Château de Fontainebleau, the snow-covered Duchy of Mousillon.
Within the vast courtyard of the new royal palace, a large group of knightly nobles and Nuln nobles were engaged in lively conversation. Over the past few years, the relationship between the Kingdom of Bretonnia and the Empire had been quite positive, especially with Nuln. The knightly nobles needed to place large orders for goods and new weaponry from Nuln, while Nuln benefited from the lucrative contracts and provided the knights with advanced weapons and high-quality standardized equipment.
This Nuln delegation was of a grand scale, with many attendees, so Bretonnia had prepared the highest level of hospitality. Except for Marshal Lucien, who was far away in the Badlands, and Marshal Louen, stationed in Erengrad, all the marshals had brought their families to Château de Fontainebleau. Ryan had arranged a series of social events.
Everyone chatted about relationships, the state of the Old World, and business. The Nuln delegation brought many new gadgets and social trends, while the Bretonnians had plenty of grain, agricultural products, and livestock to export.
Of course, the most bustling area was the Fountain Courtyard of Château de Fontainebleau. Here, the core figures around the Knight King and the Countess of Nuln had gathered. The men played cards and war games, primarily discussing recent events in the Old World and analyzing past battles.
The women, on the other hand, were divided into two groups, sitting around a large square table, the sounds of tiles clinking and dice rolling filling the air.
"One of Circles!"
"Nine of Bamboo!"
"Three of Characters!"
"Chow!"
The women were divided into two groups. The first group included Queen Sulia, Deputy Speaker Theresa—who had barely reached the Saint Realm with the help of Old One energy—Countess Emmanuelle, and Speaker Veronique. The second group consisted of Saint Realm Sorceress Erona, Court Lady and Head Maid Sylvia, Marshal Rokossovsky's wife Eva, and Marshal Calard's wife Catherine.
As you can see, they were playing mahjong.
Mahjong was something Ryan had introduced to help noblewomen pass the time. This pastime had quickly become a craze among the upper echelons of the Old World, even spreading to the High Elves.
However, Ryan had deliberately chosen a more complex and skill-intensive version of mahjong—Japanese mahjong. Its rules were more complicated and harder to master, making it a game limited to the nobility.
"Aren't you going to join them, Olica?" Ryan asked, watching the lively scene at Sulia's table with a smile.
"No, it's boring. If I joined, they'd lose so badly they'd have to take off their stockings," Olica said dismissively, her dark elf pride showing. "You'd need someone like Lileath to play with me."
Ryan didn't press further. He first walked over to Sulia, who was concentrating on forming a "pure one suit" hand. However, after drawing two honor tiles in a row, she quickly switched to a "mixed one suit."
Next was Emmanuelle. The elegant Countess of Nuln appeared calm and composed, but Ryan found her hand amusing. She was going for a "pure terminal and honors" hand, but because she had previously discarded a tile that would have completed it, she was now in a "furiten" state and could only win by self-draw.
Then there was Theresa. The sorceress was dressed to the nines today, aiming for a "straight" hand and already in "riichi." However, Ryan couldn't help but smile, as the tiles Theresa needed were all in Emmanuelle's hand. If Emmanuelle didn't change her strategy, Theresa had no chance of winning this round.
When Ryan appeared behind her with a smile, Theresa seemed to harbor some resentment toward him. She coldly snorted and turned her head away, but Ryan didn't mind, even reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder. Theresa shot him a glare but didn't reject the gesture.
Just as Ryan was about to continue observing, Theresa discarded a "Two of Bamboo," which Veronique immediately picked up. The Speaker exclaimed excitedly, "I win!"
The ivory mahjong tiles were laid out on the table as Veronique declared triumphantly, "Only one yaku, 'All Simples,' 1000 points!"
Sulia nodded, Emmanuelle clicked her tongue in disdain, and Theresa sighed in resignation.
In the three rounds played so far, Veronique had won all of them. The Speaker shamelessly didn't bother with complex hands, winning with "All Simples," "Prevailing Wind," and "All Simples" again, totaling just 4000 points.
"Veronique, winning ten hands like this probably won't even match what Emmanuelle could win with a single complex hand," Ryan teased. "If you lose one round, you might end up losing everything."
"Heh, they'd have to win first," Veronique replied nonchalantly. "Even if I win small, I'm still winning!"
"Alright, suit yourself," Ryan said with a helpless smile. The Knight King paused for a moment before adding, "I'm going out later to watch the land cruiser's test. Anyone interested in joining?"
No one. The women all shook their heads.
"Really? None of you want to see that steel beast?" Ryan asked in surprise.
"Not interested. Isn't it still being tested?" Emmanuelle said impatiently. "Let me know when Maybach and the others finish the tests. I'm not going out there now—the smell is awful, and it's freezing."
"Compared to that, I think playing mahjong here is more fun," Sulia said playfully. "Do you know what the stakes are for the four of us playing a round?"
"What?" Ryan had a bad feeling.
"Three days of 'Ryan Experience Card'!" Sulia burst into laughter.
Ryan could only flee in embarrassment.
---
While the women weren't interested, the men were eager to see the freshly manufactured steel beast that Nuln had spent eleven years building.
"I want to go! I want to go!" Devonshire raised his hand. The 13-year-old was clearly frustrated. He had just had a duel with his older brother Frederick, and naturally, the 16-year-old Frederick, who was fully grown, had easily bested the still-maturing Devonshire in swordsmanship, horsemanship, and magic. The younger brother, unwilling to accept defeat, quickly signaled his desire to join his father in viewing the land cruiser.
Emmanuelle, still playing mahjong, immediately noticed this. The Countess gestured for her son to come over. "Frederick?"
"Yes, Mother?" Frederick approached.
"Come here," Emmanuelle said, pulling her son close and whispering in his ear, "You go too. Remember, you're also his son. What's due to you, you should claim. Understand?"
"Understood," Frederick nodded, then called out to Ryan, "Father, I'd like to see it too. How does it perform?"
Except for Theresa, who was still focused on calculating her hand, both Sulia and Veronique noticed this. The elegant and radiant Queen Sulia frowned slightly.
Veronique's expression turned sour. Just a few months ago, she had been informed that the future of the Sorceress Conclave might be inherited by a new member of the Trolovic family—Shire Trolovic. This had undermined Veronique's authority as Speaker, as both Erona and Theresa, now with Shire, had become more assertive.
What did this mean? It meant that despite decades of investment in Ryan, Veronique had ultimately seen a significant portion of the "cake" taken by that mother-daughter duo!
How could Veronique not be furious? She had wanted to confront Ryan about this many times.
But Veronique had held back, knowing that doing so would only harm her standing with Ryan. In the end, she needed to prove herself and give him a child.
"Continue!" The sound of mahjong tiles clinking resumed.
"I win! All Simples!"
---
On the other side, led by Nuln's Chief Engineer Maybach, Ryan, the marshals of Bretonnia, and his two sons went to observe the testing of the land cruiser.
It was an enormous steel beast.
Its design resembled the land ships previously commissioned by Marienburg from Nuln, built in the shape of a ship. However, compared to the immature technology of the land ships, the Emmanuelle-Class Land Cruiser, born from the fusion of multiple advancements, demonstrated far superior capabilities from the very beginning.
Chief Engineer Maybach was brimming with pride. Stroking his long beard, he introduced the pinnacle of Nuln's engineering with great enthusiasm: "The Emmanuelle-Class Land Cruiser weighs sixty tons, is 12 meters long, 3.5 meters high, and 4.2 meters wide. Its main armament is a triple-barreled cannon at the bow, consisting of one heavy cannon and two light cannons. These cannons are constructed with the latest obsidian technology, allowing for prolonged continuous firing."
Murmurs of admiration spread through the crowd. Wasn't this similar to the Dwarven ironclad technology?
"On the side decks, we've mounted two Dwarven sulfur rotary guns and one Hellstorm Volley Gun on each side. When the land cruiser is surrounded, these can quickly eliminate the enemy," Maybach continued. "Additionally, as per your request, we've left ample space on the main bridge for the assembly of a Luminark."
"Hmm!" Ryan nodded in satisfaction as he observed the various war machines on the land cruiser.
The more turrets, the better!
Bigger is right, more is beautiful!
"At the rear of the ship, there's also a mortar," Maybach led the group toward the stern. "We've specially modified this mortar, significantly reducing its range by nearly half in exchange for a larger caliber and greater firepower. It's loaded with a special anti-infantry shell—the Big Daddy!"
"Big Daddy?" Ryan and the others watched as the Nuln engineers pried open a crate, revealing large, round shells.
"BIG Daddy! Anti-infantry shells," the Nuln engineer explained. "These shells are designed to deal with large numbers of infantry. They explode into shrapnel, devastating everything in the vicinity."
"Wow, Big Daddy!" François squatted down, intrigued by the crate, which bore the logo of a gray dog with a white belly and a red scarf. "Why is it called Big Daddy?"
"That was Engineer Quanlu Shengfan's idea. He came up with it after a drink," Maybach laughed, pointing to a large, rotund engineer clad in a white bear fur coat. "The name 'Big Daddy' and the dog logo were his ideas."
"Greetings, Your Majesty, Marshals. I hope my design serves you well," the chubby engineer said shyly before quickly slipping away.
This guy looks so much like… Tian Ge? Ryan thought to himself, the resemblance was uncanny!
The Knight King took a deep breath. Right now, he only needed to focus on two things: surviving the End Times and waiting for Shuang Ge to get married.
"With so many artillery pieces, won't the land cruiser shake excessively when firing? And how is the power supply handled?" Devonshire, as the legitimate son, stepped forward to ask. "With such weight, getting this steel beast to move must be incredibly difficult."
"Ah, that's where Uncle Gelt's greatest contribution comes in!" Frederick immediately took over, encouraged by the Chief Engineer's approving gaze. "The new compressed steam engine."
"Indeed, this new land cruiser uses a tracked drive system with load-bearing wheels," Maybach continued. "Inside is the latest invention by Royal Chief Wizard and Grand Alchemist Balthasar Gelt. He used a new material called 'Uranium' to help us create a new type of steam engine, which provides greater thrust and power."
"The land cruiser is equipped with four new steam boilers, which is the maximum we can install," Maybach led the group inside the cruiser, where the smell of sweat and coal made everyone wrinkle their noses. "Each steam boiler can provide 65 horsepower. If all are running—and I mean if there are no malfunctions, at full power, and with sufficient fuel—the maximum speed can reach 20-25 kilometers per hour."
"That's quite fast," Ryan nodded.
"But this is the limit. To ensure sufficient speed, we had to forgo installing a ram on the Emmanuelle-Class," Maybach explained. "It would have been too heavy. Also, to keep these new boilers running at full capacity, you'll need the highest quality smokeless coal, preferably refined by the College of Alchemy. I must warn you, this is a gold-devouring beast."
"That's fine. It's already very impressive," Ryan said after a moment of thought.
"Thanks to the runic enhancements by Dwarven masters, the frontal armor of the cruiser is incredibly strong, Father," Frederick quickly added. "It can withstand attacks from catapults and heavy artillery, though the side armor is slightly weaker. Still, it's enough to stop bullets and the like."
"Excellent! Very good! Finish the tests as soon as possible. I want to see it on the battlefield!" Ryan noticed that many components were still being adjusted and assembled, but he nodded in satisfaction. "If I'm not mistaken, Nuln already has an identical land cruiser, right?"
"Yes, we've named it the Emmanuelle. It's already undergoing tests and can be deployed in emergencies," Maybach said, quickly adding, "We sent the second one to you as soon as it was completed."
"Please give it a name, Father," Frederick said earnestly.
"Hmm…" Ryan pondered for a moment, then his eyes lit up. "How about 'Tian Ma Hu'?"
Tian Ma Hu is coming!
The Juche idea shines forever!
"Tian Ma Hu? What a strange name," Frederick muttered.
"Father's saying weird things again," Devonshire was already used to Ryan's odd remarks.
"Then how about 'Little Angel Spee' or 'Prince Eugen'?" Ryan continued with a smile.
The group was too exhausted to comment.
You're giving an Imperial name to our Bretonnian land battlecruiser?
"Be serious, Father!" Devonshire deliberately glanced at Frederick and said, "Why not name it after Mother? The Sulia!"
"That won't do," Ryan immediately objected. How could I let my wife go out to war?
"Alright, I've got it. To honor the great history of Bretonnia," Ryan thought for a moment and finally made a decision.
"Let's call it…"
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