Chapter 76: The Führer and the Retaliation Weapon
……Yes.
I somehow managed to overcome the crisis.
She stopped after I seriously cried and begged her, “Please don’t take such strange medicine.”
Ayame-san said, “You don’t want to give birth to my child that much…” It seems that she was a little shocked.
I have a line that I must not cross.
And then, in a corner of Truk Island.
I have come to this yet another huge naval air base that was created by clearing out the forest.
The base is located on a plain in the middle of the island.
There are two runways of 2000-meter class. Next to that runway, there are large hangars lined up that even large bombers can enter with ease.
Furthermore, some bombers and fighters that could not fit in the hangars were lined up next to the runway… Hmm, I see there are about 100 aircraft by looking at them, right?
Anyway.
This base is a symbol of the Empire’s national power.
I came here for the inspection of the new model aircraft.
“So, this is the Retaliation Weapon No. 1, the Type 5 land-based attack aircraft, Shinzan.”
“Yes sir, it’s a new type of navy aircraft developed by me, Shibata.”
The largest hangar in the area.
What resides there is… Several biplane twin-engine bombers.
It’s an open-style cockpit and the the fuselage is made of wood and upholstered with cloth.
It’s an old-fashioned, retro-looking bomber, reminiscent of the Gotha bomber used by the German army during World War I.
The color is sparkling silver. It is a metallic color reminiscent of bare duralumin.
Of course, the fuselage is upholstered with cloth, so the reason it’s this color is not because it hasn’t been painted…
It seems that the aluminum metallic paint is used for protecting the body from things like salt damage.
It looks like a naval aircraft.
“How’s the performance?”
“Maximum speed 120 km, cruising range 800 km, explosive charge capacity 500 kg…”
“I would say the bare minimum.”
While looking up at the aircraft, I asked Shibata-san, who was specially dispatched from the home country for an explanation.
Hmm, it seems that the performance of the aircraft is not bad.
It has at least the bare minimum speed, it’s faster than the Man-eating Bird that’s flying around, and the mobility is acceptable, but the explosive charge capacity is not good enough… Well, it looks like we can put it into actual combat.
The problem is…
“We have enough numbers, don’t we Ayame-san?”
I ask Ayame-san who is slightly sulking behind me… I wish she would cheer up soon. My rhythm gets messed up too.
“Yes, the Navy ordered about 200, the Army about 120, and the Imperial Guard about 40… More than 300 units have been commissioned.”
Hmm, Is that so? I mean, did you order not only the Navy, but also the Army and the Imperial Guard?
“The strategic bombing is a plan that Eryu-san has put a lot of thought and passion into. It can’t be ignored any place… Sigh.”
Sigh, indeed.
Several days have passed since that day, and she still sighs regretfully when she sees my thighs.
……It’s not good, okay? Even if you look at me like that, what I dislike is still what I dislike.
Honestly…
So, once everything is completed, the total amount will be… Let’s see…
“Eryu-san, it’s a 360 units.”
……。
Huh, I think my mind has gotten a little slow since I came into this world. I used to be able to calculate a bit faster…
“Children who are less intelligent are easier to deal with and more adorable. I just need to maintain her judgment a bit more…”
Ayame-san murmured in a low voice… You don’t mix any weird medicines into my food, right?
Ahem.
Anyway, the number is sufficient. Now, all we have to do is to bring it close to Luna and then launch a bombing attack.
When you can burn it down with bombers and be done with it, that’s all that matters.
“Your Excellency, this aircraft is, after all, just a hastily built machine. I’m not sure it’s good to have too much of this expectation.”
“Eryu-san, no matter how many we have, it is impossible to subdue the enemy by strategic bombing alone…”
I know what are you saying, but… Doolittle-san, the commander of the bombing squad, said it was possible.
Something about returning Luna to the Stone age.
Besides, this is not the only retaliation weapon.
“Eryu-san, It seems that the final test of the Retaliation Weapon No.3 has been completed at the test ground in Manchuria.”
“…The Retaliation Weapon No.3, that centipede cannon!”
It’s a romance cannon, you know, a romance cannon!
35,6 cm multi-chambered cannon. ――Commonly known as the V-3 cannon.
This cannon was originally intended to be mounted on a new type of battleship, but due to constraints related to the Navy’s budget, they ended up with a surplus of these 35.6 cannons, which were eventually modified to create this cannon.
As for the range, umm… it seems to be about 300km.
It’s according to the Canadian developer.
“Eryu-san, you shouldn’t expect much from such a strange thing, okay? I’d rather make a big railway gun than something like that…”
“A railway gun…”
That’s also a good idea. Something like an 80cm railway gun… It’s hard to pass up a long-range weapon like the Paris Gun.
……I mean, Ayame-san, please don’t look at me with such pitying eyes.
“I’ve been spoiling her to the point of turning her into a foolish child, have I gone too far?”
Ugh…
Seriously.
Even if you keep patting my head like that, I’m not going to forgive you, okay?
“Ayame-san, you will take responsibility for making me like this, won’t you?”
“Yes, of course, I will take responsibility… As long as Eryu-san is ready for it.”
Haa… That’s right.
Ayame-san is currently in a slightly dangerous state of mind.
……Since she tends to get bored easily, Ayame-san will be back to her normal self in about two weeks, but until then she will be difficult to deal with.
……There’s the sound of the engine.
A car has arrived at the front of the hangar is it a pick-up?”
“Sir, is the Führer present?”
That voice is Captain Nishi’s, isn’t it? What’s the matter?
“Your Excellency, the Retaliation Weapon No.2 has arrived in the harbor! May I ask for your inspection?”
Oh, it’s finally here.
The new weapon, King Chi-Ha.
☆☆☆☆☆
So, for that reason, we came to the harbor in a car driven by Captain Nishi.
Of course, Ayame-san is included in the set.
And then… There are three tanks lined up in the harbor.
Next to the tank, a German tank operator said, “I heard I could receive a Tiger tank, but what is this scrap of iron… What, a Chi-Ha tank?” That’s what they say.
Yes, it’s a dumb tank.
The body is a medium tank similar to that of Chi-Ha, the main medium tank of the Japanese Empire.
It’s an improvised vehicle with the turret removed and popped in a failed prototype of a 12cm anti-aircraft gun by the Navy… This is perhaps the most accurate expression of this tank.
Well, to put it harshly, it’s a recycled scrap product.
The Chi-Ha is a medium tank used as the basis for this King Chi-Ha, which ended up being discarded during development.
The development had advanced to a point where a prototype could be constructed, however, the development plan for the medium tank was abruptly changed to a more advanced one based on the Soviet Union’s T-50 light tank.
Since the situation was not in such need of the Chi-Ha imitation, the development and production were stopped with only a few test vehicles being kept. So the leftover vehicles were left to become warehouse clutter.
It was then modified into a self-propelled gun with a large caliber cannon for use in urban combat, otherwise it would be a waste.
“Your Excellency, there are some with 88mm anti-aircraft guns and others with a short-barreled 15cm…”
“Nh, that’s right. We’ll call the one with 88mm ‘Chi-Ha’ and the one with the 15cm howitzer Holo… No, let’s call it ‘Sturm Chi-Ha’ instead.”
Nh, even if I say so myself, it’s not a bad name.
Three vehicles equipped with this large caliber would burn the city to the ground.
“…Eryu-san, I don’t think that’s possible with such a strange weapon.”
And, as always, Ayame-san is voicing her complaint…
Indeed, I cannot deny it.
I was just thinking about reusing the Chi-Ha imitation… Is it possible to use this quirky thing?
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