Chapter 137: Chapter130:The demonstration part2

The military testing grounds outside the capital had never hosted so many influential people at once.

Rows of royal soldiers guarded the perimeter while officers directed arriving carriages toward designated positions. The entire area had been secured since dawn. No unauthorized personnel were permitted within several kilometers of the site.

Naturally, that only increased curiosity.

The first arrivals had been military officers.

The Grand Marshal and several senior generals occupied one side of the observation platform, quietly discussing possible reasons for the gathering. Every few moments their attention drifted toward the large covered objects positioned in the distance.

No explanation had been provided.

That fact alone irritated most of them.

Military men preferred clarity.

The nobles, meanwhile, reacted very differently.

Speculation spread almost immediately.

Some believed the gathering concerned a new military reform. Others suspected the Crown intended to discuss Elarion’s rapidly growing influence. A few even wondered whether the Guardian planned to announce something related to the Supreme Mage Council.

None of them guessed the truth.

Princess Elena arrived shortly afterward.

Unlike most nobles, she completely ignored the ongoing discussions.

The moment she stepped onto the platform, her eyes moved toward the massive covered shapes waiting in the field.

A faint smile appeared.

Lucien noticed immediately.

The princess looked far too pleased with herself.

"You’re enjoying this."

Elena didn’t even attempt to deny it.

"Of course."

She folded her arms.

"I know something they don’t."

Lucien shook his head.

The princess looked entirely unapologetic.

Nearby, several nobles were already attempting to determine the purpose of the gathering.

Unfortunately for them, Elena had no intention of helping.

Watching their confusion appeared to be far more entertaining.

A short while later another carriage arrived.

This one drew considerably more attention.

Crown Prince Cassian stepped from the vehicle and immediately scanned the grounds.

His eyes found Lucien almost instantly.

The prince approached with his usual confidence.

"So."

He glanced toward the covered objects.

"Those are the famous Warhounds?"

Lucien nodded.

Cassian’s grin widened.

"I’ve been looking forward to this."

Elena rolled her eyes.

"You’ve been looking forward to anything involving weapons."

"That’s because weapons are interesting."

The princess looked unconvinced.

The prince looked entirely unconcerned.

Their argument continued for several minutes.

Neither appeared interested in winning.

The exchange simply seemed familiar.

Eventually another arrival ended the discussion.

The royal carriage.

Every conversation on the platform stopped immediately.

Soldiers straightened.

Officers saluted.

While the nobles fell silent.

King Alaric Vaelthron stepped from the carriage.

Unlike most rulers, he wasted no time acknowledging the formalities.

His attention immediately shifted toward the field.

Toward the covered machines.

Then toward Lucien.

And finally toward the Royal Guardian.

The old mage sat comfortably beneath a temporary canopy with a cup of tea resting beside him despite causing more trouble than all of them combined.

Alaric sighed.

The Guardian looked up.

"Good afternoon."

"You brought tea."

"I anticipated a long day."

Several nearby officers struggled not to smile.

The King shook his head.

Some things never changed.

The Guardian simply returned to his tea.

Once everyone had arrived, silence gradually settled over the gathering.

The atmosphere felt different now.

Everyone present understood that this demonstration mattered.

The military and nobles both sensed it.

Even the King seemed unusually focused.

The Royal Guardian slowly rose from his chair.

His movements immediately drew everyone’s attention.

The old mage stepped forward.

His gaze swept across the assembled nobles, generals, engineers, and members of the royal family.

Then he spoke.

"There have been many rumors concerning Elarion."

The field became completely silent.

"Today."

A faint smile appeared.

"You will stop relying on rumors."

The Guardian turned toward Lucien.

"Begin."

At his command, soldiers moved toward the massive covered objects.

Heavy tarps were pulled away.

And for the first time, the leadership of Asterion laid eyes upon the Warhound.This gives a natural lead-in to the crew

For several moments, nobody spoke.

The enormous armored vehicle sat motionless beneath the afternoon sun, its steel hull gleaming faintly as everyone tried to process what they were seeing.

The generals recovered first.

Their eyes immediately began studying details.

The tracks.

The turret.

The armor.

And the weapon mounts.

Every visible feature was analyzed with practiced efficiency.

The nobles, meanwhile, simply stared.

The machine looked unlike anything they had ever seen.

It wasn’t a carriage.

It wasn’t artillery.

It wasn’t a ship.

And it certainly wasn’t a traditional military vehicle.

It looked like something built solely for war.

The silence stretched until the Grand Marshal finally spoke.

"Impressive."

The single word carried far more weight than a lengthy speech.

Several officers nodded in agreement.

The Royal Guardian looked satisfied.

Lucien remained silent.

This wasn’t his moment.

The demonstration belonged to the soldiers.

At a gesture from Lucien, a uniformed officer stepped forward. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

The man wore the insignia of Elarion’s armored forces.

His movements were precise and disciplined.

Stopping before the assembled audience, he saluted.

"Captain Rowan Hale."

"Commanding Officer, First Armored Company."

The King gave a slight nod.

The captain continued.

"With Your Majesty’s permission, I will begin the briefing."

"Proceed."

The response came immediately.

Captain Hale turned toward the massive vehicle.

"Before discussing the vehicle itself, I would like to introduce the crew responsible for operating it."

Several soldiers stepped forward.

One by one.

"Driver, Sergeant Marcus Reed."

The young man saluted sharply.

"Responsible for vehicle maneuvering and battlefield mobility."

Another soldier stepped forward.

"Gunner, Corporal Ethan Graves."

A salute followed.

"Responsible for target acquisition and operation of primary and secondary weapon systems."

A third crewman stepped forward.

"Loader, Corporal Thomas Vance."

Again a salute.

"Responsible for ammunition handling and maintaining combat firing rates."

Finally, the last crewman stepped forward.

"Radio Operator and Mechanic, Sergeant Daniel Ward."

The soldier saluted.

"Responsible for battlefield communications and emergency field maintenance."

Several officers exchanged glances.

A dedicated crew with specialized roles.

This wasn’t some experimental prototype.

It was part of an organized military doctrine.

The realization wasn’t lost on anyone.

Captain Hale rested one hand against the armored hull.

"This vehicle is designated Warhound Mark Two."

"It serves as the primary armored combat vehicle currently fielded by the Elarion Defense Force."

The captain began walking slowly around the machine.

"The Warhound has a combat weight of twenty-eight tons."

"It carries a crew of four."

"It possesses an operational range of approximately four hundred kilometers."

Several military engineers immediately began writing.

The captain continued.

"Maximum road speed is fifty kilometers per hour."

A small murmur spread through the gathered nobles.

One noble blinked.

"Fifty?"

The captain nodded.

"Under ideal conditions."

That immediately attracted attention.

Even experienced officers appeared surprised.

Most military wagons couldn’t maintain a fraction of that speed over long distances.

The captain approached the turret.

His hand rested upon the cannon.

"This is the vehicle’s primary weapon."

"A fifty-seven millimeter rifled cannon."

The Grand Marshal narrowed his eyes.

Now they were reaching the interesting part.

The captain continued.

"The cannon is designed to engage fortifications, artillery positions, enemy armor, and concentrated troop formations."

A noble from House Harcourt frowned.

"How far can it fire?"

The question drew attention.

The captain answered immediately.

"The maximum ballistic range is considerably greater."

He paused.

"But maximum range and effective combat range are different things."

Several generals nodded.

A professional answer.

The captain continued.

"The effective engagement distance is approximately two thousand five hundred meters."

Silence followed.

The number took several moments to register.

Then several nobles visibly reacted.

"Two thousand five hundred?"

One of them almost sounded offended.

Captain Hale nodded.

"Yes."

The noble blinked.

"That’s over two kilometers."

"It is."

Another noble frowned.

"You can accurately hit targets from that distance?"

The captain looked entirely calm.

"That is the purpose of the weapon."

A few officers failed to suppress their smiles.

The military understood.

The nobles clearly did not.

The Grand Marshal folded his arms.

His expression had become considerably more serious.

A weapon capable of engaging targets from such distances fundamentally changed battlefield calculations.

And everyone present knew it.

Captain Hale moved toward the machine gun mount.

"The Warhound also carries secondary weapons."

His hand rested upon the mounted machine gun.

"This is the MG-34."

The captain’s voice remained steady.

"It serves as the vehicle’s primary anti-personnel weapon."

Several observers frowned.

Compared to the cannon, the machine gun appeared unimpressive.

The captain seemed to notice.

"Appearances can be deceptive."

That immediately caught attention.

"The MG-34 fires approximately eight hundred and fifty rounds per minute."

The silence that followed was almost comical.

Several nobles simply stared.

One military engineer stopped writing.

Another’s jaw hit the ground

The third engineer looked like he had discovered some divine relic.

Then they slowly looked up.

"Eight hundred and fifty?"

The captain nodded.

"Approximately."

The engineer lowered his notebook.

Then raised it again.

Just to confirm he hadn’t imagined the number.

Captain Hale continued.

"The vehicle carries two MG-34 machine guns."

"One mounted coaxially beside the main cannon."

"The second mounted at the top of the hull."

"Together they provide continuous suppressive fire against enemy infantry and also anti air engagement capabilities."

The Grand Marshal looked toward Lucien.

Then back toward the machine gun.

Then toward Lucien again.

He was beginning to understand why Coalition troops had described entire assaults collapsing under sustained fire.

The captain finally struck the armored hull with his knuckles.

A metallic sound echoed across the field.

"Armor protection varies across the vehicle."

"The frontal armor provides maximum protection."

"The side armor prioritizes mobility."

"The vehicle is designed around three principles."

He paused.

Then spoke clearly enough for everyone present to hear.

"Firepower."

"Mobility."

"Survivability."

The three words hung in the air.

And judging by the expressions of the assembled generals, they understood exactly what those three words meant.

Captain Hale turned toward the King.

"With Your Majesty’s permission, we will now begin the live demonstration."

Every eye shifted toward Alaric.

The King studied the Warhound for several moments.

Then gave a single nod.

"Proceed."

Almost immediately, the crew moved.

And for the first time, the leadership of Asterion would witness the Warhound in motion.