There was a forty-centimeter-long one-handed firearm in the sandalwood box. Its design was extremely exquisite, and both the wooden guard and the barrel were carved with exquisite patterns that were even smeared with gold powder. However, the appearance of the firearm was a bit strange. Not to mention the flared barrel, even the hammer at the back looked very exaggerated. It was shaped like a golden dragon with its wings spread open and its fangs cracking. It looked very heavy.
This one-handed firearm took up half the area of the box. At the bottom of the box were rows of small round lead balls, and below the small lead balls were corresponding black cylinders. There were twenty small lead balls and twenty cylinders each. Loriste was excited. The small lead balls should be bullets, so the black cylinders below should be gunpowder. This was probably Galinthea's gunpowder.
"This is a short-barreled firearm from the dwarf kingdom in the Titanic Mountains. After the trade alliance and the dwarf kingdom reached an agreement last year, they invited the dwarves to open a dwarven shop in Merent City's Triumph Avenue as an office. I happened to pass by this morning and bought this short-barreled firearm on the way. It seems that the count likes this gift very much. "
President Chikder laughed and looked at President Peterson. President Peterson nodded, and then President Chikder said to a guard beside him, "Show the count how to use the firearm …"
The guard stepped forward and saluted before taking the box, "Count, the firearm is a traditional weapon of the dwarves. It has a long barrel and a short barrel. The range of a short-barreled firearm is thirty meters. Compared to our long-range weapons like crossbows, its range is very short and not worth mentioning. However, the only thing worth confirming is that it is extremely powerful. For example, it would take at least a hundred crossbowmen to pose a threat to a great swordmaster, and a firearm is even more threatening to a great swordmaster within thirty meters. That's because a Great Sword Master can block an arrow shot at him, but he can't block a bullet shot at him. "
The guard first stuffed the black cylinder into the barrel and then pushed it in with a thin iron rod from the box. He then put in a small lead ball and used the thin iron rod to pound it in. Finally, he introduced, "This short-barreled firearm is the latest model of the dwarf kingdom. It doesn't need a match, and only needs to break open this wyvern and pull the trigger to fire. However, because of the physical differences between dwarves and us humans, we feel that this trigger requires too much strength for us humans … "
The guard aimed the firearm at the wall twenty meters away and pulled the trigger with force. Boom! Loriste was startled. He hadn't expected the firearm to make such a loud sound. However, he immediately smelled the familiar smell of gunpowder in the air in pleasant surprise. This was indeed the smell of gunpowder. He just didn't understand why his previous experiments with gunpowder had failed.
"Count, the power isn't bad, right?" The guard pointed to a small hole in the wall, which had a deformed lead bullet embedded in it.
Loriste came back to his senses and looked at the hole in the wall. However, he remembered very clearly that the guard had aimed the gun a meter or so away from the hole. How could a shot that far away be considered powerful?
Loriste's mind was filled with gunpowder. He couldn't wait to go back and study the secrets hidden in the dwarven gunpowder. As for the dwarven short-barreled firearm, Loriste only took a close look. He was attracted by the exquisite golden patterns. As for everything else, he was full of points to complain about.
The flared muzzle. If the muzzle was lowered, he would be worried that the small lead ball would fall out.
The large wooden guard carved with exquisite patterns added weight for no reason. Bad.
The handle shaped like a bird's mouth. Could it be comfortable to hold? Bad.
There was no crosshair. Aiming depended on feeling. Bad.
The Flying Dragon Hammer had an exaggerated design and was quite heavy. … Forget it, I'll give it a bad review.
There was also the trigger that required force to pull. Hehe, when this thing was pulled, the barrel would shake three times. How could it be aimed? Bad.
Lollister was very confident. As long as he could figure out how the dwarves used their gunpowder, he would be able to make better muskets than the dwarves. Even the most primitive matchlock muskets would be many times better than this exquisite dwarf musket.
However, in the eyes of everyone present, Loriste's dazed appearance was proof that this country bumpkin from the north had not seen the world. A trace of disdain flashed in the eyes of the demonstrator. He put the firearm back and handed it to Loriste. "Count, this is your firearm. Please take it."
Loriste took the box and hurriedly thanked President Chikder.
President Chikder laughed heartily. "Since the Count likes it, that's for the best. This is the only way to express my sincere apology for offending the Count. By the way, may I ask, the Count is far away in the north. How did you get to know President Peterson? Is there anything the Chikder Merchant Group can do for you in Moront City? "
Loriste also laughed. "President Chikder, I studied in Moront City for nearly ten years. I've known President Peterson for a long time and received many favors from him. Later, I went to the north to inherit the title and territory of my family. I didn't expect that six or seven years would pass in a flash. I'm here to visit President Peterson. "
President Peterson also smiled and nodded. He was very satisfied with Loriste's watertight answer.
"Oh, I see. I thought that the Count was preparing to open a sea trade route. Honestly, Count, since you can build a ship that can pass through the shallow reefs, are you interested in opening a sea trade route? If the Count is willing, then we, the Chikede Merchant Association, can be in charge of the sea transportation. As the merchant association with the largest number of merchant fleets, we guarantee that we will not mistreat the Count's efforts, "President Chikede said as he stared at Laurist.
Loriste's face flashed with ecstasy, followed by hesitation, helplessness, and finally regret. He seemed to think for a long time before replying, "President Chikder, I'm very interested in your proposal, but the problem is that our family's territory is located at the border of the north. We don't have any special products, and we can't find any goods that can be traded. To put it bluntly, even food can barely fill our stomachs.
I'm very willing to open a sea trade route, but I also know that if the Chikder Merchant Group makes a wasted trip, I'll be letting down your good intentions. For example, I only received five or six thousand gold merits after spending six or seven years in my family's territory. This time, I'm using the excuse of visiting Lord Peterson to enjoy myself in Moront City … "
President Chikder did not care about Loriste's tactful refusal. He smiled and said to President Peterson, "I didn't expect your little friend to be so honest as a count. He's not like those hypocritical nobles who were overjoyed when they heard that our merchant group wanted to establish a sea trade route. They talked about their territory in an extravagant manner, but in reality, there's nothing there. That's very good. "
President Peterson also smiled and said, "I got to know my little friend Locke because of his real city. He doesn't have the problems of those nobles. To be honest, he doesn't like to lie. However, his family's territory is indeed a bit remote, and I can't do anything to help. "
President Chikder and President Peterson chatted for a while more before getting up to leave, leaving with his third son and his guards. What Loriste didn't notice was that Third Young Master Chikder gave him a venomous look before leaving with his father.
Loriste was worried about the gunpowder, so he discussed with President Peterson for a while and roughly agreed on a date to deliver the magic beast skins to Viscount Teberly's territory. He also asked the Peterson Merchant Group to purchase a large ocean-going merchant ship before leaving.
Back at the Red Raven Tavern, Loriste ordered Dolus and Schwald to bring some magic beast bacon and pickled whale meat to the lady boss, Sister Louise. He wanted to see if these two meat products were popular among the citizens of Moront City. He also gave a small jar of snow salt to the chef, Fatty Mai, so that he could try it and see if there was any difference between it and the rock salt that Moront City was used to.
Next, Loriste went into his guest room and began to study the gunpowder formula for the nineteen black cylinders used by the dwarves. He didn't leave his room for three days, causing Joske and Schwald to secretly open the door from time to time to see what their lord was doing …
The table was filled with all kinds of glass test tubes and a whole set of small equipment used by pharmacists for experiments. Loriste was very thankful for the method he learned to separate potions back at Dawn Academy. If he could separate the components of a liquid potion, then it would be very easy to figure out the formula for the powdered cylinder gunpowder.
The black cylinder gunpowder of the dwarves had a total of seven components. Sulfur powder, saltpeter powder, and charcoal powder were the three most common components of gunpowder. The other four components were rosin powder, kudzu starch, egg white, and an unknown white powder.
After experimenting, Loriste already understood that the effective components of the dwarves' gunpowder were sulfur powder, saltpeter powder, and charcoal powder. There was also the unknown white powder, rosin powder, and kudzu starch, which were actually useless. The egg white's function was to condense the various powders into cylindrical shapes.
What made Loriste anxious was that he really couldn't figure out what that white powder was. Without this white powder, the gunpowder would be ineffective. Loriste wanted to get some white powder to ask someone, but he discovered that he had already studied all nineteen cylinders of gunpowder.
After thinking for a while, Loriste called Schwald in and asked him to order the tavern's maid to get him a bath. He also ordered a big meal. After taking a bath and eating to his heart's content, he asked Schwald for a rental carriage and brought the box containing the dwarves' short barrel muskets to Triumph Avenue.
Loriste had heard from Guildmaster Chikder that the dwarves had opened a shop on Triumph Avenue as an office. The rental carriage quickly sent Loriste and Schwald to their destination. When they got off the carriage, they saw a tall and somewhat strange building made of all kinds of boulders.
Well, it was a bit strange to see a stone hill in the busiest commercial street of Moronte City, but there was nothing strange about a shop opened by the dwarves. The dwarves of the Titanic Mountains were used to living in caves, and they wouldn't feel safe if they weren't in caves.
After passing through the door that looked like a cave, a dark staircase appeared in front of him. The staircase curved downwards, and only then did Laurist realize that the space inside the small mountain of stones that the dwarves had piled up wasn't that big. The real shop was a large space that the dwarves had dug out underground. Although the lighting wasn't very good, the dwarves' shop still had many curious customers visiting it.
Arriving at the dwarven counter that looked like a wine cabinet, a dwarf with a red beard watched Loriste put the box on the counter and asked in a strange common language, "Sir, how may I help you?"
Loriste looked at the dwarf in front of him curiously. He was different from the dwarves he had seen in the movies in his previous life. The dwarf in front of him was just a kind of humanoid creature, which could be seen from his almost square body. There were also many similarities. They liked to dig holes, forge, drink, and were extremely strong. But according to legend, every dwarf was a shrewd businessman. Merchants said that they had to be cautious when dealing with dwarves, or else they would be easily fooled. This was completely different from the simple and honest dwarves in the legends.
"Hello, I'd like to ask, do you sell matching gunpowder here?" Loriste opened the box, revealing a gun and a bare small lead ball.
"It's like this. My children treated this gun as a toy. They put the gunpowder in the basin, so … you see, when I found it, it was already like this," Loriste said, pretending to be embarrassed.
The red-bearded dwarf in front of him had a mocking look in his eyes, "Sir, we've heard the same excuse almost a hundred times this month. In fact, we don't care about you cracking the secret of gunpowder. We have the propellant you want for sale here, but the price is one gold coin for one propellant … "
What? So expensive? Loriste pointed to the same box on the counter and said, "Sorry, did I hear you right? The short barrel musket you're selling is only 35 Gold Fords per box. Why is the propellant so expensive? "
"Because this gunpowder is unique to us dwarves. You humans can't make it. Had it not been for the powder, the musket would have been an expensive child's toy, as you have described it. So if you want to buy it or not, we dwarves don't care. "The dwarf's red beard twitched.
Loriste knew very well that he couldn't get the white powder out of the dwarf's mouth. He could only fork out 20 gold ford to make up for the gunpowder. The dwarf also generously gave him a small lead ball to replace the bullet that was fired.
Walking out of the dwarf's shop, Shihuard was very puzzled, "My lord, you've been studying the dwarven gunpowder for the past three days. You've forgotten why we came to Morent City …"
Loriste knew that his disciple was blaming him for forgetting the important matter. He smiled and rubbed Shihuard's head, "You don't understand, Shihuard. The dwarven gunpowder is a very great discovery. As long as we grasp the secret of gunpowder, the Norton family will be able to rest easy and stand invincible …"
"Isn't this gunpowder used for guns? I don't think the dwarven guns are that powerful," Shihuard muttered. His eyes suddenly lit up, "My lord, look, there's a gun hanging in that shop, and it's even bigger than the dwarven guns …"
Loriste looked up and saw that Shihuard was pointing to a weapons shop. There was a huge gun hanging in the shop, looking like a gun from his previous world.
"Come, let's go take a look," Loriste said.
"Welcome, my lord." The salesman at the door had sharp eyes and immediately recognized Loriste's noble status.
"My lord, our Starlight Weapons have always been known for their noble quality and elegant taste. Whether you're looking for a suitable weapon or as a gift, we can satisfy your request …" The salesman began to introduce.
Loriste stopped and stood under the huge gun, "You're even selling this gun?"
The salesman was stunned, but then he saw the box in Shihuard's hands and came to a realization, "My lord, this gun is a divine weapon. Seven hundred years ago, the famous Hero Lord Chinric used this gun to shoot down the two-headed evil dragon Chimaera that was wreaking havoc in the human settlements. However, after being passed down for so long, this gun is no longer of any use or value. "
Loriste curled his lips. Who was he trying to fool? It would be a miracle for a gun from seven hundred years ago to be passed down. Let alone the wooden guard, even the barrel had long since rotted away. It was clearly a knockoff that was hung in the shop to attract customers.
On the other hand, Shihuard was very curious, "Why do you say that this gun is no longer of any value?"
"Because there's no gunpowder!" The salesman replied, "The Hero Lord shot down the two-headed evil dragon Chimaera 700 years ago because he had a good friend who was a dwarf. Not only did he help him make this gun, he even provided him with three portions of gunpowder. That's why this gun was able to accomplish such great feats. However, without the gunpowder, this gun became useless. It can't even compare to a fire stick. "
"These dwarves are too hateful. Why didn't they continue to provide gunpowder? Were they afraid that we would also make gunpowder? "Shihuard said hatefully.
The salesman laughed, "In fact, we already know the formula for gunpowder. Sulfur, charcoal powder, saltpeter, starch, rosin, fire crystal powder, and egg white. The dwarves' brains have been as stubborn as granite for hundreds of years, and this formula has never changed. Unfortunately, it's useless even if we knew. There are no saltpeter mines in the human world. This saltpeter can only be found a few hundred meters underground in the mountains. Only the dwarves can dig it out. Without saltpeter mines, we have no way of making gunpowder … "
Loriste was stunned. Without saltpeter mines, it was impossible to make gunpowder. However, didn't he collect the saltpeter needed for the failed black gunpowder he made last time from the corner of a wall? A thought flashed through Loriste's mind, and he suddenly understood. The people of the Northern Lands did have the habit of collecting saltpeter from the corner of a wall, but they mainly soaked it in water and filtered it before using it to make leather. No one knew that they could also boil the water and obtain saltpeter to make gunpowder.
However, Loriste was now interested in the fire crystal powder that the salesman had mentioned. He asked, "What is fire crystal powder?"
The salesman replied, "Sir, fire crystal powder is powder ground from fire crystals. It is mainly used by blacksmiths to increase the temperature of the flames during forging. Let me see. Two days ago, we bought a small bag of fire crystals from an adventurer. Let me see where I put it."
Soon, the salesman took out an old leather bag and poured out a few red crystals the size of a little finger.
"Sir, these are fire crystals. They can usually be found in the ashes of volcanoes. These are blacksmiths' treasures. Sprinkling fire crystal powder into the furnace at the crucial moment of forging can greatly increase the temperature of the flames, allowing the forging to succeed. "
"Oh, thank you. This is the first time I've seen fire crystals." Loriste looked at the red crystal-like object in his hand.
The salesman laughed, "Sir, this thing is only useful to blacksmiths. It doesn't have much use for other people. It's normal that you haven't heard of it."
"Then the dwarves' gunpowder has this in them?" Loriste asked.
"Yes, this was confirmed by Professor Bob of Star Academy a long time ago. A portion of gunpowder contains about 10% fire crystal powder, but as much as 50% saltpeter powder makes it impossible for us to produce the same kind of gunpowder. I remember that last year, Professor Bob published an article on the composition of gunpowder in Morrent Daily. It caused a sensation in Morrent City. "The salesman's memory was very good.
Loriste took out a few gold coins and gave one to the salesman, "This is the reward for your excellent service. I'm very satisfied. But can I buy a few fire crystals? "
"Of course, sir. This bag contains 23 fire crystals. Just two gold coins will be enough, sir," the salesman replied respectfully.
… …
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