Page 391 of DATE
A handgun?!
Hedy was stunned for several seconds, feeling as though her usually fluid thoughts had come to a complete standstill.
Leonardo, noticing the change in her expression, gestured for the attendants and officials to step into the adjacent room to rest for a moment. He then took a step forward and picked up the revolver.
The craftsmanship was exceptional, made from high-grade steel, with flawless construction. Not only was the handle embedded with large gemstones, but every small part of the firearm was meticulously cast and assembled with precision.
Leonardo only needed a second to realize that this was another thing that shouldn’t be present in this time period.
He looked up at Hedy, but he didn’t voice his doubts aloud.
— Another person from the future has arrived in the East, and they have already begun changing this world, haven’t they?
“Hedy, you should sit down and rest for a moment,” he said, softening his tone as he helped her into a soft chair. Then, he turned to the somewhat bewildered Columbus. “Tell me about the situation in the East, sailor.”
Columbus nodded and took two notebooks and a printed copy from a nearby table, handing one to Leonardo.
One was his personal journal, documenting what he had seen and experienced during his voyages, with notes on the customs and cultures from India to China.
The other… was a black-and-white printed book, containing photographs.
Leonardo immediately recognized what the small square object capable of capturing scenes was—people from the future would no longer need artists to capture images. They could all simply take photographs of the scenes around them, some of which were even in color.
He flipped through a few pages and noticed that the book was in both Chinese and English, though unfortunately, he wasn’t fluent in English.
“We traveled east along the map, passing through many countries,” Columbus began recounting his journey, occasionally taking a sip of wine.
Hedy took the bilingual book and had already processed the situation—this was a time when people from the future, for some unknown reason, had returned, starting to influence the course of the empire’s history.
And perhaps, they had already reached the peak of power.
She flipped through the book for a while, then suddenly realized something. “This is a history book?”
"Yes," Columbus replied respectfully. "As per your instructions, we purchased it from ordinary students while we were out on our voyage. We didn’t mention it to anyone from the diplomatic department."
"But due to the language barrier... although we had people who understood English, there were still many words we couldn’t quite make out."
Leonardo watched her closely and asked, “What’s happened?”
Hedy flipped to a particular page and then began summarizing it for him in Italian.
Three hundred years ago, in a place in China called 'Beijing,' a mysterious fire from the sky appeared. Some of the natives vanished, and in their place, a modern town from another time and space emerged.
Following multiple wars, conflicts, and annexations, China, which had been fragmented, began to unify once again and work toward peace. The country started advancing in technology and culture, blending the ancient and the modern.
She hesitated for a second when she reached that part.
If it was a town, by now it should have developed the country to a point of great strength... and surely they would have even developed submarines by now, right?
But why hadn’t there been any sign of life from that country before they sent the fleet? Why hadn’t the old captain heard anything about it?
As she turned the page with her fingertips, a photograph of ruins appeared.
Leonardo paused for a moment, muttering, "They too have had internal strife..."
And it was a devastating internal strife.
Hedy steadied herself and continued translating the rest of the account.
