Chapter 971: Alternate Timeline: Kiara’s inventions

The following evening arrived quietly.

"Open Kiara’s Factory."

Unlike the previous time when she personally assembled the Chimera SGM piece by piece with her own hands, this time Kiara had already passed every instruction to the robots beforehand.

Hence, the moment the Factory opened before her eyes, she was greeted by the sight of eight polished weapons resting neatly across the metal desk beneath the white glow of overhead lights, their cold surfaces reflecting sharp streaks of silver like predators baring their teeth beneath moonlight, while two robots immediately bowed respectfully and reported the completion of their assigned tasks, whereas the third remained occupied nearby, tirelessly producing 9mm lead bullets with copper casings powered by classic gunpowder.

For a brief moment, Kiara ignored everything else and focused entirely on the weapons themselves.

Technically, the weapons were only assembled.

Two crucial steps still remained.

If even a single flaw existed within her designs and the system judged them poorly, she would be forced to restart the design process from the beginning, and that process demanded enormous mental strain.

Because designing weapons was not merely arranging metal together but balancing recoil, durability, pressure, precision, heat, and countless hidden variables that could collapse like a tower of cards from one tiny miscalculation.

Yet despite that possibility, confidence remained steady inside her chest.

After all, these were not fresh ideas born overnight.

They were prototypes she had already created in her previous life, weapons abandoned not because they lacked potential, but because budgets had strangled production, complex designs frightened investors, and cheaper alternatives dominated the market.

Kiara first reached for the machine pistol.

The metal felt cold and solid against her palm, carrying a satisfying weight that pressed against her fingers with mechanical certainty, and although its appearance resembled a Glock-18, it possessed an additional front-loaded 30-round magazine that gave the weapon a far more aggressive silhouette, almost like a serpent exposing a second set of fangs beneath the first.

A selector switch sat at the top.

With a simple adjustment, the pistol could alternate between semi-automatic and full-automatic firing modes.

The rear ammunition feed handled semi-automatic fire.

The forward magazine handled automatic fire.

Even beneath the barrel, space had been left for mounting a torchlight attachment to improve visibility during night operations.

Kiara slowly examined every angle before speaking calmly.

"System, analyze the weapon."

[Tigon 1]

Type: Pistol

Grade: N/A

Weight (empty): 624 gm

Caliber: 9x19mm

Rate of Fire: 1420 rpm

Magazine capacity: 20, 30 rounds

Maximum effective range (100% accuracy): 23 meters

Absolute range: 58 meters

Attachments: available (max: 1)

Description: A handgun that is capable of shooting automatically like a machine gun.

Recommender stats: N/A

[System’s rating: 7.2]

Comments: The weapon is up to the standards of the system. It can be sold to customers.

[Ding! Please proceed to the testing grounds to test the weapon.]

Kiara closed the window slowly, though instead of immediately heading toward the testing grounds, she inspected the remaining weapons one by one, allowing her gaze to linger across each creation as though a blacksmith were silently inspecting the edge of newly forged swords before war.

[Tigon 2 (Executioner)]

Type: Revolver

Caliber: 12-gauge shotgun shells

Capacity: 6 rounds

Range: 83 meters

[System’s rating: 7.9]

**

[Tigon-3]

Type: Fusion

Barrels: 2

Caliber: 12 gauge shotgun shells, 40mm grenade

Capacity: 16 rounds (shotgun), 1 round (grenade)

Range: 576 meters

[System’s rating: 8.8]

**

[Tigon-4 (PDW-57)]

Type: submachine gun

Caliber: 9x19mm

Capacity: 50 rounds

Range: 690 meters

[System’s rating: 8.2]

**

[Tigon-5]

Type: Sniper rifle

Caliber: 7.62x51mm

Capacity: 10 rounds

Range: 1280 meters

[System’s rating: 7.1]

**

[Tigon-5A]

Type: Sniper rifle

Caliber: 0.50 BMG (12.7x99mm)

Capacity: 10 rounds

Range: 5084 meters

[System’s rating: 9.5]

**

[Tigon-2A]

Type: Revolver

Caliber: 40mm grenades

Capacity: 6 rounds

Range: 62 meters

[System’s rating: 6.8]

**

[Tigon-1A]

Type: submachine

Barrels: 3 (Gatling style)

Caliber: 9x19mm

Rate of Fire: 2455 rpm

Capacity: 50 rounds

Range: 95 meters

[System’s rating: 7.8]

**

"System, open Testing Ground."

The moment the words left her lips, Kiara felt her spirit pulled away instantly, and within moments, she appeared inside a vast artificial world filled with sections containing endless target boards stretching beneath a pale sky.

The Testing Ground resembled a giant sector carved from a circle.

It was divided into three massive sections.

The first section consisted of numerous shooting lanes separated by indestructible walls whose surfaces carried countless marks from previous testing, and this area existed primarily for small firearms ranging from pistols to machine guns.

Further ahead lay the second section, far larger and emptier, built specifically for explosives such as grenades, C4, rocket launchers, and heavy destructive weapons, where barren land stretched outward endlessly while scattered targets stood at random positions like lonely scarecrows abandoned in a dead wasteland.

The final section resembled an entire miniature world.

Mountains, forests, hills, rivers, and even an enormous lake existed there naturally, and according to the system, targets could appear anywhere she desired merely through a thought, making it the perfect environment for testing combat aircraft, missiles, destroyers, and weapons of large-scale warfare.

Kiara began testing all eight Tigon-series weapons within the first section, while the sniper rifles were moved to the third section due to their tremendous range.

Gunfire echoed endlessly.

Metal vibrated violently inside her hands.

The sharp smell of burned powder spread through the air.

Shell casings bounced across the floor with crisp clinking sounds while recoil repeatedly hammered into her arms like relentless fists, yet instead of discomfort, she felt a strange familiarity settle around her heart, because every explosion, every vibration, every burst of force reminded her of the battlefield-filled memories buried deep within another life.

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-1. You received 200 experience points.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-2. You received 350 experience points.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-3. You received 800 experience points.]

[Ding! Kiara’s Factory leveled up.]

[Ding! You unlocked suppressor.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-4. You received 500 experience points.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-5. You received 400 experience points.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-5A. You received 1500 experience points.]

[Ding! Kiara’s Factory leveled up.]

[Ding! You unlocked Scope (zoom: 20x).]

[Ding! You unlocked Upgrade Forge.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-2A. You received 750 experience points.]

[Ding! You successfully invented Tigon-1A. You received 500 experience points.]

[Ding! Do you wish to sell the designs to the system for mass production?]

"UPgrade Forge?" Kiara frowned slightly while lowering the weapon in her hands. "System, is that what I think it is?"

The system immediately responded.

[Ding! The Upgrade function will allow the host to use rare materials to manually upgrade Ether weapons with a fair possibility. The more precious and rare the materials were, the higher the chance of an upgrade. Note: the materials must be owned by the host. Note 2: The system-created items cannot be used as materials.]

A faint smile slowly appeared across Kiara’s face.

"Interesting," she muttered quietly. "So, I don’t have to depend on Upgrade Crystals to upgrade Zion or Noah anymore, too."

[Upgrade Forge]

Level: Max

<<< Go >>>

Since she wouldn’t use it right now anyway, she closed the window and returned her attention to the weapons.

"System," Kiara then asked while crossing her arms slowly, "what is your offer for the weapon prototypes?"

The response appeared instantly.

[Tigon 1 – 1000 credits]

[Tigon 2 – 500 credits]

[Tigon 3 – 5000 credits]

[Tigon 4 – 10000 credits]

[Tigon 5 – 2000 credits]

[Tigon 5A – 8000 credits]

[Tigon 2A – 800 credits]

[Tigon 1A – 2000 credits]

"So 29300 credits in total..." Kiara spoke slowly while narrowing her eyes. "Less than I expected."

The system immediately responded as though anticipating dissatisfaction.

[Ding! Credits are offered based on how unique the innovation is compared to normal weapons, how complex its design is, and how powerful it can be.]

Kiara understood instantly.

The system valued originality above simple destructive capability.

A sword might kill ten men, but inventing a new way to forge the blade itself held greater value in its eyes.

Still, she did not mind much.

After all, these weapons were never designed for immediate profit.

Their true purpose had always been completing Main Quest III and obtaining an ether weapon reward.

Now that the system had acknowledged gunpowder itself as a type of weapon invention, her requirement of ten weapon designs had finally been fulfilled.

However, she had no intention of selling the prototypes immediately.

The mandatory quest for obtaining the second Spirit Path required her to sell one of every weapon type displayed inside the gallery, excluding exclusive items.

Why increase the difficulty by adding eight more weapons unnecessarily?

Thinking that way, Kiara quietly stored all the weapons inside her inventory for future use instead of selling their creation rights to the system.

After leaving the Testing Ground, her spirit returned to the Factory once more, where all three robots had already resumed mass-producing ammunition together.

Metallic sounds echoed rhythmically throughout the room.

Machines hummed continuously.

Fresh copper casings rolled across conveyor surfaces with soft scraping noises while the sharp smell of heated metal and black powder lingered heavily in the air.

So far, roughly two boxes had already been filled, nearly three thousand bullets total, though Kiara knew completion would still require several more days.

More importantly, she also realized that one hundred kilograms of lead would never be sufficient for producing two hundred thousand bullets.

Originally, she had ordered only a limited amount because she lacked knowledge regarding local market prices, but now that she understood lead slabs were absurdly cheap in this world, costing merely 42 silver coins per kilogram due to most people considering lead useful only for paintings and trivial craftsmanship, she immediately decided to place a much larger order later.

"Alright then," Kiara muttered quietly while picking up one finished bullet between her fingers, the tiny metallic object gleaming faintly beneath the Factory lights. "Let’s finish the Main Quest completely."

She handed the bullet toward the system for analysis.

[Lead bullet]

Type: ammunition

Caliber: 9x19mm

Description: A cheaper version of the system’s tungsten/lead bullet. The 9mm bullet is powerful enough to kill a civilian and can injure a 1-star rank Spirit Warrior.

[System’s rating: 9.1]

Unlike weapons, testing the bullet itself did not require entering the Testing Ground.

Kiara simply summoned the Ether pistol into her hand.

The weapon materialized with familiar weight against her palm.

Then she calmly inserted the bullet into the cylindrical chamber before slowly raising the gun toward her own hand, point-blank.

The cold barrel touched her skin lightly.

For several silent seconds, she remained motionless.

Even knowing her five points of defense could withstand a normal 9mm bullet, instinct still whispered warnings inside her nerves, because the human body naturally resisted pain, no matter how logical the situation appeared.

Her breathing slowed slightly.

Then she pulled the trigger.

*Bang*