Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

Alexei turned his head in slight surprise.

“.Ash?”

Ash stood in full heavy armor, her expression cold as frost. One hand was raised before her, holding a thick sheepskin scroll.

“By the appointment order issued before battle by the Lord, and under the sacred charter of Castel, I hold supreme decision-making authority for this engagement. No retreat is permitted in the following battle. We are to rely on the fortress for defense. This is an order. Archbishop Alexei, please execute it.”

The command room instantly fell silent enough to hear a pin drop. The technical Fathers stared in shock at the appointment order in Ash’s hand, then turned their gazes in unison toward Alexei.

Alexei glanced briefly at the scroll. On it were not only Hughes’s signature but his own as well.

He had known that Hughes had granted Ash supreme command before the battle.

Hughes usually did not directly command battles himself. Engagements involving the Banshees were generally entrusted to Ash, while those of the Church Guard and its auxiliary forces fell under the authority of the Imperial Truth.

This time, Hughes had personally brought all the Banshees to the front line and handed command to Ash—there was nothing improper about that.

What puzzled Alexei, however,

  was when he glanced toward Nini beside him—her face showed the same astonishment.

So Alexei took a deep breath and asked,

“Is this truly the Lord’s will?”

“No comment.”

“I see. Do you mean to take over command?”

“No. You will still handle the specific deployment and direction. I am merely altering the strategic course. The coming battle will be fought relying on the fortress, not by retreat.”

“Very well.”

Seeing the two quickly reach an agreement, the Fathers in the command room finally let out a breath of relief.

It was their first time witnessing a conflict of decision between Archbishop Alexei and Ash, the leader of the Banshees.

The battle had already begun—two voices at the top of command could bring disastrous consequences.

But Ash’s request...

  The technical Fathers couldn’t help but wonder inwardly—could they really hold this fortress? What deeper purpose lay behind Ash’s insistence on defending it?

The coming battle was not particularly difficult, yet the faces of the Expeditionary Army gradually grew tense.

“Captain Hodge, this won’t do!” a soldier shouted.

“The White Bones are easy enough to handle, but that White Mist keeps creeping forward—it’s going to reach us sooner or later!”

Hodge felt the same frustration, but as a squad leader, he had no choice but to steady his men.

“Don’t worry. The Lord Himself is in this fortress. We will win.”

The name of Hughes seemed to carry a spell. The wavering soldiers immediately regained their resolve. The political commissar, who had just stood to boost morale, glanced around once, then awkwardly sat back down.

Before long, formations of armored Banshees appeared from the fortress depths. They said nothing, but the sound of steel striking concrete was like the fiercest battle cry. Wherever they passed, soldiers erupted into cheers.

Gwen looked at the approaching Banshees, unable to suppress her excitement.

She still remembered the crushing power of the Banshees on the battlefield. She unconsciously exhaled in relief—now that the Banshees were here, everything would surely turn out fine.

Gwen noticed that the Banshee beside her wielded six Dragon’s Breath Cannons in her six hands.

The advancing White Mist gradually overtook the White Bones. Within the fog, the bones began to regenerate faster, no longer forced down—they stood once again, and the mist’s advance hastened.

“Eight hundred meters!”

“Five hundred meters!”

“Three hundred meters!” the observer shouted loudly.

The soldiers felt an invisible pressure, but with the Banshees beside them and the Lord behind, that pressure only stoked their fighting spirit.

“Two hundred meters!” The observer’s voice cracked with strain. At that instant, Hodge roared his order:

“Prepare Dragon’s Breath Cannons!”

From the fortress gun emplacements, Expeditionary soldiers gripped their weapons tightly.

Because of their enormous recoil and need for manual handling, the Dragon’s Breath Cannons could only be properly used when fixed to the fortress structure, unless a Transcendent could resist the force through sheer strength.

Their short range meant they were seldom used in real combat. Many Expeditionary soldiers were firing the weapon for the first time, their faces lit with nervous excitement.

“One hundred meters! Within range!”

“Fire according to pre-assigned fire zones!”

Across the entire line, every Dragon’s Breath Cannon array erupted in blinding brilliance.

Scarlet fire dragons surged outward. The pollutant-charged jets tore across a hundred meters in an instant, plunging into the White Mist.

The fog paused momentarily; the thick white veil was stained with a splash of vivid red.

And from beyond the mist, the Expeditionary soldiers faintly heard a sound—something like a scream?

Or perhaps, if one listened carefully, more like a wail of sorrow.

Gwen frowned slowly, gripping her machine gun tighter.

For some reason, she felt a trace of familiarity emanating from the White Mist.

In a chamber at the rear, Hughes lay quietly upon a bed—his eyes lifeless, like those of a puppet on strings.

Suddenly, his gaze flickered alive for a moment—then dimmed again a few seconds later.

At that instant, Hughes had descended once more into this body and immediately activated the Mind Link.

『Ash, how goes the battle?』

『The Dragon’s Breath Cannons have greatly slowed the White Mist’s advance, but not stopped it entirely. Should we continue? The White Bones are nearly outside the firing arc.』

『Keep firing—don’t stop. Hit the White Bones as well. If the machine gun positions can’t reach them, use explosive packs. You must hold the line!』

『Understood.』

Ash carried out Hughes’s orders with an impassive face. She too believed that the White Calamity could not be stopped—that it would eventually reach the fortress.

But so what? She chose to believe in Hughes, to obey his commands, just like every soldier steadfastly holding their post within this fortress.

Through the Mind Link, the command spread across the entire stronghold in an instant. Will, steel, gunpowder, transcendence—all power that could be harnessed was twisted into a single cord, unleashed as fire dragons and storms of bullets blooming from the fortress like fiery blossoms.

Yet Hughes had no time to marvel at the miracle. He swiftly switched to the body of Worker Hughes and projected his will through the threads of connection.

『How much longer!? The White Mist is nearly upon the fortress!』

『Soon! Just a bit more—I need to weaken Bazel’s will a little further before I can seize control from him!』

Hearing Little Gwen’s voice through the link, Hughes forced down his rising anxiety and said gravely:

『When this is over, you’d better give me a clear explanation of what’s going on!』

『No problem—if I live to that moment.』