Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 2: A Few Ripples of Fate

In Blood Harbor, a businessman had bad luck today and was hit on the head by a pole while walking through an alley.

In a magnificent mansion, the Duke stared at the red wine boiling in the pot and forgot about his guests.

On the battlefield in the western part of the empire, a general threw his weapon straight into the sky in anger.

In Jewel Bay in the Storm Ocean, the pirate king inexplicably spent the whole day playing in the bathroom sink.

The weather was fine today and nothing happened.

And somewhere outside the peaceful world, in a magnificent palace, a heavy and exquisite long table was placed in the center.

There were high-backed chairs on both sides of the long table. Several dark figures were sitting on the chairs, looking down at the table in front of them, as if they were asleep.

At the top of the long table was a huge throne.

The throne was inlaid with gold and gems, and sitting on it, an ancient figure slowly opened his eyes.

He stared blankly at the side of the long table.

There sat a dark figure, the flickering candlelight illuminating his face.

He had short curly brown hair, his clothes were covered in mud, and there was a hideous hole on his chest.

It was the recently deceased Zeus.

The person on the throne was stunned for a moment, then his face twitched and his whole body became lively, as if something was slowly entering his body.

The next moment, a voice full of shock came from above.

"Dead? I'm dead again? Killed for no apparent reason like this!?"

"Damn it! Why would he kill me? This doesn't make sense!? I've shown such a talent for mechanics, shouldn't he at least torture me to extract the knowledge before taking action? He's not curious at all?"

The figure on the throne raised his head and cursed, looking at Zeus who was as motionless as a puppet. The dead boy looked up and looked at him with empty eyes.

"I remember that weird priest once said that I was a lackey of the evil god?"

"Well, this should be a common tactic used by the church. First, they label others as evil gods, and then they take action."

"Wait, the Church? Is the Church hindering technological development by killing those who can improve machinery? That doesn't make sense. That priest has a lot of metal limbs too, so he should understand the importance of mechanical technology. This doesn't make sense."

He frowned.

This priest who suddenly appeared was full of mysteries. It was the first time he had met such a strange person since he traveled through time.

"Unfortunately, another body is gone. I can only start a new descent."

He looked away, and the young Zeus slowly lowered his head, looking at the table in front of him lifelessly like a puppet.

There were already four lifeless dolls sitting on both sides of the long table. They looked different and were dressed differently. The only thing they had in common was...
They are all "Hughes".

Xius is a time traveler who lived on Blue Star in his previous life. One night, he fainted while working overtime. When he woke up, he found himself sitting high on the throne in this strange and magnificent palace.

The palace was beautifully decorated and filled with rare treasures, but unfortunately Zeus could not touch them - for some reason, he was nailed to the throne and could not move even a step.

Fortunately, he - Zeus on the throne, did not seem to have the need to eat, drink or defecate.

But he couldn't just sit here and wait to die. When he turned his gaze to the figure sitting on the bench, those puppet-like shadows would look up and look at him, and then Zeus could choose to [Descend].

The so-called advent is like traveling into a new body and starting a new life. Zeus scanned several benches in turn. There were middle-aged men with strong bodies, old men with white hair, priests in white robes, and young people who had just opened their hearts.

Everyone is different, and each new body that appears is random.

Zeus didn't know what the meaning of these advents was, but he had no choice but to try.

But this time he had some different ideas. "The priest in that church just now was really weird."

"In that instant, he completed his attack, piercing my chest directly. I couldn't see the movement at all. Is this really something a machine installed on the body can do?"

In his previous life, Zeus also knew something about the mechanical prosthetic limbs on Blue Star. It was absolutely impossible to reach such speed and strength. The mechanical structure of the priest's body was so crude that Zeus still remembered those large gears.

"Father, the church is interesting."

"There is a supernatural power within the Church. If I were to access it, I might be able to untie this throne."

“No, maybe more than just the church.”

Hughes showed some annoyance on his face.

"What a pity! I finally made it to the capital of the empire this time. I don't know when I'll be able to access the factory again in my next body."

This world has only just begun to see the beginnings of industry, with a few scattered factories just beginning to be built - but this is already the most developed place.

Most areas had only just barely bid farewell to the dark Middle Ages, and in places where Hughes had previously descended, there were even remnants of serfdom.

From this perspective, workers with an average life expectancy of around 30 years old actually have a very good background.

"So, what should we do next?"

He looked at the bodies beside the long table in confusion. It had been some time since he came to this world. At the beginning, he was very excited to explore, but now, he just wanted to go home.

There's no way around it. The randomly appearing bodies seem to be truly random—that is, there's a 99% chance that they're the unfortunate people at the bottom of society.

The lower class, no matter what era, seems to have no choice but to endure torture silently. What's in Zeus's mind is the science and technology of modern society, but every time he tries to cash in, he only leaves behind a lifeless body.

This world seems to leave no way out for people at the bottom of society.

Zeus was almost extremely disappointed with it, and transcendence was his last expectation for this world.

"Contact the extraordinary, and if possible, find a way home." Xius's eyes became firm. "At least find a way to leave this throne activity. We can't be trapped here forever."

There are neither mobile phones nor internet in this world, and he still misses Blue Planet.

"Prepare to begin the advent."

He took a deep breath, made up his mind, and turned to look at an empty high-backed chair.

The fog rolled unsteadily, and a slight friction sound came from it. Then a hand stretched out from the fog and pressed on the table.

Then the fog quickly receded, and a thin and handsome young man appeared on the chair, smiling elegantly and looking at Zeus on the throne.

Zeus's eyes lit up. This was his new body.

"Judging from his clothes, he's most likely a noble. Finally, I'm lucky!"

"Soap, glass, gunpowder, build factories, and let the torrent of steel push this fantasy world flat. I can't wait!"

"See the glory of science and truth!"

The next moment, Zeus's vision went dark.

A new body, a new advent, everything starts over.

Zeus left, and silence fell between the throne rooms.

After an unknown amount of time, the abandoned body, the young boy Zeus with a big hole in his chest, and his lifeless eyes like a puppet suddenly trembled.

(End of this chapter)