Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

“I don’t know what you’ve been doing here, but the Lord will be the one to judge.”  

The old woman glanced at the believers distributing rice porridge outside the window, her expression softening slightly.  

“The ship returning to Castel is about to depart. This is your last chance to leave. Come with me.”  

The people inside the room exchanged looks, momentarily unable to react. They had just been making preparations, and now they were being told they could evacuate?  

“I can protect you as you leave. Many of you are students from the advanced class, right? Castel is far more open-minded than you imagine. Just tell the Lord everything truthfully—he will give a fair judgment.”  

Josh wanted to say something, but closed his mouth instead.  

He… didn’t seem to have any standing to speak further.  

The Mystics—this heretical cult—was originally his creation. The others had, at most, just helped a bit. Even if the Lord were to hold someone accountable, it wouldn’t fall on them.  

They just needed to push the blame onto Josh, and in fact, that was the truth. They wouldn’t even need to lie.  

Even Josh himself had thought, *”Even if I’m exiled, I still want to return to Castel for one last look.”*  Who would reject their hometown?  

But in the room, one person looked at another, each hesitant to speak.  

“Uh… Grandma, I’d like to go back a bit later. I… I still haven’t finished teaching my lessons. Those kids are about to complete their study of mechanical principles.”  

“Yes, I can’t leave yet. The porridge I make… and the holy water I brew are the best. If I’m not around, the believers won’t get any good holy water to drink.”  

“M-me too! Josh has a prior offense—hoarding soap. I need to keep a close watch on him!”  

The old woman looked up in surprise and gazed at the people in the room.  

Whoever she looked at would guiltily avert their eyes.  

At last, her gaze fell on Josh.  

Josh bit his lower lip and took a deep breath.  

“Grandma, the believers need us. Blood Harbor needs us. I’ll go to Castel later… to receive Lord Hughes’ punishment—if I’m still alive by then.”  

“This is your last chance to leave. The situation in Blood Harbor is far more complicated than you imagine. I’ve encountered several extraordinary individuals just on the way here. Are you all sure?”  

The people in the room exchanged another glance.  

This time, they didn’t look away.  

They all looked at the old woman and nodded together.  

The old woman said no more. She stood up and walked toward the door.  

When she opened it, she saw a thin, small girl standing there.  

The girl tilted her head up to look at her.  

Behind her was a densely packed crowd—followers of the Mystics.  

Some held bowls of porridge in their hands. Some held books. Some leaned on crutches.  

They stood there quietly.  

The old woman stared for a moment, then curved her eyes into a smile and shook her head.  

“Ai, I’m really getting old. You young folks…”  

She turned back for one last look at Josh and the others in the room.  

Her figure quickly thinned and dissolved in the wind, turning into strands of scattered thread.  

In the residence, the old woman opened her eyes.  

“Well? Grandma, did you find Josh and the others?”  

“I found them, but… they’re unwilling to leave.”  

Zoe opened her mouth in surprise, clearly wanting to ask why, but she knew now wasn’t the time.  

“T-then please hurry and get Connor and the others to the docks. Blood Harbor is in chaos. If we wait too long, we might not be able to leave. The prince probably won’t allow it either.”  

This was the plan Zoe and the others had come up with.  

Although they had successfully retrieved Connor and his group, there were still too many entanglements in Blood Harbor.  

Tis was not far from Castel, and Blood Harbor was the closest port to the island.  

Castel needed information from here—it needed to maintain influence in Blood Harbor.  

Their relationship with the prince was good, which was a promising start.  

If they left now, they’d lose control over the situation in Blood Harbor.  

Cultists ran rampant in Blood Harbor—who knew what kind of chaos they might stir up?  

Besides, the prince himself was still here. They couldn’t just leave.  

Erwin planned to establish an outpost here. Zoe also worried about the impoverished people.  

Connor and the other Holy Guard soldiers from the airship stood nearby.  

After hearing Zoe’s words, they clearly looked unhappy.  

“Miss Zoe, we’re Holy Guard too! We can fight!”  

“Yeah! If you’re staying in Blood Harbor, then we’re not leaving either!”  

“We dared to join the airship expedition, didn’t we? So we’re not afraid now. Cultists? We’ve even fought monsters before. How many bullets can a cultist take?”  

Erwin stepped forward.  

“Orders! Form ranks!”  

The noisy Holy Guard soldiers immediately went quiet.  

Though their faces were still full of resentment, they quickly formed a line, stood tall, and gripped their guns tightly.  

But Erwin didn’t speak to them directly.  

Instead, he turned and looked at the Holy Guard he had brought with him.  

“Form ranks!”  

They too swiftly fell into formation.  

Two squads of Holy Guard stood face to face.  

Still, Erwin offered no explanation.  

He shouted out commands.  

“All units, raise rifles—inspect weapons!”  

The two squads instantly removed the rifles from their shoulders and inspected the rear mechanisms in their hands.  

“All units, load!”  

But this time, a discrepancy appeared.  

Erwin’s squad pulled back the bolts and chambered rounds.  

But the squad that had come with the airship froze in confusion.  

They didn’t know what “load” meant.  

After “raise rifles—inspect weapons,” the next command *should* have been “bite cartridge—ram it in!”  

They were used to stuffing a pre-packed paper cartridge into the hollow cavity of a Minié ball.  

So now, they simply stared blankly at their comrades across from them, watching them insert bright yellow bullets directly into the breech, then push the bolt forward.  

It was only then that Erwin finally spoke, slowly and deliberately.  

“You see? You didn’t even understand the command I just gave.  

Look at the weapons in your hands.  

Castel has already replaced all rifled muskets with bolt-action rifles.  

Do you know how to use these?”  

“Besides, Lord Hughes requires all Holy Guard soldiers to understand the basic principles of firearms. If you try to operate them blindly, cognitive interference could occur.”  

“My friends… we all fight for Castel.  

But your battlefield is not here.”  

“Your battlefield is in the schools on the island—learning new tactics, new weapons—and then picking them up to kill the enemy.”  

“We came here to buy you the time to study.  

You came by airship to fight—your courage is clear.  

Now, it’s our turn.”  

Erwin stood straight, legs together in attention.  

His iron-clad boots clanged with a metallic sound as they touched.  

He saluted the soldiers standing before him.