Why are the nobility able to control the vast majority of resources in this world?
Financial capabilities in this era are extremely low. Over a millennium, the nobility have accumulated many titles, so it is naturally impossible for there to only be a few dozen of them.
Aside from the nobles with fiefs, there are also landless nobles who still receive salaries. However, most of these nobles have fallen on hard times, and what they receive is only slightly more than what an average commoner family lives on.
Yet, why does this situation exist?
There is only one reason.
Commoners do not have the ability to play a more significant role.
On the battlefield, five thousand knights can crush a hundred thousand commoners. The gap in levels brings a difference as vast as the heaven and the earth.
The strengthening effects brought by attributes, titles, skills, pets, and so on, make it so that commoners cannot even serve as cannon fodder on the battlefield.
You must understand that the lowest-level cannon fodder of the demon army is level ten or higher. A level ten demon is almost equivalent to the level twenty standard of a normal human.
Infantry, who have little use on the battlefield and can only serve as cannon fodder, are actually focused on transporting resources and doing chores.
Maintaining armor and weapons, caring for horses, transporting food... these are all the tasks of ordinary infantry.
Of course, there are other jobs that require infantry as well.
Therefore, when trains are introduced, they will actually displace even more commoners.
Because transport costs will be greatly reduced, so many people will no longer be needed.
I had already anticipated this. The reason I continue to have Anton build the steam engine is that I want commoners to play a greater role on the battlefield.
Only by doing this can the treatment of ordinary people be improved.
In the end, this world is one where the one with the biggest fist has the say.
"Anton, come with me."
Looking at the steam engine before me, I did not rush to celebrate but instead glanced at Anton.
He scratched his head in confusion. The dwarf's thick, short fingers were covered in calluses from crafting. I believed his heavy palms could exert at least the strength of a level twenty warrior in a single slap.
I didn't know exactly what level Anton was, as I hadn't looked into it deeply.
Although confusion remained on his face, he still followed my command and came with me to the side hall.
The side hall was much smaller than the main hall, basically just a room of about a hundred square meters, tiny compared to the main hall's space of nearly a thousand square meters.
However, such a place was more suitable for discussing confidential matters.
I waved my hand, signaling the two small nuns holding my skirt to withdraw.
"Hilda, guard the main entrance and do not allow anyone to approach. Tasha, go and clear the crowd. Have the steam engine moved to the inner palace, then find Lola and have her come here."
Seeing this, a look of contemplation flashed in Anton's eyes, clearly a bit worried about what the upcoming topic would be.
I smiled.
"Mr. Anton, there is no need to worry. The following topic is merely a bit confidential, but it hasn't reached the level you're imagining."
Anton pondered for a moment and nodded.
"Your Highness, please speak. As long as it is something I, Anton, can do, I will do my best."
By choosing not to leave at this moment, Anton showed he was already on my ship.
And once you're on my ship, you have to row the oars for me!
"Mr. Anton, first, I thank you for your research and development of the steam engine. This will change the transportation capabilities of the entire Kingdom of the Moon. The future prosperity of the Kingdom of the Moon is already within reach."
"Your Highness, this is merely my duty."
"Very well. Next, Mr. Anton, I need you to make this thing, and it must be done in secret."
Anton was stunned for a moment as he took the design blueprints I handed over.
This was only an exterior design. As for how to build it later, that would need to be finalized in detail.
"Is this... a mana cannon?"
"No, it is a self-propelled mana cannon. A mana cannon that uses a steam engine for power to move."
The mana cannon is a unique product of this era.
Based on my understanding of this world, things like firearms have very limited utility here.
Unless I have the ability to create nuclear-level missiles for ultra-long-range strikes, firearms alone cannot improve large-scale combat capabilities.
And even if there were missiles, they would only be a sudden surge of power that would then lose all threat.
Because any powerhouse above level sixty can easily fly, and their long-range attack skills are countless.
With the power of a level sixty powerhouse, although their explosive strength might not be as strong as a nuke, intercepting a nuclear bomb would not be a problem.
The uncontrollability of electronic products in this era means that modern weapons simply cannot form an effective fighting force.
Even if firearms were designed, they would only be toys for nobles to slaughter commoners. For experts with even a little strength, these firearms would be a complete waste.
Useless.
Therefore, the only thing to consider is the powerful and easy-to-operate mana cannon.
Although these things are very expensive to build, if a mana cannon can become a mobile device, it would be terrifying.
I don't care about the high cost. At least with the current funds of the Kingdom of the Moon, building a few dozen is not a problem.
The problem is how to safely mount the mana cannon on a mobile device.
As far as I know, the only ones who can do this now are the fleets of the Kingdom of the Sun, and only the capital ships over three hundred meters long can carry them.
"Your Highness, this... might not be possible."
"Why?"
I looked at Anton in surprise. With his ability to develop a steam engine in just a month, creating a mobile mana cannon should not be a problem.
"Your Highness, although your design is very good, I'm afraid you don't understand mana cannons, do you?"
"Please explain in detail, Mr. Anton. I indeed do not know enough about this field."
I hadn't even seen a real mana cannon yet.
The mana cannons of the Kingdom of the Moon were all at the third Great Wall.
Brilliant City had been destitute all these years, barely able to provide for its people, so where would it get the money to build mana cannons?
"Your Highness, the working principle of a mana cannon is to condense massive amounts of chaotic mana elements and convert them into a near-solid shockwave to fire. Its power is naturally not to be underestimated."
As he spoke, he looked up at me.
"But Your Highness, the energy used by a mana cannon requires a large amount of magic stones. A single shot requires nearly half a ton of magic stones, and after every shot, at least thirty minutes are needed for cooling, which is also when more magic stones are added."
Anton looked around and remembered he had a pen in his pocket. He took it out and began to extend the drawings on the blueprint I had made.
"Please look, Your Highness. A mana cannon is not just a single barrel where you add a shell as you imagined. It is like this..."
He held the blueprint up as he spoke.
Only then did I understand why he said it couldn't be done.
Below the mana cannon I had drawn, a huge room appeared, almost the size of a dozen mana cannons.
"This area is the room used to store and condense the mana elements. The walls of this room alone require a large amount of Glowless Ore, and the thickness must be no less than three meters."
"Glowless Ore?"
This was another new term I had never heard of.
Anton smiled.
"It's normal that Your Highness doesn't know. This is an ore we blacksmiths often use. The substance forged from it, which is like iron but not iron, is what we call Glowless Iron. This iron can completely block mana elements. The shackles and prisons currently used to control demons and powerhouses are mixed with this Glowless Iron."
I nodded, having my horizons broadened once again.
"Afterward, this area needs to be built with Glowless Iron and mithril. The role of the Glowless Iron is to prevent the loss of mana elements, while the mithril is used to guide the mana elements into the cannon barrel. Here in the middle... there is a device specifically for concentrating the mana elements, which then passes through a coating device to wrap the concentrated chaotic mana elements, finally transporting them into the mana cannon's barrel to wait for firing."
Anton explained to me patiently. It was hard to imagine that this rough and weathered dwarf could have such a meticulous side. Every time he explained a part, his pen would draw it out.
"There is a time limit for firing a mana cannon because once this coating comes into contact with the air, it weakens rapidly. The entire process takes no more than a minute."
In other words... once the mana cannon's shell is loaded into the barrel, it must be fired immediately, otherwise, it could easily cause a self-explosion?
"I see. It seems I was too naive."
I shook my head helplessly. Indeed, trying to measure this world with the common sense of my original world was not an easy task.
I had read about the power of mana cannons in books. They were powerful enough to be considered a necessity for war.
In the war against the demon army, mana cannons play a huge role in defense. The existence of one mana cannon is almost equal to the full-strength strike of a level fifty to sixty powerhouse.
It seems the reason for such great power is precisely because of such a massive cost.
However, this also gave me a new possibility.
If the ammunition of the mana cannon could be controlled at the size of a bullet, using the characteristics of Glowless Iron and magic stones as the casing and fuse, couldn't firearms be manufactured?
Even if they couldn't cause damage to beings above level thirty, they might be effective against soldiers below level thirty.
"Mhm... Nara, immediately notify Camilla and Ligeia to come here. I have something to discuss with them."
Currently, the only people by my side who understand mana elements are Camilla and Ligeia.
Both of them are long-lived elves and are also mages.
The degree of specialization mages have regarding mana elements far exceeds that of mages.
It's like... the difference between a CNC programmer and a machine operator.
A mage basically only knows how to use magic of different attributes and stages.
But a mage is more inclined to research and develop magic for different purposes.
One is for immediate use.
The other is for dedicated research.
The difference is naturally huge.
If I could package concentrated mana elements into shells as I imagined, then creating a simplified mana cannon would be no problem.
Furthermore, the mana cannon itself needs to be improved from the ground up.
Before Camilla and Ligeia arrived, I continued to discuss with Anton.
"Then what if we use trains for transport?"
If shells are used, they need to withstand long-term transport and storage, which would inevitably reduce their power to some extent.
But what if we use a train?
A single carriage can transport over sixty tons of cargo.
Then three carriages could separately hold the cannon body, the converter, and the raw materials.
In this way, the mobile mana cannon—the railway gun—would appear.
The problem is how to avoid the recoil.
"Your Highness means... using train carriages as storage devices to move the mana cannon? That is a feasible method."
Anton pondered for a moment, drew a few strokes on the back of the paper, and nodded.
"Yes, it's feasible. Although the power would need to be reduced by about ten to twenty percent, this transport method can indeed allow for rapid movement."
That meant that in the short term, I could forget about 'tanks' and the dawn of 'firearms' looked dim, but a railway gun was no problem!
"Mhm. Anton, from now on, you are the Dean of the Heavy Industry Research Institute. I will have Lola select a site for you later. You can freely recruit people you trust into the institute. I will allocate funds for the treatment of everyone who enters the institute later."
"Your Highness, is this appropriate? I've only just..."
"There is nothing inappropriate about it."
I shook my head, interrupting Anton's words.
"I trust you. Just go ahead and do it."
Anton pondered for a moment and then nodded heavily.
"I... No, I obey your royal command."
This answer was very consistent with a dwarf's personality.
Dwarves have their own gods, so they do not believe in the gods of other races. Therefore, calling me his King was normal.
Thus, while others obey a Divine Oracle, he... obeys a royal command.
Next, Anton and I began to discuss various possibilities.
During this process, Camilla and Ligeia arrived as well. They began to brainstorm and joined the discussion.
The entire process lasted about two hours, leaving all four of us with dry throats.
It seemed Anton's level was not low, as this brief two-hour discussion was not a burden for him.
Ligeia and Camilla went without saying.
It was quite hard on me, though. My level was low to begin with, yet I had to tough it out.
But... I was happy inside~
We basically finalized the future research direction, and at the same time, I granted Camilla and Ligeia their respective official titles.
Because they had different focuses, Camilla was primarily the 'Honorary Vice Dean of the Magic Research Institute'.
Ligeia was the 'Commander of the True Dragon Knight Corps and concurrently—Honorary Vice Dean of the Magic Research Institute'.
So... in the end, neither of them could directly take charge of the 'Magic Research Institute' right now, as Camilla still had the Alchemists' Association to worry about, and Ligeia had to train the coordination between the skysoar dragons and the knights.
Talent in this area is not easily obtained; one can only find it by chance.
I'll worry about it later.
Just as we had finished discussing this matter, Tasha's voice came from outside the door.
"Your Highness, Medivh Francisco, the Head of the Mage Association, has requested a meeting with you via magic communication."
The moment I heard those words, my heart skipped a beat.
"Finally, he's here."
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