The son of the God-Emperor in Warhammer Fantasy

The mechanical warhorse is another new invention from the Nur Military Factory. The idea for this invention arose after they acquired the half-blood elven warhorses. Many of Nur's knightly nobles were intrigued by the thought of owning such a fine horse. For a knight, a good horse means powerful combat ability and better survival chances.

Emilia has a half-blood elven warhorse, a gift from Ryan. Since Emilia does not ride often, this half-blood elven warhorse is frequently borrowed by Nur's great nobles for breeding. They pamper it with good food and drink, but due to their lack of knowledge in breeding elven horses, to this day, they haven't produced a qualified warhorse offspring.

In essence, the Bretons are also not very skilled in breeding pureblood elven warhorses. The wood elves are the best at breeding elven horses. Ryan's warhorse, Grape, was also bred by the wood elves. Grape has fathered a dozen foals in his lifetime but pays no attention to his offspring. He only likes Sulia's mount, the pureblood elven mare, Milichit. The two horses have produced several pureblood foals, currently kept in Ryan's ducal castle stables and the pastures outside the castle.

The engineers at the Nur Military Factory were displeased by this. They thought, why solve a problem with a warhorse when it can be solved mechanically?

Why not create a powerful mechanical horse to solve the problem?

Without hesitation, the Nur engineers started using mechanical and clockwork structures to create such a mechanical warhorse. This mechanical warhorse requires a lot of time for precise manual crafting and polishing. Once operational, the mechanical warhorse can smash through any enemies and obstacles in its path.

An engineer proudly mounted the mechanical warhorse. He waved to the crowd, who indicated they were ready for the demonstration.

"Begin!"

Pressing a button and pulling the reins, the Imperial engineer drove the mechanical horse into action.

Soon, the mechanical warhorse began to operate, with the sounds of springs and gears emanating from within. The entire mechanical structure started up with a roar, showcasing human elite technology and wisdom perfectly within the mechanical warhorse, like an ancient flame of hope ignited within it. Thunderous power surged through the mechanical horse.

"Activate!" the Imperial engineer shouted, looking like a great general, an invincible knight!

The next second. "Boom!"

"Boom! Boom!"

The entire mechanical warhorse exploded!

Amid the sound of explosions, electric sparks, and steam leaks, the mechanical horse disintegrated instantly before everyone's eyes. The horse's hind legs kicked, sending the engineer flying into the air, before exploding into countless pieces!

Gears, springs, and iron pieces scattered everywhere with a clattering sound, followed by the heavy thuds of falling debris.

The poor Imperial chief engineer fell from the sky, crashing to the ground with a miserable scream, "Ah! My legs, my legs are broken! I need treatment, I need treatment!"

Everyone: "..."

Is this the powerful mechanical horse?

It is indeed quite powerful. Ryan and Sulia couldn't help but cover their mouths, stifling their laughter. Alfred was holding back, while the Norscan woman Ingrid was already rolling on the ground laughing.

After a few seconds of silence, Emilia couldn't stand it anymore. Her face darkened as she signaled her attendants, "Take him away and send him to the Church of Mercy for treatment."

"Yes!" The attendants immediately carried the leg-broken engineer away.

"My chief engineer, I think I need an explanation. The city council allocates tens of thousands of funds to you every year, and this is what the military factory produces?" Emilia smiled, no longer the little maid in front of Ryan but in her duchess mode, exuding an almost overwhelming aura. "What is this? A self-destructing horse? Nur doesn't need such a thing."

"Uh..." Chief Engineer Maybach was quite embarrassed. He bowed his head and said, "Apologies, my Lady, the mechanical warhorse is still in the prototype and testing phase..."

"I don't want excuses; I want to know the reason, my chief engineer," Emilia continued to smile, but everyone could sense the anger hidden behind her smile.

"The stability of the mechanical warhorse has always been a major issue, my Lady," Chief Engineer Maybach admitted with a sigh. "The mechanical horse's structure is too precise. I mean, every part must be well-maintained. If any part malfunctions, it can easily lead to the kind of failure we just saw. This isn't the first time; several engineers have already been injured. However, my Lady, we still believe further research is necessary."

"No more," Emilia said impatiently. "I believe precious research funds should be spent on more important things. Don't you think so, Gont-Maybach?"

"Of... of course, we will follow your instructions," the chief engineer nodded with a wry smile.

The farce ended quickly. The chief engineer, previously high-spirited, now felt quite humiliated. He then began to introduce the latest war machine being developed at the Nur Military Factory: the Landship.

This massive unit, about seven to eight meters high, was a new order from the Marienburg Merchant Guild. It was incredibly large, around eight meters high, four meters wide, and more than ten meters long. The ship was equipped with a large boiler at the rear, a standard imperial heavy cannon at the front, and four small cannons on each side. It could accommodate 20-40 soldiers to fight on the landship. It used small wooden wheels at the front for steering and large rear wheels for propulsion, driven by the steam boiler.

Ryan examined this somewhat comical yet impressive giant creation and laughed, "You call this a landship, huh? Exciting!"

The birth of the landship had a slight connection to Ryan.

As everyone knows, Marienburg is a free city. This city had detached from the empire before the Great Holy War. After the Great Holy War, faced with the unmatched prestige of the savior Ludwig and the pressure from the empire, the merchants of Marienburg chose to submit to Ludwig's rule, using an enormous sum of gold to buy "permanent autonomy" from him. Over the next century, Marienburg enjoyed autonomous rights. The merchants of Marienburg, weary of the empire's endless political intrigues and wars, cared only about their profits.

However, this decision was a double-edged sword. While they gained independence, their city lacked a strong military force. As previously mentioned, the bourgeoisie's inherent weakness meant the merchants couldn't muster a robust army like the empire's military nobles. Their mercenaries couldn't match the empire's elite troops. During wars, Marienburg had to spend vast amounts of money and resources to seek the empire's aid.

Twelve years ago, when Marienburg faced a greenskin invasion, they had to request the empire's help. The empire took advantage of the situation, extorting a large sum and making the merchants agree to many unequal terms.

Naturally, the merchants were unhappy, but Marienburg's defenses were indeed weak. The merchants couldn't allow enemies near the city's outskirts, let alone the walls.

Thus, they set their sights on the steam tank, a super weapon.

Obviously, the empire would never allow the merchants to get their hands on such a crucial war machine. Historically, Marienburg had only rented Conqueror-class steam tanks twice, and the exorbitant rental fees nearly bankrupted several merchant guilds. They were also under constant surveillance by the imperial army.

The merchants soon realized they could never buy a steam tank. However... perhaps they could commission the empire to build "their own steam tank"?

Shortly after Ryan left Marienburg, following the Battle of Coleson Plains, the merchants reconvened. Having felt the pain, they finally decided to pool their wealth. Each wealthy merchant in the upper house had tens or even hundreds of thousands of gold marks. They decided to concentrate their funds and request the empire to build a steam tank for Marienburg.

The Brunswick Military Factory refused, as they lacked the capability to build steam tanks. The dwarves of Breeze Castle also refused, mocking humans as fools (they actually couldn't build it either).

Ultimately, Marienburg turned to the Nur Military Factory. Faced with a substantial down payment of tens of thousands of gold marks and promises of more future investments, the Nur Military Factory remained silent. Unlike Brunswick, this industrial city needed such large orders and funding. The large sums of gold sent to the Nur court also silenced the great nobles.

Including Emilia, the duchess was initially very dissatisfied, but the gifts worth ten thousand gold marks and a large number of rare elven jewelry and cosmetics from Marienburg eventually made her relent.

Thus, the Nur Military Factory took on the order. They were asked to create a war machine that was "higher, faster, stronger" than the steam tank and capable of traveling through swamps without being too complicated, ensuring Marienburg's engineers could learn to operate it.

"This really put us in a difficult spot," said the landship project leader, Imperial Chief Engineer Hesike-Goodman, a unique engineer dressed in relatively clean clothes with burn scars on his face. He wore a soft cap from his head to his chin, with a clock on top, making his head and the clock look like a gourd.

He explained, "As we all know, our understanding of steam technology is limited. Only those well-versed in steam technology can skillfully operate a steam tank, knowing when to reduce pressure, increase pressure, and appropriately overload it. Marienburg's requirements were very challenging. We failed multiple times: the main cannon was too powerful, causing the tank to disintegrate

 due to the recoil; the boiler was either too small, lacking power, or too large, prone to explosions. The steam tank easily fell apart while turning, with wheels falling off."

"How did you eventually solve this problem?" Ryan asked curiously. "I can imagine you faced many difficulties."

"After many failures, we realized we didn't need to forcefully imitate a larger steam tank based on the prototype. We only needed to meet Marienburg's requirements of being higher, larger, and stronger~" Engineer Goodman said proudly. "So we abandoned creating a new tank and instead built this 'landship' as Marienburg requested. We enlarged the steam boiler to ensure smooth operation. It may not be as refined and powerful as a steam tank, but it's large and sturdy enough. As long as the boiler doesn't explode and the wheels function properly, the landship is a walking war fortress and land cruiser. The merchants were very satisfied after the inspection, ordering half a dozen (six) units."

"How many have you built?" Ryan continued.

"We've completed three, and the fourth is nearing completion," Goodman nodded. "With a prototype, mass production becomes easier. I mean... if the money is sufficient, we can definitely build more."

"Mm." Ryan nodded, having some ideas in mind.

Finally, the group was to visit the Nur Gunpowder Academy. Due to confidentiality and technical secrecy, there were limited areas they could tour, mainly the teaching building, dormitories, shooting range, and cafeteria.

After a morning of visits, it was already afternoon when the group entered the cafeteria, where twenty or so Nur Ironclad soldiers were eating.

The Nur Ironclad Army is likely the most formidable firearm unit in the Old World. This army consists of students, guards, and instructors from the Nur Gunpowder Academy, numbering about seven or eight hundred. Clad in heavy armor and wielding master-crafted guns, the Nur Ironclad Army is the most respected and well-equipped firearm regiment within the empire, also possessing strong melee capabilities. Soldiers are mostly noble offspring from all over the empire. Besides sending their children to the Reiksguard, sending them to the Nur Gunpowder Academy is also a favored choice for imperial nobles.

"Hello, my Lady, Lord Ryan, Lady Sulia. I am Jubal-Fock, commander of the Nur Ironclad Army," greeted a general in black half-plate armor with several helmet plumes, sporting a brown beard. "Welcome to the Nur Gunpowder Academy."

"Jubal-Fock is a seasoned warrior," Emilia said proudly. "His excellent command of tactics has led many to see him as the successor to the Association of Engineers' president. Dear Jubal was born at the Nur river dock, his tactical talent and firm discipline quickly elevating him in the ranks. He respects those who bring professional skills and noble virtues to the unit but is ruthless towards the lazy or incompetent."

"The Lady overpraises me," Jubal-Fock bowed, slightly embarrassed. "Sorry, we're eating."

"No problem, can you show us the kitchen?" Ryan asked with sudden interest.

"Of course!" Jubal was surprised by the request but agreed.

The group entered the kitchen, where today's meal for the Nur Ironclad Army was steak, vegetable salad, mashed potatoes, bread, boiled carrots, and corn chowder. A hearty meal only an industrial city like Nur could afford.

"Tactical meal," Ryan observed a soldier with a metal tray getting his food.

"Tactical steak," the kitchen was cooking steaks.

"Tactical dining."

"Tactical bald head," Ryan pointed at a bald soldier.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The group burst into laughter. Sulia and Emilia were laughing so hard they could hardly stand.

Ryan's humor concluded the visit on a high note.

As the group left the Nur Military Factory, Old Guard Raymond approached quickly, "My Lord, My Lady!"

"What's the matter, Raymond?" Ryan knew the old guard wouldn't come for nothing.

"Mr. Oliver has arrived, and Mr. Vincent has also reached Nur," Raymond whispered. "They are waiting for you at your lodging."

"Very well, let's return now."

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