Arthur turned to face the knight instructor, standing composed amid the shaken soldiers. Unlike the others—who were still rattled, their ears still ringing and minds reeling—Arthur exuded a sense of calm, the only sign of the explosion’s impact being the faint ringing in his own ears.
"What did you say?" Arthur asked, his voice louder than usual, still struggling to hear properly.
The instructor’s brows furrowed before he repeated, this time in a louder voice, "What happened here?! Was there an attack?"
Arthur shook his head. "No, that explosion was my doing."
Silence fell over the training grounds. The instructor’s brows furrowed in disbelief, mirroring the stunned expressions of the gathered knights and mages.
"Your Majesty… you caused that?" His voice was laced with skepticism as his gaze flicked between Arthur and the scorched patch of earth where the barrel had once stood.
"But how?" he pressed, his confusion only growing. "Your Majesty, you possess no magic, no aura star—how could you possibly cause something like this?"
He gestured toward the thick column of smoke still curling into the sky, his voice shifting from concern to sheer bewilderment. "That wasn’t just some minor explosion. We felt the shockwave from across the grounds! And that smoke… it’s unlike anything I’ve seen—not from magic"
Arthur smirked, his confidence unwavering as he simply replied, "It’s science."
The instructor blinked, momentarily at a loss for words. Science? It was an unfamiliar term to many in the crowd, and those who had heard it before couldn’t believe it was capable of something this destructive. Still, the weight of the explosion was undeniable.
Unwilling to accept Arthur’s word so easily, the instructor turned to Klein, silently demanding an explanation. Klein, still shaken but recovering, simply gave a slow nod. "It’s true," he confirmed. "That explosion… it came from Arthur’s black powder."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd as knights and mages exchanged bewildered glances. Some looked back at the charred remains of the test site, as if hoping to see proof that magic had been involved. Others remained skeptical, unable to believe that something outside of mana could produce such raw power.
Arthur, sensing the growing discussion, raised a hand to silence them. "This was just a demonstration, not an attack," he said. "If you have no further questions, please return to your duties."
The gathered knights and mages hesitated. Many still had questions, but none dared to challenge their king outright—not when the evidence was right before them. Slowly, they began dispersing, though the air remained thick with murmured speculation.
As the crowd thinned, Arthur turned to Klein and the others who had witnessed the blast up close. "Now," he said, his smirk widening, "do you finally believe me when I said it was powerful?"
There was no hesitation this time. Every knight and mage who had witnessed the blast nodded in unison, their doubts completely shattered.
Arthur’s gaze swept over them, satisfied. "Good," he continued. "You’ve now witnessed a power that requires neither mana nor aura stars to be devastating."
He let his words hang in the air for a moment, allowing their implications to settle in. This was not just a mere curiosity—it was a fundamental shift in what they had believed to be the limits of destruction.
Then, he folded his arms and added, "And this… is just the beginning. To be honest, this isn’t even the most effective way to use black powder. This was just a demonstration for Klein and to show him what happens when it’s confined."
The gathered knights and mages exchanged uneasy glances, their shock deepening. If this was merely a demonstration, a crude display of its raw power, then what would happen when Arthur refined its use? If this was just the beginning, what would the true potential of black powder look like?
Their minds raced with the possibilities—siege weapons capable of toppling castle walls, battlefield weapons that required no mana or aura stars, a force unlike anything they had ever known.
Arthur’s gaze swept over them, reading the mixture of awe and apprehension in their eyes. "Now," he said, his tone firm, "trust in our military, our kingdom… and in me."
He took a step forward, his presence commanding. "I promise you, black powder will be used with purpose. I understand that many of you don’t know what it’s made of or how it works, and that’s fine—you don’t need to." His smirk returned, tinged with confidence. "What you do need to know is that with this, I can make our army not just equal to other nations, but stronger. Far stronger."
A heavy silence hung in the air as his words sank in. The knights and mages, once skeptical, now stood on the precipice of belief.
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Then, after a long pause, one of the senior knights finally spoke, his voice steady but laced with newfound respect.
"…What do you need us to do, Your Majesty?"
Arthur’s smile deepened, satisfaction flickering in his eyes at the knight’s response. He let the silence stretch for a moment longer before he spoke.
"For now?" he said, his voice carrying across the group. "Train harder. Push yourselves beyond your limits. The strength of our military does not lie in weapons alone. No matter how useful black powder becomes, it can’t replace all the effort you all endure to become a capable knight and mages. It can never be stronger than a capable mage and knight, so train harder and grow stronger together as I improve our military technology."
He let his gaze sweep over them, ensuring his words reached every knight and mage present. "Trust in me. Trust in the path I am forging for this kingdom."
The gathered warriors, still shaken from what they had witnessed, straightened their backs. They had seen the power of black powder with their own eyes. They had felt the shockwave, and heard the deafening roar. If their king said this was just the beginning, then they had no choice but to believe him.
Arthur nodded, satisfied. "That will be all for now. Return to your training, and let today serve as a lesson—there is more to power than mana and aura."
The knights and mages exchanged glances before saluting in unison. "Yes, Your Majesty!" Their voices rang out, stronger now, carrying a newfound determination.
As the crowd slowly dispersed, murmuring amongst themselves, Arthur turned to Klein.
He folded his arms, a confident gleam in his eyes. "Now that you’ve witnessed the power of black powder firsthand," he said, "let’s get back to the main topic—it’s time for me to explain what a firework is."