—
Now, it had been two full days since the company departed from Red Port. Unlike before—when the journey took time and included stops at every nearby town the entourage could find—the party was now moving at full speed toward Cintra.
The reason, as Gustave deduced, was that his mother—and by extension, Reynard Odo—wanted to place the colluding nobles under house arrest in a more manageable location. And since Cintra was such a place—coupled with the amicable relationship between his mother and Queen Calanthe—securing the nobles there first had become the priority.
Thanks to this fast-paced journey focused entirely on reaching their destination, Gustave had been able to spend the past two days in solitary research.
During that time, he managed to solve at least one problem in the RDBM, which had long produced far too much noise for a Witcher's standards: he had succeeded in making the mounted, steam-powered sleeve crossbow as silent as a snail.
Not only that—the solution he discovered made him tremble with excitement at the implications of its broader applications. It involved a Glyph of Reinforcement capable of minimizing vibrations that affected enchanted items.
This enchanted effect was remarkably similar to one of the technological innovations from Marvel, which possessed a comparable property.
Although the Glyph of Reinforcement merely reduced durability loss—and still could not compare to the real thing—at its core, it shared a similar function with Vibranium: the absorption of vibration to preserve the integrity of an already forged and constructed item.
In other words, the Glyph of Reinforcement—capable of minimizing durability loss for lesser Glyphs and completely eliminating it for greater ones—could absorb minuscule vibrational energy from both points of contact and ambient noise.
And since vibrational energy is essentially just oscillating kinetic energy—in other words, kinetic energy in motion—the enchantment's effect was practically a carbon copy of Vibranium's physical properties in the Marvel universe.
That was why Gustave was ecstatic over this discovery—a breakthrough born from a seemingly simple Glyphstone long dismissed by others for its insignificant effects.
Perhaps the people of this world regarded these Glyphstones favorably only because they prevented swords from chipping when struck or used in battle.
But Gustave knew that even this seemingly insignificant effect—dismissed by most as a mere convenience—held immense potential. If he could develop this Glyphstone further, or learn Rune Magic systematically, then the creation of the strongest shield would only be the beginning.
An indestructible bullet train capable of reaching incredible speeds; spacecraft hulls and modified balloon airships that could travel into space; classic iron armor reminiscent of what Black Panther wore—but more grounded in steam-powered technology—and countless other innovations filled his mind, each idea so thrilling that it nearly gave him a nosebleed.
Unlike the previous Runewords that could enhance the nutritional value of food—something he had failed to work with due to a lack of inspiration and [Knowledge] of the biology—this Glyph of Reinforcement was undeniably his forte as a Beyonder of the Paragon Pathway.
Wiping the blood from his face and calming down his startled maids, Gustave couldn't help but giggle to himself and say, "Truly, the saying is right—one scientific discovery leads to another. Or perhaps, more fitting for this world—one magic-science discovery leads to another."
From the seemingly unremarkable act of coating the RDBM with an outer layer of metal casing slotted with a Glyph of Reinforcement to absorb ambient vibrations in the air, to now uncovering the immense potential of an infant version of Vibranium—he simply couldn't help himself.
With a bubbly, chest-deep scream of excitement like a little girl, Gustave suddenly stood up on the table and declared, "Just you wait, world! You see a fool of enchantment—what I see is a blueprint for an age of inventions!"
Ignoring his maids, who were staring at him oddly over his eighth-grader syndrome, Gustave could only giggle. These mongrels simply couldn't see what he was seeing. And now that he was in the mood, he said, "Let's go to the gun deck, girls. I'm in the mood to celebrate yet another one of my successful inventions!"
Walking on his own two legs with his maids in tow—because he wanted to bask in the glory of his phenomenal discovery—Gustave nodded to the soldiers and nobles who passed by, even replying to them. Something he rarely did, as he never liked making small talk.
"Good day, little sire. What's making you smile so brightly?"
"I wrote a letter! No help from Nana!"
"Oh my, look at you, Prince Gustave! Someone's in a happy mood today."
"Yes! Gustave can write! Like big people!"
"Such fine posture, Your Highness. You walk like a true king."
"Kings can write, too. I can now!"
"He looks so proud, doesn't he?"
"Aye, like he just conquered the world."
"Gustave conquer paper!"
Exchanges like that continued along the way until he reached the hallway. Upon spotting the ship's cook, Gustave's eyes lit up and he ordered eagerly, "Chef! Chef! Make Gustave's favorite! Umm… creamy pumpkin soup! And carrot! And chicken with mashy potatoes! And warm milk— with honey! Don't forget the cookies! Many cookies! Lots and lots of butter cookies!"
Raising an eyebrow at the bubbly, excited little prince, the head cook, Halver, couldn't help but ask as he set down the pan he was cleaning, "You seem in quite a good mood, Your Highness. Did you finish reading another new book?"
Lifted up by Rosemary so he could sit on the table, Gustave replied with the same kind of excuse he'd given many times before—but this time with a smug grin he could barely contain.
"Nothing, Chef! Gustave just… wrote a letter! All by myself!"
"Wow, really?! Well, congratulations, young prince! You're now one step closer to becoming a wise and intelligent advisor to your brother."
Amused by the common assumption that Villem would certainly sit on the throne, Gustave merely brushed off the remark and waved it away, saying with a cheeky grin, "Too far! Too far! Now make Gustave's favorite food! I'm sooo hungry!"
—
It had been three hours—already 9 p.m.—since the discovery of the minuscule Vibranium-like physical properties. Now that the excitement had died down, Gustave sat by the ship's rail, eating butter cookies as he gazed out over the riverbank, lost in thought about what he could do with this newfound knowledge.
After a long stretch of silent rumination under the moonlight, Gustave came up with two possible upgrade directions for his RDBM.
First, he wanted to further amplify the Glyph of Reinforcement's ability to absorb oscillating kinetic energy—essentially creating a classic Captain America–style shield, but one better suited for his mounted sleeve crossbow.
As for why he wanted to do this, it was his personal tribute to the saga universe that had inspired this discovery. Without understanding the inspiration behind Marvel's creation of Vibranium, he would likely have been just as clueless as the people of this world, who saw it only as an enchantment that prevented durability loss.
Because of that, for his first upgrade, he aimed to create his own version of Captain America's shield. Perhaps not as large, but more akin to a buckler—the Aegis version from Lies of P.
However, since that buckler design couldn't retract or be concealed, Gustave wanted his upgraded shield to incorporate such a feature, staying true to the original concept of the RDBM: a mechanical glove that could be hidden within the sleeve.
As for the second upgrade he wanted to pursue, it stemmed from his own inspiration—creating a frictionless muzzle for the RDBM's crossbow, so that when the nail was launched, its speed and efficiency would far surpass that of a traditional muzzle.
However, all of these upgrades depended on his ability to custom-make the necessary parts, due to the intricate mechanisms that couldn't be found in any other piece of machinery.
Thus, the same recurring problem arose, making him all the more eager for the journey to end so he could find a skilled blacksmith to collaborate with.
But the problem didn't stop there. The enhancement he required for the Glyphwords of Reinforcement was extremely delicate and needed to be modified to suit his needs. Since he lacked knowledge in the creation and engineering of Runic Magic—knowing only how to use it—he found himself completely stumped on what to do next.
Even though he knew that, sooner or later, he would be able to reverse-engineer these stones and perform the enchantments himself, he found the idea redundant and inconvenient. Why bother with such inefficiency when he could simply find a skilled Runewright and learn the craft directly?
That was why, with the tools he currently had, all he could do was slot the Glyphstones into his device—much like Geralt did in The Witcher games—only in a far more realistic manner.
Unfortunately, he had already run out of slots, simply because the size of the runic stones no longer fit into his RDBM. This left him with no choice but to study Rune Magic himself if he ever wanted to create smaller enchantments.
With his [Knowledge] progressing at a crawl as he struggled to reverse-engineer the Greater Glyph of Reinforcement, Gustave vented his frustration by skipping the runic stone across the river. He wanted to keep going—much to the visible pain of his maids—but froze mid-throw when he suddenly heard his name being called.
Turning around in puzzlement, he saw the guards, soldiers, and nobles currently gathered on the main deck, yet none of them seemed to be calling him.
Confused, Gustave turned to Rosemary and asked in his "toddler mode," since they were in a public setting, "Nana… did someone say… Gustave?"
"No, Your Highness. I don't think I heard anything."
"Weird."
Just as he was about to continue skipping the runic stone, Gustave's entire body froze, gripped by an icy wave of apprehension. At first, it manifested only as a faint tremor behind his eyes, but as time went on—and his name was called again and again—his heartbeat grew faster and more erratic, pounding like a drum in his chest.
"Ehm… Your Highness? Is something wrong?"
Confused and terrified by what was happening to him, Gustave stammered, "I-I don't know. I-I don't know w-what's happening to me."
Trying to dismiss the growing sense of dread, he was instead overcome by a sudden, crushing sadness—followed by a surge of uncontrollable anger.
Unable to think clearly or tell his maid that he might be experiencing another delirium episode, his entire body began to tremble violently under the weight of unstable emotions. He wanted to scream, to break free from the prison of his own body, but he found himself unable to remember how to form words—or even how sound itself existed.
"Y-Your Highness? A-are you okay?"
A formless shadow slithered like a serpent through the air, filling every corner with a suffocating pressure—not pain, but something deeper. Understanding. An understanding of the morality of human existence. The cold laughter of creation. The hunger that lurked beneath reality's skin, clawing and gnawing at the edges of his mind.
Realizing what was happening, Rosemary—who knew the signs of his episodes better than anyone—rushed to the trembling prince. Without hesitation, she lifted his frail, limp form and sprinted toward their cabin, knowing full well that this delirium was one of the prince's most closely guarded secrets.
"Hmm… Did you hear someone calling your name?"
"Calling names? Isn't that a girl screaming for help?"
"Wait, what's that in the distance? H-huh? Isn't that King Reginald?"
Seeing the thick mist begin creeping across the river, Reynard couldn't help but frown, knowing it was likely the result of some kind of monster.
Not wanting the non-combatants to get caught in the crossfire of whatever the creature intended to do with the entourage, he turned to the people on the main deck and barked, "My fellow lords! To your cabins, now!"
A silver-misted figure emerged on the riverbank—restless and agitated, its gaze fixed on the ship in the middle of the river.
"By the gods! What the damnable whoreson is that?!"
Screaming and roaring as if it wanted to claw out the hearts of those aboard, the silver-misted figure followed the vessel along the riverbank, periodically lashing out in attempts to affect the ship.
"Hah. Hahaha! Ptui! That thing cannot swim! It just looks crazy to me!"
Seeing the agitated Foglet roaring in madness and insanity—behavior that Reynard realized might be the first of its kind in all of Continent history—he then witnessed the chilling sight of the abomination leaping into the river, attempting to swim toward the ship, perhaps realizing that its earlier gestures had no effect on the vessel.
Although the creature's efforts were clearly futile, as it would not reach the ship before it moved further down the river, Reynard could not shake the unease it inspired. Its sheer determination made it seem as if it were bent on eradicating whatever had provoked its fury aboard the vessel.
With a loud, commanding voice, he ordered, "Lyrian Landsknechts! Prepare your pikes! Do not let the creature come aboard!"
But he was mistaken. For four hours on end, without even a single rest, the mad monster remained determined to board the vessel, its abnormal behavior making Reynard increasingly apprehensive—too abnormal for any creature he had ever encountered.
Finally, as the river's many meanders slowed the ship, the creature was able to reach it. By then, however, it had become too exhausted to move, its mist dissipating as it could no longer sustain itself.
A simple thrust from the Lyrian Landsknechts' pikes ended the abomination's life. Yet even in its final moments, Reynard saw the creature still demented and deranged, as if it held a personal vendetta against them.
Shivering and shaking his head to rid himself of the disturbing thoughts, Reynard ordered his men—who had been unnerved by the monster's abnormal behavior, silent from their shared apprehension—
"Burn the abomination. To ashes. Completely."
Looking at the silver-mist corpse, one of the soldiers could not help but voice what was on everyone's mind:
"Keep your souls and your hearts safe. Pray to whatever gods you believe in. I don't know how long we'll last… but I feel… I feel like the end of times is near."
—