Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 770 "The Collaborators"

The communications soldier carried the portable alchemy communicator and jogged all the way to deliver it to Battalion Commander Newman.

"I understand, Commander."

Newman took the receiver, which had already been dialed, with a gloomy face. After a long silence, he uttered only one sentence.

He then put down the communicator, his face hardening as he looked at the locals of Rhinoceros Horn City who called themselves the Revenge Resistance Army. He said in a deep voice, “Are you sure you want to stay here and continue fighting the enemy? I can’t guarantee that those monsters won’t climb out of the moat again after the army withdraws from this area. They always do it at night… Even areas that have been cleared by the army can’t completely block up any waterways that have been missed.”

The man leading the resistance had a hideous scar across his brow. Newman could guess with his toes that it was from being struck directly by the black water whip of the demon lizardman. It was lucky he survived; most likely, a church priest with healing magic had come to his aid.

This person was clearly a low-level bloodline warrior who had awakened his bloodline talent, and the sun emblem tattoo on his wrist also indicated that he was a member of the Papacy's Guardian Army.

“Sir, you don’t need to worry about our situation. There are several cellars in the Blacksmith Street area where we can hide. As long as we are careful and don’t go out at night, those monsters won’t easily find our tracks.”

After dealing with the Lizardmen for some time, these grassland people of Eisengard gradually realized that they were more sensitive to extraordinary individuals who possessed magic or divine arts, while ordinary mortals were more likely to be overlooked and slip through their net.

The enemies currently emerging from the underground sewers are almost all heading for the Northern Army, and are vying with them for control of the city, which in turn gives the local resistance forces some opportunities to operate in the cracks.

Seeing the men's resolute attitude, Newman couldn't help but glance at them sideways... Several of the men carried spears that, although tightly bound with dirty strips of cloth, were still clearly identifiable as standard weapons of the Northern Army from their outlines.

Frowning imperceptibly, Newman suppressed his anger and dissatisfaction, and turned to his adjutant in front of these people, instructing, "Leave them some ammunition for the magic guns, and also provide two sets of fixed sights..."

The adjutant nodded and turned to leave. A short while later, he and another soldier carried up an ammunition box with the emblem of the United Kingdom of Saint Valen and the exclusive emblem of the Northern Army printed on the outside.

"Five hundred magic bullets, two sets of fixed sights... I believe the person who sold you the guns should have already taught you how to use them. With the sights, you can ambush enemies from a greater distance. Remember to fire one shot and move to another. Don't stay in one place for too long, and don't easily reveal your position."

These are the combat techniques most commonly used by the Northern Army's ace snipers as they roam the wasteland. They are equally applicable when applied to urban street fighting with more complex and varied terrain... I believe these local resistance fighters should have figured out some of these tricks by now.

The scarred leader was somewhat flattered and stammered, "Sir...Sir, are these ammunition supplies...really...really provided to us free of charge?"

Newman sighed helplessly, "Since we can't force you to evacuate, and as fellow human beings we can't just watch you die, the Northern Army's supplies are also very limited... If you can hold out for the next few days, you can try to go to the southern city gate to request some food and medicine. If there are any wounded, you can also send them there for treatment."

Upon hearing this, the scarred leader's eyes reddened. He lowered his head and remained silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth as if making a decision and said, "Sir, you've been searching repeatedly near Blacksmith Street... are you looking for the main underground water source in this area?"

Newman, who was about to turn and leave, froze, then turned back sharply and asked urgently, "Do you know the exact location of the underground water well?"

Over the past three days, Newman's camp had sealed off and destroyed countless underground water wells in the Blacksmith Street area, not even sparing a small well just large enough for an enemy to drill out of… Yet, every night, many enemies still stormed the camp's temporary outposts, greatly irritating them. Although they knew very well that the main water well connecting to the underground river was most likely located at the bottom of the adjacent inner moat, the artificial waterway encircling the entire inner city was over ten miles long. With constant vigilance against enemy counterattacks, how could they possibly have enough time to meticulously locate the exact position of the water well?

At the signal of the scarred leader, a boy of about fifteen or sixteen years old was pushed to the front of the line and carefully explained, "Sir, my father... he used to be a dredging worker on the inner moat. Every winter and spring when the water level was low, the water level of the moat would drop significantly, and they would even jump into the river to clear the water holes that were blocked by silt."

Newman was overjoyed, realizing that the commander's order to have all battalions actively cooperate with the local resistance was the wisest decision imaginable.

"Quickly! Send a few people out and take us to the vicinity of the river's water source immediately. If we can find a way to block it... at least there won't be many more alien races emerging from the water around Blacksmith Street."

The scarred leader nodded. "Sir, this child and I will lead the way for you!"

……

Newman personally led his direct battalion forward into the inner moat, encountering three or four sporadic attacks by remnants of the Demon Lizardmen along the way. The experienced soldiers easily annihilated and repelled them, reaching their destination in less than half an hour.

"This...this river looks really deep!"

The scarred leader nodded with a wry smile. “Sir, Rhinoceros Horn City has abundant underground water resources. When it was first built, there was no distinction between the inner and outer city. In order to defend against the invasion of other nobles, the city lord at the time dispatched tens of thousands of laborers to dig and widen the moat day and night... which is why the river is now so deep and wide that you have to dive down nearly ten meters to barely touch the bottom.”

With water this deep... it's definitely unrealistic to simply fill the water outlet with mud, sand, and gravel; we need to find another way to completely seal it off.

"How large is the diameter of this main water outlet? If we bring in silt, sand, bricks, and stones, can we fill it completely?"

Although he asked the question, Newman had already decided in his mind to drop an alchemical bomb to destroy it... but first he had to determine the exact coordinates of the water eye, as well as details such as the water flow speed and diameter.

The boy who was leading the way thought for a moment, then shook his head uncertainly and said, "The fine mud, sand and bricks would probably be washed away by the water as soon as they were thrown in, sir. I really don't know the diameter of the water hole... I'm afraid I'll have to dive down and take a look myself to find out."

Even if you carry weapons, diving into the water alone is almost suicidal. This waterway is the main passage for the Lizardmen to surface and land in this area. Even though the Northern Army has just cleared the surrounding area again, they can't guarantee that there aren't any enemies hiding in the river.

At least we can't let this teenager take such a risk...

Just as he was about to refuse, the scarred leader suddenly spoke up first: "Sir, if you intend to use the kind of earth-shattering thunder and fire you released in the city before to destroy the water eye... this kid and I are willing to go into the water for you to verify the explosion location!"

He paused, then almost gritted his teeth as he continued, "My parents, wife, and four children... and John's family of eight, all died at the hands of these damned alien monsters. We will never let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for revenge!"

(End of this chapter)