I, transformed into a vampire girl, sparked the Industrial Revolution.

Chapter 26 Contentment

"Raffis~"

“I’m here, miss.”

Rafis strode over, her face flushed. She was dressed in a long maid outfit. The knight's hair was short, making her look somewhat like a boy who had been forced into a maid outfit.

"Are the clothes alright?"

"Miss, I am... I am a knight!"

In Rafis's imagination, she would be wearing a dazzling full suit of armor, wielding a sword, and cutting through all obstacles for the vampire lady, but this long dress was nothing like what she had imagined.

"Oh! That's right! You reminded me, I didn't equip you with a weapon!"

Alice snapped her fingers, and her legs, encased in black stockings, were unceremoniously propped up on the table. Alice knew that if Alicia saw her like this, she would probably get a lecture.

But come on, gothic vampire cowboys are so cool!

Alice put her legs down, and the boots made by the finest tanners clattered against the wooden board. Alice pulled a drawer, and a revolver slid down with the momentum, bumping into the wooden drawer. Alice picked up the revolver and shoved it onto the table.

“Miss Maid Knight, longswords and armor are outdated here. You should try to get used to the era of guns.”

"How can such a small weapon compare to a longsword?"

Alice gave a dangerous smile, slowly loading ammunition and percussion caps into her pistol, pressing the hammer, and then waving her hand—

boom!

The explosion and the smoke immediately woke the maid and knight. Alice raised the muzzle of her gun, gesturing for her to look in the corner—where armor was laid out, with a small hole through it.

"Who! Who dares to attack His Highness!"

Footsteps sounded outside the door, and a squad of armed guards ran in.

"Captain, a time of 20 seconds is acceptable. Congratulations."

Alice pressed the pocket watch that had appeared in her hand at some point. The captain of the guard looked at Rafis, who was laughing triumphantly and examining the armor in the corner, sighed, and then stood at attention and saluted.

"Return to your posts, Captain!"

"Yes!"

Alice stood up. It was a cloudy afternoon, and the Hilla Peninsula was shrouded in clouds as usual. She put on her hat, picked up the rifle hanging to the side, and beckoned the maid knight to follow.

At the Hilla Naval Shipyard, the frozen sea was slowly thawing, but in a short time, three Type 90 escort gunboats were launched. The new gunboats had encountered various difficulties, but in the end, thanks to the industrial supply from Trian, these gunboats were finally launched. The three Type 90 gunboats were equipped with a 520-horsepower steam engine, a single propeller, and a two-mast configuration. These three gunboats carried four 75mm Dahlgren guns on the sides, all of which used gravity recoil gun mounts. A 122mm Dahlgren heavy gun was arranged at the bow and stern of the ship.

Alice led Raphis to the naval base, while Alicia, the de facto empress, also stood with the navy. The navy remains a formidable force for the demons and for the world. Throughout history, humans and demons, as well as elves and Easterners, have all used naval blockades. During the battle in the capital, the rebels used the navy extensively to launch surprise attacks on the capital's port in the bay, achieving a pincer movement.

Now that these three ships have been launched, it means that they no longer need to fear the power of the Southern rebels. Alice has hired experienced captains and officers at great expense to train the new warships together with the artillerymen, and has established a national naval school, which is located in the Hilla naval port and is recruiting soldiers in large numbers.

The three Type 90 gunboats were not large, even smaller than some merchant ships, but they were indeed a powerful force. In an era when ballistae and infantry were still the main methods of naval warfare, 75mm and 122mm naval guns were a formidable force. Moreover, the Dahlgren guns had a variety of ammunition, including armor-piercing shells, explosive shells, and shrapnel shells, which could effectively destroy enemy ships and land forces.

"The lads are training well."

Alicia looked at the sailors dressed in white sailor uniforms or cotton blue and white striped sailor shirts. Unlike the generally chaotic merchant ships, they were well-trained, especially in terms of discipline.

Discipline was the biggest change Alicia experienced after leading the new army. Discipline is the embodiment of an army's combat effectiveness. Every soldier must follow the commander's orders, which is why she can quickly annihilate the enemy.

Now she understood the benefits of Alice's "regular army theory," which claimed that such an army was worth more than ten times the number of conscripted laborers.

The same applies to the army and the navy.

The decks of three complex naval vessels, powered by steam and sail systems, were painted gleamingly, with every detail meticulously arranged, ammunition magazines neatly stacked, and no items placed improperly on the decks.

Alicia stood on such a ship, a perfect ship, an invincible warship, and she imagined the scene of this warship facing the enemy.

Alice stood to one side, discussing various details with the captain. As the creator of the modern navy, she had to find out exactly how well her orders were being carried out.

“We are currently conducting daily exercises, and the ice floes around Hilla Harbor are decreasing. Starting today, we will begin maritime training.”

“Very good. Pay attention to every detail. Tell the bosun to observe the sailors’ condition more closely and improve the teamwork among the crew of your ship.”

"Yes, sir."

How is the boiler?

“We conduct emergency start-up drills every day, and the boilers are inspected by the ship’s engineers every day. Since we are currently in port, the maintenance is in better condition, but the engineers told me that it won’t be long before we have to go back to the shipyard for a major overhaul.”

"The workers who manufacture the machines are not very experienced, and our technology is not very good either, which is inevitable."

"Yes, Commander Alice, but after our tactical simulations, the advantages of steam power are very obvious. When entering battle, we don't need to consider the influence of wind at all. We can seize advantageous positions several times faster than enemy ships, and we can leave and enter the battlefield more quickly."

"Alright, it seems our lessons weren't wasted. Let's begin the practical training phase today."

Alice's teachings on modern management and mechanized production at the naval shipyard resulted in standardized ships. The first Type 90 gunboat, hull number 101 "Sovremenny," hull number 102 "Industrial," and hull number 103 "Battle" were launched in just 100 days. After they entered service, four Type 90 gunboats were quickly put into operation simultaneously on the slipway, with three more slipways under construction. The new slipways had more advanced manufacturing equipment and structures, fully meeting Alice's requirements for the capital ship program.

After all, the Type 90 gunboat was just a small footnote, a groundbreaking but insignificant vessel in the vast Imperial Navy. To gain an overwhelming advantage over other empires in the world, a massive capital ship was still needed.

"See those huge cannons, Rafis? I hate to say it, but ever since the Trian Armory produced its first rifle and its first cannon, all the knights have fallen behind."

Alice returned to the shore, the cannons spun and fired into the distance, the sound of the large-caliber cannons like rolling thunder, leaving towering columns of water on the calm sea.

Alice handed the revolver to Rafis, unbuckled her own pistol belt from her waist, wrapped her arms around Rafis's waist from behind, and fastened the pistol belt around her waist. The maid knight's neck was attractive to the vampire lady, but Alice didn't dare to bite down easily.

“Miss, in that case, I assure you that I will not fall behind the times.”