Patricia withdrew her gaze and glanced at her brother: “This is the man you said came back from the battlefield and wasn’t interested in romantic matters?”
Ludwig didn’t know what to say and could only offer his sister a forced smile.
He was also puzzled. Morin, who was talking about how ‘sentimental matters slow down firing speed’ a moment ago, was now chatting animatedly with a girl he had never met…
And judging by the scene, he was much more active and enthusiastic than he had been when Ludwig tried to set him up with Patricia.
“What is wrong with this boy?” Ludwig muttered inwardly.
Patricia, though still feeling a bit strange about the situation, was also very curious about what the two were discussing so happily.
She observed the young woman in the dark red dress from a distance.
Her looks were only slightly above average, far from as delicate as her own, and her demeanor had the slight reserve of someone from a small town.
Her figure, however, was certainly quite imposing.
“She just has a slightly bigger chest, is that it?”
Patricia quietly scoffed inwardly.
Sometimes curiosity is an irrational driving force.
So, Patricia soon approached the two, seemingly casually. Morin and Helga had not deliberately lowered their voices, allowing her to overhear the general topic.
“So, regarding the feeding mechanism, I believe the sustained fire advantage of belt-feeding is unmatched by magazines or small drums.”
“But the canvas belts are easily contaminated in a muddy field environment, which affects feeding reliability…”
“Then we could use ready-made belt boxes. They protect the belt and are easy to carry. Plus, I have an idea for a metallic disintegrating belt.”
“Eh? Such a thing exists… What about weight control then? If we use belt boxes, won’t it be too heavy for a single soldier to carry?”
“It would still be much lighter than the MG08, and my plan is for a two-man team, with the assistant gunner responsible for carrying the ammunition.”
“And ammunition commonality. If the ammunition can be shared with the standard rifle, the logistics burden will be much lighter…”
Patricia stopped in her tracks. She was astonished to realize that these two animated people were discussing weapons design?
The blonde noblewoman’s expression grew strange.
When she saw the girl pull out not a compact for touch-ups but a small notebook and a pencil from her clutch bag, she was completely bewildered.
No, who discusses these things at a ball?!
And why is she carrying a notebook in her clutch bag?!
This was even more outrageous than her brother Ludwig discussing Teutonic Knight charging tactics at a dance!
Just then, Helga also noticed Patricia walking back and forth nearby.
After all, the young lady’s aura was too striking. Her golden hair and white gown shone so brightly under the light that Helga felt a pang of self-consciousness. She clearly looked like true nobility.
And she had been pacing back and forth here several times…
She looked at Morin, who was currently writing in her notebook, and cautiously tugged on his sleeve.
“Lieutenant Morin, is that young lady looking for you?”
“Ah?”
Morin turned his head. Seeing Patricia, he quickly stood up to greet her.
“Miss von Seeckt, you’re still here.”
Patricia: “…”
Morin, oblivious to the shift in her mood, enthusiastically introduced Helga to her.
“Allow me to introduce you. This is Miss Helga Schmeisser, a very inventive firearms designer.”
Helga quickly rose and bowed nervously to the noblewoman, who clearly came from an extraordinary background.
Patricia nodded reservedly in acknowledgment.
Morin then issued an invitation that Patricia completely hadn’t anticipated.
“Miss von Seeckt, would you like to join our discussion? I have a few questions about arcane technology that I’d like to ask you, the genius of arcane technology.”
“?”
Patricia was stunned.
This was the first time she had ever been invited to a study group at a ball.
She looked into Morin’s eyes and saw no lust, no frivolity, and no hint of teasing.
His eyes were filled with pure intellectual curiosity.
He looked like a child who had found a new, fascinating toy and couldn’t wait to take it apart and figure out how it worked.
This level of focus and enthusiasm left her momentarily unable to voice a refusal.
Finally, she slowly sat down next to Helga, while firmly emphasizing:
“I just happened to be passing by and decided to sit down for a moment to rest my feet.”
Helga secretly muttered to herself, wasn’t this Miss walking back and forth several times?
However, being naturally introverted, she didn’t dare to speak this thought aloud. She merely shifted slightly to the side, making more room for Patricia.
As Helga took the notebook to write down some revisions based on Morin’s suggestions, Morin turned his attention to Patricia and began to ask serious questions.
“Miss von Seeckt, Lieutenant Colonel Ludwig told me you are a genius in the field of arcane technology. I have a question.”
Patricia was initially hesitant, but hearing the title ‘genius’ still pleased her somewhat. She cleared her throat.
“Ask away, Lieutenant Morin.”
Morin smiled somewhat naively and asked a question he had been pondering for a long time.
“Is there a way to use arcane technology to precisely detonate all the charge inside a shell in an extremely short time?”
Patricia contemplated for a moment, then frowned and countered: “Synchronized detonation?”
Morin’s eyes lit up: “Yes! That’s the word! Synchronized detonation!”
He had been wanting to optimize the shaped charge anti-armor warhead.
A crucial optimization point was how to ensure that the metal jet, formed after the explosive was triggered, could converge perfectly at a single point. This required extremely precise control over the detonation method.
Traditional mechanical fuses struggled to achieve perfect synchronization, always having a slight time lag that drastically reduced the armor-piercing effectiveness.
And the piezoelectric ceramic fuses commonly used in the world before his transmigration did not exist here yet…
But what if they used magic?
Patricia pondered for a moment. Her brilliant mind began to work at high speed.
“Theoretically, it is feasible.”
She extended her slender, pale hand, dipped a finger in the water in the glass, and drew a few simple runic structures on the smooth, dark side table.
“In arcane technology, there is a concept called [Arcane Spark]. It uses a miniature arcane circuit to generate high-energy sparks simultaneously at multiple preset points the instant it receives a trigger signal.”
“This process has virtually no delay and can be perfectly synchronized with the initiator.”
Morin was ecstatic.
“Is this technology complicated? Is the cost high?”
“The technology itself is not complicated. It is a basic application. As for the cost… it mainly depends on how high your requirements are for the brilliant crystal. If it is only for simple triggering, the lowest-grade brilliant crystal shards will suffice, and the cost can be kept very low.”
The instant Patricia finished speaking, the system prompt sounded in Morin’s mind.
【Key Technical Theory Recorded: Arcane Spark Synchronized Detonation Technology】
【’Shaped Charge Anti-Armor Warhead’ Fuse and Detonation Optimization Plan Updated】
Success!
Morin felt a surge of wild joy in his heart, and the look in his eyes toward Patricia became fervent.
This is no mere blonde noblewoman; she is a walking technology library!
The intensity of his gaze made Patricia feel flustered.
Just as she was wondering if his earlier composure had been a disguise and if he was about to reveal his true nature now.
She heard Morin begin to describe the ‘Magic Crystal Cannon’ he had mentioned earlier on the balcony.
Naturally, he omitted the sensitive parts, only generally describing the arcane power supply, the firing method, and the effects of the weapon.
Then, Morin posed his second question.
“Miss von Seeckt, do you think it’s possible to miniaturize and lighten this weapon?”
Patricia immediately grasped Morin’s intention, and her expression turned serious.
“You want to turn the Magic Crystal Cannon into an infantry weapon?”
“Yes!” Morin nodded heavily. “It should ideally be something a few soldiers can carry and use in a shoot-and-scoot manner.”
Patricia looked confused.
She stared at Morin as if he were a monster.
“Are you suggesting that a few ordinary soldiers, who possess no arcane affinity, should operate an arcane weapon? And you want to mass-produce it?”
“No problem, is there an issue with that?” Morin countered.
The young woman shook her head, speaking with the tone of a professional addressing an amateur: “That is almost impossible to achieve.”
Morin was puzzled.
“Is it a technical reason? Or something else?”
Patricia’s expression grew somewhat complex. She hesitated before speaking slowly.
“It has to do with people, I suppose.”
“With people?”
Morin was even more confused.
Patricia sighed, seeming reluctant to discuss the topic further.
“In short, whether in the Empire or in other countries, even among the Britannians, all arcane equipment must be operated directly or indirectly by a Mage.”
“Or by soldiers who have undergone special modification and possess ‘arcane affinity.’ This is common knowledge.”
“Ordinary people simply cannot draw upon the energy within an arcane device, much less consistently activate it.”
Morin: “But the Magic Crystal Cannons I saw in the Kingdom of Aragon were operated by ordinary soldiers, weren’t they?”
“Whether one possesses ‘arcane affinity’ cannot be determined by outward appearance.”
Patricia paused, then continued:
“Furthermore, you also said that without Mage guidance, the Magic Crystal Cannons cannot even perform at one-tenth of their efficiency.”
Hearing this, Morin fell silent.
He suddenly began to suspect that the Saxon Mage community—or perhaps the Mages of this world in general—might have a problem.
And a big one at that.
Meanwhile, in a private room on the second floor of the manor.
Cecilia was engaged in a private conversation with several noblewomen.
They were all wives of high Imperial officials and great nobles, and crucial figures in Cecilia’s ‘wife network’ for building connections.
A noblewoman who had just returned from touching up her makeup outside spoke with a gossipy tone.
“Madam Falkenstein, I just saw Lieutenant Morin talking with a blonde girl on the balcony downstairs.”
“It was the von Seeckt’s young daughter, Patricia. She is truly beautiful.”
Cecilia was unsure how to react internally, but she maintained a polite smile externally.
“They are just young people. They always have something to talk about.”
The noblewoman chuckled: “But I noticed that Lieutenant Morin only spoke with her briefly before walking away alone… He wasn’t persistently chasing her, unlike his reputation suggests.”
Cecilia smiled faintly, picking up her tea.
“Just as I said before, the battlefield changes people. I even feel that Fritz has become much more composed since his return.”
However, the noblewoman continued, as if recalling something.
“But then, before I came upstairs, I saw… Lieutenant Morin quickly engaged in a very animated conversation with another girl I didn’t recognize! And judging by the look of it, he seemed much more engaged than he was while talking to Miss von Seeckt~”
The teacup froze at Cecilia’s lips.
(End of this Chapter)