Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 353 A Different Kind of Rebellion
Gwen frowned as she looked at the corpse in the room.

She was standing in a hidden basement in Bloodharbor, a den of iniquity where cultists seemed to grow like mushrooms in the shadows, impossible to eradicate.

These cultists were blind to her true nature and came to her door when she was in a bad mood. Gwen patiently listened to their pleas for a while and only after confirming that they were unforgivable did she call her friends to send them away.

Soon, she and her group of friends were all alone in the room.

There seem to be fewer cult members lately.

Indeed, we used to run into them every few steps outside, but now they're all hiding in their hideout and won't come out.

Moreover, it seems they can't even find offerings anymore. They used to be able to save a few people occasionally, but now there are more cult members than offerings.

"It must be because of the Church of the Mother Goddess. They don't lack food over there now—who would risk their life to deal with cultists if they had enough to eat!"

Shh, keep your voice down. Gwen won't be happy to hear this. She's actually really bothered by Mira's situation.

[It's all little Gwen's fault! Why do people say Mila is like the mother—she's never even seen Gwen's mother!]

"Sigh, we've never met, and Gwen has probably forgotten about it too, which is why she got angry when she heard this."

"Ugh, you guys are so noisy!" Gwen covered her ears and shook her head. Mira did give her some special feelings, and she missed that kind of care. But that wasn't the point!

Gwen has been feeling uneasy lately, as if something terrible is about to happen and she is powerless to stop it.

She could only vent her anger by killing more cultists who were wreaking havoc in Bloodharbor, and also help Josh solve the security problems in the vicinity.

However, order is indeed slowly being restored in Bloodharbor, and even children like Gwen can feel it.

She didn't understand the power struggles of the big shots; she only knew that the people she met were gradually becoming more radiant, the hunger on their faces was gradually disappearing, and their eyes were gradually regaining their light.

Even High Priest Josh smiled more.

This was clearly a good thing, but her bad premonition grew stronger.

Gwen glanced at the pile of corpses in the room, covered her nose, and walked out of the basement. She didn't like basements; they always reminded her of the little nest she had spent so long in the North.

But the moment she stepped out of the basement, she keenly sensed that something was wrong.

Why is it so noisy outside?

Screams, cries, roars, and all sorts of chaotic sounds instantly filled her ears.

Chaos! Chaos!
Gwen's eyes widened.

If chaos breaks out in Bloodharbor's lower city, it must be because at least one of the Secret Order and the Church of the Mother Goddess has been in trouble. Gwen doesn't want either of them to be in trouble.

One by one, figures appeared in her mind. Gwen subconsciously gritted her teeth, turned around and rushed towards the Secret Order's territory, surrounded by her semi-transparent friends.

Before she knew it, besides these imaginary friends, she had also developed some people she cared about in real life.

Meanwhile, Josh and Zoe were still having tea in the house. They had many things to discuss—Castel was preparing to take over the Secret Order, but there were still many things to discuss regarding how to deal with these refugees from the North.

Moreover, the Secret Order is a fairly influential force in Bloodharbor. Hughes did not intend to take them away directly, but rather wanted to try to use this influence to make the Secret Order a bridge and link for Castel to the outside world.

Of course, this doctrine must be changed. First of all, we can no longer mention that Hughes is a god.

In fact, as soon as Josh learned that Castell had not disappeared, he was so frightened that he immediately stopped all religious ceremonies and burned the fabricated holy scriptures overnight.

Fortunately, although Hughes did not intend to give up the investigation, he did not shut out the entire Secret Order, which means that he might only punish Josh and a few others.

They were quite accepting of this outcome. If they had been afraid of death, they would never have established the Secret Order. Now that they had saved these refugees, they would be happy no matter how Hughes punished them.

Of course, it would be best if there was no punishment.

Josh and Zoe chatted in this relaxed atmosphere, and the memo alone was more than ten pages long. The future destination of the refugees had been basically planned.

So the two of them were extremely surprised when they saw their mother-in-law looking anxious.

The news brought by the mother-in-law was like a bomb dropped into water, causing a tsunami in their hearts.

"What!? The Church of the Mother Goddess has launched a rebellion!?"

Zoe's expression wasn't one of surprise, but rather confusion. She seemed not to understand, and repeated herself before disbelief gradually appeared in her eyes.

"How could this be?! We just spoke with Mira, she, she..."

Zoe and Josh exchanged a glance, both equally bewildered: they had clearly made contact with Mira, and the high priest of the Church of the Mother Goddess was not a mad fanatic, but rather very easy to talk to, so why did she inexplicably launch a rebellion?
The Church of the Mother Goddess is not short of food at the moment, Castel has extended an olive branch to them, the Secret Order has no intention of being hostile, and even the prince's side has a tacit understanding. They have absolutely no reason to cause trouble.

"Could it be a conspiracy by the prince?"

They've already seen the prince's skills; perhaps this Bloodharbor lord is just using these cultists as pawns again?
The last massacre of the nobles was too coincidental. After careful analysis, the people of Castel believed it was likely a conspiracy by the prince, and they found some clues along this line of thought.

The old woman shook her head: "It doesn't seem like it. I came from the upper city. The prince was also caught off guard, and they didn't get anything in the rebellion—the noble forces in Bloodharbor have been wiped out, and the prince has actually taken control of the area. Recently, they have indeed been developing in a step-by-step manner."

"Then why is that?"

No one could answer this question, and the group didn't have time to think about it carefully. They still had a lot to do. Josh needed to organize the believers. The chaos was already a fait accompli, and they could only try their best to prepare.

Meanwhile, the mother-in-law guided the Guardians of the Faith toward the territory of the Secret Order, firstly to protect the refugees from the North, and secondly to keep them away from the prince.

Castel is willing to trust the prince's skills, but not necessarily his character. Last time, Castel's side of the Holy See was used to force Mira to retreat. This time, the Holy See has more members, and they need to be careful not to fall into the prince's trap again.

Just as Josh had his followers take up arms, he was somewhat surprised to run into Gwen.

The little girl from the North, leading a group of homeless children, came looking for him. Upon seeing him, she immediately spoke up:
"High Priest, this rebellion is different from the previous ones; the streets outside are full of monsters!"

(End of this chapter)