Lord of Winter: Beginning with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 674: Chapter 387: Steam Tank

The morning in the No. 3 sealed testing ground was filled with an unsettling coal odor in the air.

This place was enclosed by towering gray limestone walls, with a level of secrecy said to be among the highest in all of Red Tide City.

At this moment, the center of the field seemed to be arranged like a vicious trap, with half-man-deep muddy ditches, sharply crisscrossed chevaux-de-frise, and several thick stone walls mimicking city wall structures.

Louis’s gaze fell on the colossal object covered by canvas in the center of the field.

Half a step behind him, the Knight Commander Lambert stood like a silent statue.

This Extraordinary Knight also looked at the colossal object, his eyes lacking doubt, holding only the scrutiny unique to a soldier.

He knew that Louis never engaged in superfluous actions; since the lord referred to this place as the "New Era," there must be something hidden under the canvas that could change the rules.

However, the younger knights, Gray and Sacco, standing on the other side, seemed a bit impatient.

Gray tugged at his collar, looking at the muddy ground, "How much longer do we have to wait?"

"Be patient, you talk too much." The response came from Weir.

Once the clumsy little knight following behind Louis, he was now seventeen.

Serving as Louis’s guard for many years had stripped away his youthful naivety, his previously somewhat thin shoulders now standing firm and straight.

He no longer paid attention to Gray’s restlessness, his hand always on the sword hilt, deliberately mimicking the lord Louis he idolized most.

Meanwhile, in the center of the field, Hamilton was nervously wiping the fog from his goggles.

He and the dozen members of the machine-building group behind him looked utterly disheveled, faces smeared with grease, dark circles around their eyes, and their work clothes covered in coal dust and patches.

Yet the craftsmen, usually lost in blueprints, had eyes now flickering with a blend of excitement and anxiety.

"Ready?" Louis asked.

Hamilton took a deep breath, nodding to the apprentices behind him.

"Unveil!"

The coarse rope was pulled, and the gigantic waterproof canvas slid off.

Words stuck in Gray’s throat, not out of amazement, but because it was so ugly.

No streamlined elegant armor, no mysterious glow of alchemy runes.

Before them stood a squat, clumsy wedge-shaped lump of steel.

Its surface was full of dense rivets, the black armor plates bearing forge marks and oil stains.

The enormous V-shaped obstacle-clearing shovel in front was like a wild boar with an iron shovel face.

"This thing..." Gray frowned, "Pardon my saying so, my lord. It looks like it’d have trouble even turning around. On the battlefield, I could ride my horse around it three times."

Lambert glanced sideways, calmly casting a look at Gray.

No words needed, the war-hardened eyes instantly silenced the young knight.

Hamilton heard Gray’s mockery, yet he didn’t retort, only silently patted the cold rivets, as if soothing a sleeping beast.

"Don’t rush to conclusions." Louis said calmly, "Hamilton, first round of testing."

Hamilton waved a hand, and a test knight of the official knight rank lifted a steel lance, fiercely stabbing toward the front of the war chariot.

"Thud—"

The lance snapped, the knight staggered back from the recoil force.

"Wasn’t that overdone?" Kosa, who had been itching for action on the side, finally couldn’t hold back.

The young man stepped out with large strides, saluting Louis: "My lord, that strength is not even enough to scratch me. If Mr. Hamilton wants to showcase its resilience, there’s no need for such a show. Let me have a try."

Louis nodded: "Go ahead and try."

A flash of excited ferocity appeared in Kosa’s eyes; he was now a high-tier elite knight, dealing with an iron lump should be no trouble.

Grabbing a weighted pure steel javelin from the weapon rack, he took a deep breath, muscles in his arms swelling like rocks.

"Ha!"

With a thunderous roar, the lance turned into a black shadow, howling as it ripped through the air towards the war chariot.

This strike was enough to pierce a three-layer iron-clad tower shield.

"Boom!"

Not the brittle sound of tearing steel, but a dull thud like a heavy hammer smashing into a rotten wooden post.

Kosa shuddered violently, sliding back two steps.

But on the ugly armor plate, the lance was already twisted out of shape. The armor surface bore only a thumb-deep dent, glowing white.

"This is impossible..." Kosa ignored the sharp pain in his hand, rushing to touch the dent, his eyes filled with disbelief, "This touch feels wrong, like hitting some sort of... elastic stone."

"This is composite armor." Hamilton stood beside the war chariot, straightening his previously hunched back, pride evident in his voice as a technician, "The surface is cold iron steel, with riveted steel plates inside.

But the key is the middle, we sandwiched three inches of elastic teak, soaked in tung oil. Your strength is great, but the wood absorbed it all."

The members of the machine-building group straightened their chests too; it was their masterpiece, the result of countless experiments.

"My Lord." Suddenly, the silent Lambert stepped forward.

"The armor is indeed exceptional." Lambert’s voice carried a hint of respect, "May I test its limits?"

Hamilton’s face changed, looking worriedly at Louis.

Composite armor could withstand an Elite Knight, but against a Transcendent Knight... that was uncharted territory.

Louis nodded, a hint of exploratory interest in his eyes, "Go ahead. Don’t hold back."