Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 509 The Pursuers Are Catching Up
Some soldiers hurriedly grabbed their bayonets and shoved them into the muzzles of their rifles, but the rifles, which hadn't even been fired yet, went off accidentally, killing several of their own men.

—The bayonet of this type of musket is inserted directly into the muzzle; if fired at this point, the barrel will explode.

Some soldiers raised their guns and fired, but when they didn't hear the drumbeats or commands to reload, they froze in place.

Many more soldiers were terrified. The weapon that had inexplicably killed all the officers filled them with extreme fear, and some even dropped their muskets and knelt on the ground to pray.

Isaac watched as Gwen and the resistance fighters charged forward, then looked away.

There is no suspense in the battle anymore.

The resistance forces already had a numerical advantage, and the opposing side, without a commander, became like meat on a chopping block, at the mercy of others.

"The heavy machine gun's burst fire is so effective?" the mother-in-law asked in surprise.

This weapon was too large and inconvenient to carry, making it unusable in combat for superhumans, and she didn't pay much attention to it.

She didn't quite understand why Isaac had brought it before, but she never expected it to change the course of the battle so easily.

"I thought this weapon could only be used for roughly aiming and firing, but it turns out it can be used for such precise bursts."

“Yes, a properly tuned heavy machine gun can be even more accurate than a rifled rifle, and this one of mine is one.” Isaac patted the gun. “Heavy machine gun bullets have a longer range and greater power. If portability is not a concern, this kind of gun is actually more suitable for long-range sniping.”

The armies of this era were almost defenseless against long-range sniping. Although the firing range of muskets was actually quite far, the North still used smoothbore muskets, which had little accuracy.

Therefore, the officers all stood there, looking completely blank, making them perfect targets for Isaac's heavy machine gun.

"The nature of warfare is about to change completely," the old woman sighed.

"It's alright, it won't have much impact on the enemy anyway, they have no future." Isaac slowly packed up his weapons, squinting at the battlefield in the distance.

"Remind Gwen not to waste time chasing; just kill the enemy and drive them back."

The advent of firearms did change the landscape of the battlefield, but it was still people who wielded them.

At full speed, it only took them a dozen seconds to cover a distance of 100 yards. Faced with the resistance troops charging straight at them, the soldiers, who hadn't even fixed their bayonets, collapsed with almost no resistance.

The resistance fighters were not as professional as the line infantry; they carried not only muskets but also swords and spears.

Therefore, although the resistance fighters didn't have time to fix bayonets, they successfully dragged the battle into melee combat, in which they were much more experienced.

They routed the enemy in a single encounter, and if Gwen hadn't intervened, they would have already begun the pursuit.

"Don't pursue! Don't pursue! Reload and fire another round!"

Gwen, sword in hand, shouted orders as her captains worked to relay them to the soldiers.

The resistance suffered few casualties in the battle, but they were still delayed and had no time to rest. These soldiers, who had just fought a battle, had to continue marching after sorting through some spoils of war.

They didn't feel anything during the battle; they charged forward when their blood was boiling. But once they calmed down, the soldiers found it difficult to even walk.

Gwen had no choice but to further slow down their march. They barely stopped all day, and by the time the sun was about to set, their pursuers still hadn't caught up.

"Let's set up camp, we can't go any further." Gwen sighed as she looked at the exhausted resistance soldiers.

The soldiers were overjoyed, many collapsing to the ground without even eating, falling asleep from exhaustion after turning over. Gwen, forcing herself to stay awake, arranged sentry duty and night watch. Isaac went out for a quick look around and returned shortly after.

"The Dragon Fang Duke's army is not far from us; a battle is inevitable tomorrow."

Gwen bit her lip, looking somewhat anxious.

"Mr. Isaac, what are our chances of winning?"

"Defeating the first wave of attack shouldn't be a problem. Their cavalry will catch up first, and there aren't many of them, less than four hundred. But the regular army behind them is probably not something we can handle. There are at least two thousand of them. If we're lucky, we can fight our way out."

Seeing Gwen's expression, Isaac patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry too much. An army of two thousand men would need a large area to deploy. If they chase us, only a portion of the resistance will engage in combat, so the battle lines won't be stretched too far."

"I'll take action then too!" The old woman held up two Dragon Breath Cannons, gesturing eagerly as she demonstrated.

Isaac didn't show it on his face, but he sighed inwardly.

There were only two superhumans on this side. If all those dozens of investigators came at them, they would be no match for them and would even need the resistance to help them delay.

We can't defeat the mortal army, and we can't defeat the superhuman army either. Tomorrow's battle will be tough.

"You said before that there would be reinforcements."

"Impossible, we're still too far away. Maybe we'll get support if we can hold out until the end of this day."

Isaac knew in his heart that even if he could hold out for another day, it would be difficult for the expeditionary force to come to his aid.

The expeditionary force had no idea how to navigate the northern border. Although the lord had a rough map, it was still difficult to use it to guide the march.

This was still just going to a fixed town; these resistance fighters were constantly on the move, hoping to stumble upon reinforcements by chance.
You still have to rely on yourself.

With just one machine gun and two Dragon Breath Cannons that can only be used by superhumans, it would be too difficult to deal with the enemies behind them.

"Since things have come to this, let's rest first and deal with tomorrow's problems tomorrow."

The mother-in-law stroked Gwen's long white hair and gently comforted her.

Silent all night.

[Investigator] As a superhuman, he is indeed very strong, but he does not have the ability to face an army directly. There is nothing they can do if Grandma and Isaac hide in the resistance and do not come out. Against a well-organized army of mortals, even superhumans are somewhat powerless.

Just as dawn was breaking and the resistance forces had not yet finished their rest, a sharp whistle pierced the morning air in the North.

"What's wrong?" Gwen stood up, still a little sleepy.

Before the messenger could speak, Isaac gracefully appeared beside her: "The cavalry of the Dragonfang Duke have arrived."

"So fast?" Gwen was somewhat surprised. "Weren't they still some distance away?"

“This cavalry force marched here under cover of night, and only about two hundred men have arrived so far. The rest of the cavalry have probably lost their way.” Isaac narrowed his eyes. “Duke Dragon Fang has really gone mad, deciding to leave us behind regardless of the consequences.”

(End of this chapter)