Once they accepted, Napoleon II shook hands with the brothers, expressing his gratitude that they accepted the challenge to build an aircraft.
"You will be one of those guys whose name would go down in history," Napoleon II praised.
"Your Imperial Majesty, we are simply doing our job to help the French Empire's progress," Nicéphore replied. His eyes were still fixed on the chalkboard behind Napoleon.
Claude nodded once. "If it succeeds, it will not only be our names attached to it. It will be France's."
Napoleon II gave a short nod.
"That is the correct answer," he said. "Individual glory fades. Industrial capability remains."
He turned back toward the chalkboard and tapped the drawing of the aircraft with two fingers.
"This machine will require more than just an engine and frame. It will require coordination. Metallurgy, machining tolerances, material science, aerodynamics, fuel systems, and structural stress calculations. We cannot approach this casually."
