Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 354 The Hong Kong Defenders Have Arrived

Gwen tried to hide behind the homeless children so that Josh wouldn't notice her disheveled state.

But Josh noticed it nonetheless. He sniffed, frowned, and stepped forward to grab Gwen's clothes.

Gwen quickly pulled the hem of her cloak out, lowered her head, took a step back, and tried to hide the piece of cloak behind her back.

Josh looked down at his hand, which was stained with a red mark mixed with mud and water.

"You ran away?"

He glared at Gwen but didn't say anything more. Time was of the essence, and the information Gwen brought was extremely important.

"Yes, High Priest, I just saw that there are many monsters mixed in with the Mother Goddess's followers outside!"

Gwen said hastily.

"Monster? What kind of monster?"

Josh's fingers trembled. No matter what, he was just an ordinary person who knew very little about the extraordinary world. At this moment, he could only bite the bullet and go for it.

Damn it, he only wanted to be a businessman back then, how come he has to lead a cult to fight monsters now?
“It’s like Tommy is a monster pieced together from many people!” Gwen said halfway through, then suddenly remembered that Josh wasn’t present when the prince confronted Mira, so she quickly changed her words.

"Piece together!?"

Josh swallowed hard, feeling completely flustered, his mind filled with all sorts of chaotic thoughts. But then he suddenly frowned: "Does adding more limbs make a person stronger in combat?"

Although he intended to be a businessman, he was, after all, from Castells and after attending many courses, he developed some inclination towards engineering.

For example, upon hearing about a monster, the first thought that comes to mind is not fear, but rather whether this mutation is practical or not.
Gwen took a deep breath.

Josh realized this wasn't the time to think about that, and he said urgently, "Gwen, are you sure? This is important!"

"Of course, I saw it with my own eyes!"

Josh glanced at her blood-stained cloak, put aside his chaotic thoughts, greeted his companions, and jogged back into the house.

"Grandma, I just received news that monsters have appeared on the streets outside!"

The old woman, who had been sitting motionless with her head down as if she were about to fall asleep, immediately turned her head and looked over: "What kind of monster?"

Josh relayed Gwen's account, and her mother-in-law's expression turned slightly strange: "You said... a little girl told you that?"

"Yes, those monsters are said to be mixed in with the Mother Goddess's followers, and there are quite a few of them!"

The mother-in-law nodded solemnly: "This is very important news. I will inform the Guardians of the Faith immediately. By the way, tell your believers to prepare themselves, as the Guardians of the Faith will be moving this way!"

"no problem!"

His mother-in-law nodded at him and then drifted off to sleep again.

Josh knew that her true form wasn't here; she was probably assisting with mobilization within the Guardians of the Church.

Suppressing his unease, the monster Josh stepped outside and rallied his followers to begin organizing a defense.

Distributing weapons, arranging plans, and building barricades—it was quite some time before he finally had a moment of free time. He wanted to have a good talk with Gwen and warn her to be careful, but unfortunately, he searched the Secret Order's hideout from top to bottom and still couldn't find the white-haired little girl.

Gwen left again.

On the other hand, unlike the last rebellion, this time the port guards responded quickly to the prince's call, and soon after the order was given, they arrived on the streets of the Upper Town.

No members of the Church of the Mother Goddess had arrived yet. After personally leading his men to set up the defenses, the prince hesitated for a moment before leaving the upper city with Galahad. He had a vague feeling that something was amiss—the Church of the Mother Goddess's rebellion this time was quite strange. The prince wasn't one to ignore problems, so he decided to go and see for himself what was going on.

Therefore, after selecting a group of people, they rode away fully armed.

The two were followed by cavalry, numbering in the dozens. They were elite musketeers, mounted on horses, and moved swiftly like the wind.

With Galahad accompanying them, the group could easily escape if they encountered trouble while scouting.

Unlike the last rebellion, the prince didn't have much information this time either. After thinking for a moment, he led his men to the secret society.

Castells's connection with the Secret Order could not be kept secret. As soon as the rebellion broke out, the Guardians set off for the Secret Order, and the prince did not stop them.

Although the Guardians set out earlier, they had no horses and traveled on foot, thus falling behind the prince.

Soon, the Secret Order's stronghold appeared before Galahad.

“They are building barricades; it looks like they are preparing for defense, Your Highness!” Galahad said, turning to the prince.

"Strange"

The prince frowned.

"Sir, is something wrong?"

"A rebellion presents a perfect opportunity to fish in troubled waters. The Secret Order should not choose a complete retreat; they will benefit greatly from whatever they do, and focusing on defense is more likely."

The prince paused, his face darkening. "The situation has completely exceeded their expectations. They can't solve the problem on their own, so they are holding their ground and waiting for reinforcements from the Christian Guard."

Galahad, with his extensive battlefield experience, immediately realized: "A problem that an organization like the Secret Order can't solve is related to the extraordinary?"

Even if the Church of the Mother Goddess attacks, the Secret Order, with its size, could confront it head-on, building barricades to block the roads. This almost completely abandons the opportunity to launch an offensive, forcing the Secret Order to choose the most conservative strategy. What kind of enemy could it be?

"You think it should be..." Galahad said hesitantly.

The prince shook his head: "Instead of guessing, let's just ask—"

He spurred his horse forward a few steps and shouted, "I am Grand Duke William, and I have come to protect Blood Harbor. Please tell me what has happened here!"

A commotion arose in the barricades of the Secret Order, but it quickly subsided. A voice came from within: "Your Highness, we have encountered monsters outside. They are mixed among the followers of the Mother Goddess and are wandering around the lower city!"

Although the two sides have different positions at this moment, they are facing the same enemy. Although the Secret Order is closer to the Church of the Mother Goddess, it is still better to be cautious when facing those monsters.

Therefore, although the secret order was wary of the prince and his party, they still provided information.

"The monsters attacked you?"

"We haven't made contact yet!"

"What do they look like? Describe them!"

However, before the secret society could reply, a scream rang out:

"Monster! There's a monster over there!!"

The prince and the port guards' cavalry immediately turned to look. Sometime during the night, the figures of the Mother Goddess's followers appeared in the alley, along with monsters.

(End of this chapter)