Gunpowder Plate Armor and the Magic Revolution

Noze instinctively took a half step back, his lips twitching. "Commander Monet, what are you... going to do with this?"

"Teaching equipment."

Monet spoke with such conviction that his previously listless eyes suddenly lit up astonishingly, like a child who had finally found a new toy…?

Nozer wasn't sure if describing the other person's behavior in this way constituted "disrespect for superiors" under federal military law, but he couldn't find a better adjective.

Monet tossed the lead bullet in his hand, the bullets clashing together with a crisp click. "Otherwise, how do you think you're going to learn deflection? Just gesturing at the air for half a month? You'd never learn a thing."

Noze's unease intensified, but since he had already spoken and insisted on learning the spell, he could only bite the bullet and press on, "Then... you can't just throw this at me, can you?"

"Otherwise what?"

Monet raised an eyebrow, giving him a "you're just stating the obvious" look. "If I don't throw you, am I supposed to?"

"The core of [Deflection] is to use minimal magic power to apply force to a high-speed flying object to change its trajectory. You can't even catch a lead bullet flying head-on, yet you expect to deflect a bullet on the battlefield?"

As he spoke, he took two steps forward and stood about ten paces away from Norze. He casually picked up a lead bullet and twirled it between his fingers. "Don't worry, I have good aim. You definitely won't die."

Monet said that, but looking at the lead bullet on his fingertip, Nozer still felt a chill down his spine.

That kind of guarantee sounds pretty unreliable, doesn't it?

Noze finally understood why this guy was suddenly so excited. It turned out that he wasn't passionate about teaching and educating people, but had finally found a live target to openly throw lead bullets at in this boring ship.

But things have come to this point, we can't just back down now...

Noze took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Come on, I'm ready."

"Why didn't you just make it quicker earlier?"

Monet grinned, his eyes gleaming with even more interest. "Let's get the rules straight. I throw it, you deflect its trajectory, no dodging, got it?"

"I understand."

Noze gritted his teeth, staring intently at Monet's hand, magic flowing between his fingers.

The next second, Monet flicked his wrist, and the lead ball flew straight toward Nose's chest with astonishing speed.

Noze's mind went blank for a moment, and he completely forgot the method of using magic that he had planned before. He could only rely on his survival instinct to forcefully activate his magic and stop the lead bullet.

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Monet immediately raised his hand to stop him, frowning with disgust. "What kind of 'Deflection' is that? It's like a turtle shell. If you do it like that, a volley of musket fire will drain your magic. And then what are you going to do? Get shot?"

Somewhat embarrassed, Noze lowered his hand. "I... didn't realize it."

"Nonsense, you've been using your brain to figure out how to block it safely, no wonder you can't react. You need to change your mindset first."

Monet picked up another lead bullet and continued, "Don't be afraid, try it boldly. It's better to get hit now than to get shot later."

"I understand, let's try again."

Monet raised an eyebrow, flicked his wrist again, and the second lead bullet came whistling through the air.

This time, Noze was not afraid. He focused intently on sensing the trajectory of the lead bullet, precisely channeling his magic power. The moment the lead bullet approached, he applied force in its vertical direction, successfully deflecting its original trajectory.

With a "whoosh," the lead pellet grazed Nozer's arm and flew past, hitting the deck behind him.

It veered off course, but still grazed the edge.

"That's not quite right. If the angle were any smaller, you'd have a hole in your arm. But it's much better than that turtle shell from before. Let's try again."

Before he finished speaking, the third and fourth lead bullets flew over in quick succession, one heading straight for his chest and the other for his knee, each one faster than the last.

Noze concentrated intently, the magic flowing rapidly from his fingertips.

Two lead balls grazed his body and flew away one after the other. Although he managed to avoid them, a cold sweat broke out on his back.

"Wait a moment……"

Noze felt a bit strained and quickly tried to stop.

"What are you waiting for? Enjoy the feeling right now."

Monet completely ignored Nose, and in just a quarter of an hour, he had already thrown out most of the lead bullets in his hand.

At first, Norzer was flustered and cried out in pain as he was hit, but later he gradually learned to steadily deflect single lead balls, and then he was able to catch two or three at the same time. His progress was astonishing.

His uniform was soaked with sweat, and sweat dripped down his chin from his forehead.

"Yes, you've improved much faster than I expected. [Deflection] requires extremely precise magical manipulation, and I think you've already felt that. I wasn't wrong about you; you really are talented, much better than those useless guys I taught at the Mage Club before."

"Those idiots were beaten so badly they were crying for their parents and still couldn't learn the [Deflection Technique]. Humph, it almost made me doubt my teaching abilities, but thankfully..."

Noze wiped the sweat from his forehead, and after listening to Monet's words, the corner of his mouth twitched.

So this guy wasn't a teacher before, but the people he taught couldn't handle his learning style and ran away?

And did Monet really have teaching ability?

Nozer expressed skepticism, and a great deal of skepticism at that.

"But don't get too excited yet. Real musket bullets are much faster and more unpredictable. Be prepared in the days leading up to our arrival at the shore."

"Prepare? What preparation?"

Nozer's question obviously went unanswered, but he soon learned the meaning of "preparation".

It all started the next morning.

As dawn broke, Norze was pacing back and forth on the deck as usual. The morning light shone on the ship, and the sea breeze, carrying a cool mist, swept over him. Just as Norze was enjoying the beautiful scenery, he suddenly heard a familiar sound of wind breaking through the air.

Noze instinctively used his magic to instantly erect a barrier in front of him, stopping the incoming lead bullet.

When he looked up, he saw Monet leaning against the railing of the ship's deck, twirling two lead bullets between his fingers, looking at him with a look of disgust.

"How many times have I told you, stop using your turtle shell."

Monet's voice drifted over on the sea breeze, "If you were really facing a musket, there simply wouldn't be enough time for you to maintain this clumsy and stupid defense. You need to learn to use [Deflection], it's fast and has minimal damage."

Noze looked at Monet, feeling both angry and helpless.

So this officer's "preparation" was actually a sneak attack?

There was nothing he could do; rank mattered, and Monet was many ranks higher than him. He could only grit his teeth and reply, "Yes, sir," silently preparing himself for a possible sneak attack.