On the fifth day, Roland finally prepared all the raw materials for the production of collodion.
During the electrolysis of salt water, he made a serious mistake. He used the copper strip left by Anna to cut the bullet as an electrode, which resulted in the electrode being dissolved, wasting a basin of salt water. In order to prevent chlorine gas from dissolving in water during electrolysis, the electrolyte was usually saturated salt water, and salt was not a cabbage in this era. Therefore, when he poured away the waste salt water which had been mixed with copper ions, Roland felt that he had thrown away several Golden Dragon bullets in vain. Finally, he replaced the electrode with a carbon rod to solve the problem.
After boiling the water with caustic soda to remove the grease, he brought the remaining caustic soda to the chemistry laboratory.
The esterification of collodion was the most important step in the production process. He did not know the principle behind it, but he knew that the gauze had to be soaked in a mixture of acid, and after the nitrification was complete, it could be taken out. The ratio of the solution and the reaction time were all unknown. Roland let Kyle divide the samples into several groups to control the time using an hourglass. After soaking the gauze, he repeatedly washed it with water, and then soaked it in a solution of sodium hydroxide to remove the excess acid. The wet finished products were transported back to the castle and handed over to Vendy to be air-dried.
Due to the use of a high concentration of fuming nitric acid during esterification, most of the trial products could be quickly ignited. Among them, one part nitric acid and two parts sulfuric acid soaked collodion had the best effect. After obtaining the general formula, the laboratory started mass production. After soaking and washing the collodion, it was immediately transported by the soldiers of the First Army. Even the Chief Alchemist did not know the use of the things they had made.
The air-dried gauze was cut into fingernail-sized cubes by the maids, packed and sent to the North Slope Mountain, where it was finally loaded in the backyard of the firing room. In the absence of machines, this process could only be completed by manpower. A group of personal guards spread out and gently inserted the collodion gauze into the bottom of the cartridge case with a wooden stick, sealing the ignition hole. Then, they poured the granular black gunpowder into the cartridge case through a funnel and compacted it layer by layer, keeping the amount of each cartridge as consistent as possible.
The last step was to press on the bullet. The bullet processed by Anna and the cartridge case had a very high degree of adhesion. After pushing it in with bare hands, they could then gently hit it a few times with a hammer.
The efficiency was a bit low, but they could still produce hundreds of bullets a day. On the sixth day, Carter was finally able to use his new weapon. As the Chief Knight, who had excellent physical qualities in all aspects, his accuracy had greatly improved after a few days of repeated practice. Compared to Roland's performance in military training, it was like the difference between clouds and mud.
After reloading the flintlock, Carter finally did not have to use the strange shooting posture of his wrist drooping down to hold the gun. As long as the sealing cotton did not break, the cartridge would be kept clean. At the same time, it was several times more sensitive to sparks compared to black gunpowder, so the firing rate was also guaranteed.
Taking advantage of the last day, Roland let Carter Lannis practice drawing his gun quickly and shooting with two guns. Even with black powder, the recoil of the 12mm pistol was very impressive. It was difficult to guarantee a hit rate of the second shot when holding the gun with one hand. But in Roland's plan, this was a counterattack when Ashes was behind him.
Carter would carry two guns on the stage. If it was a tug of war, ten bullets would be enough to determine the winner. If he was closed in the beginning, he could also quickly pull out the other gun to counterattack. And considering that the opponent's weapon had a certain defensive ability, Roland deliberately chose steel bullets that were not easy to deform to increase the penetrating power and reduce the killing power of the cavity. In addition, due to the limitations of the smelting technology in this era, Ashes's greatsword was most likely made of pig iron. An exaggerated shape would not improve the quality of the weapon. On the contrary, if the huge iron weapon was not sufficiently forged, the internal stress distribution would be even more uneven. It could not be called a good shield. From Roland's point of view, the greatsword was at most a white grade weapon. If one's luck was not particularly bad, the possibility of ricocheting was very low.
If Ashes wanted to defeat Carter, she must first get close to the Knight. This was the natural disadvantage of a cold weapon against a hot weapon. As long as it was not exaggerated to the point where one could see the trajectory of the bullet and dodge the bullet, this distance was an insurmountable gap.
*
It was not until the sky was getting dark that Ashes waited for Maggie to fly back to her room.
"Why did you come back later and later these days?" She asked after closing the window.
"Lightning took me to catch a bird," Maggie changed back to her human form and took out a roasted bird leg from her waist bag. The overflowing fragrance suddenly filled the room, "I specially saved it for you."
"I ate it," Ashes shook her head, "Is Lightning a witch of the Witch Cooperation Association?"
"Yes," she nodded vigorously, "Her ability is the same as mine, flying, but it is much more convenient to use." After a pause, she then asked, "Sister Ashes, do you really want to fight this battle? I think … they won't go with you. Moreover, they are living a good life here. "
Ashes was startled and did not answer.
"Because even I want to stay here," Maggie sat on the bed and said, "The bed is soft, and the food is good. I saw that during lunch, the Lord specially set up the table in the backyard, so that the witches could eat together after they finished their practice. Everyone was talking and laughing, and he would occasionally add one or two sentences, which was completely different from the other nobles who hated him. In the afternoon, I was dragged by Lightning to play Gwent, where two people draw ten cards and compete with each other. In the end, the one with the most points wins. It was very interesting. They also gave me two sets of cards. Sister Ashes, do you want to play? I can teach you. "
"No …" Ashes shook her head and took a deep breath. These days, she was aware of Maggie's change, but until now, she suddenly realized that her thinking seemed to have fallen into a misunderstanding.
Most of the witches lived in fear, and a stable and comfortable place to live was all that they pursued. For example, before she was accepted by Tilly, Maggie had been hiding in a thatched hut in the slums of King's City. Just like a real bird, she spent every night curling up in the narrow cracks of the roof beams. Even when Tilly decided to cross the sea to the east, Maggie was still running around, contacting the witches hidden among the people. She had not stopped for half a year. Such a comfortable and peaceful life, it was probably the first time she had experienced it.
Wasn't it the same for herself? Until she met Tilly, she lived a life that she didn't even dare to think about before. Accustomed to the relatively peaceful life in the palace, she ignored the significance of the town to the witches. In the eyes of the witches, the attraction of the town had always been unparalleled. They wanted to stay here and protect this territory, just like how she wanted to protect Tilly …
If Roland Wimbledon could really resist the crazy God's Punishment Army as he had said, there was no doubt that this was a better choice than the Fjords. Going to a completely unfamiliar land to establish a witches' country sounded very desirable, but in reality, no one could predict how many hardships they would have to go through.
But if he couldn't resist, should the witches leave?
Ashes's mood suddenly calmed down.
From another point of view, if Tilly couldn't establish a foothold in the Fjords, she would probably choose to stand by her side and protect her until the last moment. As the person who gave her a home, she had no reason to leave first.
"This place is always under the threat of the church. If we can't resist the God's Punishment Army, the destruction of Border Town is only a matter of time."
This competition was indeed not necessary … but she still decided to complete it, either as a warning or as a proof.
"What if they can resist?" Maggie muttered.
"I hope so too, so I will help them verify this point," Ember said in a deep voice.
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