Firearms Performance

By the time it was 12:30, everyone had arrived.

Since it was only a small banquet, there were just twenty-five guests. Aside from Uncle Leif, everyone had either brought younger members of their family or come with their son and daughter-in-law. Almost all of them had arrived in pairs.

Luckily, there weren't many guests. Otherwise, there wouldn't have been enough room at the table.

Once everyone had arrived, Altair signaled to Hahn to begin the banquet.

After Hahn gently rang the bell to announce that lunch could begin, Altair stood and accompanied several important guests to their seats. The others found seats in pairs or groups as they pleased.

The seating arrangements for lunch weren't as strict as they were for the evening banquet.

Once everyone was seated, the servants began bringing out the food. They started with cold dishes and ham, followed by hot dishes, roast meat, roast chicken, and roasted vegetables. For dessert, they served fruit tarts and pudding.

Since there would be a performance in the afternoon, lunch was accompanied only by low-alcohol white wine or cider.

Throughout the meal, Altair and the guests chatted and laughed as they enjoyed lunch for an hour and a half.

Over the course of the meal, Altair had gotten a feel for everyone.

The older generation had generally begun handing over power and entering retirement.

The middle-aged guests, like Karel Duarte, had mostly completed the transfer of power and were beginning to establish themselves.

A few of the younger generation were around his age. Most were still studying and would make plans once they came of age.

After lunch, the guests chatted for a while. Then Hahn came in and whispered in Altair's ear, "Simon's team is ready. We can begin the performance."

After hearing the private message, Altair looked at the guests and saw that all but a few of the younger ones were watching him.

Altair could only smile helplessly and shake his head, thinking, They must have been waiting for Hahn to come in and give me the word.

Then he rose to his feet. "Everyone, thank you for attending the Sheffield Family's banquet. To show our gratitude, we've prepared a fireworks display for you. Afterward, you'll also have a chance to take part yourselves. Please follow me to the back garden."

Altair and Hahn gestured for the guests to follow.

Hahn led the way, while Altair accompanied Uncle Leif and the others out of the living room.

Those who knew what was coming wanted to see it for themselves, so they followed along. The rest saw most of the guests leaving and decided to follow, too.

They were led to the back garden and took their seats in the stands that had already been set up.

Looking out from the stands, Altair couldn't help admiring Simon's professionalism. From here, they could see everything happening at the Shooting Range.

Once everyone was seated, Altair began his introduction. "Starting in 1145, Emperor Roselle invented the Steam Engine and improved rifled artillery, among other innovations, bringing the Age of Knights to a definitive end."

"This also allowed the Republic of Intis to rise rapidly in that era and surpass the other nations for nearly fifty years. It wasn't until Roselle was assassinated at the White Maple Palace and Intis fell into internal turmoil that the other nations seized the opportunity to launch the Industrial Revolution."

"From then on, the wars between the two sides became entirely dependent on firearms. And one unavoidable factor in firearms is gunpowder. It's the foundation of these weapons. Whoever has the better technology gains the advantage."

"Of course, that's not entirely true. After all, the military has large numbers of powerful Steam Rifles. But I'm sure you're all aware of their shortcomings: they're expensive, complicated to maintain and repair, require fuel to operate, and can only be used by specially trained personnel, among other problems."

"The way to solve all these problems is to update gunpowder technology. Whoever develops a new type of gunpowder that costs less and packs more power can reshape the balance of weapons."

"Today, we've prepared a live-fire demonstration of weapons using New Gunpowder technology."

As soon as Altair finished speaking, Simon led the entire twelve-member team to one corner of the Shooting Range. At the signal to begin, they started the performance.

The team was more than a hundred meters away. By the time the sound of their Kar98k rifles reached the stands, the sharp reports had softened into dull pops.

Seeing the satisfied expressions on their faces, Altair offered a brief explanation. "The Kar98k is a bolt-action rifle with a 7.92×57mm Mauser Cartridge. It has a five-round internal magazine, an effective range of 800 meters, and an overall length of 1,100 millimeters. Unloaded, it weighs about 3.9 kilograms."

"The bolt operates smoothly and reliably, and the rifle is highly accurate. With a telescopic sight, it can be used as a sniper rifle. Its drawback is its slow rate of fire, which makes it unsuitable for sudden close-quarters firefights."

"Still, there's no denying its excellent performance. Compared with the weapons currently in service in the military, it costs less and hits harder. Its ammunition uses New Smokeless Powder throughout."

The current timeline was set in the late Victorian Era of the Original World, and ordinary weapons had not yet fully switched to Smokeless Powder.

Watching the demonstration at the Shooting Range, Uncle Leif casually asked, "How much does this rifle cost to make, and how long does it take?"

Altair was delighted. Uncle Leif really was a good man. He'd been waiting for someone to ask. If nobody asked, how could he explain the advantages? "Since the Kar98k is a new type of firearm, it currently takes between twelve and fourteen hours to make. Once mass production begins, that should drop to around nine hours."

Altair's words made the influential guests nod repeatedly.

The Kar98k demonstration was essentially a weapons test. They tested its range, accuracy, and muzzle velocity, then simulated different conditions by soaking it in water and sand, testing it in low temperatures, and firing it continuously.

Once the Kar98k tests were complete, Simon and the others switched to the MG42.

With its blistering rate of fire—1,200 rounds per minute—the MG42 unleashed a continuous roar, a "brrr—brrr—" like tearing cloth. There was no discernible pause between individual shots. It sounded more like a metal grinder cutting through steel, and it was intensely oppressive.

Altair understood the guests' shocked expressions. Heavy Machine Guns of this era simply couldn't do anything like this. He began his explanation.

"The MG42 is a general-purpose machine gun that can meet the needs of both Light Machine Gun and Heavy Machine Gun roles."

"It fires the 7.92×57mm Mauser Cartridge and uses belt feeding. Its theoretical rate of fire is as high as 1,200 rounds per minute. Its effective range is 800 meters in the Light Machine Gun role and 1,000 meters in the Heavy Machine Gun role. It's 1,219 millimeters long and weighs about 11.5 kilograms unloaded."

"Its extremely high rate of fire makes it sound like a roaring chainsaw, giving it tremendous suppressive power."

"It's made using stamped components, which keeps costs low and production high. It's reliable and can withstand harsh battlefield conditions such as extreme cold and mud."

"Its drawback is that the high rate of fire consumes ammunition quickly, placing heavy demands on the gunner's control and on logistical supplies."

"But I don't think that level of ammunition consumption is a drawback for the military—or even for an industrial powerhouse like ours."

"Used together, these two firearms can form an infantry squad's core firepower. The Kar98k handles accurate shots and sniping at medium to long range. The MG42 provides suppressive fire and seals off areas."

If the Kar98k had surprised the guests, the MG42 left them stunned. Its design completely outclassed every firearm currently in existence.

After the performance ended, the guests all took part in the trial firing. Everyone wanted to try a weapon capable of changing the course of a battle.

When Altair told them the cost and manufacturing time, these powerful figures looked at him as if they were sizing up a piece of gold.