Johan, An'lil, and Captain Joral followed the overly polite Foxkin staff member through the citadel. The air inside smelled of rare incense and polished wood, a stark contrast to the damp, wild fog outside. The hallway featured antique, dark wooden floors and walls, illuminated by softly glowing crystalline stones embedded in the archways.

"Good day, Lord Johan, Lord An'lil," the Foxkin staff member chirped, bowing low. "Lord Yamanoshi and the others are waiting. Please, follow me."

An'lil nodded curtly, his nose twitching in mild offense at the cloying scent. "Lead on, fox. Let's not waste time."

They soon reached their destination, and the doors opened onto a wide, open courtyard surrounded by tall stone walls. At the center of the field were several crudely constructed wooden dummies.

Several other Lupen nobles were already waiting, standing near their own family retinues. An'lil immediately recognized the lords of the three other major Lupen families. Near the center, awaiting them, were two Foxkin figures: Lord Yamanoshi of the Hiraku Family, an elderly noble with wise, greying fur and an impossibly wide smile, and Lady Shiri, who had been the recipient of Captain Kakura's head just hours earlier. She bowed deeply and smiled with a calm serenity that made An'lil's teeth itch.

Yamanoshi beamed, spreading his arms in an expansive gesture. "Ahhh… Lord An'lil! You have arrived at last. Thank you for accepting our invitation. I believe you have met my protégée, Shiri?"

"We have," An'lil said flatly, his eyes briefly glowing red before he forced them back to normal. He didn't bother to return the bow. He could feel the eyes of the other Lupen nobles on him, assessing his bold display of power. "Let's skip the pleasantries, Fox. Let's get this done."

Yamanoshi chuckled, unfazed by the arrogance. "Of course, of course. Right to the point. I like it." He walked to the center of the open field, facing the assembly of nobles.

"Good day to everyone participating," Yamanoshi began, his voice surprisingly robust. "For those who do not know me, my name is Yamanoshi of the Hiraku Family. If any of you is aware—and you certainly are—the Alliance, if it can still be called an Alliance, is crumbling."

A wave of low, rumbling agreement swept through the Lupen retinues.

"And sooner or later," Yamanoshi continued, his smile fading slightly, "the 17th Racial War will begin again. We are here today to demonstrate something revolutionary—something that will fundamentally alter the course of future warfare."

The murmurs shifted from agreement to confusion and skepticism.

"A revolutionary weapon?" Lord Kema, a large Lupen noble with a scarred face, scoffed loudly. "What could your weavers and spice merchants possibly teach us about war?"

Yamanoshi turned to Yama, completely composed. "That is precisely the point, Lord Kema. We are presenting to you a weapon that, when wielded by those specialized in war—such as yourselves—will dominate any future battle. This weapon is painstakingly researched, and the information is strictly controlled. Not one leak will go out."

He paused, letting his next admission feed the Lupens' pride. "You may also be wondering why we wouldn't simply use it ourselves. Our kind, as you are well aware, are not exactly specialized in that kind of field. Our history proves this; we are no better than Frogkins when it comes to open warfare."

Satisfied murmurs rippled through the Lupen ranks.

"Thus, we seek you: the four major families," Yamanoshi declared. "Our ancestors looked up to your ancestors for help and protection. We ask you once again to protect us in the coming conflict. In exchange, we will provide you with something that will be extremely beneficial to both parties."

He gestured. Lady Shiri, her hands now clean, approached a small wooden table carrying an item covered in black velvet silk. She placed it before the Lupen lords and stepped back.

"What I am about to reveal," Yamanoshi said, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper, "is something only you and I have seen. You are the first we will exclusively show it to, despite all the secrecy. It is only for the benefit of ensuring others do not obtain this knowledge."

He grasped the edge of the velvet and unfurled it with a dramatic flourish.

The Lupen nobles' eyes widened with curious intensity. Revealed on the table was a pearl-white long stick, slightly shorter than a standard infantry rifle. It was smooth, made from an unknown pale wood, and adorned with multiple shimmering, cut gemstones of different colors.

Yamanoshi presented it like a relic. "This, I present to you, is our latest invention and a precious artifact: the Pearlwood Pattern 79. The name suggests the material we use, a wood found only in our forest. The number 79 marks our current year, Hermian Cycle 79, the year we perfected it."

Murmurs erupted. Lord Johan, the pragmatist, stepped forward. "It's ornate, but what does it do exactly? Is it a repeater? Does it fire steel?"

Yamanoshi smiled wide. "An excellent, direct question, Lord Johan. No. This is not a repeater, nor does it fire steel. This is a Magic-Type Crossbow. It fires different elemental bolts depending on the soldier wielding it. The effects are, shall we say, differently destructive."

He lifted the weapon, his grip surprisingly firm, and slowly pointed out the embedded crystals. "There are five power crystals embedded within the weapon itself. This ensures versatility in every manner and every combat situation possible. We have Fire," he pointed to the orange gem, "Water," tapping the light blue, "Earth, Wind, and finally, Ether, which is pure, concentrated magical energy."

Yamanoshi tapped the orange gemstone on the strange, pearl-white weapon. "Let us test with fire first. To prove that this weapon works for anyone, I will begin."

He shouldered the buttstock, the movements mimicking a hunter preparing a short rifle, and pointed it at a distant dummy approximately 90 meters away.

"To use it, all I have to do is pull this," he showed a long, thin trigger mechanism. "The action is the same as a conventional crossbow." He aimed again and pulled.

A bolt of fire spewed out, forcing several Lupen nobles to instinctively step back. The bolt was only slightly faster than a standard arrow, easily visible to the naked eye. But when it hit the dummy, a massive, brilliant fiery storm exploded outwards, consuming the wooden target instantly and burning it completely to ash.

The force of the explosion shocked the assembled Lupen nobles. An'lil's eyes narrowed, a flicker of genuine surprise crossing his guarded features.

Yamanoshi smiled, basking in the silence that followed. "The Pearlwood Pattern 79 is our latest and most improved iteration. We finalized the design so that every soldier can immediately familiarize themselves with the feel of a common crossbow."

Lord Garon, a burly noble with the Double Axe insignia, stepped forward, his eyes wide. "H-how is that possible? Fire stones are usually only capable of heating a stove or a forge, but to extend that power into a flying arrow—a blast!"

"For the detailed explanation, I will defer to Lady Shiri," Yamanoshi said with an elegant bow toward his aide.

Shiri, composed and graceful, bowed to the Lupen assembly. "Over the years, we have secretly researched how to materialize the fire from such a crystal and give it directed flight. We discovered a formula: a precise and complex combination of spell imprints and specific numeric calculations. To put it simply, by injecting a large amount of mana in the shortest possible amount of time, the fire materialized in the stone is hurled towards the target and explodes in a violent manner."

The Lupens, though not understanding the arcane details, acknowledged the simple logic. It was a new, powerful form of mana manipulation. Ultimately, whether Shiri's explanation was entirely true was irrelevant; the resulting power was undeniable, and they knew they must have it.

Yamanoshi took over. "Thank you for the excellent summary, Lady Shiri. To further prove our weapon's efficacy, we would like to honor one of your men to test it."

Lord Korso immediately nodded to his own knight captain, Roric. The astute captain approached and gently took the weapon from Yamanoshi's small hands.

"I can feel the power… the vibration," Captain Roric murmured, smiling as the weapon hummed in his arms. The other nobles were now visibly eager to test it.

Roric aimed at the next dummy beside the burnt one and pulled the trigger. The fire bolt missed slightly, but the ensuing explosive power did not spare the target, reducing it to ash just like the first.

"You see," Yamanoshi exclaimed, "The Pearlwood 79, though not as accurate as a master archer's aim, makes up for it tenfold with power. Even if you slightly miss, the blast effect still delivers a devastating strike against the enemy."

The Lupen nobles murmured in satisfaction. Yamanoshi continued, "To switch to a different element, all you need to do is tap the corresponding crystal."

Captain Roric tapped the grey one, which indicated Wind. He aimed and fired it again. The weapon spewed out a sharp, compressed wind fan that gashed off the dummy's side, nearly missing it.

"The Wind function allows continuous fire to offset any accuracy issues," Yamanoshi explained. "You may not hit precisely, but you can fire it repeatedly until the internal charge runs out."

The Captain smiled, firing it three more times in rapid succession. Three sharp wind fans spat out of the weapon, cutting the dummy's remaining limbs. The Lupen nobles were even more satisfied; firing a bow required consistent focus, but this weapon allowed for a fast, destructive rate of fire.

Roric aimed again, but this time only a single wind fan flew out. He kept pulling the trigger, but the weapon remained inert. Before he could voice his disappointment, Yamanoshi intervened, revealing a cylinder-shaped blue crystal in his hand.

"This is the ammunition source for the weapon," he said, pointing to a small, rectangular crystal on the side of the weapon that had once glowed but was now dull. "That is the indication that the internal charge has run out. You simply pull the dull crystal out and replace it."

Yamanoshi held up the crystal. "This empty crystal can be refilled. When refilled, it contains a highly compressed mana source; theoretically, breaking it could be dangerous." The Lupen nobles murmured, concerned. "However," Yamanoshi reassured them, "these come with a protective frame so the user will not accidentally shatter one. Rest assured."

He continued, listing the variable capacity: "During our testing, we found that each element consumes mana differently. This single charge can fire 4 Fire bolts, 9 Wind blades, 6 Water bursts, 3 Earth spikes, and 1 Ether blast."

"The Ether blast has the most destructive power of them all," he announced, handing a fresh, glowing ammo crystal to Captain Roric.

Roric took the dulled ammo out and replaced it. The weapon instantly hummed and vibrated again. Yamanoshi pointed to the white-pink glowing crystal on the weapon. "This is the Ether mode. It is better to simply show you."

He nodded to the Lupen Captain. Roric, slightly nervous but resolved, aimed at the center cluster where several other dummies stood close together.

He pulled the trigger.

The force sent his arm violently back, and a blinding white blast hurled through the air, faster than the fire bolt. Although it missed the exact mark, the explosion created a shockwave that sent the entire cluster of dummies flying, crumbling into dust upon impact with the distant wall.

This final demonstration convinced every Lupen noble present. With this weapon, they could finally overpower the brute strength of the Ursaroks in a full-scale war and seize ultimate control of the region.

The demonstration is complete, and the Lupen lords are thoroughly convinced of the weapon's power and victory is in their hands.

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