In lungi, the Pearl of the Sea slowly stirred from its enforced slumber. Under Lin's tireless leadership, and with the support of the newly appointed garrison commander, Marley, the city began its quiet resurgence. Enslaved soldiers, now laborers, diligently rebuilt homes, cleaned streets, and repaired the port. Caravans of food and medicine regularly arrived from Kisor, while doctors, teachers, and engineers sowed seeds of hope in the hearts of the populace. Lionji, a mere shell of a city weeks ago, was breathing anew, reclaiming a fraction of its former glory.
But this peace was fleeting. After a period of calm, alarming news reached the port: a fleet of 13 black-sailed ships appeared on the horizon, swiftly approaching. They were pirate vessels. Lin, along with Commander Marley and 300 elite Kisor soldiers, rushed to the docks. Their faces were grim, their hearts pounding with apprehension. Upon arrival, they found their fears realized. A band of pirates, led by their former commander, Rajin, had already disembarked, savagely attacking port workers, plundering remaining goods, and mercilessly killing anyone who resisted. The victims' screams filled the air, mingling with the stench of blood.
Rage ignited in Marley's eyes. "Soldiers! No mercy! These are the ones who destroyed Lionji! Load your flintlock pistols! Do not fire until I give the order!" Marley's command rang out, and his soldiers primed their flintlock pistols. The pirates, unfamiliar with these strange weapons, saw only small metal objects raised by the soldiers, not bows or spears. Some scoffed, continuing their rampage, while others advanced, believing they faced a small, unarmed group. "What's this nonsense? Are they going to throw rocks at us?" one pirate sneered, his sword glinting, as he charged Marley's men.
Then, the first shot heralded doom for the pirates.
THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!
Sixty shots erupted from the flintlock pistols. The small metal projectiles tore through bodies, felling pirates in an instant. There was no time for screams. 240 pirates dropped in mere minutes, as if struck by an invisible force. Only 360 remained, trembling with horror, their eyes wide with shock. They couldn't fathom what had just occurred. "What is this? Magic?" Rajin shrieked, his face pale, as his men fell like autumn leaves. "Retreat! Back to the ships!" The surviving pirates scrambled to escape, desperately trying to board their vessels, but it was too late. "Soldiers! The cannon!" Marley bellowed. A shell from the new Napoleon 12-pounder cannon, cleverly hidden among the buildings, slammed into the facade of Rajin's flagship, tearing it to shreds. The ship sank in moments, dragging dozens of pirates to their watery graves.
It was an overwhelming victory for the Directorate's army under Marley against the sea pirates. Only a handful of pirates remained, surrendering in trembling fear, begging for mercy. Lionji had proven it was no easy prey; Zidan's power had indeed reached the Pearl of the Sea.
Meanwhile, in Kisor, deep within the secret underground laboratory, Zidan consulted with Gabros, Rojo, Smith, and a cohort of new scientists. The air crackled with intense focus, thick with the scent of metal and gunpowder. Zidan was explaining the schematics for a new weapon, one previously unknown to this world, a weapon that fired incredibly rapid bursts. "This is our new weapon," Zidan declared, gesturing to complex blueprints. "It's an anti-personnel weapon that fires very fast shots. We can call it the Gatling Gun." Sevara, Marion, Leelin, Zinan, and all the commanders present in the laboratory were stunned. They had seen cannons and pistols, but this was something else entirely. The blueprints depicted a weapon with multiple rotating barrels, capable of firing at an unbelievable rate. "What is this terrifying contraption, My Lord Baron?" Sevara asked, his voice laced with awe. "Can this truly be real?"
"It is absolutely real, Sevara," Zidan affirmed, his eyes gleaming with resolve. "This will be our weapon against the Kingdom's forces that seek to destroy us. This weapon will change the face of war forever. Imagine, a cannon that fires hundreds of rounds per minute. No army can withstand it." Zidan had just received word from Marion that the Kingdom was assembling a massive and terrifying army, some 70-80,000 fighters, possibly more, to invade him and Frederick. He knew the upcoming battle would be decisive, and they needed every possible weapon.
Returning to his palace, Zidan was followed by Marion, whose face was serious. "My Lord Baron, I have new intelligence," Marion stated, his voice hushed. "We've learned more about Mivali. It's directly under Marquis Matros's rule, 52 kilometers southeast of Kisor. A small, iridescent stone, perhaps smaller than a child's palm, is extracted there. People call it the Colored Stone. No one touches it; it's sent directly to the Royal Capital." Zidan stiffened. The magic stone. He remembered Maros the Sorcerer's words to King Alexander. "And there's another matter, My Lord," Marion continued, a note of concern in his voice. "We've learned more about the Magical Sun Empire. Sorcerers don't typically descend to the human world because it lacks magic particles. It's like a human lacking oxygen; the particles are the sorcerers' oxygen. Only powerful sorcerers who can endure this deficiency descend." Marion continued, his voice tinged with dread, "But to suppress human rebellion, sorcerers use magical beasts, such as giant wolves, magical wild boars. And the most terrifying of them... dragons. A single dragon can wipe out an entire company of soldiers in moments."
Zidan pondered the idea of an anti-aircraft weapon. He had seen blueprints for one on his Neuralink chip. "A Gatling gun... it can be modified to be anti-aircraft," Zidan mused. He felt a sense of security. He knew that the sorcerers themselves wouldn't be able to outright execute him, as long as he remained within the "mortal world" in their understanding. This was his strong point. Then, Zidan began to consider the benefits of this magic stone for his technology. "Magic stone... energy?" Zidan thought. "If it radiates different colors, perhaps it possesses energetic properties. It could be a source of power, or a raw material for developing new technology. This could change everything." After his conversation with Marion, Zidan returned to Rojo and instructed him to develop the Gatling gun blueprints to make it suitable for shooting down flying creatures. Rojo didn't understand the reason, but Zidan calmly explained the threat of dragons. Frightened by these beasts, Rojo redoubled his efforts in developing the Gatling gun according to Zidan's specifications.
The challenges mounted, but Zidan now possessed weapons no one had ever imagined, and a vision for a future no one had dared to dream of. He was ready to face anything, even magic and dragons.