Read Novel Full Chapter 245
Chapter 245
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Chapter 245 – Ghosts of Africa
“Oh, then I have Casspir.”
After explaining my situation and requirements, that was the suggestion Simon came up.
What was Casspir? I could only imagine a character from a children’s cartoon.
“It is cheap, big and has a good view. It has big tires and four-wheel drive, so it can be driven on rough roads. It can fit about ten people in its compartment and is cheap. It’s strong and bulletproof, and the windows can stop light machine gun bullets. And it’s cheap.”
“Why did you say it was cheap three times? By tires, are you talking about a wheeled armored vehicle?”
“Yes, it is an armored personnel carrier. It was designed in South Africa, but I think… it is still produced under license and is still in service. The ones that are available here are exported from the home country, and the last user was probably Angola or Burundi or something like that.”
“It’s a war veteran, right? I don’t know how many strange fates it’s had…”
“Yeah, I heard some of the body parts were used by the Rhodesian army.”
Rhodesia… that would be in the 60s, right? Wow, that’s already a page of history for military geeks to burn!
“Well, I still recommend it. It’s cheap, and it’s the prototype of the Mine Countermeasure Vehicle, so it’ll probably stop attack magic? I don’t know.”
“Hey.”
Tsukkomi aside, being told over and over again that it’s cheap makes me curious but also worried. Simon looks at me and smiles as usual.
“For the roof seat and gunport, three PKMs, six spare barrels, and twenty 100-round belt links with a box of 7.62x54mm R ammunition, that’s $50,000.”
“I knew that pattern! That’s not the price of the vehicle; you just need that amount of money!”
“How did you figure that out?”
I get it! Simon, you’re both getting rid of inventory and securing funds again. I appreciate that you’re giving me a bunch of extras like a mail-order program, but you should be discussing your cash flow with your accountant, not me.
But still, PKM, huh… well, it’s okay, but unlike the RPK, which shares ammo and magazines with the AKM, the PKM has different ammo and is connected by a belt link, so it needs to be operated differently as a light machine gun. At best, the T-55’s coaxial main gun can share ammunition.
“Since they share the same ammo, I’ll give you a scoped Dragunov as a bonus.”
This guy’s really good at what he does, or at least he’s dirty… The Dragunov seems to be a solid fifth on the list of “guns I’d like to shoot at least once” for gun enthusiasts. Since you have to remove the ammunition from the belt link to use it, it’s not very useful, even though it uses the same ammunition as the PKM.
But then he added 200 rounds of ammunition separately. I hate the way he pushes the pressure point. I had no choice but to surrender.
“All right. I’ll take this Casspir.”
“Thank you!” [T/n: He was using まいど, which is commonly used in Kansai as an expression to greet customers or clients in a store, shop, restaurant, or other commercial establishment].
Where did he learn that cheesy Kansai dialect?
When I ordered the necessary supplies, he arranged them for me immediately as a service. That’s very nice of him, but it’s one hell of a rice bowl bill. It seems to be happening more and more these days.
“So what are you going to buy now?”
“A garment factory on the verge of bankruptcy. I’m going to publicly subsidize it to help the poor.”
“You’re on your way to sainthood, Simon.”
I’ll give him two gold coins in a small barrel. And a small barrel of precious metals and silver coins. I estimate the contents to be seventy or eighty thousand dollars.
“That’s a lot.”
“Use the difference to build a cafeteria and serve lunch to the workers.”
That would create jobs and consumption and increase worker retention, wouldn’t it? I know it’s a beginner’s idea, but…
“I understand. I’ll at least give them a good meal.”
The Casspir APC I was given was a strangely bulky, high-roofed, white-painted truck. It had a big hood and a thick body, like a school bus with a macho face. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this vehicle before, but it was a prototype, and I think it resembled a U.S. Army mine countermeasure vehicle.
The lower part of the body is V-shaped, like a ship, and it is raised considerably. As a result, the driver’s seat is much higher than in the Ural. The spare tire is mounted on the last part of the body in pairs on both sides, which looks strange. Well, if we were driving through a minefield, this would probably be the safest place.
The bulletproof windows that line the sides of the vehicle are small and horizontal, and below them are six gun sights per side. A PKM was already mounted on a turret with a shield on the roof. The power of the truck’s martial posture could not be compared with that of the Ural military trucks.
“This is really awesome…”
“Right!?”
“No, these bullet holes!”
The vehicle had been through a lot, and there were bullet holes all over the body of the vehicle. Even the thick layer of white paint could not hide them at all.
“Don’t worry, there are no missing bullets.”
“No, you’re lying; the driver’s side of the car has been replaced. The color of the base is different.”
“Is that so? I heard there were no fatalities.”
“I hope so.”
“What? The engine and drivetrain have been completely rebuilt and upgraded with a 5.6-liter turbo diesel engine, more horsepower, and run-flat tires. It will not stop on the battlefield.”
Conversely, the exterior is dated. Some of the body parts, he said, were on the battlefield in Rhodesia, but not the body itself.
The edges of each part are rounded, polished, or scraped, and the louvers of the grill are chipped, wearing the ghastly air of a brave soldier in a past war… or an old soldier on the verge of death.
“Swords and spears are not even a problem. Arrows and projectiles can be stopped by the armor of this thing.”
“The problem is the attack magic. But from what I’ve heard, instant death is an anti-personnel attack, right? It can be stopped if it’s not an anti-armor weapon. I mean, it’s an armored car, right?”
Even if you say so.
Well, okay. The vehicles I left behind in Casemaian were tanks not designed for long-distance travel, and Humvees and Urals had less than Casspir’s armor, so I had no choice but to rely on this.
As Myrril-san said, “You do the best you can with what you’ve got, and that’s warfare.”
“Well, I’ll give it a try. Let’s see how far this old strongman will go.”
“I look forward to the results, brother.”
“Oh yeah, look at this.”
After the deal was done, Simon offered me some photos. Smiling people were waving at the gate of a large building. Of course, I didn’t recognize them.
“What is that?”
“That’s the hospital that was rebuilt with your investment. See the sign that says ‘Mir-Yoshua Memorial Hospital’?”
“Wait a minute! Why don’t you use my real name on it?”
“Because it’s funded by the Demon King, it’s impossible to call it ‘Satan Memorial Hospital’ or ‘Maou Memorial Hospital’ in Japanese, which sounds like it has some kind of communist connotation.”
“That’s not the point.”
“The school will be finished soon. It will be called ‘Mir-Yoshua Elementary School’ and ‘Mir-Yoshua High School.'”
“Use your own name. ‘Simon Elementary School’ or ‘Saint’s High School’ will be fine.”
“No, it’s embarrassing.”
“Hey!”
I finally got the picture. When I showed it to Myrril, she laughed happily.
“It’s a good name. And they all have good faces.” She said,
It was indeed a large and beautiful hospital, and the doctors, nurses, and staff in the picture all looked young and trustworthy. It was a sight that convinced me that what Simon was working hard to build now was a happy future.
I thought to myself, “I will work hard to create a happy future, too.” At least as far as I can reach.