, that was surprising. I remembered the Yellow Shirts were a group of Imperial fanboys advocating for a centralized Imperial power at the cost of the nobles. Vinnick and Keith used to complain about them infiltrating the ranks of the Legion. They were pretty active in the turf war, racking up a frightening reputation for their brutality. After all, when you were convinced your cause was just, any atrocity could be justified in the name of the ‘greater good’.

  “So there’s a chance that they’re all in this together, huh?” I pensively asked.

  “House Mordred, the upstart nobles, and the Yellow Shirts? Yeah, I’m very certain about that.” Natalia casually replied, not getting my implication.

  “No, I mean the Emperor.”

  Natalia looked at me with surprise. “What?”

  “These Yellow Shirts didn’t just come out of nowhere, Natalia. And even if they did, they wouldn’t be spreading all over the country without Caliburn’s permission. Small fries like them wouldn’t have the guts to do what they did without some heavy-hitting backers protecting them. Somebody stands to benefit from directing the ire of the populace towards the nobles.”

  After thinking about it for a bit, she responded. “True, Artorius XVI does stand to gain the most from this movement, but a few grumblings from the commoners isn’t going to shake the foundations the nobles in this country stand on. Collectively, I would say that their private legions are on par with the Imperial legions on the battlefield.”

  “It does if he intends to aggressively seize power from the nobles and force them to choose between rebellion or submission. At that point, having massive popular support will be a decisive advantage.”

  “Your theory does make sense. But our dilemma remains. How do I slow down the negotiations?”

  “Noble politics is not my expertise, Natalia. But nobody ever won a battle by passively sitting on their asses. Take the fight to the enemy. If they are too strong, then strike at their back from the shadows. If they are too numerous, then pick off the stragglers first. That’s how I’ve always survived out there.” I casually replied as I headed for the door.

  “As crude as that sounds, that’s actually good advice. The Yellow Shirts are newcomers in this game, so attacking them would invite the least trouble but still make things difficult for them.” Natalia seems lost in thought. It looks like she’s figuring some stuff out.

  I picked up the damp cloth and opened the door. Natalia, suddenly realizing I’m leaving, hurriedly asked in a hushed voice. “Any progress on the carts and ‘Project 42’?”

  “Sadly no. Competent apprentices don’t grow on trees, my Lady. I’ll probably need another month to finish training them before I can trust them to complete the carts. As for ‘Project 42’, there’s no progress and likely won’t be until this summer.”

  Well, I did tell Natalia that the good news I bring wouldn’t be the one she wants to hear. My forge-smithy was employing 3 talented apprentices. They were orphans who were practically raised by Natalia’s company, so I could trust them. After 3 months, they were capable enough to help me mass-produce the casings and bullets for the .30-06 Springfields. After all, I’d need a crap ton of ammo if I wanted to operate a MG-42 knockoff (While the original MG-42 uses 7.92×57mm Mausers, due to time and resource constraints, my knockoff would be chambering .30-06 Springfields).

  The next item on the to-do list was to produce all-terrain armored carts with a primitive coiled spring suspension and mounted crossbows. I was still in the middle of designing and producing my prototype, but it should be completed by the end of this month. After that’s done, the goal was to get my apprentices to reproduce as many as they could in whatever time they have left before we have to make a move.

  To make the cart “all-terrain”, I’d need to make springs for suspension and I’d need to install a steering system that prevents overturning. On top of that, making a crossbow and installing it on an armored cart was no easy task either. I’d hate to leave any of these difficult tasks to a bunch of scrawny teenagers 3 months into their crash-course training. But unfortunately, handloading the ammo and developing a general-purpose machine gun from scratch took up most of my time, so good luck, kiddos!

  Ugh, even thinking about this ever-growing list gave me a migraine. Good thing I knew just the remedy for that: taking my puppy for a nice afternoon walk through a “serene” forest~

  ***

  *AWOOOOO~*

  My wolf puppy howled in celebration of his freedom after I got past the gate guards and let it out of my puppy backpack. I have trained it to remain silent on command and pee/poop on command (an endeavor that quickly evaporated my jerky supply). Thanks to that, we had been able to sneak in and out of the city to get some good cardio in. Our next step was to try to do some additional training to see how well it responded to hunting instructions.

  Very much like how a wolf parent would instruct their pup how to hunt, I had begun showing my puppy the basics of hunting. Unlike the wolves of the Wild who liked to intimidate and chase the prey into a flanking attack, my hunting tactics were based on stealth and one-shot-one-kill. With all due respect to its dead mother, I would never go around the Wild howling like an idiot and broadcasting my location to everybody and their parents. I taught my puppy to suppress its ancient instincts and hunt in a more efficient manner. I’d already taught it how to be silent, and now I needed to teach it how to kill in a single sneak attack by using its innate ice elemental mana to amplify the attacking power of its claws and fangs.

  I’d never trained a puppy before, but since the pup was very-food-motivated, that made my job a lot easier.

  “OK, puppers, I’m going to teach you how to use your mana to hunt!” I said excitedly and in a higher pitch.

  The wolf adorably tilted its head and looked at me expectantly, as if it was expecting a reward. The shameless wolf wanted me to give it a treat for learning how to hunt for itself?!?

  “Yes, yes. Since this is a new trick I’m teaching you, I’ll feed you if you can learn it quickly.” I conceded.

  Wow, look at this glutton! Well, its eating habits explained its fast growth over the last 3 months. My puppy reached the size of a typical house dog, and had a white coat and a pair of piercing dark blue eyes. Its previously harmless jaws now sport 2 prominent canine fangs along with the rest of its teeth. Oh, and there were a set of twigs and berries down there, so it was clear that my puppy is a boy.

  I took out my parrying dagger, Swordbreaker, on my right and held an Adept-level mana crystal on my left. I cast <> on the dagger as I swung down on a thin branch. The branch got bisect instantly, and small clumps of ice formed around the site of incision.

  “There, pretty easy, right? Now you do it!”

  The puppy barked in agreement. It raised its right claw up high, and swung down on a much thicker branch. Both halves of the instantly sliced branch froze and shattered on impact. I felt the intensity of the coldness despite being 2 meters away. Wow, it was far more proficient at ice magic than I was! Fuck, there was no need to teach this shameless glutton anything! He already knew how to do this!

  After completing the attack, my puppy tilted his head and looked at me expectantly. After a long sigh, I took out a small piece of jerky out of my backpack. It stared at that treat with laser focus. “You’re a tricky little bastard, aren’t ya?.” I threw the jerky at its snout.

  *Chomp* *AWOOOOO~*

  After it shamelessly ate the treat it basically scammed from me, it howled in celebration. This puppers was too damn smart for his own good.

  Of course, I wasn't gonna take this sitting down. I suddenly jumped on the wolf and wrestled it down to the ground. After letting out a surprised yelp, it began to fight back. It rolled around on the ground, trying to get out of my attempt to pin it. Unfortunately for the puppy, I was about 4 times heavier. So stay on the ground and repent for your sins, you tricky tricky puppy!

  As it struggled to get out of my pin, I stroked his ears and patted his head. It was at that moment that I decided on his name. I looked into his dark blue eyes and said, “Hi Loki. Welcome to the world.”