August 1788 Model Percussion Cap Gun

Next came the Police Academy instructors' group test-firing of the percussion cap guns.

Everyone was thrilled after trying the new guns. They knew very well what shaving three or four seconds off the firing time meant.

Joseph tried firing a few shots himself, only to find the recoil tremendous, the stock slamming painfully into his shoulder. And when it came to loading speed, even Louis XVI left him streets behind.

Well, this crown prince relies on his brains. Things like shooting are best left to Kexer.

Soon, Dean of Academic Affairs Friant discovered another advantage of the percussion cap gun. "I feel this gun is more powerful than the 1776 Model."

Joseph nodded inwardly. Without gas leaking from the ignition pan, more of the force of the exploding gunpowder acted on the bullet. Its power was bound to increase.

An instructor beside him nodded. "I noticed that too. And when this gun fires, it doesn't spray powder smoke into your face or sting your eyes."

That, of course, was also thanks to eliminating the ignition pan. The ignition pan was close to the shooter's face, and the gunpowder gases escaping from it seriously interfered with his vision. Percussion cap guns had no such problem.

Everyone fired and talked excitedly until all seventy or eighty percussion caps they had brought were used up. Only then did they stop, still hungry for more.

The results proved that Louis XVI's craftsmanship was superb. Each gun had fired nearly forty consecutive shots without any problems.

Only His Majesty the King stood to one side, his face full of resentment. He had come here to test-fire the guns, yet had fired only two shots from beginning to end. And with his social anxiety, he could not bring himself to ask these strangers for a gun...