“What are you doing here? I thought you were going to visit the Royal Knights.”
“Oh.”
Jinpok walked in abruptly.
“Let Jackson do his thing, and we’ll leave. We’ll go have a drink after.”
“A drink?”
“Yeah! Are you just going to return after saying hi? You’re the emperor! You should treat our knights for their good work during the monster hunt! They might raise complaints, you know.”
“Oh.”
Joonbum smiled as Jinpok dragged him out.
“We’ll treat them to drinks and chat with them. Come on, let’s go!”
‘He’s smart.’
The Royal Knights were complaining recently because of the frequent monster hunts. It was as if they were now like mercenaries rather than knights who protected the emperor. Jinpok knew those knights were having some issues.
“Take care.”
“Jackson! Come when you’ve finished up what you’re doing.”
“Yes, my king.”
Jackson smiled as he looked at Joonbum and Jinpok leaving the room.
*
“It’s amazing that humans can build such a city.”
“So… this is the capital of the Khalodian Empire!”
“Look at those buildings! And those city walls! They’re so tall!”
A well-dressed young man mumbled as an older, middle-aged man glanced around.
“No, it’s not human-made. The master builders of the Magnos created them. Look at all those buildings… I heard many Magnos worked on the construction of the city.”
“So it’s all built by the Magnos?”
“Not all… humans did work. They were guided by the Magnos to be precise. It’s the joint effort of the Magnos and humans. It’s a symbol of the union between races.”
“I see.”
“Emperor Joonbum creates another feat.”
“Isn’t world more peaceful after the Khalodian Empire appeared?”
“Yes… a world of peace. I wondered when our world could be peaceful, but now here we are.”
Some old men shook their heads as they thought about the early days.
“Baron Lutherin, look.”
“Huh? What is that?”
“Isn’t it beautiful? It’s like a building from a legend! Two knight sculptures, each standing by a pillar, it’s so marvelous!”
“It’s the castle gate. How wondrous.”
The man was astonished by the sight. At that same moment, the empire’s finest creation, the steam engine train, whistled loudly as a black smog puffed and it ran along the inner side of the castle wall.
‘The train!’
The empire had all of its vital cities connected with railroads so that trains could move about. It allowed the empire to provide huge supplies and military forces when needed in as fast as a few days.
“That… that thing on the wall… Is that the ‘cannon’?”
The man pointed at a huge contraption that looked like a black fallen log installed on the city wall.
“That’s the cannon, yes. I haven’t seen it be used, but I heard it can destroy anything. Even the largest Krakul can be instantly killed.”
“Oh…”
The news of the Khalodian cannons had spread from the monster expedition team, who had brought the cannons to fight monsters. It allowed hunters to kill monsters with ease and in large numbers.