Chapter 22: Smoothing the Fur
Elena couldn’t find the words to describe the “creature” in front of her.
It lay there quietly, its metal surface covered in steel with no visible lustre under the sunlight. The sharp “spikes” and “angles” on its exterior exuded a strange sense of pressure.
“This is… your country’s… horse?”
She said the last word in Chinese, almost making Lu Cheng think that this girl had finally overcome her stutter when speaking Chinese. But then he realized she had only managed to say a single word.
“It’s not a horse. It’s an entirely different type of mount.”
Lu Cheng walked around the military off-road vehicle, checking its condition. The Earth base had modified the vehicle after receiving his request.
Judging by the welding marks, those mad scientists had spent the entire night disassembling the vehicle and rebuilding its shell from scratch, all to counter this world’s magic and monsters.
“Another type of mount? Is it the… Jin…Jin… Dou…”
“Stop right there, please don’t continue.”
Lu Cheng interrupted the princess’s guess, and just as he did, Noyes ran up to him and held up her notebook.
“Is it the Cloud Somersault?” Noyes had written the three characters in their language that Elena had failed to pronounce.
“How many times do I have to say it? Everything from last night’s story was just a legend. This vehicle is called a car… or more specifically, a military off-road vehicle.”
Lu Cheng hadn’t slept a wink the previous night. Besides communicating with the Earth research base and measuring data from this world, he’d spent his time telling the early-rising Noyes and Princess Elena the story of Journey to the West.
But this morning, Lu Cheng regretted not choosing a more realistic story.
Now, in Elena and Noyes’s eyes, that distant and mysterious land was a place filled with omnipotent spellcasters who could travel ten thousand miles with a single leap, flying between heaven and earth, and possessing world-destroying power.
Even though Lu Cheng had emphasized it was purely a work of fiction… first impressions are hard to change once they’ve taken root.
“Che?” Elena repeated the word “car” in Lu Cheng’s tone.
The princess could manage one Chinese character without issue, two was passable, but three and above were a struggle. Don’t even think about hearing her say four in a row.
“Iron Ring.”
Lu Cheng stopped explaining what a car was and called out to the most experienced driver in his squad.
“Present!”
Iron Ring quickly stepped up in front of Lu Cheng. Lu Cheng tossed him a set of keys—something the research base had sent over last night.
“You’re responsible for driving this off-road vehicle. Check the vehicle’s condition and prepare for departure.”
“Yes, sir.”
Iron Ring took the keys and immediately opened the door, beginning his inspection of the car’s interior.
Lu Cheng wasn’t sure what modifications the research base had made to the vehicle. When they first learned that the enemies in this other world were Blood Crystal Beasts over two meters tall, they suggested adding a 23mm autocannon and a grenade launcher platform to the car.
Lu Cheng had paused for a fraction of a second before responding over the line, “This vehicle is meant to transport people, not to fight Mosters, thank you.”
“Is it… alive?”
Elena dismounted her Walking Beast and cautiously approached the off-road vehicle.
The brave princess reached out and gently touched the aluminium-alloy surface of the car.
Just as Lu Cheng was about to tell her that the vehicle wasn’t a living creature, Iron Ring started the engine.
The moment the high-powered turbocharged diesel engine roared to life, the entire vehicle emitted a deep rumble, no less imposing than the growl of a massive beast.
At the sound of the engine’s roar, Elena immediately pulled her hand back and took a step back.
General Hubert, who had been watching from the side, rushed over to shield Elena, ready to protect her at a moment’s notice.
In their eyes, this massive “beast” could easily crush a person if it got angry!
“It’s… angry?” Elena didn’t understand what the roaring sound meant.
“Angry? No… it’s more like it’s making a sound because it’s being petted comfortably, like this.”
Lu Cheng joked as he gave Elena an explanation. At the same time, he continued scratching the chin of the Walking Beast. The creature squinted its eyes and let out a series of contented “ying ying” sounds.
“Is that so…”
Elena readily believed Lu Cheng’s explanation. She once again approached and gently stroked the off-road vehicle’s hood.
Due to Iron Ring’s ongoing performance tests, the engine occasionally emitted changes in tone, which, in Elena’s eyes, seemed like a satisfied purr.
“Can I touch it too?” Noyes tugged on Lu Cheng’s sleeve and showed him her notebook, where she had written four characters.
“Of course,” Lu Cheng replied.
Thus, Noyes joined Princess Elena in rubbing the off-road vehicle, as if they were petting a gigantic cat.
“Captain, what are they doing?” Kite asked as he approached.
In Kite’s eyes, Elena and Noyes’s behavior resembled that of kindergarten children seeing a car for the first time.
“They’re… smoothing its fur, I suppose. How about we give it a name?” Lu Cheng suggested.
“Smoothing… its fur? Where does this car have fur to smooth?”
Kite glanced around at the heavily modified military off-road vehicle, thinking that a stomp on the gas pedal could easily bring down the entire church.
“Never mind about that. Let’s call it The Pioneer. Kite, Poster… get these locals onto the vehicle.”
After christening the vehicle, Lu Cheng gave new orders.
“Roger.”
Kite quickly moved to the back of the off-road vehicle and opened the rear door.
As for communicating with the locals, that was left to Lu Cheng.
There were seven refugees inside the church: three men, three women, and one child.
“We’re supposed to sit inside it?”
Elena and Noyes followed Lu Cheng to the back of the off-road vehicle.
The interior had been modified to accommodate seating in two separate rows. It would be a bit cramped, but fitting twelve people inside was doable.
With the rear door open, it looked as if the vehicle was a beast opening its giant maw.
Except, unlike what Elena had imagined, there was no flesh and blood inside this beast. It was made entirely of metal.
“Can I ride on top for a while?” Elena asked, looking at Lu Cheng. Her crimson eyes were full of the words, “I’m very curious.”
“Princess Elena.” General Hubert still wasn’t comfortable letting the princess ride on top of this… beast.
“No problem. But if you feel unwell while riding up there, let me know,” Lu Cheng said, unsure if these locals, riding in a car for the first time, would get motion sickness.
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