Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 47: Heart of the War Drum (4)

Dragon Raja 3

The men from the Gear Department looked at each other, then shrugged. Finally, Director Arkadura knocked on the table, indicating he had something to say.

Director Arkadura nodded. “Though it makes it seem as if there is something in this world we cannot accomplish…”

Anjou was thoroughly annoyed by this opening line—Arkadura always said it before denying Anjou’s requests, nodding continuously while doing so. As an Arab, Arkadura nodded to indicate disagreement, and shook his head to indicate agreement, which always left Anjou frustrated.

Director Arkadura continued nodding. “But three months is not enough time for us to produce a qualified underwater robot—we need a year.”

“A year is out of the question; by then that dragon might have already traveled around the world. I can extend it to six months,” Anjou said.

Director Arkadura nodded, “Six months won’t be enough either.”

“You can sink Japan, but you can’t make a submersible in six months?” Anjou said, “Do you think I’d believe that?”

Director Arkadura nodded again.

Anjou took a deep breath, “Please don’t just stay silent, my dear Director Arkadura. Every time you widen those bright black eyes at me, nodding and shaking your head, my entire worldview collapses! I have to say I can’t understand the meaning behind your nodding and shaking. I can’t tell whether you’re agreeing or disagreeing—do you understand?”

Director Arkadura shook his head.

Anjou stood up and moved behind Director Arkadura, cupping his cheeks with both hands, “Alright, how about this? You can’t nod or shake your head now—speak, and tell me how exactly you can get me a submersible capable of observing the embryo.”

Director Arkadura struggled a few times but realized that with Anjou’s strong grip, he couldn’t nod or shake his head anymore. He wisely gave up—if he kept trying, while Anjou wouldn’t break his neck, he might give himself a severe stiff neck.

“The bottleneck for the submersible is artificial intelligence. AI still has a gap compared to a human pilot. To explore the deep sea, especially such a wide area, the submersible must possess advanced AI, which makes it very challenging to design. Of course, we could also have the controller stay on the surface, operating the submersible via several kilometers of cable. But there’s another problem—dragon embryos create a field to protect themselves. Once the submersible enters its field, the control system will lose function,” Director Arkadura said.

“So, what you’re saying is that if I want to observe the embryo up close, I still have to send a specialist down to a depth of 8,000 meters?”

“And they must be a specialist with a sufficiently excellent bloodline. When entering the embryo’s field, their neural circuitry will also be affected. The stronger the bloodline, the higher the resistance to interference,” Director Arkadura pointed to his head.

“If we send a manned submersible, we can accurately locate and blast the embryo. I have a complete plan for that!” Researcher Mathur suddenly stood up, showing off his professional authority.

“Your so-called precise blast… won’t end up sinking Japan, right?” Anjou was still uneasy.

“It won’t sink Japan. I plan to use a new type of refined sulfur bomb! That’s why we’ve been conducting blast tests all night—to verify the power of the sulfur bomb,” Mathur said energetically. “The refined sulfur bomb has minimal explosive power—there’s no problem detonating it inside Valt Alheim. But during the explosion, it emits special alchemically refined sulfur powder and releases massive amounts of mercury vapor. The vapor is absorbed by the sulfur powder, which will then adhere massively to the embryo’s surface and infiltrate it. Though the bomb isn’t very powerful, it’s extremely effective against dragons, possessing penetrating, corrupting, and erosive effects. Even a Dragon King cannot withstand its power!”

“So, your suggestion is to send a manned submersible, and if the embryo is detected, destroy it with the refined sulfur bomb?” Anjou asked.

“Exactly, but developing a new manned submersible would still require a year,” Director Arkadura said. “The key technology for a manned submersible is pressure resistance. In the deep sea trench, even the slightest crack on the submersible’s surface could lead to the entire crew’s demise. If we hastily throw together a hunk of metal and call it a reliable submersible, what specialist would be willing to dive?”

“Oh, great.” Anjou held his forehead.

“I didn’t expect that as a leader, you would show the courage of a warrior—are you planning to dive yourself?” Director Arkadura was shocked. “Principal, you should think this through!”

“I suddenly have no desire to respond to you… What I need is a solution that can resolve this within three months! You all keep talking, and in the end, you tell me to wait a year—I don’t have a year to spare!”

“Developing a new manned submersible would take a year, but modifying an old one wouldn’t take nearly as long,” Director Arkadura shrugged, “It’s just that modifying an old submersible doesn’t show off our technical expertise.”

“How long would it take to modify an old one?” Anjou said, excitedly holding Arkadura’s shoulders.

“It’s almost complete; the technicians are currently testing a few new systems.”

“Is there really no issue with a submersible modified in such a short time?”

“Absolutely no problem! The predecessors already solved the core issue of pressure resistance; we’re just polishing it, adding new systems, and fitting the sulfur bomb. If we haven’t finished this simple task by now, how would we have the face to stay in Cassell College?” Director Arkadura gave a thumbs up.

“Giving a thumbs up means ‘good,’ ‘correct,’ and ‘affirmative’ for you Arabs, right?” Anjou was still unsure.

Director Arkadura shook his head…

“Lastly, I want to remind you once again—the submersible must be piloted by a specialist with a high enough bloodline level. Upon entering the embryo’s field, the pilot’s neural circuitry will inevitably be disrupted. The better the bloodline, the less the effect,” Director Arkadura said while shaking hands with Anjou, and the men from the Gear Department saw him off at the elevator.

“Understood, I already have a suitable candidate in mind,” Anjou said. “But since the equipment you modified will be sent to Japan, shouldn’t you also send some technical personnel along with it?”

Director Arkadura suddenly showed a troubled expression. He turned to look at his beloved subordinates behind him, who were ready to shake hands with Anjou in turn. Unanimously, they all took a step back.

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