n

n

n

n

"What is this contraption?

" The centaur who had shot the warning arrow asked, his voice cracking as he stared at it in fear.

n

"We call it a cannon.

" Silver replied,

"It's something from our homeworld, mixed with the magic of this world. However, its operation is expensive and I don't have a lot of ammunition.

"

n

"Come with me,

" Said a centaur who had up till now stayed in his position hidden from view. Ready to act should he be needed and only when he was needed.

n

"Captain?!

"

n

"We can't keep something so valuable in a location that isn't.

" The centaur captain replied.

nThis particular centaur had long blond hair and beard, and a matching coat. In the sun he almost appeared like a golden statue. Observe gave Silver no information other than that this centaur was named Lathar and that he was indeed a captain.

n'Not sure what Eldrian really wanted me to do.' She thought, nodding to Lathar and storing the cannon back in her inventory.

nSeeing it disappear so simply shocked the centaur, some had already forgotten that she had summoned it in a similar manner and were wondering how they were going to move the massive contraption.

n…

n

"You say this girl has a weapon that can help change the tides in the war?

" The deputy mayor of the city asked, their mayor having fled via teleportation once the inner wall had fallen. Unfortunately, not all mayors were like Pelaros, and certainly few nobles were.

nFighting on the front lines with the soldiers. Gaining scar after scar, to the point that even his scars had scars.

nReady to die with those he led.

nThere were not many leaders like that.

nHowever, while all the nobles wanted to retreat, not all were given the privilege. Doing so after being ordered to stay behind would be considered treason. Naturally, that made all of them quite grumpy. Being left to die would make anyone grumpy, it was also part of the reason why morale was so low.

nYet, despite this, everyone still fought with all that they had. While it sucked, compared to what waited for them if they were enslaved by the orcs. Dying in battle certainly appeared as the far more pleasing option.

n

"Umm…

" Silver moved forward and interrupted the conversation, her action angering many in the room.

"I don't have enough ammunition for it to save the city.

"

nHearing what she said, those in the room were even angrier and grumpier. Indicating for everyone to stay quiet, the deputy asked what she meant.

n

"My inventory is only so large, I brought two cannons with me, along with thirty cannonballs and enough mana crystals to launch the all. I already used one cannonball, which means we can only use the cannons twenty-nine more times.

"

nThanks to the optimization that Solvi and Thesolis had done, the cannons could be powered six times by one nail-sized mana crystal. Each activation cost only around 600 mana.

nThis was still an extreme cost, almost all the mana that a normal Tier 5 mage would have. However, this was also an inner-cannon. Compared to the outer cannons their cost and explosions are far greater, and not in a linear comparison.

n

"Why didn't you bring just one cannon and a hundred- Cannonballs?!

" One of the nobles who had been forced to stay behind shouted.

nHmphing, another nobleman stepped forward and looked at the former as if he was an idiot. Unlike all the others, he was not a centaur. Rather he was a catkin with dark black fur covering his cheeks and ears. A little gray mixed in, strangely giving him a more noble appearance.

n

"Are you an idiot? Or perhaps you simply want to sound like one?

"

n

"None of you have even stopped and asked her from where she came, nor who gave her permission to bring these- cannons. Did none of you understand what her appearance meant?

"

n

"Mr. Bennidict is right. Apologies miss Silver, I completely forgot about common courtesy when I heard that you brought something that might just help us survive the onslaught from the orcs.

"

n

"It's alright,

" She replied, not used to dealing with NPCs at all. Especially ones who acted like they were better than her, or nobles in general. Those in Kynigo were like totally different people.

"I just didn't want you to misunderstand, it won't be able to solve all your problems.

"

n

"Oh, but it surely can.

" The catkin stepped forward again.

"I'm sure the person who sent you here didn't want to simply lose the cannons, they must be very expensive. And I doubt whoever sent you wanted to give the enemy insight into your secret weapon. And while your death would not be a true death, I am certain that he didn't send you to die either.

"

nSilver nodded, having no idea how to respond. Luckily, Elizabeth made contact again. Informing her of the plan going forward.

n

"Your right, I'm actually tasked with making sure the cannons won't fall into the hands of the orcs. If the city is truly lost, my mission is to make them disappear.

" She did not specify how, as Elizabeth had instructed. Having everyone wonder how she would do it would certainly help.

nSure, they might assume she would just store them in her dimensional storage. However, many might believe she could have them explode, remotely even. It would make theft far less likely if that rumor could persist.

n

"I see, and what if the city is not lost?

" The catkin pressed.

n

"Then…

" Sending the question to Elizabeth, Silver quickly got an outline of the steps going forward.

"For the time being, we will lend our aid by supplying you with more ammo for the cannons. However, for that to be possible we will require a temple of Dragos or Dioktis being accessible.

"

n

"Why is that?

"

n

"Since I can't teleport more than once a day, and-

"

n

"Oh, but you most certainly can. I'm sure even just these- cannonballs must be extremely expensive. It would not be right if we did not use our all to ensure you can help as effectively as possible.

" Bennidict paused,

"We can send you back via teleportation…

"

nSilver quickly messaged Elizabeth about this, who relayed it to Eldrian who had momentarily forgotten that teleportation was an actual thing for NPCs too. The cost within kingdom wasn't even that much, just a few gold coins.

nIf used to send players with filled inventories, it would certainly be a very effective method of transportation. However, using the player teleportation is still fare cheaper, as is using the temple market.

nPlus, it wasn't the actual cost that was the problem. But rather the mana that is required and provided by mana crystals, which Kynigo is quickly running low on in supply. They certainly couldn't use it haphazardly. However, to send a few players to set teleportation points in a temple, it was certainly a plan worth further investigation.

n***

n

"I keep forgetting about things so plainly obvious…

" Eldrian grumbled, his arm still hurt and his lungs stringing like a bitch. But he would live.

n

"What now?

" Evale asked, both of them needing some time to recover from the blast.

n

"I forgot that we can teleport through the magic towers. Using our system is simply so much cheaper and more efficient. But in this case, access to temples might be difficult.

"

n

"The girl you sent to Daides?

"

n

"Yeah, seems the situation is far worse than we suspected. The inner wall has fallen and most of the city is in ruins. The citizens and soldiers are making temporary fortifications to slow down the orcs, but they're continually being overrun and pushed back…

"

n{Eldrian} – Hey, how is she planning to get to a magic tower, they aren't in the center of cities.

n{Elizabeth} – It seems they are planning to send a large portion of their forces to the nearest tower. With hopes that they can gain enough support through this.

n{Eldrian} – That's beyond dumb, tell Silver to stop them.

nAN: A big thank you to everyone who continues to read and support the story on WN.

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