Darkstone Code

Chapter 677 - 0674 Armaments

Has the Dragon Slayer finally become the Evil Dragon?

Perhaps so.

Submarines helped the Federation defeat the once invincible Gafura Navy and played a crucial role in that war. If not for the submarines, the outcome of the naval battle might have been different.

Once considered the "sword for slaying dragons," others now possess it too. The Dragon Slayer feels no joy, only fear.

This situation is quite terrifying, as it implies that others might replicate such a victory.

The President, who has just become the head of a military power, is unwilling to become ordinary. He still has many unfulfilled ambitions.

"How can we restrain the role of submarines in warfare, at least not let them make us helpless as they do now?"

Submarines are not rare. More than a decade ago, there was already mature knowledge of submarine manufacturing and operation. They operated in inland rivers, lakes, and even large underground city rivers.

The Federation merely first overcame some material and technological limitations to utilize them in warfare. This does not mean the technology is exclusive to the Federation. Even at the Federation’s higher levels, this isn’t seen as a simple "hijack incident."

There are horrifying underlying motives, as pirates could not possibly master the technology to build submarines. Only national powers could produce submarines.

Could this mean that there is already a nation with mature technology able to employ submarines in real warfare?

Was this kidnapping case staged to test their submarine technology?

Or perhaps those people didn’t actually leave by submarine but stayed beneath the Navy’s noses, moving back and forth before leaving?

This is provocation, blatant military provocation!

"It’s a display of military strength, and perhaps at this moment, a group of people are hiding somewhere, toasting to their success!" concluded the President.

The Minister of Defense repeatedly signaled to his subordinates, who quickly understood and left the room, returning shortly with a stack of documents.

The Minister of Defense stood up. "Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. President, in fact, we do have ways to counteract submarines!"

This statement caused a brief stir in the room. Everyone already knew how invincible submarines could be.

To say nothing of it— even the Gafura couldn’t detect the submarines’ approach, highlighting their prominent position in current major naval theaters.

If there could be more technical breakthroughs in torpedoes, perhaps battleships wouldn’t even be necessary targets in the future!

Meeting their gaze, the Minister of Defense took a document into his hands. He glanced at it, feeling a bit... uh, but this document could save him now.

"This is a newly submitted project proposal named ’Anti-Submarine Aircraft.’ The proposal states that in the absence of breakthrough advancements in discovery technologies, the only viable anti-submarine method is observation..."

"Observation?" the President said, surprised. "I thought this should be a high-tech project, but you’re telling me that just observation could achieve anti-submarine efforts? So why didn’t our soldiers discover that submarine?"

The Minister of Defense looked a bit embarrassed, and the President quickly realized something. "Sorry, I shouldn’t have interrupted. Please continue."

Only then did the Minister of Defense explain, "The core of this project is how to enable our eyes to detect submarines, and there’s a detailed breakdown of this..."

After a long section of professional jargon that left the room’s gentlemen in a fog, the Minister concluded, "The simplest way to detect submarines is to avoid light pollution and observe from a relatively vertical angle to spot the submarine."

"In the preliminary project outlined in this proposal, this special anti-submarine aircraft can carry an anti-submarine bomb, allowing it not only to detect submarines but also possess direct combat ability to attack them."

The President nodded noncommittally, turning to the military district personnel, seemingly awaiting something.

A few minutes later, officers disclosed their calculated results to the General in front of them. The General nodded, and only then did the President speak, "Very good plan, why hadn’t I heard of it before?"

"Uh... it was only just submitted."

The President refrained from pursuing the issue further. He did so merely to remind everyone that nothing could remain hidden. If someone concealed matters that shouldn’t be, they’d be in big trouble if a problem arose.

As he unscrewed his pen, he said, "Bring it over here, I’ll sign it!"

...

"Thank you for the news..."

Lynch hung up the phone and walked to the window, looking at the scenery of Bupen below Half Mountain, a slight curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

As expected, the project proposal submitted by his company received approval. It was the aircraft development company, and now this anti-submarine project officially entered the process.

Someone from the President’s Mansion called him just now, informing him to quickly submit a research progress and budget, along with some additional assistance needed for research. These reports would soon enter the discussion stage in Congress.

Of course, what’s being discussed is not whether to initiate this project. In fact, the moment the President signed, he used his privilege to start the project. What’s being handed over to Congress is how much money to allocate, and there will be at least one inquiry and one hearing.

Once all these matters are concluded, the Military Committee and the Military Appropriation Committee will begin to take action, adding this project to a certain list within the military, and then allocate funds to Lynch’s company.

A large amount of money would continuously flow into the company’s account. Whether they could produce a qualified aircraft or not is actually not important because not all projects can be successful.

However, Lynch will still strive to make this project successful. Compared to those military industrial groups in the Navy and Army, they have already managed the situation very well. Now, there is basically no possibility of getting involved.

On the contrary, in the "Air Force" field, which doesn’t exist in this world, there is still a blank space. As long as Lynch’s anti-submarine aircraft can be manufactured and used in actual warfare, everything that follows will happen naturally.

Reconnaissance aircraft, attack aircraft, bombers...

Makes more sense to build guns than cannons, to build those that fly in the sky rather than those that run on the ground. This is the sedimentation of wisdom.

A gust of wind blew against him, stirring his hair. His face, bathed in sunlight, was clean and gentle, with a bright smile that even overshadowed the sunshine!

The breath of a great era!

In the upcoming period, Lynch began running around expos. He did not set up this aircraft company just for fun; he was taking it seriously. He had met with many civilian aircraft masters. What these people truly lacked was not technology, but guidance in thought and direction.

This is exactly what Lynch is best at, and now with the military providing research funds, he believes some idealistic civilian aircraft masters would want to join in on this honorable cause.

Although he was running around everywhere, he continued to pay attention to the events happening in Bupen. Besides his anti-submarine aircraft project, the President has signed a dozen or so projects related to military equipment.

These projects almost covered the replacement of current mainstream army and navy equipment. It could be seen that traditional military industrial groups have also made significant efforts behind the scenes. The Ministry of Defense’s opinion is to complete at least one full army re-equipment during the President’s term.

The President’s push for these military projects is driven by concerns about war.

War is inevitably going to break out in the future, this is beyond doubt. Every country is amassing power. If the current pace of military equipment replacement cannot keep up with the technological developments of the time, it will definitely not be good news for the Federation once war indeed breaks out one day in the future.

It is only by holding comprehensive dominance... or at least cutting-edge war technology, that we can gain more benefits—colonies—in the next world war.

The success in Nagariel has made the capitalists even more swollen, with some ideas emerging during capital forums or top capitalists’ gatherings, to create more Nagariels and plunder more wealth.

Meanwhile, a round of serviced thermal power generators finally boarded the ships again.

This time, to ensure the safe transport of these thermal power generators to Amelia, the Megan Consortium arranged for an armed escort ship to ensure that the cargo ship would not be hijacked again.

The sixteen million ransom taken by the hijackers set off a global shockwave. Precisely because of this Federation news, global security clearly showed abnormality within a few days, especially with frequent kidnappings and attempted kidnappings.

Previously, most criminal cases were robberies, not requiring much technical skill. A gun, a knife, or simply a broken bottle could complete the robbery process.

But people never thought that "people" could be so valuable—it was sixteen million Federation Sol.

Thus, those with some capability and ideas transformed robberies into kidnappings. Even within the Federation, several kidnappings occurred during these few days, though most were unsuccessful.

Yet, this represents a spreading trend, and Lynch’s Darkstone Security received a large number of orders—thanks to Darkstone Security’s excellent performance in Nagariel, it has now become a "reputable" security company, trusted especially by the upper-middle class!

On such a day, Conni leaned on the ship’s rail, enjoying the sea breeze. The first mate told him that to heal everyone’s psychological wounds, they would stay in Amelia’s port for a week this time.

The first mate had also arranged in advance with some locals for an eighty dollar, seven-day tour guide!

Thinking about it made him somewhat restless, a mischievous grin, described by scholars as "sly and indecent," spread across his face.

But the smile quickly froze and disappeared, and then his mouth opened wider and wider, as he pointed at the sea in the distance, shouting loudly—

"Monster!"

--

Recommendation for a book by a fellow enthusiast—"Friend, Want to Buy a Gatling?"