Chapter 49: V4 Engine

Chapter 49: V4 Engine Meanwhile, on the -4th floor of the dungeon, the current deepest part, the air hummed with a faint, magical energy. The metallic tang of experimentation hung heavy. Karl stood amidst his research skeletons. Their bony fingers meticulously arranged elemental stones on various contraptions. Dust motes floated in the air near. Karl had already used flow and frost stones to create an artificial air conditioner on the first floor, making the commercial area surprisingly comfortable. Now, he was faced with a much larger, more complex project. He stared at a schematic drawn on a large stone tablet. Lines of glowing mana traced across its surface. A future logistical problem loomed in his mind, clear as day. He knew he needed a solution, fast. He paced slowly across the cold stone floor, his thoughts racing. "To begin with the food franchise model, I need something reliable to transport the pre-cooked food over vast distances. Horse-pulled wagons are way too slow and way too vulnerable for ambushes, though I could use my elites to guard them, it’s not like I have so many of them. The wagons themselves are also too dependent on living beasts and also stupidly inefficient to use as transport. And the food needs to stay fresh. Using the horse wagons is never a good idea to use them to transport perishable good. I need some kind of moving refrigerator, a compact and mobile version of a cold-cell ice house." He considered a simple solution first. "I suppose I could create a wooden small container with wool, straw, or hay for insulation, a kind of insulated ice box, with frost stones inside to keep things cool. But even with that, the current transport standards only use horse-pulled wagons, which is even slower and less efficient for long hauls. It’s not scalable." This was why he had taken the initiative to create some kind of engine. But to even do that, he needed a way to transfer energy between the stones, a stable, continuous power source. "Otherwise," he mused, tapping a bony finger on the schematic, "if each elemental stone in the engine block runs out of power, I’d have to replace them constantly. That’s completely unplausible, a logistical nightmare. Imagine the cost in mana and time for maintenance on a fleet of these." The good thing about magic stones, Karl realized, was their inherent simplicity when properly understood. They were like raw, elemental batteries, waiting for the right trigger. For the engine to work using elemental stones, this was the core concept he had refined: Karl’s glowing eyes were fixed on the schematic. This was the core idea for the elemental engine. It was simpler than it looked; he just needed to break it down. First, there was the Ember Stone. This was the power source, like gasoline in an old Earth engine, but better. It didn’t burn up; it just released heat when triggered. It would be placed in a chamber under a piston. When given a pulse, it would flash hot, expand the air in there, and boom, push the piston down. Then there’s the Flow Stone . This acted as the air compressor, a supercharger. It controlled the air going into those Ember Stone chambers. It made sure there was a steady flow of air for the reaction. It could even adjust itself if the engine sped up, keeping everything efficient. Next, the Frost Stone was crucial for cooling. The Ember Stone would get hot, obviously. This Frost Stone would just sit there, soaking up all that excess heat, keeping the whole engine from melting down. It was like a built-in refrigeration unit. Then there was the Water Stone. This was for lubrication and dampening. It would channel a slimy fluid to keep all the moving parts smooth. It acted like an oil to reduce friction and prevents wear, keeping everything running nicely. And finally, a module that the skeletons was working on. A crucial component to send a signal to all of the stones in the engine It would send a precise magical pulse telling it exactly when to trigger. Karl would program it to sync up perfectly with the engine’s rotation, so everything fired at the right time. To design an engine, Karl decided he needed a V4 engine model. Though a V4 wasn’t exactly common on Earth, it was compact enough for this. For now, he would stick with that as this was going to be the first magic-hybrid engine he created. He envisioned a four-stroke cycle, much like a conventional engine, but powered by the elemental interactions. Now, for the actual 4-Stroke Elemental Cycle. It was pretty straightforward, just like a regular engine, but with magic stones doing the work. First, the Startup. The driver, or whoever was operating it, would turn a crank. The startup module or control circuit of some kind, would send the first signal to the Ember Stone in its chamber. It would flash bright red, instantly heating the air inside. That hot, expanding air would push the piston down with a strong, silent force. That was the initial kick, getting everything moving. Next was Rotation & Motion. That piston’s push would turn the crankshaft. At the same time, the Flow Stone would quietly pull in air through small openings. It was getting everything ready for the next power stroke, making sure there was enough air for the Ember Stone to do its job. A faint, cool breeze near the intakes would be a sign it was working. Then came Cooling. The Ember Stone would get hot, obviously. So, the Frost Stone would automatically kick in and absorb that heat. A cool air around the engine block might even be seen as it dissipated the warmth, like a heat haze in reverse and the Water Stone would channel a subtle, flowing energy through tiny pipes inside the engine, keeping all the moving parts lubricated and cool. This prevented friction, stopped wear, and kept everything running smoothly for a long time. Finally, the Repeat step. As the crankshaft kept turning, it would hit small bumps, which Karl would call cam lobes. These bumps would be precisely placed to re-trigger the startup module at just the right moment. The crystal would send another exact pulse, causing the next piston in the sequence to fire. This continuous, timed action would keep the engine running smoothly, creating constant power without a break. It was a perfect loop of elemental energy. "That’s the whole idea of it," Karl muttered, stepping back from the schematic. He crossed his arms, his glowing eyes narrowed. A research skeleton nearby, diligently polishing a Frost Stone, paused its work, waiting for further instructions. "Though it’s plausible, it’s going to be useless without proper controls or ignition network. Otherwise, the engine would just make the car go on forever, or explode from uncontrolled power. I can’t have runaway magical vehicles." Since this was a magic-type engine, he needed a way for the driver to control it, to start, stop, and adjust its speed. "I need some kind of control, whenever the driver steps on the ’gas’," he thought, mimicking the motion with his foot on the cold dungeon floor. "If I assume these stones are nodes or trigger-based mechanisms, that can be integrated with a spell to either loop, add delays, and controlled bursts, then I’m going to need some kind of central control board, a master magic stone that controls a network of them. It would automate the power delivery whenever the pedal is triggered, or a lever is pulled." But to even begin to find a blueprint or a component of a blueprint he needed the system to vomit a new blueprint. This was the tricky part. The System only activated the "custom structure" feature when it was directly related to the dungeon’s expansion or defense. An external, mobile engine didn’t fit that description. "How am I going to exploit this damn System?" he grumbled, a frustrated sigh escaping his non-existent lungs. He paced faster, his mind sifting through System rules and loopholes. He needed a way to trick the System into recognizing an external, mobile engine as a ’dungeon-related’ custom structure. "My lord," a skeleton said, its voice a dry rattle, stepping forward. "How are we going to keep up with the mana consumed? F-rank magic stones only have a few uses before they run out of mana. If we use a slot-based mechanism, it would be possible, but replacing these elemental stones mid-journey is... unfeasible." Karl sighed, running a bony hand over his skull. "Yes, that’s the problem. I’m facing that, along with the control mechanism of the stones. I am currently working on that." Another skeleton, taller and with a slightly more elaborate skull carving, voiced a suggestion. "My lord, what about a steam engine? It would be easier to control. Yes, it would be bulky, but it would be a perfect solution for your timeline. We could build one quickly." A third skeleton, a smaller, more agile one, immediately objected. "It would need a lot of manpower to even control a single transport wagon! Not to mention, all the roads are dirt. Steam power would be perfect if the roads were asphalt, but going against rough terrain and slopey mountain paths isn’t exactly perfect for a steam engine." The second skeleton, the one who suggested steam, conceded, "Ahhh... you’re right." He then turned back to Karl. "Yes, but an advanced elemental combustion engine would need a lot of mana stones. We’re already struggling to keep up with the existing industrial facilities integrated with elemental stones." Karl slapped his face with a bony hand, a hollow clack echoing in the chamber. "Ahhh, shit, he’s right!" he sighed, the frustration evident in his voice. He looked around at his arguing skeletons, then sighed again. "How about the hunters? Have they found any monsters for our own zoo yet?" The skeletons stopped their argument, turning their empty eye sockets towards him. "Not yet, my lord," the first skeleton replied. "They have yet to find a C-rank monster within the dungeon vicinity, or even a D-rank." Karl sighed again, a deep, exasperated sound. "I’m gonna lose my mind," he muttered. "I was hoping I could make the 3rd floor into a subterranean monster ecosystem where they would breed, and we could occasionally harvest them for magic stones. But it turns out there’s not even a single monster. That makes sense why there’s so much wildlife around outside. There’s a lack of predators in the area." He ran his hand over his skull again. "This is harder than I thought." He was stressed enough with the upkeep of mana stones for the elemental artisans to infuse elements on the raw mana ones found inside hunted animals for the magic-integrated industrial zone. The skeletons, having received no clear directive, continued arguing amongst themselves about what kind of engine to use as per their lord’s request. Karl, however, had stopped listening. He stood still for a long moment, his glowing eyes fixed on the ceiling, his mind racing through possibilities, connecting seemingly unrelated ideas. A slow, calculating smirk began to spread across his skeletal face. He had found an idea for the perfect structure, one that would solve all his problems at once.