Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1225 Is this experience?

The issue of "whether to attack Mineral Town" has passed, so the next step is to discuss "how to attack Mineral Town". But to be honest, this is not an easy task. On the one hand, the enemy's defense force is too strong, and on the other hand, the Liberators' Front lacks the necessary conditions for a frontal assault. They do not have sufficient troops, siege equipment, and except for a few people, the rest of the soldiers have no experience in large-scale battles. Apart from their high fighting spirit and passion, they have no chance of winning.

But high morale cannot change the numerical disadvantage of their own side, and passion cannot extinguish the accumulated temperature in the enemy's artillery. Therefore, for the Liberators Front, although this battle has to be fought, it should not be fought in the usual way. They can only find another way.

"Regina proposed an idea," Grayhill Eagle said. "She is from Lostra and has a certain understanding of the situation in this town. The idea she proposed is quite feasible, so I would like you to help discuss it. Regina, tell us your idea."

"Ah? Okay big brother!"

The red-haired girl seemed to be distracted and absent-minded the whole time. When she was suddenly called by Carson Borg, she was slow to react and responded in a panic. For this cheerful, optimistic, serious and meticulous girl, this kind of emotion is extremely rare, let alone in a serious combat meeting. Fortunately, no one had the intention to pursue her rudeness, but just waited silently for her to speak.

"call--"

Regina took a deep breath and exhaled gently, gradually calming her restless mood. Then her expression became serious, and she turned back into the person that Linger remembered. "My idea is to avoid the front where the enemy's firepower is the strongest and launch a surprise attack from the rear."

Well, this is a simple plan that Mitch can understand, but simple does not mean easy to implement. Everyone knows that it is best to launch an attack from the enemy's weak rear, the question is how to do it?
Regina gave an answer that no one expected: "The mines."

"Lostra is a town that follows the movement of mineral veins. Since its establishment, miners have led its direction of progress, not only in a historical sense, but also in a geographical sense. The deeper the mine is dug, the more the town's infrastructure moves downward and inward. Over time, it sinks into the ground and is buried in the mountains, becoming a town surrounded by mountains, rocks and narrow valleys. After hundreds of years of continuous mining and excavation, the mine, which looks intact on the outside, has long been filled with mine tunnels that extend in all directions, including many abandoned mine tunnels. But without exception, they are all extensions of the original main mine tunnel. If the entire mine is compared to a leaf, the main mine tunnel is the first and most central leaf vein, and the other mine tunnels are branches that extend out."

Regina used simple words to outline the general appearance of Lostra Town. Even those who had never been to the mine could imagine the scene inside the mine: empty and deep tunnels, scaffolding supported by wood and nails, and hard-working miners, like restless worker ants, digging into the hinterland of the mine without stopping. As countless raw ores were transported from the mine car tracks to the smelting blast furnace, tunnels were dug out with the sound of mattocks and shovels. They were sometimes connected and sometimes branched, intricate and turned the dark and deep underground world into a huge ant nest...

The new leader of the Gray Hill Brotherhood, Gaisar, had understood Regina's intention. He pinched his chin and said, "Miss Regina, do you mean that we can go through these abandoned mine tunnels and directly enter Lostra Town from the inside of the mine to launch a sneak attack on the enemy?"

"Yes."

Regina nodded gently. "But this is just a rough plan. Generally speaking, we still need to solve two problems. First, the reason why these mines are abandoned is mostly because of mine collapse or depletion of ore reserves. The former is self-evident, and if it is the latter, the miners will also artificially create small-scale collapse incidents to block those mines that are no longer worth mining. This is to prevent miners from getting lost in the intricate tunnels or even encountering accidents. Except for the most experienced old miners, no one dares to say that they know every tunnel in the mine. Therefore, if you want to use these abandoned mines, you must first dig them up, and then let the old miners lead the way to prevent the team responsible for the raid from getting lost in the mines and finding the way to Lostra Town. But on this point, I think the boss... uh, Mr. Giovanni of the Miners' Brotherhood has more say than me, so let's listen to his opinion first."

Regina almost let the cat out of the bag, and although she corrected herself in time, the name that came out of her mouth still attracted everyone's attention.

"Hahaha!"

A hearty laugh rang out from the cabin.

Although Giovanni from the Miners' Brotherhood had a nice name, he was a sturdy old man with muscles stronger than granite. He had to keep his head down to ensure that he would not touch the ceiling when standing in the house. His hair and beard, which were like steel needles, had already turned gray. Judging by the naked eye, he should be in his sixties or seventies, which was an astonishing number in the East Continent. Even in the West Continent, he should have retired and enjoyed his old age. But no one present dared to underestimate this old man, let alone the terrifying power accumulated in his muscles and bones, which was like gunpowder and could explode at any time.

“You should call me as you used to, Regina. I’m not used to your sudden politeness.” The old man named Giovanni turned his head and looked at Grayhill Eagle. He grinned, revealing a mouthful of beast-like sharp teeth. He seemed to have some non-human characteristics. Although the hybrid of human and alien is rare in the East Continent, it is not surprising. “As long as this Carson doesn’t mind, it’ll be fine. Anyway, Regina is yours now. She eats your food and works for you. She is no longer the little miner who only knows how to do things recklessly under the old man. Wahahaha!”

He seemed to have remembered something interesting, and laughed heartily. His laughter even reached outside the wooden house, startling several soldiers who were on patrol. They looked at each other for a while, wondering if the meeting went smoothly and the rebels could soon attack Suare City and capture the commander of the 17th Legion alive? Otherwise, why would the people inside laugh so happily?

Grayhill Eagle waved his hand to show that he didn't mind. He even followed Regina's way of addressing this old man who had aged but showed no weakness to time: "Boss Giovanni, you are joking. You are an elder and a senior. It is only natural for Regina to respect you. Besides, Regina is not my subordinate. We are companions and comrades-in-arms."

Carson Borg called Giovanni a senior for a historical reason. The time when this old man led the miners' brotherhood to resist the invaders was indeed much earlier than the Ash Guerrillas and even earlier than the time when most resistance organizations in this wooden house were established. At that time, the 17th Legion had just entered the Ash Hill. The colonists from the Western Continent brought more advanced mining technology and a more scientific management system. Although this improved the operating efficiency, it also reduced the demand for manpower. As a result, one-third of the miners in Lostra Town were laid off, and the miners who were lucky enough to keep their jobs had to accept the conditions of reducing their treatment. This was undoubtedly a heavy blow to the miners in Lostra Town. Many people have worked in this town all their lives and have no special skills except mining. There is no other large mining area in the Ash Hill area that can accept so many people at once. The consequence of letting them be laid off is that countless families will be displaced. As the leader of the miners, Giovanni didn't care who would manage the mine, but he couldn't accept this cruel and cold-blooded decision, so he led the angry miners to revolt and resist, and was eventually suppressed.

After the uprising failed, Giovanni led the miners who survived the war to establish the Miners' Brotherhood, with the liberation of Lostra as their program. They were active in the surrounding areas, and never gave up despite repeated failures. The locals called him "Iron Heart", indicating that the old man had a tough heart like steel. It is worth mentioning that Regina's father was also in the uprising team that year. Little Regina entered the mine at the age of eight and learned how to identify ore and dig raw ore under Giovanni's guidance. That's why she habitually called Giovanni "Boss", which was the unified name for this leader by the passionate and heroic miners.

However, Regina's father did not survive the battle, and Regina herself was separated from the main group in the subsequent pursuit. She was displaced all the way, and after experiencing a series of hardships such as wandering, begging, famine and even banditry, she met Carson Borg, who had expelled the gods with his own hands at that time. Inspired by their common beliefs, the two formed the Ash Guerrillas.

It is difficult to say whether Carson Borg heard about Giovanni from Regina and resolutely abandoned his noble surname as the defender of the church, Borg, and chose to become the leader of a resistance organization, but this old man undoubtedly occupies a very important position in the colonial history of the Gray Hill region. If future historians want to systematically sort out the liberation history of the Gray Hill region, in addition to Carson Borg, he should also have a place among the most unavoidable names.

The only regrettable thing is that the old man is too stubborn. He always insists that "the Lostra mines were dug by the Lostra people, so they should be taken back by the Lostra people themselves", and has never reached a cooperative relationship with other resistance organizations. This time, if Regina hadn't coordinated, I'm afraid he would not easily accept the invitation of the Liberation Front.

Of course, the help from the Miners' Brotherhood was also a huge assist for the Liberators Front.

"Regina's idea is generally feasible."

Giovanni crossed his arms and said carelessly, "There are still a few problems to be solved. First of all, the blasters. Blasting a mine is a delicate job. It is not as simple as throwing a bomb over the enemy's head. If the weight is too little, it cannot blast the solid rock layer. If the weight is too much, it may cause a secondary landslide. Only the most experienced blasters can grasp the scale. I, an old man, can't do such a delicate job. But I did have a few old guys who were good at blasting operations and escaped together. Although they are very old, I believe their skills are not rusty. I will go and ask them later. When they hear that there is a chance to resume their old job, they may be so happy that they will be rejuvenated, ahahaha!"

After another eardrum-piercing laugh, the old man continued, "The next thing is the key to blasting, engineering explosives. In the past, we used alchemical fire as engineering explosives. Later, the Westerners came and looked down on alchemical fire, so they replaced it with their own stuff. But whether it's alchemical fire or Westerners' explosives, we have to get enough of them. It's best to have professionals who know how to mix gunpowder and calculate the equivalent. Don't count on alchemists, but we need a few gunpowder craftsmen."

There were blasters who escaped from the Miners' Brotherhood, but there were no gunpowder craftsmen who escaped. Even within the Axis countries, these were professionals who needed to be strictly supervised and it was impossible to allow them to escape.

Grayhill Eagle pondered: "Gunpowder craftsmen... shouldn't be difficult. Alchemical fire is made from the fruits of the Black Forest. This is the pillar industry of Suare City. There are many people who are proficient in this. As long as you are willing to look for them, you can always find a few. Professional engineering explosives are not easy to get. Maybe we can contact the Chamber of Commerce and ask them to help smuggle them..."

At this point in the discussion, Lingge, who had originally decided to remain silent, found that he could no longer remain silent.

"Regarding the acquisition of engineering explosives," he interrupted Carson Borg, "why not leave it to us?"

Facing everyone's gazes, the young man simply explained: "I know an alchemist who can help make explosives."

Everyone understood immediately. Of course, everyone was curious about the alchemist's identity, but no one asked. Giovanni laughed and said, "I hope the alchemist's explosives are powerful enough, otherwise they won't be able to satisfy the requirements of my old friends!"

rest assured.

Ling Ge thought to himself, I'm afraid it will be more exciting than you think.

The problems of blasters and explosives were solved, and the last problem was how to pass through the mine safely. But this was not a problem. The miners' brotherhood was not short of skilled old miners. They returned to the mines just like returning home, and could find the way with their eyes closed. Some people might worry that their memories are no longer applicable to today, but Giovanni patted his chest and assured him: "Young man, you are worrying too much. We old miners never rely on memory to find the way, but experience, experience!"

The traces of mine tunnel use, the direction of the ore veins, the distribution of ore, and even the specific time of mine excavation can be inferred based on the small animals living in the mine...these are the so-called experience.

Give me some meow