Ch.319Side Story: Steam and Colony (2)

This is a port city in the southwestern part of Aporaka.

Three armored transport ships carrying suppression forces sent from the mainland are docking at the harbor, heading toward this city—the only one that the Colonial Government of the United Kingdom of Britannia had not lost.

As these forces were dispatched from the United Kingdom of Britannia as a kind of warning to all colonial reactionaries, the quality of the troops on board seemed almost excessive for merely suppressing a colonial rebellion (independence) army.

First of all, no less than three regiments of the United Kingdom of Britannia’s elite infantry, the Redcoats, had been dispatched.

The Redcoats—Britannia’s army infantry—were named for their red-dyed coats worn over magic-enhanced plate armor. They were all armed with breech-loading rifled muskets and early-model grenades, making them essentially an entire force of riflemen.

By the standards of this era, riflemen were considered elite troops requiring tremendous courage and training. With a bit of exaggeration, they were infantry composed entirely of special forces—with one thousand men assigned to each regiment.

This meant that the number of elite infantry dispatched here amounted to a staggering three thousand men.

Additionally, there was a special weapon assigned to each regiment, ten units each—the lightweight bipedal weapon called the Walker in Britannia.

Looking like a metal cylindrical container with legs attached to the bottom, it used a steam engine for power. Despite its appearance, it was quite fast and, thanks to its reverse-jointed legs, was relatively less affected by terrain, making it primarily used for reconnaissance.

In combat, the Walker was also a remarkably superior weapon. Wrapped in thick iron plating and equipped with a steam-powered Gatling gun, it was virtually invincible against infantry.

But even combining all these forces, they couldn’t compare to the secret weapon sent from the homeland—

That secret weapon was none other than the heavy-armored bipedal war machine of this era, the Steam Knight.

If the Walker was like light cavalry responsible for reconnaissance and anti-infantry operations, this was a heavy-armored unit equivalent to heavy cavalry. Slower than the Walker, it boasted superior defensive capabilities and firepower.

Compared to the roughly 4-meter tall Walker, its size was a towering 8-10 meters. Equipped with a magic-enhanced steam engine crafted with a craftsman’s utmost care, its output was so high that it could move its massive frame despite being covered in thick armor plating.

However, while the power source could handle it, the precision components couldn’t withstand the weight, requiring at least several dozen hours of repairs after each battle…

Yet the overwhelming performance of the Steam Knight more than compensated for all these drawbacks.

In the position equivalent to a human’s nape was the cockpit, with two Gatling machine guns attached like aircraft guns. Additionally, the arms could be equipped with close-combat weapons or firearms that utilized magical technology, according to the family’s preferences.

Thanks to its magically treated armor plating, the Steam Knight’s defensive capabilities could withstand even armor-piercing shells from most field artillery. However, as if in exchange, this extremely expensive weapon was impossible to mass-produce due to its unique production method.

Except for consumable parts like pistons or hydraulics that needed replacement after each operation, almost all components had to be handcrafted by master artisans and required magical treatment.

With the money needed to produce one Steam Knight, one could manufacture at least hundreds of Walkers, or even build a Walker production factory.

Therefore, in Europa, they revived the name of warriors of the past—knights—and entrusted noble families with the task of creating and operating Steam Knights. For the nobles of this era, steeped in old chivalric literature and romanticism, this was an immense honor.

As a result, many families created and passed down their own Steam Knights, sharing only the basic technology. They were truly the finest class of warriors, boasting exorbitant value and overwhelming combat power, just like medieval knights.

With three of these precious Steam Knights mobilized, they had no reason to avoid a full-scale battle.

“No, you can’t! Th-they’re demons, demons!! Y-you’ll all die!!”

“Shut up, commoner! Do you think brave knights care about such things?!!”

Thus, ignoring the warnings of the “cowardly” colonial government officials who had fled and holed up in the city, they decided to quickly storm the rebels’ territory using various equipment they had brought on the transport ships.

They had brought newly developed infantry transport equipment—six-legged armored walking vehicles called TRUCKs. These six-legged armored walking machines were vehicles doubling as quasi-technicals solely for transporting infantry.

Able to run at speeds similar to horses, each vehicle could transport 20 infantry and was equipped with a Gatling machine gun for fire support.

It would be easy to judge this as excessive force for dealing with mere colonial rebels, and indeed, it was undeniably overkill.

However, the Britannia military had mobilized such large-scale forces to test various new weapons and tactics in preparation for upcoming battles with other great powers.

For example, this kind of high-speed mobile warfare.

Normally, Steam Knights would only be deployed in full-scale battles, as they would break down within hours and become burdens in high-speed mobile warfare. Knowing this, they deployed newly developed Steam Knights.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!

These were quadrupedal Steam Knights, developed to increase stability by adding two more legs behind the waist, like the centaurs of ancient mythology.

In any case, how far had they advanced this way?

Before they knew it, they had quickly reached the vicinity of the city that served as the rebels’ stronghold, and there… stood facilities completely different from what they had been informed about.

A magnificent wall that was clearly over 20 meters high—obviously built with the 10-meter-tall Steam Knights in mind.

“Wh-what?! How could those rebels have built such walls in such a short time?!!”

Naturally, the commander was flustered, having never imagined that mere colonial rebels could build such high walls, but his adjutant and staff maintained their composure with cool-headed thinking.

“Colonel, please remain calm! While the construction of such walls is surprising, they are still just rebels!”

“…Thank you, Captain. Thanks to you, I’ve regained my composure.”

And thanks to them, the commander who had calmed down looked at the wall, inwardly mocking the colonial slaves who must have worked hard building that wall while imagining the destructive power of the Steam Knights.

Steam Knights, which had completely collapsed the position of fortresses and castles already weakened by the advent of cannons, were originally designed and used as walking siege engines.

They could withstand cannon fire from walls and fortress guns with their thick armor, approach, and then either kick down gates or simply smash walls with their armed weapons.

Their weakness in anti-infantry capability was compensated for by the two Gatling machine guns—aircraft guns—mounted on either side of the cockpit, and if necessary, they could also use the large Gatling cannons sometimes equipped, making them perfect weapons.

It wasn’t for nothing that Steam Knights were considered only matchable by other Steam Knights. From the commander’s perspective, presenting such a wall was merely laughable.

“Advance!!”

Therefore, they had not a moment’s hesitation.

This army, with Walkers and Steam Knights at the forefront, approached almost right up to the wall and began preparing their weapons to smash through it and annihilate the shameless rebels—

KWAAAAAAANG—!!!!!

At that moment, the commander could only doubt his eyes at the sight unfolding before him.

A thick beam of light shot through the wall, piercing through the shield-equipped Steam Knight at the very front, destroying it shield and all.

Having precisely penetrated the head section where the engine and cockpit were located, this was undeniably an immediate neutralization.

—BOOOOOM!!!

With the upper body of the torso exploding from internal detonation, causing both arms to fall off, the lower half of the Steam Knight collapsed sideways, crushing several Walkers beneath it.

Of course, some of the TRUCKs protected behind the Steam Knight were also destroyed by the beam of light that had penetrated through it.

As the soldiers were still doubting their eyes at the fact that the Steam Knight, the decisive battle weapon of this era, had been destroyed so easily, some kind of weapon emerged from within the dust cloud created by the broken wall.