Three Years Later...
The Imperial Palace.
The first ray of sunlight had yet to reach the training grounds.
Yet...
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The sound of swords colliding had already echoed through the palace.
Aiden Ravenhart...
The Empire's Adopted Youngest Prince...
Was training alone.
His wooden sword moved like flowing water.
One strike...
One step...
One breath...
Everything was perfectly synchronized.
Sweat soaked his clothes, but his expression never changed.
To everyone else...
He looked like a talented prince.
Only Aiden knew the truth.
"Strength isn't enough."
"If I want to conquer this world one day..."
"I need weapons that don't belong to this era."
---
After finishing sword practice...
He didn't return to the palace.
Instead...
He quietly left through a hidden gate.
No royal guards followed him.
No servants accompanied him.
His destination...
The Imperial Blacksmith District.
---
The streets were already filled with the sound of hammers.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Old blacksmiths forged swords, spears, shields, and armor.
Aiden silently watched every movement.
How the metal was heated.
How impurities were removed.
How the blade was folded again and again.
Every tiny detail...
He memorized it.
An old blacksmith noticed the young boy.
"You've been coming here almost every day."
"What exactly are you looking for, Young Master?"
Aiden smiled.
"I want to learn."
The old man laughed.
"A prince wants to become a blacksmith?"
Aiden simply nodded.
"There is no useless knowledge."
The old man stared at him for several seconds.
Then...
He smiled.
"Very well."
"If you have the patience..."
"I'll teach you."
---
Days turned into weeks.
Weeks became months.
While everyone believed the young prince spent his free time playing...
Aiden was secretly learning the art of forging.
He learned how different metals reacted.
Which ores became brittle.
Which remained flexible.
How to strengthen steel.
How to reduce its weight.
Every lesson brought him one step closer to his goal.
---
Late one evening...
He spread dozens of notes across his bedroom floor.
Iron.
Silver Steel.
Black Ore.
Star Iron.
None of them were enough.
He quietly shook his head.
"Not good enough..."
"Carbon..."
"I need a material stronger... lighter... and tougher."
In his previous life...
His Carbon Combat Suit had protected thousands of soldiers.
But in this world...
Modern factories didn't exist.
Machines didn't exist.
Even basic metallurgy was centuries behind.
Creating carbon-based armor...
Would be far harder than creating it on Earth.
Still...
Aiden smiled.
Impossible...
Didn't mean impossible forever.
---
There was another dream hidden deep inside his heart.
Not armor.
A sword.
A sword from another age.
He closed his eyes.
The image became crystal clear.
A black handle.
A compact hilt.
At first glance...
It looked like an ordinary short sword.
But with a single mechanism...
Click.
The blade extended instantly.
Growing longer...
Sharper...
Deadlier.
Its reach doubled in an instant.
Enough to surprise even the strongest opponent.
It was a weapon no one in this world had ever imagined.
"One day..."
"I'll forge it myself."
---
From that day onward...
His routine never changed.
Morning—
Physical training.
Afternoon—
Swordsmanship.
Evening—
Meditation.
Night—
Learning metallurgy and weapon forging.
His meditation technique was also unlike anything in this world.
Instead of simply calming his mind...
He trained his breathing with perfect rhythm.
Every heartbeat.
Every breath.
Every muscle.
Slowly became more efficient.
His stamina increased little by little.
While other knights exhausted themselves wearing heavy armor...
Aiden could continue training long after everyone else had collapsed.
---
One afternoon...
He watched a group of knights training.
Each wore thick iron armor.
After only a short battle...
Their breathing became heavy.
Their movements slowed.
Aiden quietly observed them.
"The armor protects them..."
"But it also imprisons them."
"Heavy armor wins defense..."
"Light armor wins wars."
That single thought...
Stayed inside his mind.
If he could create armor as light as cloth...
Yet stronger than steel...
The entire battlefield would change forever.
---
Inside the Imperial Palace...
No one knew what the Youngest Prince was truly doing.
The Emperor believed Aiden was simply an exceptionally hardworking child.
The Crown Prince often praised his younger brother's dedication.
Even the Royal Instructors thought he was only obsessed with swordsmanship.
No one...
Not even the Emperor...
Knew that the boy was secretly trying to recreate technology from the future.
---
That night...
Aiden stood beneath the moonlight.
In his hand...
Was a rough sketch.
Not of a palace.
Not of a kingdom.
But of a strange sword.
He looked at the drawing and smiled.
"The Carbon Suit..."
"The Expanding Sword..."
"I'll create them both."
"Not today..."
"Maybe not tomorrow..."
"But one day..."
"This entire world will witness weapons that have never existed before."
The cold wind carried his words into the darkness...
As if fate itself had heard his promise.
To Be Continued...
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