Ang stood beside the railcar's control pedestal, watching the rune array operate with focused attention. He slowly increased the input of magic power, and the Gale Technique runes across the entire vehicle activated. Pale blue rune light flowed over the carriage's surface, as though a layer of wind was pushing it forward.
"Bzzzz—"
The railcar's hum gradually grew louder, its wheels spinning faster as the carriage began racing steadily forward. Craftsmen and apprentices outside the workshop stood along both sides of the tracks, watching the steel behemoth speed past. Many instinctively took a step back, their eyes filled with surprise and awe.
Ang carefully measured the markers beside the tracks, estimating the railcar's speed.
Sixty kilometers per hour!
Ang was quite satisfied with this speed. It was several times faster than a horse-drawn carriage and could maintain stable operation for long periods. However, he knew this was far from the limit. If he optimized the rune array and adjusted the coordination between the levitation runes and the Gale Technique, there would be plenty of room for even greater speeds in the future.
For now, though, he had achieved the first goal of the experiment.
When the railcar returned to the workshop, the craftsmen and apprentices crowded around it, unable to hide their excitement and confusion. Ang took a deep breath and swept his gaze across them, anticipation in his eyes.
"What do you think when you look at the railcar?"
His voice echoed through the workshop. Everyone fell silent for a moment before beginning to whisper among themselves, discussing what they had just witnessed.
"I mean your first impressions when you saw it," Ang added.
At those words, the craftsmen grew serious. Ang simply had them enter the carriage one by one and experience it for themselves.
When the craftsmen