Dictator From Outer Space

An airship is a ship that floats in the sky, also known as a buoyant ship or a flying ship.

It is not clear when this ship was first built, but it was certain that Elvrande was the first to showcase it.

At that time, the citizens of Medea, the capital of Elvrande, cheered wildly when they saw the ship flying in the sky.

They thought that since they had made such a great thing, they would soon crush the humans and dominate the entire continent of Astera as elves.

However, the airship turned out to be rather useless.

In the current war, where combat using Goliaths was the core, the role of the airship was only to scout while floating in the sky.

Scouting was important in war, but other artifacts made with ether engineering were used, so the airship had no significant meaning.

It was too big and slow for scouting, and it also consumed a lot of buoyant stones and ether stones, which was a problem.

Buoyant stones were rare resources that were occasionally found under the floating continent, and they could be sold at a very high price if processed well.

Ether stones were precious resources without saying, and the operating cost of the airship that required both of them was so expensive that even a decent country would stick out its tongue.

If the airship had any utility value, it would have been used despite these drawbacks.

But at this point, there was no place to use the airship other than the nobles’ amusement.

A military commander of Elvrande suggested dropping ether bombs from enemy airspace, but he suffered from many opposing opinions.

“A ship floating in the sky is a huge target in itself. Do you think they can’t hit it even if their ether engineering level is low?”

“One shot of an ether cannon can turn it into fireworks. You know how many Goliaths of Belial level you can make with that money.”

The ether cannon had low accuracy and power, but it could sink a ship floating in the sky with one shot.

If you try to increase the defense of the airship, the cost will increase exponentially.

It was very expensive to engrave magic circles on Goliaths, let alone a ship that exceeded 50 meters in length.

So the airship that couldn’t find a place to use became a white elephant and was stuck in the mooring yard.

Nevertheless, the airship craze spread surprisingly widely, mainly for the nobles’ amusement.

There was no better way to show off their wealth and power than flying in the sky.

“There was a race that ruled the sky in the past. It was the dragon. This airship will make us a race close to dragons. Whoever rules the sky will rule the future of Astera!”

The merchants who invested in the airship sold their drugs like this, and several countries that fell for it raised their fever for building airships.

And shortly after, they went straight to the mooring yard as if they had promised.

There was no use for it except for flying in the sky.

Luxurious amusement was only for a day or two, but there was no justification for paying huge operating costs.

The Kingdom of Bagran also had an airship, but it was not built by itself but rather took over from Zaium Empire.

This 55-meter-long airship named Altema flew only once with Bagran III and his royal family and then headed straight to the mooring yard.

They couldn’t afford to pay for flying in the sky.

Carson, an administrative officer, climbed up the stairs and spoke as if reminiscing about the past.

“As you may know, Altema is the name of a gold dragon who played a great role in the past dragon war. They say dragons have no gender, but she was often referred to as such.”

This kind of oral tradition passed down by word of mouth was something that even Arma could hardly find out.

“Is that so? I’ve never heard of that part before.”

Carson got excited when Leobold’s reaction wasn’t bad and rambled on.

“Well… It’s just a rumor, but at that time she slaughtered countless champions of gods. That’s why she got the name Altema, the Champion Slayer. This ship is probably named after her because they hoped her power would be imbued. Altema was on the side of humans after all.”

Historical truth is worn out and faded by time.

In the past, dragons clearly dominated humans, but recent humans only remembered that they fought against elves.

Thanks to this, there was a re-evaluation of dragons in countries like Zaium and attempts to excavate their bones were active.

Elvrande scoffed at such attempts.

When they got on deck, sailors greeted them.

The captain was a man named Hampton with a typical face and physique of a sailor.

Leobold promised them a generous salary.

“I’m not the owner or anything of this ship. But I have the exclusive right to operate this ship. I promise you a hefty salary and bonus if you only follow my orders.”

“Uh… Excuse me, but can I ask where we’re going?”

“Floating continent.”

At that word, the sailors under the captain’s command froze.

Where are you going?

“Uh… You don’t mean the hell that’s located in the north of the continent, do you?”

“Hahaha, of course not.”

“You’re right about the floating continent. This ship will go up to the floating continent.”

“…”

Now the sailors looked at Leobold as if they were looking at a madman.

How can you go there with this airship?

Hampton, the captain, said with a serious face.

“It looks like you’re trying to drive us to death. No deal. Look for someone else.”

“Are you going to run away without even trying?”

Leobold sneered and he pulled his hat down.

“Our lives may be cheap, but we don’t want to risk them for a little money.”

“It’s very cold there…”

“It’s cold under the continent and colder above it.”

“There’s a rumor that there are dragons up there.”

“How bad is it that even those pointy-eared bastards don’t want to go up there? You don’t know because you haven’t been there, Baron.”

The sailors’ reactions were very negative.

Well, the sky of Astera was more harsh than the sea in some ways.

The atmosphere was constantly moving and the temperature dropped to unbearable levels as the altitude increased.

Sometimes, if caught in a turbulence, the whole ship could flip over.

If it was the sea, there was a slight possibility of rescue, but there was nothing like that in the sky.

Anyway, they didn’t seem to have any will to go to the floating continent.

Leobold didn’t feel sorry and said.

“Then I can’t help it. Get off the ship.”

“…Yes?”

Hampton, the captain, made a stupid face and he said as if it was obvious.

“If you don’t want to get on the ship, I have no choice but to look for other sailors.”

It was too decisive that the sailors just looked at the captain’s face without closing their mouths.

In fact, even if they got off here, they didn’t have anywhere to go.

They couldn’t get on a ship in the reality where most of the sea was blocked and they tried to stick to Altema, which gave them a little salary.

But the destination was the floating continent.

Life was more important than money, but that was when money was not enough.

Hampton, the captain, cautiously spoke to Leobold who was looking at them as if asking why they weren’t getting off.

“Baron, can I ask you a really rude question?”

“I’ll allow one. What is it?”

“Can I ask how much is the salary?”

“It doesn’t matter if you listen or not, since you’re going to get off anyway. To answer your question, I was going to promise you three times the amount you’ve been getting so far.”

“Three times…”

The sailors swallowed their saliva as Leobold spoke calmly with his arms crossed.

“I was going to make the floating continent my destination, but I was thinking of retreating at any time if it really endangered my life. There will be a small bonus for the risk as well.”

“I see…”

The sailors’ expressions changed.

The reason they hated it was because they didn’t want to risk their lives for a little salary.

A salary of three times, a bonus, and an immediate retreat if it seemed dangerous…

This was not a good level, but an exceptional condition.

He didn’t know why, but the baron seemed to be sure that there was something on the floating continent.

They didn’t need to go along with him, but it was possible to take a little risk.

There was no other job anyway.

Leobold sighed lightly.

“But what can I do? Since you don’t want to get on the ship, I have no choice but to look for other people. Well, it seems that our relationship ends here…”

Then Hampton, the captain, interrupted him with a cough.

“I’m really sorry, Baron. I know you’re talking, but I think we’re misunderstanding something…”

“Now that I think about it, it wouldn’t be so bad to be the first to go up to the floating continent.”

“Aren’t we sea men? Even if there are dangers lurking, they won’t stop us!”

There’s nothing money can’t do.

Leobold pretended to think for a moment and nodded his head.

“Let me entrust this ship to you for now. But remember, the salary and bonus are only paid when the operation of the ship is perfect.”

“Of course.”

“We’ll treat it like our lover!”

That should do it.

Leobold spoke to Carson, the administrative officer.

“I’m going to stay in my territory for a while, so go through the paperwork. Give them a house too.”

“Yes sir.”

“I want to be alone for a while, so go down.”

When the administrative officer and the sailors went down, Leobold finally headed to the bridge.

His vision was shared with Arma.

***

「Scanning analysis is complete, Master.」

“Do you think we can replicate it?”

「It’s very easy. The principle of the main engine is very similar to an ion thruster.」

“That’s amazing.”

If there was one obstacle for the pioneer group, it was that they didn’t know the essence of ether, which was the energy of this world.

It was very familiar to the people of this world, but neither Leobold nor Arma knew what ether was.

But not knowing the essence and using it were completely different things.

Just like you don’t need to know well about a pulse thruster to use it.

Anyway, Arma scanned and analyzed every detail of Altema through Leobold’s vision and presented the results.

「The length is 55 meters, the width is 17.5 meters, and the weight is 750 tons. The maximum speed of the ether propulsion engine is about 40 kilometers per hour and the maximum altitude is about 9 kilometers.」

“That’s too slow. Can we install an ion thruster instead of the main engine?”

「If we install one that fits this specification, the minimum speed will reach hundreds of kilometers per hour. The frame won’t be able to withstand it, so a complete overhaul is required.」

“How much will it cost to adjust it to about three times as much?”

「Calculating… It’s done. The cost will be 85 gold 7 silver, and it will take about 23 days.」

It wasn’t a small amount of money, but it was nothing compared to the resources they would bring from the floating continent.

“Well, that’s affordable. Contact the administrative officer and have him send some workers. Use dummies for working on the engine room or bridge.”

「Understood. But Master, if you want to land on the floating continent with Altema, you need to raise your altitude more.」

The buoyancy system analyzed by Arma was displayed on his retina.

All airships, including Altema, used buoyant stones to float in the air and moved through ether propulsion engines.

The principle behind this was not known, but installing more buoyant stones did not increase the altitude.

「I’m analyzing papers by ether engineers, but they say it’s hard to raise the altitude more with existing ether circuits in Astera.」

“That’s an advantage for us.”

「Yes. It means that other countries will have a hard time landing there.」

Altema was no exception, but they planned to install an ion thruster so they could easily solve it.

In other words, only the Vandus barony could mine resources from the floating continent for the time being.

However, neighboring countries or territories could make a fuss about it.

It would be nice if the Bagran royal family covered them, but they were not such people.

“Damn, my legs are shaking.”

He cursed as he looked down under the railing.

They didn’t come here on their own.

It was proposed by Baron Vandus.

“Sir Olmus, I would really appreciate it if you could get on Altema and go to the floating continent. Of course, I don’t mean to work there, but to act as a kind of commander.”

At first, he doubted his ears.

He wondered what he was going to do with an airship, but the destination was the floating continent?

He couldn’t stand it even if he was a baron, so he finally sneered.

“Do you have a hobby of killing people?”

“I’ll let it slide once. Anyway, I want you to go there as a knight. It’s a bit hard to call it a reward, but I’ll give you a good medicine.”

The small bottle that the baron handed him contained a viscous liquid.

“What is this?”

“I heard that your daughter has respiratory problems… She can’t breathe properly. If she drinks this, she’ll be fine for a while.”

Grandon clenched the bottle impulsively.

A few people, including Carson, the administrative officer, knew about his daughter’s condition, so it wasn’t a big deal.

But it was a mystery where he got the medicine that improved her condition.

Because it was impossible to get the medicine even with the power of the Bagran royal family.

He asked for an explanation with his eyes, and the baron said this.

“I wandered around as a mercenary for more than 10 years. I heard about the medicine that the elves use then. I’ll give it to you on the condition that you don’t ask any more details and do me one favor.”

“The medicine of those pointy-eared bastards…”

Like any other human, Grandon had a strong hatred for elves.

The only good elf for him was a dead elf.

But he had no choice but to pick the medicine after seeing his daughter struggling to breathe.

“Is it really… really okay if she drinks this?”

“I guarantee it with the name of my family. But try to refrain her from wielding a sword and running around if possible.”

“I’ll do that.”

Leobold judged that he had taken the bait and spoke casually.

“Send it to your daughter as soon as possible. You’ll get on the airship after I watch the situation.”

“Thank you, my lord.”

Grandon bowed his head sincerely to the lord for the first time.

And soon after, he received a letter as expected.

It said that Eily no longer had difficulty breathing and was running around healthily.

The maids of the palace had watched her for at least a few days, so he didn’t have to doubt the effect of the medicine.

Grandon bowed his head repeatedly to the lord as a knight who couldn’t cry.

“Thank you very much, my lord. Eily is healthy.”

“That’s good news. As promised, you’ll have to go to the floating continent as a knight. The journey won’t be that long.”

Winter had passed and spring had arrived.

The deadline he had promised with Prince Ruad had already passed, but Grandon couldn’t leave Vandus territory half willingly and half unwillingly.

He didn’t know if he could get that medicine again.

He could have sent someone else, but he wanted to watch over his daughter’s health himself.

He wrote a letter to the prince and got permission to stay in Vandus territory for a while.

And now he was on board Altema, heading to the floating continent.

“I can’t believe it…”

Everything about this expedition to the floating continent was a mystery.

According to what he knew, it was possible to approach the floating continent by airship, but impossible to go up there.

It was an unsolved problem of ether engineering that couldn’t be solved by buoyant stones.

‘But the lord said that landing was confirmed… He just said we had to pick up some resources…’

It was an unbelievable statement, but he couldn’t doubt it too much after seeing his daughter’s condition improve.

Especially since Vandus territory had changed a lot, it helped him erase his doubts.

‘Last fall, it was a place where people fled from because they were on the verge of starvation… But now Vandus territory is different.’

Despite having a harsh winter, the children were plump and their complexion was not bad.

There were frequent visits from merchants in the territory, and there was fierce competition to sell herring barrels.

Not only that?

Several facilities that were abandoned defenselessly began to be repaired, and new roads were being opened.

He didn’t know much about finance, but judging by Carson’s bright face, he could guess roughly.

Vandus territory was enjoying a considerable boom right now.

‘It’s all thanks to one person.’

To be precise, two people and a suspicious fairy, but anyway.

Grandon decided to make himself comfortable.

He didn’t distrust the lord, but the chances of finding something on the floating continent were very low.

‘If there was something there, those pointy-eared bastards would have found it first.’

Those elves who seemed to pop out of another world were busy planting branches of the World Tree all over Astera as if they wanted to turn the whole continent into a forest.

Even they didn’t dare to go to the floating continent, let alone the dwarves who longed for the sky beyond.

‘Then a mere baron would use some tricks to land on the floating continent… It’s impossible.’

There wouldn’t be a big problem since he had permission to return if something threatened his life.

The only problem was the coldness that he couldn’t get used to.

He shivered from the severe cold that attacked his body and went down below the deck.

The airship Altema was approaching the northern part of the continent before long.

He could see countless islands floating in the sky in the distance.