The heat inside the primary research division of the Rudradev Khurda Company branch factory in Badrak was intense, yet it paled in comparison to the fire burning within the mind of the nine-year-old sovereign. It was March of 1564, and the air hummed with the ceaseless, rhythmic thudding of water-powered hammers and the crackle of localized forge fires.
Prince Vikramaditya Deva sat behind his wide, clean mahogany desk, looking through a series of complex technical blueprints. His thoughts drifted back to the early modern European details on cast iron and bronze cannon designs that he had meticulously studied and taught in his previous life as a university researcher. His mind particularly focused on the heavy, cumbersome bronze cannons he had captured from the late traitor Count Amir Durani during their fateful engagement on the open plains. While those captured pieces had already been integrated into the regular royal army brigades to reinforce the vulnerable northern border against potential Bengal retaliatory incursions, Vikramaditya found himself deeply dissatisfied with them. They were massive, logistically taxing beasts—dreadfully slow to move across rugged terrain and even slower to reload, limiting their rate of fire to a pathetic crawl.
To face continent-spanning empires like the Mughals or the tech-allied Bengal Sultanate of the Portuguese, Khurda required high-mobility, fast-firing light field artillery.
The core challenge, however, lay in local expertise. While the casting of bronze ordnance was a well-understood art by the surrounding predatory powers, the tiny Kingdom of Khurda historically lacked the specialized foundry guilds and mastersmiths capable of executing such precision work. Consequently, his father, King Mahendra Deva, had been forced into a humiliating geopolitical dependency, importing expensive, traditional cannons exclusively from the only major regional power willing to trade with them: the Vijayanagar Empire.
Vikramaditya leaned back, his eyes narrowing as he recalled the crude manufacturing methodologies employed by Vijayanagar and the contemporary world. Their foundries utilized traditional sand-molded cores, casting the cannon barrel around a central cylinder to leave a hollow core. Once cooled, workers would attempt to smooth the rough interior using a spinning boring bar. It was a deeply flawed process. Because the long, spinning bars lacked structural stiffness and the interior of the raw cast piece was inherently uneven, the heavy, rough spots exerted asymmetrical loads on the tool. This caused the boring bar to deflect and chatter continuously, resulting in distorted bore holes, crude tolerances, and dangerously inaccurate cannons that were prone to catastrophic structural failures.
The door to the private office opened with a crisp click. Mastersmith Hariharan walked into the room, coming to an immediate halt before the prince. Bringing his right fist sharply against his heart in the disciplined, standardized company salute, Hariharan stood at absolute attention until Vikramaditya gave a subtle nod.
"Sit, Master Hariharan," the prince commanded softly, his voice carrying the chillingly mature gravity that always left his subordinates in awe.
As Hariharan took his seat, the prince slid a dense, leather-bound ledger across the desk. It was packed with meticulously drawn cross-sections, chemical ratios, and engineering schematics.
"Within these pages lies the blueprint for our new tactical edge," Vikramaditya began, tapping the parchment. "We are going to construct a smoothbore 6-pounder field piece. To achieve the necessary metallurgical purity and mechanical precision, we will synthesize several advanced concepts: green sand molding, interlocking flasks, solid piece casting, and a water-powered horizontal boring machine."
Hariharan leaned forward, his eyes widening as he adjusted to the paradigm-shifting terminology.
"First, the molding material," the prince explained, pointing to a chemical breakdown. "We shall utilize what I term green sand. It is a precise aggregate mixture consisting of clean silica sand, clay, graphite, water, inert sludge, and pulverized black coal. Fortunately, we face no supply bottlenecks; the primary minerals are already being brought down systematically from our newly secured Mayurganj county and the rich coal-veins of the Talcher area in Angul. The coal and graphite inside the mixture will create a gaseous carbon barrier when exposed to the liquid bronze, preventing the metal from burning into the sand and ensuring an unprecedentedly smooth outer skin."
The prince flipped the page to show a detailed diagram of the molding apparatus.
"Next is the molding flask, which is divided vertically into two identical segments: the drag, which forms the top half, and the cope, which forms the bottom half. These heavy molding boxes are constructed in segmented iron frames that can be rigidly latched to one another and to specialized end closures. For a simple object—one that is flat on one side—the lower portion of the box, closed securely at the bottom, will be filled with our prepared molding sand. The sand must be tightly packed in through a rhythmic, vibratory process called ramming, and then periodically screeded perfectly level. The surface of the sand is then stabilized with a specialized liquid sizing compound."
Hariharan nodded slowly, absorbing the mechanical sequence with intense concentration.
"The master wooden pattern of the cannon is then placed precisely onto the sand bed, and the other molding box segment is added directly on top," Vikramaditya continued. "Additional green sand is rammed tightly over and around the pattern to capture every curve. Finally, a heavy cover is placed on the box, and the entire assembly is carefully turned and unlatched. This allows the halves of the mold to be parted cleanly so that the wooden pattern, along with its integrated sprue and vent channels, can be removed. Any minor surface defects introduced by the removal of the pattern are immediately corrected, and additional sizing is applied. The box is then securely closed and locked again."
The prince's dark eyes locked onto Hariharan, his tone turning dead serious. "This forms what we call a 'green' mold. However, it must be dried thoroughly to expel all volatile moisture before receiving the hot metal. If the mold is not sufficiently dried, the extreme heat of the molten bronze will instantly vaporize the trapped water, causing a catastrophic steam explosion that will tear the foundry apart and throw molten metal everywhere. This entire sequence is the foundation of precision sand casting."
Hariharan swallowed hard, his hand trembling slightly as he made a quick note of the safety warning.
"Once the casting flask is secured and dried," Vikramaditya noted, turning to the third schematic, "we will pour the molten metal to form the cannon using a revolutionary technique: solid casting. Unlike the crude hollow-core methods used by our neighbors, our cannon will be poured as a completely solid piece of bronze. The secret to casting a flawless gun barrel is that it must be oriented in a strictly vertical position within the pit, with the ingate located at the muzzle, pouring from the top."
"Why vertical, Your Highness?" Hariharan ventured to ask, completely captivated.
"Because when molten metal cools, it contracts violently," the prince answered with clinical precision. "This shrinkage must be continuously replaced with fresh, hot molten metal, or deep structural cavities and shrinkage defects will form inside the core of the barrel. Areas with smaller volume will freeze first, while the heavier volumes remain liquid. Therefore, we provide a massive 'deadhead' directly above the muzzle section of the casting. This deadhead acts as a heavy reservoir of liquid metal, feeding the barrel as it cools. Furthermore, casting vertically ensures that the immense hydrostatic weight of the liquid metal pushing downward naturally compresses the cooling core, drastically reducing the formation of internal shrinkage cavities. If the gun were to be cast horizontally, the muzzle and the projecting trunnions would freeze long before the massive breech volume, completely cutting off the supply of liquid metal and leaving the breech hollow and structurally useless."
The prince paused, giving Hariharan a moment to catch up, before turning to the final mechanical drawing.
"Once the solid bronze piece is cooled and cleared of sand, we will move it to our new water-powered horizontal boring mill. Here lies the true inversion of contemporary technology: instead of spinning a flexible boring bar inside a stationary cannon, the solid-cast cannon itself will be clamped into a heavy, rotating lathe bed and revolved horizontally, while a rigid, heavy drill bit remains entirely static, advancing slowly along a track. Because the cannon rotates on its own true axis, the drill bit will naturally cut a perfectly centered, flawless straight line through the solid metal. This will result in a smoothbore cannon of absolute geometrical uniformity."
Vikramaditya stopped speaking, his piercing gaze studying the supervisor's expression.
Hariharan sat in rapt silence for several seconds, his mind rapidly assembling the variables—the sand, the vertical pressure, the self-centering lathe. A look of profound comprehension washed over his weathered face. "I follow your words perfectly, Your Highness. By boring from a solid block on a rotating lathe, we eliminate tool deflection entirely. The accuracy will be unmatched."
A rare, satisfied smile played upon the prince's lips. "Exactly. According to the precise dimensions I have laid out, this 6-pounder cannon will feature a bronze barrel mounted on a standardized, highly mobile two-wheeled wooden frame. The total weight of the entire assembly will be roughly 1200 pounds, making it light enough to be rapidly deployed by a small team of horses or men. The inside bore diameter is calculated at exactly 3.5 inches."
The prince turned the page, revealing a detailed layout of the foundry floor. "To achieve the necessary temperatures, I have provided complete diagrams for a specialized crucible furnace. The container must be constructed from highly heat-resistant materials, specifically a composite of graphite and fireclay. We will use these furnaces for melting and casting our metals. For now, I have chosen to utilize bronze for the cannon barrels rather than cast iron, as bronze handles the immediate explosive stresses better with our current metallurgical limits. However, the ammunition—both the devastating canister shot for close-range infantry sweeps and the solid round shot—will be cast exclusively from iron."
He slid the stack of documents forward, cementing the instruction. "All the formulas, dimensional notes, and crucible schematics are in your hands. You need to start applying them immediately."
Hariharan looked down at the dense technical wealth, unable to suppress a profound, reverent smile. Once again, the miraculous child-prince had handed him a technology that bypassed centuries of natural human evolution.
As the supervisor leafed through the back appendice of the ledger, his eyes caught a separate, miniature blueprint. It depicted a compact, highly ergonomic handgun utilizing a specialized flint-striking mechanism. "Your Highness... what is this weapon? It appears to be a miniature version of the flintlock muskets we discussed for the infantry."
"It is a flintlock pistol," Vikramaditya replied calmly, his eyes reflecting the cold fire of a future conqueror. "It is indeed a miniature variant. My elite cavalry guards will carry these in specialized leather holsters, utilizing them in rapid combination with their sabers during close-quarters combat to break enemy lines."
Hariharan nodded sagely, his mind already calculating the production schedules. He stood up, carefully gathering the sacred ledgers against his chest, and bowed deeply, preparing to depart for his office to initiate the prototype phase.
"Wait, elder," the prince called out, his voice softening with an undercurrent of official declaration.
Hariharan paused, turning back.
"Given the massive expansion of our industrial works and the absolute necessity for centralized command, I am officially changing your designation," Vikramaditya announced. "Henceforth, you are the Chief Weapons Officer—the CWO—for the Rudradev Khurda Company branch factory. You will hold absolute operational charge over all foundries, precision machine shops, and weapons development processes within these grounds."
The newly minted CWO's chest swelled with immense pride. He smashed his fist against his heart in a final, resounding salute and strode out of the office, eager to turn the prince's visions into cold, hard steel.
Moments after Hariharan's departure, the heavy oak doors opened once again, and Bhimrao, the prince's fiercely loyal personal attendant, stepped into the quiet room. He carried a fresh stack of administrative reports and financial ledgers.
Vikramaditya did not waste words. He handed Bhimrao a newly drafted organizational charter. "Bhimrao, take this document. It contains the standardized designations, ranks, and exact pay scales for every single laborer, supervisor, clerk, and security officer within the factory grounds. I want our corporate hierarchy to be as rigidly standardized and professional as our modernized military command. Every man must know his rank, his exact duties, and his path of promotion. There will be no arbitrary favors."
Taking the document with a respectful bow, Bhimrao placed his own reports onto the desk. "Understood, Your Highness. The standardization shall be implemented across all shifts by tomorrow morning. On my end, I have brought the latest civil progress reports regarding the infrastructure upgrades within your barony."
Vikramaditya opened the file, scanning the text with his rapid, flawless photographic memory.
"The integration of the advanced drainage systems is proceeding flawlessly, Your Highness," Bhimrao reported with a smile. "Not only within the main town of Badrak, but the underground brick-lined sanitation channels have now been extended into the surrounding agricultural villages of your barony, drastically cutting down on waterborne diseases among the peasantry. Furthermore, the high cement-concrete walls enclosing the corporate factory grounds and the expansive residential quarters—where the families of our company employees live safely—are near completion. Our workers now live in a fortified sanctuary. The construction of the standardized, heavy-load concrete roads connecting our mining links to the coastal docks is also progressing ahead of schedule."
Bhimrao paused, his tone shifting to one of pleasant surprise. "It also appears that news of your civil engineering success has reached the capital. Intelligence reports confirm that your august father, King Mahendra, has taken these exact blueprints and has aggressively begun applying them to the capital city itself, laying down wide concrete roads and modern drainage grids across the central districts and the surrounding trading towns."
Vikramaditya closed the ledger, a rare, genuinely warm look passing through his young eyes. The industrial virus was spreading exactly as intended. By transforming the physical, economic, and military reality of Khurda from the ground up, they were no longer merely surviving in a hostile world —they were forging the unshakeable, modern foundations of an empire that would soon rise to reclaim the destiny of Bharat.