Easygoing Territory Defense by the Optimistic Lord

Leaving the mechanical bow unit to Kamushin, I took Til and Arte with me to continue researching the mechanical bow.

Bola bombarded Kamushin with a ton of questions, but Kamushin would surely overcome it. Hang in there, Kamushin.

Meanwhile, Van-kun, accompanied by two beautiful girls, was walking through the village with Luntatta. Our destination was the warehouse stocked with plenty of materials. As soon as we arrived, we lavishly selected Mithril and began preparations.

“Here, please take a seat.”

“Thank you.”

Til prepared chairs for us, and on a slightly lower table rested a splendid mechanical bow from the capital city.

“Well then, shall we get started?”

Excited and thrilled, I began to disassemble the parts of the mechanical bow.

Examining the structure of the rapid-fire mechanical bow, I found it quite intricate, using gears and chains.

“Hmm, so when this gear turns, this rod pulls the bowstring, and simultaneously the next arrow drops down... With this, a mounted ballista could be loaded with a huge number of arrows. The dream of a hundred shots in rapid succession? No, no, if it jams halfway, that would be disastrous. Better to keep it at about five shots and use a magazine system so that even if it jams, parts can be swapped out...”

As I pondered over these points while looking at the disassembled mechanical bow parts, Til brought over some tea and cookies. While nibbling on a cookie and inspecting the box section of the mechanical bow, Arte spoke up.

“...Lord Van seems to be having the most fun right now, doesn’t he?”

“Hm? Really? Well, yeah, it is a lot of fun.”

I smiled and turned back, and Arte nodded with a gentle smile.

“Whether it’s machines or politics, figuring out the mechanisms is the hardest part. The people who first came up with these ideas are amazing, aren’t they?”

Sincerely saying this, I tried to recreate the parts in Mithril.

Combining these parts, it was complete.

“...Amazing. It’s already done...”

Feeling proud at such a thought, I tried to operate it without loading any arrows.

But it didn’t turn. It wouldn’t move.

It got stuck as if locked partway.

“Huh? Oh, that’s right. Not only the bow part, but the connecting part between this box and the mechanical bow also needs to be made of a flexible material. The rod that’s supposed to make a full rotation is getting caught and won’t turn...”

I slumped in disappointment.

It was a failure. I’d need to verify if the rigid parts could all be made of metal components.

While I was thinking this, Arte muttered with a surprised expression.

“...Even Lord Van experiences failure sometimes, huh.”

It was a small murmur, but I reacted to it, and Arte quickly bowed her head.

“Ah, I-I'm sorry...! I never meant it in a bad way...”

She almost looked ready to cry. I laughed softly, shruggin my shoulders at her.

“I fail all the time. Apart from magic, I don’t have anything to boast about.”

Hearing that, Arte shook her head repeatedly.

“That’s not true. I’ve heard from everyone that you have outstanding talents in swordsmanship and studies... I really have nothing at all, so I envy you.”

“Eh? Talents?”

I couldn’t help but ask back. Then, to the confused Arte, I said,

“If you want, I can introduce you to a demon-like butler and a knight commander. Then, in three to five years, you’ll be about as good as me.”

Sighing deeply, Arte gave a small smile. Watching that profile, I casually asked,

“By the way, Arte, what kind of magical aptitude do you have again?”

It was a casual question, with no malice or prying intention.

But Arte seemed to freeze. With a face as if sentenced to death, painful and sad, she looked down, and I found myself unable to say anything.

Feeling uncomfortable with the mood, Til spoke up.

“Um, Arte-sama? Lord Van isn’t forcing you to answer. If you don’t want to say, that’s perfectly fine, you know?”

Speaking gently, Arte shook her head and fidgeted with her hands on her lap.

After gathering her resolve, Arte finally spoke.