Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 606: Black Water Burns the City
Isengard, the royal capital of Iron Hill.

When the surging Chatlant River flows through here, it washes out a huge twisted river bend, and the water flow slows down... It is led into the city by several huge artificial canals, nourishing the heart of the Kingdom of Isengard.

What was originally a prosperous and bustling royal capital has now turned into a hell on earth with killing and bloodshed due to the endless "demons" surging from the river.

Tens of thousands of demon lizardmen sneaked into the city silently through the canals and launched a surprise attack at night. The winged creatures soared into the air and sprayed black water indiscriminately. The scattered flames quickly formed a prairie fire, slowly spreading from the outskirts of the city to the inside.

The people who were driven out of their houses and buildings by the raging fire were massacred by the ground forces of the Demon Lizardmen. Facing the unarmed and weak mortals, a sharp crystal thorn the size of a finger was enough to easily take their lives.

The defense forces of the outer city of the royal capital had no time to assemble. They gathered in groups of three or five and were quickly locked onto by enemies from the air. They were then bombarded mercilessly with concentrated red light.

Some Iron Hill Cavalrymen who originally lived in the outer city, or knight commanders with bloodline abilities, barely managed to rush out of the chaos with their scattered followers, and gathered towards the Cavalry headquarters and the royal palace.

Among the tall and short buildings in the city, there seemed to be some huge black shadows, moving slowly with unusually heavy steps under the cover of night.

A ball of fire suddenly shot up from a nearby barn, instantly illuminating the entire dim city street - a huge monster shaped like a conch, but with a high arch in the middle, and as tall as a church bell tower, was raising its twisted and long legs that were so thick that several people could not hug them, and trampled a panicked warhorse into a meat paste.

"What...what kind of monster is that?" An Iron Hill cavalryman said in a trembling voice, holding the reins tightly.

Obviously, no one could answer his question. The knights and attendants who witnessed this scene all showed uncontrollable fear on their faces. Without the need for orders from their superiors... everyone subconsciously turned their horses' heads and desperately urged their horses to flee.

Faced with this "devil beast" that seemed to come from hell, no matter how elite the knights were, they would not have the courage to gather and charge towards it.

……

Inside the palace, Prince Regent Andrew was pacing back and forth in the courtyard anxiously.

A personal guard stepped forward, bowed solemnly, and said, "Your Highness, the fire in the outer city is so intense that the personal guards we sent out simply can't reach the cavalry station in the south... Many civilians were driven toward the inner city by the thick smoke, and the guards at the four city gates are impossible to contact."

Andrew gritted his teeth and said, "Those damn northern barbarians! How on earth did they get into the city? Where did they find such terrible ignition that could set the entire outer city on fire?"

The bewildered guards naturally couldn't answer his question. Andrew secretly regretted that Emperor Saint Valen hadn't threatened him out of thin air. If there really were a powerful alien race from the north, crossing the Great Rift in the Divine Spine Mountains and invading the southern border, their first target of attack... would be Isengard, the Kingdom of the Cavalry!
Although the exact number of enemies in the city is unclear, judging from the fact that they deliberately started fires to create chaos, their forces are probably not too strong... Otherwise, they would not have used night raids and fire attacks in an attempt to cause chaos among themselves.

Thinking that he still had nearly 5,000 Iron Hill Cavalry in his hands, the Prince Regent felt a little more at ease. If the two armies were to set up their battle array outside the city, he would not be afraid of any so-called foreign races. If the Knights of Grace under the Pope... or the Mage Corps of Alaye came, he would be qualified to compete with them.

"Send more people. No matter what, the cavalry must gather at the palace quickly. On the one hand, we need to protect the safety of the royal family and the nobles. On the other hand, we need to wait for dawn to launch a counterattack against the enemies entrenched in the outer city!" Andrew was actually mainly concerned about his own safety. After all, there were only a few thousand royal guards and elite knights. Not only did they need to guard various parts of the palace, but they also had to cooperate to stop the rioting people from attacking the inner city. There were not many confidants who could really stay by his side.

Before the guards could leave again to mobilize troops, a figure suddenly descended from the sky into the palace courtyard and came straight to Andrew.

"Bishop Randall? Why...why are you here at this time?"

After the two Knights of the Inquisition withdrew from Isengard, the only member of the Holy See who remained in the royal capital, Iron Hill, was Archbishop Randall. He was also a high-ranking combat priest, and his family had always been close to the royal family... Therefore, he was also an important target that Prince Andrew needed to guard against at all times when he seized the throne.

However, the archbishop did not seem to intervene in the power disputes within the royal family. He always stayed in the Iron Hill Cathedral and rarely showed up in public. He had never walked openly in the royal court.

"Where is His Majesty the King?" The white-robed archbishop did not intend to waste time talking to Andrew and asked directly.

Andrew frowned, feeling that something was amiss in the other party's tone and expression. He quickly said, "Your Majesty is currently safe. Shouldn't the Bishop first discuss with me how to quell the chaos and deal with the enemies who have invaded the outer city?"

Randall laughed bitterly. "Quell the chaos? Do you know how many enemies are attacking tonight? You're not still dreaming that the five thousand Iron Hill Cavalry under your command can easily clear all obstacles for you, are you?"

After saying that, he took out a bloodstained cast iron emblem from his arms and threw it directly into the Regent's arms.

"The Iron Hill Cavalry are trapped in their southern garrison by those foreign calamities. Thousands of winged demons and monsters as massive as bell towers have left your vaunted elite troops powerless."

Andrew took several steps back, his eyes wide open in disbelief, "What...what! The Knights...the Knights have already..."

"Perhaps a small group of troops broke through with difficulty, but they also fled in the direction of the city." The bishop's cold words were like a slowly tightening noose, making Andrew feel suffocated.

Watching the bishop rushing towards the Mad King's chambers, he couldn't help but mutter, "He's planning to take the King with him... and flee the capital alone..."

Suddenly, he remembered that apart from Bishop Randall, there seemed to be no other church leader in Tieqiu City who could control the art of flying.

The captain of the guards stepped forward quickly and said urgently, "Your Highness, we also need to evacuate immediately and find a way to break out... Otherwise, we won't even have to wait for the enemy to arrive. The desperate people who are swept into the inner city will drown us alive."

Andrew clenched the cast iron emblem in his hand and stumbled to the second floor of the courtyard attic. He looked at the sky not far away, which was completely lit up by the flames. Faintly... there seemed to be countless twisted figures with flapping wings, flying through the night sky that alternated between light and darkness, heading towards the palace.

(End of this chapter)