Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 418 Death Tunnel
The bird circled in the air, spread its wings, and then swooped down, landing steadily on the scout's arm.

"Report."

The scout stared at the bird in front of him and spoke, and the bird tilted its head and opened its mouth.

"Gaaa—Gaaa—Smoke, fire, dilapidated houses!"

The scout nodded, then turned to his superior officer.

"Sir, it seems there is indeed a problem in Port Deloitte."

"But we observed that their men were digging trenches and conducting routine patrols, and it didn't seem to be in a very urgent situation."

"But the problem is that there was indeed a massive explosion in Port Lai the day before, that's undeniable. Whatever happened there, it certainly had an impact on Port Lai!"

Lieutenant General von Lane stood there with a grave expression, listening to his subordinates' argument, but he remained silent. In fact, the upper echelons of the Krant army had already reached a consensus: they must capture Port Dreyer at all costs. Even if it meant completely destroying Port Dreyer afterward, they absolutely could not allow it to remain and threaten Krant's security.

The current occupation of Port Dlai by the Empire is like a Damocles' sword hanging over their heads, threatening to deliver a fatal blow at any moment, leaving the Kingdom of Krant currently unable to devise any corresponding countermeasures.

Fortunately, the Empire did not announce a joint operation with the Western European Empire and Francis, which made the other two sides somewhat wary. They were also afraid that the Empire would stab them in the back while they were attacking the Kingdom of Krant—after all, the Empire's move to capture Port Dley was too swift and decisive, and no one could say for sure whether they would take the opportunity to attack Francis or the Western European Empire again.

After all, the Western European Empire controls the shipping lanes of the far north, and the feud between Francis and the Empire is well-known. The current Iron Queen has never hidden her desire to restore the Empire to its former glory.

This created a delicate balance, with Francis and the Western European Empire both rushing to assemble their armies, while Cront also took advantage of this gap to mass-produce troops.

It is conceivable that the longer this stalemate continues, the more devastating the war that will break out in the future will be.

Therefore, Port Der Lai must be recaptured as soon as possible.

Now, this is the perfect opportunity. Although the details of what happened in Port Der Lai are unknown, the higher-ups clearly anticipated it. That's why Lieutenant General von Lane led his troops here. He had received orders to take Port Der Lai at all costs if the opportunity arose.

And now... this is the opportunity.

Lieutenant General von Lane withdrew his gaze and made a decision.

Whatever happened in Port Der Lai, it must have dealt them a considerable blow. According to scouts, the number of soldiers digging trenches was far greater than usual, indicating that Port Der Lai had certainly strengthened its defenses. But the more this was the case, the more it showed that the situation in Port Der Lai was currently unstable.

Just like if someone acts very fiercely, it's most likely to be to cover up their inner weakness.

The same is true for Port Derlai right now; perhaps something unexpected happened to them… but for Krant, it’s a good thing.

"Prepare for action."

Lieutenant General von Lane began to speak.

"Initiate Operation Sharp Sword."

The burrowing beasts began their work, wielding their enormous claws to dig large holes in the ground as if it were tofu, and then quickly advanced deeper. Fully armed soldiers followed closely behind. General von Lane had a well-thought-out plan for retaking Port Drey; they knew the underground tunnels there inside and out.

So the task at hand is quite simple: construct another passageway connecting the outer perimeter to the underground network of Port Dlai. Then, launch a surprise attack from within, capturing the command post, the fortress, and the armory. This would allow them to repel the Imperial army and retake Port Dlai.

Underground, the Burrowing Beasts possess formidable advantages. They are enormous, with incredibly sharp claws and teeth, and their bodies are covered in bulletproof armor manufactured by the Kingdom of Krant. In the narrow underground tunnels, they encounter virtually no enemies. And as Krant's vanguard, they have always been remarkably competent.

It's the same this time.

The digging beasts dug the tunnel with swift, rapid movements, and the excavated soil was transported away by modified goats. The engineers were responsible for reinforcing the underground tunnel; they were so skilled at this that they could practically do the job with their eyes closed. They had already completed most of the project, with only the final stages remaining, and now, the plan was reaching its climax.

A moment later, the digging beast stopped digging. The soldier in charge of controlling the beast checked its condition and then quickly reported back.

"Report: The Digbeast has arrived at the designated location and is ready to attack at any time."

The Krant soldiers quickly took their positions, ready, weapons in hand, their faces grim. The silent tunnel was utterly still.

Then, a messenger ran over, raised a triangular flag, and waved it forward.

"attack!"

With a command, the burrowing beasts began swinging their claws once more. The hard stone was as fragile as tofu before their claws and teeth. Soon, the last layer of stone wall was breached, and the burrowing beasts charged into the tunnel before them. Immediately afterward, the Krant soldiers gripped their weapons and followed the burrowing beasts inside.

They had anticipated what might happen; they might encounter enemies and launch an attack, but they believed they could catch them off guard…

However, when they rushed into the tunnel, all they saw was darkness and silence.

What was going on? The soldiers, weapons in hand, exchanged bewildered glances, utterly bewildered by what they were seeing. Had the Imperial army simply ignored the situation here? Had they not even sent anyone to patrol?
"keep going!"

No one knew what had happened, but Krant's soldiers faithfully followed their orders. Silently and cautiously, they traversed the dark tunnels, trailing behind the diggers. Their objective was clear: the four entrances connected by the underground passages. If they could capture and breach them from the inside…

“Da da da da da——!”

Suddenly, a series of gunshots rang out, echoing through the tunnel. Hearing the gunfire, the soldiers instantly relaxed. Just moments before, they had been somewhat uneasy, given the eerily quiet atmosphere. Now, it seemed that this was at least a battle they were familiar with.

But soon, some veterans realized something was wrong, because only gunfire from Krant's side could be heard coming from the tunnels; there was no sound of guns manufactured by the Empire. This didn't sound like a battle between two enemies; it was more like a one-sided attack.

The assault team leader quickly picked up the radio and asked.

"What happened? Answer me immediately!"

Soon, the sound of another assault force came from the other side.

"Sir, we have been attacked by Imperial soldiers!"

"sure?"

“Yes, sir, but these Imperial soldiers are a bit… strange…”

"strangeness?"

"Yes, they... seem to have gone mad. These Imperial soldiers suddenly rushed out of the darkness and attacked us with their bare hands. They don't look like rational humans at all; they're more like some kind of madmen or beasts. And their appearance is strange too... Sir, what exactly is happening here?"

"I do not know."

The assault team leader's mood sank. He looked around and saw that the tunnel stretched into the darkness, and he couldn't see anything.

There was no sound, only deathly silence.

This struck him as odd. The Empire shouldn't be so lax in its security here. So what exactly were they doing here?
Regardless, the mission must continue.

"Keep moving forward and complete the mission!"

"Yes, sir."

Soon, the assault team continued forward. They were very familiar with the tunnels here, and it didn't take them long to reach the end of the tunnels, where they could even see the tightly closed door ahead.

"That's it, everyone get ready..."

The assault team leader gripped his weapon, his entire body tense, and issued the order.

"rush----!"

With his command, the burrowing beast suddenly accelerated, lunging forward, and then—

"boom---!"

Suddenly, a huge explosion rang out, and the tunnel was completely shattered in the violent blast, with countless rubble and dirt falling down. The assault team leader instinctively dropped to the ground, feeling the rubble and dirt hitting him as if he were being buried alive.

After an unknown amount of time, the assault captain finally came to his senses. He raised his head from the mud and looked ahead. He saw that the huge burrowing beast in front of them had most of its body buried in the rubble and debris, and was obviously dead.

"Damn empire, they really did set a trap!"

The assault captain spoke menacingly. Clearly, the Empire was not unprepared; they had set traps at the exit to defend against their sneak attack.

But this is useless; as long as the rear sends out more burrowing beasts...

"Roar—Oh—"

Just then, a series of low, guttural sounds, like the roars of wild beasts, rang out. The assault captain and the other Krant soldiers instinctively turned their heads and looked around. Then they saw terrifying, eerie figures emerging from the shadows in the other tunnels around them. They wore Imperial uniforms, but they were not carrying weapons. Instead, each of them had their mouths wide open and were emitting low, beast-like growls.

They stared intently at the Krant soldiers, their throats trembling.

Then, these humanoid beasts roared and pounced forward!
The next moment, gunshots and screams filled the dark tunnel.

(End of this chapter)