NOVEL ONLINE FREE vol. 3 chapter 1 - Thinking about the main fleet
East Gate City was constructed as a trading hub for exchanges with the Forest Kingdom of Levresta.
The city collected taxes from the merchant caravans passing through, including entry taxes and exit taxes for individuals, cart taxes for carriages, and horse taxes for mounts. However, the lord governing the city was relatively fair-minded and demonstrated a reasonable sense of economic management, keeping the tax rates low.
To ensure proper tax collection, the entire city was surrounded by walls, and camping outside the city limits was generally prohibited. This restriction made sense, as it compelled people to pass through the gates and pay their dues.
That said, enforcement wasn’t particularly strict, and lightly-equipped travelers were often overlooked.
All in all, the city appeared to be running quite competently.
“If they can manage this kind of setup, it means the local economy is functioning decently, right?”
“Yes, Commander Ma’am. There seems to be a reasonable level of activity here. We’ll need to observe directly to confirm, but it appears they’ve established a trade route with Wheat Hill City. It seems they also recently opened a direct route, bypassing Fratara City entirely.”
“Hmm...”
Traveling through Fratara City had indeed been a bit of a detour.
Originally, Fratara had been a major logistical hub, connecting trade routes to West Gate City and Telek Port City. For merchants, it had been an essential stop.
However, in recent years, Fratara had lost much of its influence as a trading hub, forcing traders to seek alternate routes.
“Commerce really is complicated. Still, it’s good news that East Gate City and the Forest Kingdom of Levresta are maintaining trade relations. I hope we can open talks with them.”
At present, The Tree was in the middle of developing its second fortress zone, and the outlook for resource acquisition seemed stable—for now. However, the site in question was located at the edge of a lava bed, making its deposits limited.
If a major lava reservoir could be located, the prospects might change, but no such site had been discovered yet.
Because of this, Ringo had shifted focus to surveying the territories of the Forest Kingdom of Levresta. The kingdom’s lands, true to their name, were densely forested and appeared to be outside the path of ancient lava flows.
Its topography was varied, leading to hopes that exposed ore veins might be discovered.
Unfortunately, attempts to survey the area from an altitude of 20 kilometers had already been detected—and responded to with attacks. Given the current equipment, approaching the area was impossible.
Thankfully, there was still an open diplomatic channel, offering some hope for negotiations.
“If we can establish metal mining operations, that would be ideal. Failing that, securing metal resources through trade would also be acceptable.”
“Agreed. Trade depends on the other party’s capabilities, though. If they’re relying on hand-dug mines like Iron Town, we can’t expect much volume.”
From what they’d heard in Telek Port City, the Afflasia United Kingdom lagged far behind its neighbors in both technology and culture.
Kuuravia Telek had mentioned visiting other nations, including one reportedly building battleships equipped with rotating gun turrets. While line ships still dominated, technological advancements were steadily progressing.
If the concept of rotating gun turrets had already emerged, then in another ten years, upgrades would likely continue.
Granted, it was unlikely any ships would match the Alpha-Class Destroyer, which was 52 meters long. However, if an enemy attacked in fleets of 50 to 100 ships, even advanced technology could be overwhelmed by sheer numbers. Quantity is power.
For now, the plan was to rely on diplomatic strategies to avoid such situations.
“By the way, given our growing numbers, should we consider reaching out to that peninsula nation soon?”
“Yes, Commander Ma’am. Preparations are underway. It might also be time to deploy the cruiser Tree.”
“Hmm… If we’re going to the peninsula nation, then yes. Using the cruiser as the flagship makes sense.”
The Alpha-Class Destroyer was 52 meters long, but the initial design of the Cruiser Tree exceeded 100 meters in length.
Given the current resource balance of The Tree, building anything larger would be a significant burden. However, based on their reconnaissance, the Cruiser Tree would be the largest ship observed in the region, making it a strong diplomatic deterrent.
“This should be enough to intimidate them.”
“Yes, Commander Ma’am. That said, constructing this ship will require a new main gun. While the current 150mm smoothbore cannon has sufficient firepower, it lacks visual intimidation. A larger gun would be better for projecting threat.”
“Hmm... Should we mount the prototype multi-stage electromagnetic coilgun?”
“Yes, Commander Ma’am. That’s possible. We’ll redesign the cruiser with that in mind.”
Thus began the development of The Tree’s next flagship vessel. At the very least, it would dominate the northern continent in terms of raw power.
However, the ship’s energy consumption would be substantial, especially with electromagnetic weaponry onboard. Operating as a fleet, energy supply would require careful planning.
“With this size… do you think we can fit a fusion reactor onboard?”
To operate the microwave power transmission system, deploying large antenna arrays would be necessary, which was both unsightly and fragile. Internal power generation was clearly the better option.
“Yes, Commander Ma’am. Considering its role as a command vessel, this design should work.”
Ringo displayed an updated design derived from the initial cruiser template. It featured a wider hull with a central power core. While speed would decrease, the ability to generate its own electricity was a major advantage.
The ship could function as a flagship, operate independently with escort vessels, and even deploy aircraft for aerial cover.
Integrating it into the power grid would also enable high-energy operations.
“This looks good. Let’s proceed with this plan.”
“Yes, Commander Ma’am.”
After issuing development orders for the cruiser, Eve turned her attention back to the main issue.
“So, we’re finally nearing East Gate City?”
“Yes, Commander Ma’am. At this pace, we should arrive by midday tomorrow. However, considering the Fratara City incident, we’ll send out scouts first.”
While The Tree’s reconnaissance systems allowed them to monitor situations from above, the delegation wasn’t aware of this. It seemed prudent not to undermine their authority.
As night fell, they set up camp by a large freshwater lake south of East Gate City.
Using supplies from The Tree, including preserved water, they prepared for the night.
And then—
Trouble struck in the dead of night.