“So, thinking about it, although they followed the blueprint to make an airplane, they didn’t copy the design?”
“Yes. When I visited the trading post, I was able to confirm that they were distributing goods that could be seen as materials for an aircraft, however as for the airplane itself, I have no information... This is just conjecture, but I imagine that they have asked the tradesman to stay within the palace until the day they reveal it. It would make sense that they didn’t do the same for the steam engine since the blueprints had come from Sacula, and they had no reason to hide it.” She pulled a face. It seemed like she found her own theory difficult to believe. “However, wouldn’t it be normal to conduct tests? Deputy Chief Hermes, you always do that, right? It would make sense, especially if they plan to have people aboard it. There should have been at least some eye-witnesses...” The fact that there had not been meant they were keeping the information under tight control.
“Hm... I guess there is no way for us to prepare ahead of the unveiling.” After all, this was the royal capital. The most important person in the country had access to a labyrinth of hidden information and was now leading the project. There was no telling what kind of treasured research they had hidden away. If they were to come out with some wild technology that we did not anticipate, it was very likely it could outdo our engines.
The day had finally come—the crown prince would be unveiling the world’s “first” piloted aircraft. The stage had been set near the river that ran by the old fort where royal martial arts tournaments were held. They had brought a boat, and it seemed the plan was to launch the aircraft from it.
“Ash, what do you think about all this?” Hermes asked.
“Hmm...well, they’ll be able to build up momentum with the boat, and should anything happen, it won’t take that much damage if it falls into the water.”
“Are we gonna use a boat when we do it?”
“No. I recommend we use the windy high hills.” If we launch from there, we can get a good amount of momentum from that height without needing a boat. There will be some impact when the aircraft lands, so we’ll use the suspension technology we perfected with the horse-drawn carriages. We’ll be able to pull it off. There was a large object—no doubt the aircraft—aboard the boat covered in a large cloth. Although I was unable to see it clearly, I was able to roughly work out its size.
“The back of it is long,” I commented.
“Aren’t the wings a little small?” Hermes wondered.
“Yeah, the wings are strange.”
“I can roughly make out the outline of them. They look too wide and too far back,” Hermes added.
“It is evidently not made as we imagined ours to look like.”
“I’ve no idea what they’ve based this on...” Hermes and I were of the same opinion as we exchanged thoughts. It was still unclear how this aircraft worked, so we had to remain vigilant.
“I wonder who’ll pilot it. Seire, do you know?”
“One of the royal knights, Graham, will be piloting it,” Seire responded. I had heard that name somewhere before, but I could not remember from where. He probably was not anyone important. The four of us were all seated in the front row, all wearing similar nervous expressions as the host of the event approached us.
“Oh, Sir Fenix, long time no see.” His Highness the Crown Prince stood opposite us. “I should thank you for accepting my invitation and coming such a long way. You don’t look very well, though. I made sure you would have ample time to make your way here after what happened last time, but did you have to rush here after all?”
The crown prince seemed apologetic, however, he had a smirk on his face, so he was no doubt being sarcastic. This was revenge for my making a fool of him at the imperial meeting, as well as an opportunity for him to show the results of their work after they stole our research. I did not think this was appropriate behavior for a royal. You need to look at the bigger picture. You probably haven’t noticed, as you have such a narrow view of things, but a lot of people dislike you, Your Highness. From Sacula to Yanga, there are plenty of people talking about you behind your back—you’re becoming quite popular. We could probably make a dictionary full of insults to describe you, Your Highness.
“Please do not worry. You have an important task ahead of you, Your Highness. Please look after yourself.” If this were a fantasy world where curses existed, he would have died one thousand times over by now.
“Yes, thank you for your concern, Sir Fenix. I think you’ll feel a lot better when you see what is about to happen.” The prince chuckled as he walked off. Lady Reina and Lady Seire shot venomous glares at him.
“What a brat. He ought to learn a thing or two from our very own demon king,” Lady Reina remarked.
“That sort of behavior is popular among women in the central regions. I fail to understand why,” Lady Seire added.
While being scrutinized by the two ladies, the prince greeted the remaining guests and boarded the river boat. It seemed it was finally time for the unveiling. A self-proclaimed developer, along with the honorable soon-to-be pilot of the first aircraft, introduced themselves. The crown prince then went on to explain how much money had gone into the project and spoke of his high expectations for the launch.
“They put a lot more money into this than I imagined...”
“Ah, Ash has that look in his eyes again. He’s angry,” Lady Reina commented.
I mean, it’s weird, right? If they had put that amount of money into the destroyed Yanga territory, then who knows how many lives we could have saved? Instead, they chose to make this piece of junk. I could think of a lot more words to add to that dictionary of insults for the crown prince. As I ground my teeth in annoyance, Lady Seire placed her finger on her chin as she reflected on the situation.
“Hm... I’ll try and spread some rumors about that. As the royal family, they should be working to protect the nation after all.”
“Perfect. That will be the perfect parting gift,” I responded. Eventually, the long introduction had finished, and it was finally time for them to reveal the aircraft. Hermes and I both leaned forward, fixated. A musical performance began as they finally pulled back the cloth.
“Amazing.” I gasped at the aircraft before me. It had far exceeded my expectations. It went so far above them that it might as well already be flying further and further into the sky, further than I could see... “What an unfortunate design.”
The aircraft, for some reason, was shaped like a dragon. The very same kind of demon I had fought in the Yanga territory. Those dragons. It was quite large. If this were a fantasy world, it was the right size for a warrior to mount and fly it. It was decorated with a few green scales, it had transparent wings, and the main body was a solid straight line—they had probably inserted something in the middle to maintain its shape. The head looked like a dragon mid-roar, and its eyes and fangs were made of glass. The audience had two very different reactions: disgust and elation. Those close to the frontier regions were the former, and those close to the central regions were the latter. As it was an event being held in the royal capital, the cheers were louder. Naturally, those who were disgusted were speechless, so if one closed their eyes, it sounded like the unveiling event was going great.