Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 581 Blood Harbor Has No Night

"I'm so sorry, Lady Nora! I was in such a hurry that I didn't notice!"

Gwen stood before Nora, her eyes brimming with tears, while Nora, currently being held by Nini, angrily berated Gwen.

Hughes watched this scene with a mix of amusement and exasperation. Sometimes he felt that Big Gwen was just older and more mature because of the war, but her true nature was more like that of a child.

On the contrary, Gwen Stella always gives people a more mature feeling, which is quite a contrast.

Nora scolded Gwen for a long time, then, still not satisfied, jumped up and banged her head hard before huffing and puffing back into Nini's arms.

Nini held her with both hands, gently rubbing her head with both hands, while writing something in her notebook with her other two hands.

and many more!

Hughes suddenly sensed something was wrong. If Nini continued writing, tomorrow's newspaper might be contaminated. So he quickly stepped forward and stood in front of Gwen.

"Long time no see, Gwen. Would you like to explore Bloodharbor first, or head straight to Castells?"

Hughes' previous agreement with Nora was that "Castel is the home of the refugees in the North," and Hughes, as the lord, would provide shelter and aid.

Since Castel was specifically mentioned, Castel Island should naturally be open to the public.

Although the number of people allowed to land on the island has been strictly controlled due to the issue of Castells syndrome, mainly due to the limited number of hospital beds.

But Gwen seems to be adapting well right now, and doesn't look like she's about to go crazy.

Gwen was looking around curiously, and secretly stepped on the ground, leaving a shallow footprint.

Hughes glanced at the marks on the concrete pavement and sighed.

They've adapted too well!
Why is it that when others come to Castel, they go crazy on their own, but when it comes to Gwen, it's Nora who goes crazy for her?

What kind of displacement reaction?

Nora is still fuming. She used to always be expressionless, and Hughes had even secretly wondered if she simply didn't have any expression at all.

It seems she just hasn't encountered anyone who can control her.

"I... I'd better take a look around Bloodharbor first!" Gwen looked around at the buildings with some eagerness. After getting out of the car, she was finally able to see the full view of these buildings in the city.

"Okay, I'm in the building you're looking at. My office is on the seventh floor. Whenever you want to go to Castel, just knock on the door."

"Seven floors!?" Gwen's eyes widened. "That's so high, aren't you scared?"

Hughes couldn't help but find it a little funny. It was only seven floors. The building itself only had nine floors, which was nothing compared to the skyscrapers on Earth that often had dozens of floors.

The buildings in this world are mostly single-story, which is why they appear taller.

Reinforced concrete can easily build houses hundreds of meters tall, but Hughes has no intention of building such tall buildings now.

High-rise buildings are very troublesome to maintain. The reason this office building was built to ten stories was actually to take into account the need for succubi to enter and exit. Some rooms were simply made taller. The succubi only use four or five floors.

In the future, when land becomes scarce, more high-rise buildings may spring up, but Blood Harbor does not need so many high-rise buildings now.

Spectacularity can ruin a country.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Gwen muttered, her face already showing eagerness to try it out.

Hughes glanced at Nora. He had originally intended for Nora to show Gwen around Bloodharbor, but seeing Nora's angry expression...
"I'll do it." Sensing Hughes's gaze, Nora regained her expressionless demeanor, though her eye twitched slightly when her eyes swept over Gwen.

"Are you okay?"

“What could be wrong? I’m not going to die,” Nora said with a hint of resentment. “Besides, you have to do what you promise. I promised to take Gwen shopping, so I should go.”

After saying that, she exerted her strength and jumped up from Nini's arms, drawing an arc in the air before landing in Gwen's arms.

"ah!"

Gwen was still a little scared, unsure whether to take it or put it down.

"Then I'll arrange a place for you to stay, and I'll let you know later."

"Okay, would you like to come to this office?"

"No need, you can go about your business. The Banshee Patrol or the Night Watchers of the Secret Order will send you a message."

Gwen knew the Banshee's patrol team, the Secret Order's Night Watchers?
"What is the Secret Order?" she whispered to Nora in her arms.

"A semi-official organization in Blood Harbor that assists Castells in managing the area, and they share the defense of Blood Harbor with the Prince's port guards."

"Oh, won't that cause conflicts? After all, they are two different organizations."

"No, because Blood Harbor has little defense, and no one has dared to cause trouble here since the Mother Goddess's rebellion."

Gwen looked at the banshees who were counting money in a circle not far away, and then at the expeditionary force guarding the station with guns, and thought that there was indeed some truth to it.

Organizations that can cause trouble here are basically capable of going toe-to-toe with the Empire.
Hughes was too busy to personally show Gwen around. After a hurried farewell, he returned under the protection of the banshees. After Bazel's assassination attempt, he was always accompanied by several banshees.

"Hmm, Lady Nora, what are our next plans?"

“It’s getting late. Let me show you around here first. Tomorrow, you can go and see the priests at the Silent Sanctuary and see if they can heal you. Also, Bazel’s second trial should be starting soon.”

Gwen looked up at the sky around her. It was indeed getting late. The setting sun had gilded the city, while she herself was gradually losing her brilliance and about to fall.

But Gwen didn't care too much. Well, she didn't know if she was a superhuman, but she could easily see in the dark.

To her surprise, the residents of Blood Harbor did not seem to be in a hurry. Weren't they in a rush to go home at this time?
Her question was quickly answered.

More people carrying ladders appeared on the streets.

Wearing tall, straight hats and with long poles hanging from their waists, they walked towards the "pillars" along the street.

These people first walked to the pillar, placed the ladder against it, and the hooks of the ladder caught on the horizontal bars on both sides of the pillar. Then they climbed up and opened the glass cover on top.

Then he went back down, inserted the key into the valve box lock hole on the pillar, lifted the cast iron protective cover to reveal the octagonal valve wheel made of brass, and reached out to unscrew it.

Gwen heard a hissing sound coming from the pillar. Could it be that the pillar was hollow?
The man stepped back, lit the candle at one end of the long stick with a match, and then handed it to the glass dome above.

A faint light appeared overhead, then quickly brightened, illuminating the street.

"These are gas lamps, which will light up as dusk falls—Blood Harbor has no night."

Nora said softly.

(End of this chapter)