Da Vinci’s challenges continued unabated. His second challenge was in the field of ‘flying machines.’ Upon seeing the actual machines, models, and blueprints created by Hyang, Wan, and Jang Yeong-sil, da Vinci fell to his knees on the spot and cried out to the heavens.
“Oh, Lord!”
After expressing his thanks to God, da Vinci sequestered himself in the workshop assigned to him. As the rumor that ‘da Vinci has locked himself in his workshop!’ spread, the artisans of Area 51 began to show their curiosity, their eyes gleaming.
“Hoh… What’s going to pop out this time?”
Since when had it started? One by one, followers of da Vinci had begun to appear among the artisans of Area 51. No, to be more precise, it was less a case of following and more one of joining forces.
***
When da Vinci had first entered Area 51, the artisans had subtly ostracized him.
“An artisan from the West? What’s he good at?”
“Painting, I heard.”
“Painting? If he’s a painter, he should go to the Bureau of Painting. Why is he in Area 51?”
“They say the Emperor Emeritus brought him.”
“His Majesty the Emperor Emeritus? If that’s the case…”
In Area 51, Area 52, and the various research institutes, Hyang was a ‘sacrosanct’ existence. Therefore, even if they did not immediately understand his actions, everyone would nod and move on.
“He must have his reasons.”
“Have you ever seen him do anything without a purpose?”
Because of this, they had all held their tongues when they heard that Hyang had brought da Vinci. However, watching da Vinci’s conduct, the artisans had been greatly disappointed.
“I thought he was some kind of expert…”
“His skills are worse than an apprentice’s…”
Seeing da Vinci, who had a certain degree of dexterity but lacked technical skill, they were greatly disappointed and began to subtly push him away. Da Vinci, for his part, had acted with the high-nosed pride of Italy’s foremost artist and inventor, thereby inviting the ostracism upon himself.
However, the situation had changed as he learned the Imperial language and script and became able to communicate. After reading a proper copy of the Challenge of Records and seeing the various fantastical objects and blueprints created by Hyang and Jang Yeong-sil, da Vinci had set aside his pride.
“Ah! I still have a long way to go!”
Having humbled himself, da Vinci had made great efforts to close the distance with the artisans. Then, in the process of designing and developing the ‘Land Battleship,’ he had worked hand-in-hand with them, and a number of artisans had come to join forces with him.
“Well… maybe because his name is Da Vinci, all his handiwork is a bit binti (shabby), but his mind is brilliant!”¹
Throwing out such dad jokes, the artisans who had allied with da Vinci came to assess him as such:
- Jang Yeong-sil who can’t swing a hammer.
This was because, although his technical skills were inferior to those of the professional artisans, his creativity was something none of them could match.
***
And so, the artisans who had joined forces with da Vinci, upon hearing the news of his seclusion, gathered in small groups to talk.
“What did he see this time to lock himself away?”
“A flying machine.”
“A flying machine? Hah. He’s gotten his mind stuck on another difficult one.”
“That’s just like him.”
“It is. Anyway, I wonder what interesting thing will come out this time.”
Unable to overcome their curiosity, the artisans loitered in front of da Vinci’s workshop door whenever they had a spare moment. After several days of this, the door to his workshop burst open, and a haggard-looking da Vinci emerged.
“He’s out!”
As the artisans who had heard the news gathered, da Vinci presented them with a blueprint.
“Take a look at this before I show it to the Emperor Emeritus.”
At da Vinci’s words, the artisans crowded around the blueprint.
“Let’s see.”
“Hey! Move your head!”
After bickering and examining the blueprint, the artisans stepped back with troubled expressions.
“A flying machine with a steam engine…”
“Didn’t we scrap the steam engine because it’s too heavy for its power output?”
“If we mount a multi-blade propeller like the old man da Vinci is thinking, it might be alright…”
“The multi-blade propeller is powerful for its size, but I think it would still be too much.”
“The bigger problem is those wings. It flies by flapping them like a bird? Looking at the design, that mechanism has to be made of iron.”
“The frame is also a problem. Even if it’s made of wood, if you consider the strength required, the weight will be no joke.”
After pointing out the problems that came to mind, the artisans now began to devise solutions.
“For the propulsion system, the multi-blade propeller still seems to be the right answer…”
“Should we try mounting that experimental propeller?”
“What if we change the material for the gears and springs in the wing-flapping mechanism? That new steel alloy that just came out seems like a good fit.”
“The one that’s notoriously difficult to work with?”
“It may have a nasty temper, but it seems perfect for this job.”
“For the frame, what about that wood? The balsa from the New Land.”
“Balsa wood? It is incredibly light.”
“And it’s flexible like willow but doesn’t break easily, so it seems suitable.”
“I see…”
The artisans of Area 51, who had been trained for generations since its creation, had already reached a state of mastery. It was to the point that Hyang had once said:
“If only they had Jang Yeong-sil’s level of creativity, it would have been the icing on the cake, no, the final touch to bring the dragon to life.”
To solve this problem, the Empire held regular events, and Hyang had formulated the plan to reel in da Vinci. In any case, the artisans, having found a certain potential in da Vinci’s design, worked with him to refine the blueprint and draft a proposal.
As they were old hands at this, the work was finished in an instant, and after going through the proper channels, it was delivered to Hyeon via Woo—who held an adjunct position.
“Hmm… a multi-blade propeller…”
Hyeon’s eyes gleamed as he looked at the blueprint and proposal for a flying machine equipped with the very turbine engine he had been obsessed with since his days as Crown Prince. After carefully reviewing the documents, he affixed his seal of approval to the appropriate line and handed it to a eunuch.
“I permit its development. Still, send it to the Emperor Emeritus, just in case.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
After reviewing the blueprint and proposal at Sugang Palace, Hyang gently shook his head.
Is this a design I saw on the internet with a steam engine added to it? Good grief… Anyway, it flies by flapping its wings?
Confirming the line in the proposal that said, ‘it takes flight by flapping its wings,’ Hyang was suddenly reminded of a scene. It was from a documentary about the development of aviation, about the airplanes that were competing with the Wright brothers around the same time. In it, there was a plane that taxied down the runway, flapping four or five layers of wings.
The result of that was… ah! A spectacular crash!
“Hmm…”
After staring down at the blueprint for a long while, Hyang returned it and the proposal to the eunuch standing beside him.
“Tell them it seems worth a try.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
I already know the result, but progress is only made by continuing to make such attempts.
And just as Hyang had predicted, the result was a ‘spectacular crash.’ The moment it took off from the ski-jump-like ramp, it plunged straight to the ground and shattered.
“Why?”
Faced with the result of failure, da Vinci and the artisans thoroughly investigated the broken machine to find the cause.
- The idea of flapping the wings itself was a massive mistake.
- Even with the multi-blade propeller, it was still underpowered. To increase the power, the size had to be increased, which would create a vicious cycle.
- The balsa wood frame, surprisingly, was fine.
Having identified the causes, da Vinci and the artisans immediately began to make improvements. Starting with the removal of the wing-flapping mechanism, they continued their challenge, improving one thing at a time. However, the challenges continued to end in failure. And the analysis of the results was as follows:
- Connecting the multi-blade propeller to a pinwheel-type propeller was surprisingly fine.
- However, the steam engine that supplied power to the propeller is the problem. It is too big and too heavy.
- Conclusion: An engine to replace the steam engine is needed.
“This is the same problem that came up in the Challenge of Records ages ago!”
Upon confirming the conclusion, the artisans all exclaimed in unison. It was the same problem that had plagued them since the very first flying machines were made.
“In the end, it means we need an engine to replace the steam engine.”
“It’s not just the engine. We need a different fuel besides coal.”
Hyang, who had received reports through various channels, smiled and looked at his map.
Chemistry is also steadily advancing, and with Texas in our hands, something interesting will happen soon. No, we don’t even need to go as far as Texas. We can get it easily from Arabia. If we accumulate a bit more knowledge related to electricity here, the internal combustion engine could also emerge.
As he thought about the future, Hyang looked out the window and saw pillars of black smoke rising from all directions. Looking at the smoke, he gave a bitter smile and muttered.
“My name will probably be the first on the list of those who had a profound negative impact on the global environment.”
***
Da Vinci’s obsession with flying machines was tenacious.
“A new propeller, a new engine, a new fuel…”
Pondering the problems that had to be solved first to achieve successful flight, da Vinci wandered all over Area 51.
“Hey! That’s a restricted area! Get out of there! I said get out!”
“Ah! S-sorry!”
Da Vinci, who had been wandering around with his mind elsewhere, was startled and apologized as he backed away.
“Where in the world is your mind!”
“My apologies.”
Stepping back while apologizing repeatedly, da Vinci looked at the artisans and soldiers who had shouted at him.
“Huh? What’s this?”
“It’s called a Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow.”²
Listening to the gruff reply, da Vinci looked at the weapon.
“Step back! One wrong move and you could end up eating memorial-rite food!”
“Ah, alright!”
Moving back to a safe distance, da Vinci observed what the artisans were doing. The artisans, who had connected a fuse to the Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow, got into a trench, looked around, and then lit the fuse.
“Ignition!”
KABOOOM! WHOOOOSH! POP-POP-POP!
The Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow, launched with a roar as the gunpowder inside its body combusted, separated its warheads near the target. The warheads, separated from the main body, fell around the target and exploded loudly.
“Yeah!”
“Success!”
The artisans and soldiers cheered, elated. The Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow, which had been a kind of two-stage rocket even in the history before Hyang’s intervention, had been continuously improved by him. As a result of those improvements, the Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow they had just tested had become a kind of short-range multi-warhead missile, or a cluster bomb.
Watching the artisans and soldiers celebrating their success, da Vinci suddenly clenched his fists.
“This is it!”
***
Having confirmed a possibility, da Vinci immediately went to the artisans he was close with and told them his idea.
“You want to use gunpowder?”
“Gunpowder? No way!”
“Gunpowder is a no-go!”
At da Vinci’s words, the artisans all waved their hands and refused. Seeing their reaction, da Vinci looked puzzled.
“Why?”
“Gunpowder is dangerous! One wrong move and it just explodes! You’ll be vaporized in an instant!”
“We already tried using gunpowder when we first made the flying machines, and they just blew up!”
The artisans repeatedly said it was impossible, but da Vinci did not back down easily.
“The Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow flies just fine, doesn’t it?”
“Well, that’s…”
“The Scattering-Fire Divine Machine Arrow flies just fine, so why not a flying machine?”
“Huh?”
“Hm?”
“Wait a minute…”
At da Vinci’s point, the artisans twisted their heads in thought.