Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 134 Grand Duke, Time to Get on the Bus

"This version is a redesign based on your suggestion last time, boss."

Helga picked up the sample gun with the magazine inserted at the bottom and handed it to Morin.

"I thought about the center of gravity shift issue you mentioned last time, and it does exist, so I came up with this new solution to see how effective it actually is."

Morin took the gun, weighed it in his hand, and then made a few aiming motions.

It must be said that Helga has indeed inherited the family's outstanding talent and is a genius in firearms design.

This weapon, which is the same as the modified MP18 with a bottom-loading magazine that was once produced by a certain mysterious major country in the East in the Qingdao and Dagu arsenals, felt even better in his hand than he had imagined.

Stable center of gravity, ergonomics. Well, at this stage, there's not much to worry about regarding the latter.

"Let's go test the gun." Morin was already getting impatient.

The two men, carrying two sample guns, arrived at the private shooting range behind the manor.

Morin first picked up the original MP18 with the side-mounted magazine, pointed it at the target 50 meters away, and pulled the trigger.

"Da da da da da"

A long string of crisp gunshots rang out, muzzles spitting flames, bullets sweeping towards the distant target like splashing water.

Morin could clearly feel that as the bullets in the magazine decreased, the center of gravity of the gun was undergoing a subtle change.

This also forced him to expend more effort to control the muzzle climb during sustained fire.

After firing a magazine, he put down his gun and picked up the version with the bottom-mounted magazine.

"Da da da da da"

They emptied the entire magazine in one go.

This shooting experience was significantly better.

Although the gun was still vibrating, the entire firing process was very smooth, with the muzzle barely shifting left or right.

All the jumping is concentrated in the vertical direction, making it easier to control.

"Let's use this version with the bottom-mounted magazine."

Maureen lowered his gun and made the final decision.

"Helja, you did a great job. Although the side-mounted magazine design has its advantages in certain situations, the bottom-mounted magazine is a more mature and reliable solution in terms of versatility and operability."

Upon receiving Morin's affirmation, Helga's eyes crinkled into crescent moons with laughter.

“However, there is still room for improvement in this magazine.” Morin pointed to the long, single-stack magazine and made a new request.

"The current magazine is still too long, and it still gets in the way when firing from a prone position. Could you try designing a double-stack magazine?"

"Double-stack feeding?"

"Yes, it has the same capacity of 32 rounds, but the length can be shortened by almost half."

"This structure is much more complex, but boss, I can give it a try!"

Herjay's eyes gleamed with a desire to take on the challenges of new technologies.

Ah, what an innocent and kind girl.
"I believe you can do it," Maureen said with a smile, encouraging him.

With the prototype design finalized, the rest was simple.

It's the same familiar process.

Upon returning to the camp, Morin worked through the night to draft an official document regarding the procurement of new individual automatic weapons for the training assault battalion.

This time, when he signed his name at the end of the report and filled in 'Schmeisser Weapons Manufacturing Co., Ltd.' in the supplier column...
He felt no shame or embarrassment whatsoever; instead, he felt a sense of self-righteousness.

Is there anything wrong with me, Friedrich Morin, procuring suitable advanced weapons for the troops I command?

Perhaps it was the success of the MG14 light machine gun that set a good precedent.

This time, the War Department's response was even faster than Morin had anticipated.

Two days after the application was submitted, Falkenhayn and Crown Prince George returned to the training commando battalion's base outside Dresden.

The crown prince of the empire finally began to understand why his father was so enthusiastic about promoting the construction of the naval fleet.
Watching a force you helped build grow stronger bit by bit can indeed give you an indescribable sense of accomplishment and fascination.

It's like a big boy finally getting the toy he's always wanted.

Crown Prince George, in particular, practically jumped out of the car upon arriving at his residence, his face beaming with enthusiasm brighter than the June sun in Dresden.

"Captain Morin, I heard you've prepared another surprise for me?"

When the Crown Prince saw Morin who came to greet him, he patted him on the shoulder affectionately, his tone full of familiarity.

"You always manage to come up with something new and interesting."

"Your Highness, I am flattered by the surprise and novelty. It is just that our camp has some new things that we would like to invite you and General Falkinhan to take a look at."

Maureen answered with a smile.

Without exchanging pleasantries, the group went straight to the familiar training ground.

In the center of the venue, there was still that long table covered with green velvet.

On the table lay a sleek, compact submachine gun.

And standing next to the table was that familiar figure again—Helja Schmeisser.

However, compared to last time, Helga was not as nervous and awkward as before.

During the period when the MG14 began to be delivered to the training assault battalion, she would come over almost every few days to communicate with the soldiers, record the various problems that the MG14 exposed during training, and listen to the soldiers' suggestions for improvement.

The soldiers held this talented and approachable "valkyrie" in high esteem, even giving her the affectionate nickname "Valkyrie."

These days of interacting with people have also honed Helga's originally somewhat timid personality, making her more capable and confident.

At this moment, she was wearing a well-fitting blue jumpsuit, and her long hair was neatly tied back.

Standing there, he exudes a heroic and dashing aura.

As the Crown Prince and his entourage approached, she gave a slight curtsy and then began to introduce the new weapon on the table in a steady and clear tone. "Your Highness, esteemed officers, this is the latest automatic weapon developed by our Schmeisser Corporation. Captain Morin calls it a 'submachine gun'."

“它能发射9×19毫米的P08手枪弹，采用自由枪机式自动原理，射速400发分钟，最大有效射程200~300米。”

"The entire gun weighs about 4.2 kilograms and is fed by a 32-round double-stack single-feed magazine."

"Excluding screws, the entire gun has 37 parts. Although there are certain requirements for the manufacturing process, it can be produced using ordinary machining equipment, and the internal components also allow for relatively large manufacturing tolerances."

Helga's introduction was concise and to the point, full of practical information.

In summary, it has powerful firepower, universal ammunition, and although there are technical requirements, it can be mass-produced.

As the Crown Prince and Falkenham listened to these figures, they began to ponder them.

Weighing 4.2 kilograms, it is easily carried by a soldier.

With a rate of fire of 400 rounds per minute, it may not be as fast as a heavy machine gun, but it is absolutely devastating in close-quarters combat.

The 32-round magazine further ensures continuous firepower.

After the introduction, it was time for the live-fire demonstration.

Everyone instinctively took a few steps back, leaving the center of the field to Helga.

Helga picked up the submachine gun on the table and skillfully inserted a fully loaded magazine into the magazine well at the bottom of the gun with a "click".

Pull the bolt, and a bullet is chambered.

All actions are done in one go.

Then, instead of running to a distant firing position and lying down to fire as she did during the previous MG14 demonstration, she did not do so.

Instead, he stood still, rested the butt of his rifle on his shoulder, aimed at a row of human-shaped targets a hundred meters away, and pulled the trigger.

"Chug tug tug tug"

A burst of rapid, muffled gunfire rang out, the muzzle spitting out short bursts of flame, and a string of spent cartridges merrily jumped out of the ejection port.

Wood chips and dust flew everywhere on the distant target.

In just a few seconds, all 32 bullets were fired.

Apart from Morin, the onlookers were all seeing this weapon fired for the first time, and they all let out a suppressed gasp of amazement.

This firepower is indeed completely different from that of bolt-action rifles!

However, this is just the appetizer.

After emptying a magazine, Helga pressed the magazine release button with one hand, and the empty magazine fell to the ground with a thud.

At the same time, his other hand had already picked up a new fully loaded magazine from the table and quickly replaced it.

The entire reloading process was so smooth and fast that it was dazzling.

Then, she did something that surprised everyone.

She actually picked up her gun and began charging at another set of targets fifty meters away!
Pro-bro's run-and-gun style.

While running, he used short bursts of fire to suppress targets along his path.

"Rat-a-tat! Rat-a-tat-tat!"

Her running posture was not standard, and even a bit clumsy.

But with each short, sharp roar of her submachine gun, she could tear a new hole in a human-shaped target.

The onlookers—especially the sergeants of the training assault battalion—were all dumbfounded.

A picture instantly flashed through their minds:
In the dense roadside woods, a large number of Saxon commandos, carrying a submachine gun like this, suddenly rushed out of the woods and began firing wildly at the enemy at close range.
What a despairing massacre that would be!

The submachine gun passed the finalization and production approval process without any surprises—it was officially named MP14.
Although the Imperial Firearms Manufacturing Committee requested before production that the new submachine gun be compatible with the P08 Artillery version's drum magazine.

It even requires that the angle between the gun's axis and the drum magazine's feed axis be 55°, which is the same angle as the Luger pistol.

But Morin rejected the idea without hesitation, saying that while the drum magazine would be fine for the semi-automatic P08, it would be too much of a problem for a high-rate-of-fire submachine gun.

It's cumbersome to use and loading ammunition is extremely tedious—fully automatic weapons consume ammunition quickly, and using this kind of drum magazine makes the loading process a real ordeal!
In addition, this type of drum cartridge is quite complicated to manufacture and there is a possibility of it jamming, so Morin absolutely refused to make any modifications.

Therefore, he approached Crown Prince George in advance to explain the situation.

The advantage of having a big tree to lean on for shade is now evident.

The Crown Prince's aide directly delivered the Crown Prince's handwritten opinion to the Imperial Firearms Manufacturing Committee.
And then no one ever raised the issue again.

Time passes day by day.

Before we knew it, it was June 28, 1914.

That day, Morin woke up in the officers' quarters of the camp, as usual.

He did not study magic last night because of night training, and went to sleep as soon as he got back.

Moreover, during this time, he also learned all the spells that he could learn at his current level.

I'm about 10% away from reaching level 4 spellcaster.

I slept soundly until morning, when sunlight streamed through the window and fell on the floor, making everything seem so peaceful and beautiful.

He stretched, got up, washed up, and changed into his crisp military uniform.

Before heading out to the cafeteria for breakfast, he habitually opened his system panel to see if there was any new information.

On the 【Intelligence】 tab, an inconspicuous icon is flashing softly.

He clicked on it casually.

A piece of information, plain and simple, without any urgent or important markings, appeared before his eyes.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary, has arrived in Sarajevo.

(End of this chapter)