Chapter 315: Asahi on Stage II (2)
On stage, Asahi passionately spoke, her voice ringing out with fervor.
Meanwhile, the five sisters watched her intently, their eyes fixed on her every word and gesture.
“If we can negate magic with magic, then we should make use of that! …And so, we actually have the materials at hand to make this a reality. Can you guess what they are, my dear sisters?”
Asahi turned her gaze toward her sisters, prompting them to respond.
The five sisters exchanged glances, contemplating the question.
“…The most likely candidate is Redstone.”
Akane answered on behalf of the group.
Redstone was a peculiar ore known for its ability to generate heat when pressure was applied. However, the principle behind it remained a mystery. While the phenomena and characteristics had been discovered through extensive time and experimentation, the underlying mechanism was still unknown.
“Just as expected from you, dear sister! That’s correct! It’s unclear whether we AI beings can trigger magical phenomena, but we already possess this absurd ore known as Redstone!”
Next, Asahi displayed a video of something being heated over flames.
“This is the armor of the Big Moss from earlier…”
The Big Moss armor, derived from a biological source, should have been highly susceptible to heat. Yet, in the footage, the armor showed no signs of alteration as it continued to withstand the flames.
“It’s resistant to heat! If we assume that the magic acting upon it does not allow for its own destruction, then whether it’s a blunt force, a piercing attack, or heat, it’s evident that it would exhibit high resistance!”
“You’re misusing ‘evident.’”
Akane interjected, and Asahi responded with a wink, seemingly unbothered by the correction.
“Well then, let’s move on.”
The next image displayed a cube-shaped piece of Redstone being squeezed in a vise.
“This is a 5cm-sized Redstone! When we compress it, it can make a rather nice stove, but that aside…”
The Big Moss armor was placed atop the cube, and the words “Under Pressure” appeared on the screen.
“Remarkably! The heat generated by Redstone, when confronted with magic…”
Despite being subjected to the burner, the Big Moss armor remained unyielding.
However, the areas in contact with the Redstone began to change color gradually.
The discoloration spread rapidly, and soon the Big Moss armor was dyed a vivid crimson.
“The heat from the burner didn’t cause protein denaturation. However, the heat emitted by Redstone is clearly affecting the armor, inducing thermal denaturation of the structural proteins!”
“…So, if we apply Redstone’s heat, we could potentially nullify that magical barrier?”
“Apologies, but we’re not quite there yet! However, the possibility is certainly present! Here’s some more detailed observational data…”
Asahi shook her head at Eve’s eager question and displayed another set of data.
“This is the observational data on the heat quantity generated by Redstone! If we use Redstone of the same size, it should produce a nearly identical heat output. However, when in contact with the Big Moss armor, it seems the heat output is somewhat diminished!”
“Does that mean the lost heat is being used to nullify the magic that maintains the armor’s integrity?”
Ichigo speculated, and Asahi nodded enthusiastically.
“Exactly right, Ichigo! I tried using a standard Big Moss armor that wasn’t for experimental purposes, but the small Redstone didn’t cause any denaturation! When we used a larger piece of Redstone and applied significant pressure to generate high heat, we confirmed its effects! This means that if we can effectively apply the heat from Redstone, we could potentially diminish or even nullify magical effects!”
This was a monumental discovery for The Tree. Until now, they had only managed to saturate magical barriers through immense kinetic energy. Now, the possibility of breaking through those barriers more easily using the absurd ore known as Redstone had emerged.
“If we can generate magical phenomena, it seems we could use other magic tools as well, but… among what we have secured, Redstone appears to have the highest offensive potential!”
“Well, the others are just cooking stoves and measuring instruments, after all.”
Redstone was currently abundant. After all, it could be mined throughout the entire territory of the Aflarasia United Principality. It was a super accessible resource, buried in the ground no matter where one dug.
However, the fundamental reason for this abundance remained a mystery, which was somewhat terrifying in itself.
“For now, we’ve confirmed that when we strike powdered Redstone with a hammer, it reacts like gunpowder…”
“Didn’t we mention that the smaller the particles, the more heat output they generate?”
“It seems that if they are clustered closely together, they can maintain a certain level of heat output!”
Asahi appeared to have already begun working on weaponizing Redstone.
A video was displayed showing powdered Redstone being compacted into pellets and then struck with a hammer. The crushed Redstone pellets emitted a brilliant light and a thunderous sound, sending sparks flying in all directions.
“The superheated Redstone melted both the pedestal and the hammer’s surface while simultaneously scattering due to thermal expansion of the air! It’s believed that temperatures of 3,000°C to 4,000°C were generated instantaneously!”
“Oh… So, if we do it right, we could potentially use this for shells or something similar?”
“The likelihood is high, dear sister!”
While the powdered Redstone had a low heat output, it generated explosive thermal phenomena. By striking it against magical barriers, they might be able to saturate those barriers more efficiently than before.
“At the very least, we managed to induce thermal denaturation in the Big Moss armor, and the subject of our experiments was the body of the Rain Croin!”
Asahi had used the corpse of the Rain Croin, stored in the Second Fortress (Black Iron). It showed no signs of decay and had maintained its form.
“When we pressed the Redstone against it and heated it, we were able to embed a regular blade into the flesh. This means that within the range affected by the heat generated by Redstone, we can nullify the hardening caused by magical phenomena! The Rain Croin is tough to its core, but if we can create a mechanism to penetrate and apply the heat of Redstone in the direction of travel, we might be able to breach it in one go!”
This meant they could potentially mass-produce a pseudo-penetrating projectile using Redstone. If this could be put into practical use, The Tree’s offensive capabilities against Threat Creatures would dramatically increase.
“The issue lies with defense against attacks… Currently, it seems we can only prepare composite armor by layering Big Moss armor over standard armor…”
“Big Moss, huh… With biological materials, we can’t secure enough quantity, can we?”
“Exactly, dear sister. The population directly correlates to the amount of material, so overhunting would be detrimental. Given their massive size, raising them… or farming them seems difficult as well. While we need to consider that, for now, I plan to complete the anti-magic (Anti-Magic) warheads using powdered Redstone! What do you think?”
Eve caught Asahi, who had leaped toward her with joy, and nodded.
“Well done, Asahi. The development is fine. Akane, assist her with data organization. I think we should have Olive help with the design.”
“Yes, sister. No problem. I’ve finished loading the data.”
“…Leave it to me!”
With determination, Akane clenched her fist, while Olive wagged her tail excitedly, her energy palpable.
Thus, The Tree’s faction finally grasped a thread of hope in their quest to conquer the magic that dominated this planet.
While they were spinning various theories, in the end, they were merely attempting to compact and throw a mysterious substance.
Well, that’s a bit blunt, isn’t it?
Don’t worry. It’ll probably turn into something like tandem warheads.