Chapter 1051: A World Beyond Her Own ( 1051 )

Meanwhile, Armand Naval Base.

At the main tower.

One of the Armand Elite Knights squinted his eyes.

"Hmm? What is that huge flying thing?"

He raised his mana binoculars and looked toward the horizon.

One of his friends nudged him. "What are you looking at?"

"Err... one huge thing flying toward our base. And... it’s bigger than our mana helicopters."

"How big?" the other asked, raising his own binoculars.

"Super huge, I think."

"Does it have spinning blades?"

"Yeah... it does." The knight replied.

"Hmm... that’s probably Prince Javier’s invention again."

"Yeah, I know... but General Hesbeirn said we need to contact the command center if anything unidentified approaches the base, right?"

"Yeah... but he also said only to alert if the detection runes trigger and the anti-air mana guns react. Look at it, the guns aren’t even tracking it."

"Yeah... you’re right." He tapped his mana talkie. "Base, base... second tower here."

"Go ahead."

"Some huge thing flying toward our base."

"Alright... waiting for confirmation..."

After a moment, the voice crackled back. "Don’t worry about it. It’s Prince Javier piloting it. He already confirmed his approach."

"Roger, base."

The knight lowered his binoculars and shook his head with a faint smile. "Of course it’s him. Only he’d fly something that size like it’s a morning stroll."

Inside the drone.

"Base, base... this is Handsome Prince Javier~ the genius of Armand, son of strict King Garius, about to land."

Liana just chuckled, and Gloria let out a soft laugh.

"Young master. If your father heard that, I’m sure you’d get a lecture non-stop."

"Heheh... Father is at home... so no way he’s going to hear it."

Gloria shook her head and adjusted her glasses. "Young master... isn’t the communication link connected to the Armand Estate command center?"

Javier swallowed and checked the panel, then relaxed with a grin. "Heh! You scared me. No~ the communication system for this GAASAD-1 isn’t linked to the Armand command center yet, so I’m safe~"

He tapped a glowing rune on the console. "This drone runs on an isolated mana network. It’s not tied into the main military comms grid. Father can’t eavesdrop unless I patch him in manually."

Liana leaned back with a knowing smile. "So you built a private channel just for your own... commentary?"

"Exactly! A genius needs his freedom to express himself~" Javier wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

Gloria sighed, but her lips twitched with amusement. "Just don’t get too comfortable. You know your father has ways of finding out things he shouldn’t."

"Heh, he’s busy with Mylezra now. And tomorrow he’s off duty and will be busy with mother. So I’ve got two whole days of ruling to survive, I deserve a little fun first."

Javier looked around and noticed the helipad was a bit small for the drone’s size.

"Base, base..."

"Yes, Prince Javier?"

"I don’t think I can land on the helipad. I’ll land on the training area. Tell the officers and guards to escort Lady Kayra toward that area. And ensure everyone pauses their training when I land."

"As you command, Prince Javier."

Javier smiled and guided the drone toward the huge open training ground. He tapped a sequence of runes on the control panel, and the drone’s engines shifted pitch, transitioning from forward flight to a stable hover. Stabilizer fins extended from the sides, glowing with soft blue mana as they adjusted the craft’s balance.

The massive transport drone descended slowly, its landing struts unfolding with a series of smooth, hydraulic hisses. A gentle cushion of compressed mana shimmered beneath the hull, dampening the impact and preventing any dust or debris from kicking up. The ground crew and soldiers standing at attention along the perimeter, watched in awe as the sleek, angular craft settled onto the training field with barely a sound.

Javier glanced at Liana and the others with a satisfied grin. "See? Smooth as silk."

While Kayra walked with her daughter, escorted by Armand Elite Knights, her own escort and Cliff followed closely behind.

She glanced around, her thoughts swirling.

Armand is truly advanced. They’re nothing like the royal troops or our own soldiers.

We can’t even compare to them.

Their soldiers wear sleek, practical uniforms, not the heavy, ceremonial armor we’re used to. And we just flew here on that massive flying machine, the same kind they used to rescue us from the sea.

And Prince Javier said he already sent his troops with those flying things to make sure the enemy sees Armand’s presence. Just the sight of their soldiers, their armor, their weapons, might be enough to make Garka and Turka pause.

I really hope what Prince Javier said is true. That his troops are already there, watching, waiting. That they can stop this invasion without more bloodshed.

She glanced around again. I wonder where they’re going to take us.

The officer said we’re just following Prince Javier’s orders. But knowing Armand, they won’t do anything bad. They’ve never mistreated anyone who came in peace, not refugees, not traders, not even prisoners of war, as long as they weren’t actively hostile. Their reputation for fairness is as strong as their military might.

They all arrived at the open training ground, and Kayra’s eyes widened.

Wh... what is that?

She stared at the massive, angular craft resting on the field. Its hull gleaming with a metallic sheen she’d never seen before, its lines too clean, too sharp to be made by any forge she knew. There were no visible seams, no bolts, no wood or iron. It looked like it had been grown from metal, not built.

And there were glowing lines along its sides, pulsing softly with a pale blue light. No torches, no lanterns, just light, coming from the thing itself.

Is that... the same kind of machine that rescued us? But it looks... different.

Kayra glanced at Javier, who stood near the huge thing, speaking calmly with one of the officers.

First the iron ship that floated without sails... then the iron flying thing that pulled us from the sea... then their soldiers’ strange armor and weapons... and now this.

Every noble in the Human Kingdom whispers about Armand’s magic-tech, but seeing it with my own eyes...

How can they build such things? How can they make metal fly, make ships that need no wind, make weapons that fire light instead of arrows?

( End Of Chapter )