Tyranny of Steel

Berengar sat back in his office and sighed heavily as he took a large gulp of his beer. Weeks had passed since the Victory Day celebration ended, and the royal families of Europe had returned to their homes.

With one notable exception. During the feast that Berengar had hosted for his guests, he had negotiated with King Alvar for his young granddaughter Astrid to stay behind in Kufstein and receive a German education. Perhaps out of jealousy, Ingrid insisted that she do the same. 

Berengar's reasoning for such an arrangement was two-fold: firstly, it ensured the continued loyalty of the Nordic Countries, and secondly it fostered a healthy relationship between his son Kristoffer and his little fiancee. Ingrid forcing her way into his house was an unexpected surprise, but a welcome one. Berengar could tell the girl planned to have Hans all to herself, and he wanted to see his son knock her down a peg. 

As for what Berengar had been up to in the weeks since the celebration ended. He had been designing new weapons designs for the eventual conflict with the Japanese Empire. Itami was a wildcard, and because he did not know her the exact extent of her technological capabilities, or the extent of her knowledge as a reincarnator, he had opted to prepare for the worst-case scenario. 

Though he had begun production of Panther Tanks, Marder IFVs, and modern infantry weapons. There were still some things he feared would be necessary in a conflict with a near peer adversary.  Among the list of new weapons Berengar had designed over the past two weeks. One was a self-propelled 15cm artillery piece that was known in his past life as the Hummel. Berengar intended for the majority of his field artillery to be mechanized, so it could keep up with his other mechanized units.

Because of this, he had chosen the WWII self propelled artillery gun used by the Germans in his past life. The hummel was built on a special chassis known as the Geschützwagen III/IV. It blended the driving and steering system of the Panzer III with the suspension of the Panzer IV. It also made use of one of Berengar's more modern engines, and because of that, was both powerful and reliable.

Aside from the mechanics of the vehicle, it had a 15 cm sFH 18 field gun mounted on its back. Which Berengar also designed towable artillery of the same pattern to replace his existing 7.5cm FK 27 field guns, as well as the more powerful 10cm K 27 field guns.  The 15 cm sFH 18 fired a 149 mm × 260 R Separate loading cased charge with a maximum firing range of 13,325 meters and a rate of fire of 4 shells per minute. 

With both the towable, and self propelled 15cm artillery pieces deployed as standard to his Artillery Units, Berengar had a good feeling about the destructive power he would be able to unleash on the battlefield. However, there was another critical piece of battlefield equipment that Berengar had developed for use in his army. 

Anti-Aircraft weapons were needed if Germany were to fight an opponent armed with aircraft. Though Berengar had already designed several of the smaller designs for use on his warships, he now needed a piece that could be towed into battle, made static for use in fortifications, and even self propelled via an armored chassis. For this option, Berengar chose the 12.8cm FlaK 40. 

The 12.8cm FlaK 40 fired a 128 x 958mm R explosive shell which weighed 26 kilograms. It had an elevation of -3 to +88 degrees, and a maximum firing range of 14,800 m. Needless to say, as an anti-air weapon, it would be able to take out even his own aircraft.

Aside from the FlaK 40, which could not only be towed onto the battlefields by a five ton truck but also could be created into a self-propelled armored vehicle known as the Flakzwilling 40. Berengar had devised another self-propelled anti-aircraft piece. However, unlike the FlaK 40, which was designed for taking out aircraft at higher altitudes, the Flankpanzer IV Kugelblitz was specifically intended to take out low-flying aircraft. 

The Kugelblitz made use of the Panzer IV chassis, which was modified to accept Berengar's superior engine designs. It had a dual mounted MK 103 30mm anti-aircraft auto-cannon inside a closed turret. Each gun was capable of firing 450 rounds a minute and made use of the 30x184B explosive shells. If a ground attack aircraft were to get anywhere close to this vehicle, it would be shot out of the sky with ease. 

Aside from the anti-aircraft weapons and the new artillery pieces, Berengar made three additional pieces of infantry equipment. Specialty weapons, so to speak. The first was a flamethrower modelled after the Flammenwerfer 41. It was a lightweight, and relatively compact flamethrower that was cappable of werfing flammen at a range if 32 meters. 

The second specialty weapon that Berengar designed was the Panzerfaust 250, it was the last model of Panzerfaust issued to German troops during the second war of his past life, and was more akin to an RPG 2 than it was the older models of the Panzerfaust. Not only was the Panzerfaust 250 reloadable, but it was also capable of an effective range of 250 meters, while penetrating a maximum of 200m worth of armor. 

Though Berengar did not know if Japan would have tanks by the time their armies met in battle, he felt that arming as many soldiers as possible with shoulder fired anti-tank launchers and anti-aircraft launchers was a good idea.

Thus, the third and final specialty weapon he designed was the Fliegerfaust B, which was a 20mm shoulder fired anti-aircraft launcher designed and issued to German troops in the final days of the war. Perhaps had such an innovative weapon been introduced earlier in the war, it would have made a significant impact on the German war effort. However, in reality it was introduced too late, and with too few numbers to have any real effect. 

The Fliegerfaust B fired nine 20mm rocket propelled explosive shells with a wide spread in two separate bursts. Though its range was severely lacking compared to other means of anti-aircraft weapons, it could prove to be useful if fielded in large numbers, against low-flying aircraft, especially ground attack craft. 

Thus, Berengar wanted as many soldiers to have either a Fliegerfaust or a Panzerfaust in the event of war against the Japanese Empire. These were all weapons that Berengar had made over the past few weeks. However, at the moment, he had just finished working on one very important type of ship.

If Berengar wanted to fight with Japan, he would need to establish colonies, or at the very least military bases in the Pacific, so he could rearm and refuel his war effort. This meant he would likely be fighting a war against Japan for control over the region. If that was the case, he needed a specialty landing craft to ferry his troops and vehicles into battle.

Naturally, he modeled this vessel after the Mark 8 Landing Craft Tank. Which was a large landing craft designed by the Americans to ferry tanks and other armored vehicles onto the shores of the Pacific islands. Though they could also be used to ferry troops.

The vessel was 225 feet long and could carry eight tanks, thirteen trucks, or 350 tons of cargo across a range of 4,000 nautical miles. It also had an armament of four MG 151 20mm auto cannons. 

Having just now finished the blueprints for these designs, Berengar had earned himself a break. Which he was thoroughly enjoying until a knock resounded on the other side of his door, followed by a meek voice which he instantly recognized.

"Your majesty, are you busy?"

Berengar finished his beer and effortlessly chucked the bottle across the room and into the trash before responding to the girl who patiently waited on the other side of his office door. 

"It's open Priya, you can enter."

With that said, the door opened to reveal the figure of the teenage Indian Princess. Whom had rapidly developed since her first arrival in Kufstein nearly a year ago. Priya had suffered from malnutrition for most of her life, and because of this, she was rather petite and slender when she first showed up in the Reich. 

However, after nearly a year of not only proper nutrition, but regular exercise, she was now beginning to resemble a stunning young woman, and why wouldn't she? She was already fourteen years old.

Though the girl still had a few years before she was fully grown, Berengar was pleased with her progress. However, he did not let his inquisitive gaze show on his face, instead he merely rested his chin on his curled hands as something else caught his sight.

In Priya's hand was a tray filled with two plates. On these plates were what appeared to be Curry, and another staple of Indian cooking. Berengar was rather surprised that the girl had brought him the food of her homeland and was about to inquire about its origin when the girl spoke up with a proud smile on her face.

"I've recently gotten into cooking. It's something to pass the time when I'm here in the palace after school hours. There's some interesting books in the market about the culinary techniques of foreign countries.

Apparently German Merchants have travelled across the world, and recorded the recipes of various cultures which they now sell for profit. I particularly took a liking to my homeland's food. This is chicken pakora and curried goat. I was hoping to share a meal with you and congratulate you on your victory." 

Berengar gazed cautiously at the girl sitting in front of him. He was deeply suspicious of her behavior. There were few things better in this world than having a pretty girl make you a home-cooked meal, and it was one of his weaknesses. He thought for sure the girl was after something as he shamelessly grabbed a piece of chicken from the plate and tasted it. 

Priya, however, seemed keenly interested in how Berengar felt about her cooking, and innocently gazed at him with hope in her emerald eyes. Which ultimately forced Berengar to sigh in defeat and reveal his thoughts on the dish.

"It is really good. I forgot how much I missed Indian food..."

This statement confused Priya. From the sound of Berengar's tone, it was as if he was speaking as if he had eaten Indian food a long time ago, but trade between that region of the world and the Reich was relatively recent.

Despite her curiosity, she kept her mouth shut, not wanting to offend the mighty Kaiser.  Berengar then took a bite of the curried goat, and exclaimed in pleasure as he pointed his fork at Priya and complimented her.

"Mmm! This is really good. You have a lot of talent as a chef. Keep this up, and one day you will make your husband a very happy man!"

Berengar had just casually said those words without putting much thought into them, but Priya had read into them more than he had intended, and immediately blushed while lowering her head. Too embarrassed to meet the Kaiser's gaze.  Thus, she spent the rest of the meal in silence, taking great joy in the sight of Berengar enjoying her cooking.