Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 429 Silence of the Lambs

Old Wood's run-down tavern recently closed down.

I heard they sold out of drinks, which is normal. Not only drinks, but even grain is sold out in town, so there's no point in keeping the tavern empty.

Strangely, lately some people have been going in and out of the tavern—it's been closed for a long time, and they no longer even offer leaf tea.

But the people who came out of there seemed to be drunk, their faces flushed, and they were so excited that they wanted to jump for joy, and they kept muttering something under their breath.

It's crazy.

Compared to the tavern closing down, the other thing was a minor matter.

Several traveling merchants arrived in the town. They were not carrying any goods—which was normal, as merchants who came here had already had all their goods looted.

They had no choice but to live in the small town.

The merchant leader was a short man who was very warm-hearted, and many of the town's residents liked him—well, thinking about it, that seemed a bit too much.

Although the knights of the Winter Wolf had arrived, life had to go on. The people of the town tightened their belts and stayed at home, praying that the soldiers would leave soon.

Their prayers seemed to be working, as the cavalrymen had been going out more and more often lately.

The story begins two days ago, when several cavalrymen went out in batches but never returned.

The townspeople rarely go out these days, except for the merchants who occasionally venture out. According to them, those were cavalrymen who went out to scout, and it seems they were killed. Their bodies were piled up by the roadside, frightening many passersby.

The Winter Wolf cavalry were naturally furious and sent some men out to investigate, but they all returned quickly, looking somewhat flustered.

I heard that the first group of people were killed by gunfire.

Musket!

Everyone who talks about this word has to exclaim a few times in a dramatic way to show how serious the matter is.

As for how serious it really is, that's beyond the comprehension of the residents of these small towns.

What they knew was that almost no one here had ever been killed by gunfire; the weapon was said to bring down lightning when it was fired, instantly killing the enemy.

Although it's a bit outrageous, everyone smiles when they think about how the winter wolves were the ones who got killed.

Finally, one day, the people of the town were pleasantly surprised to find that the Winter Wolf Guard seemed to have left.

A large group of soldiers rode out of the town gate, shouting loudly.

This frightened people so much that they quickly closed their doors and windows, trembling as they peeked out through the cracks.

Cavalrymen. It is said that only noble lords were once entitled to ride horses to fight the enemy, but they are perhaps not much different from these bandits before us. They have all stolen everything that everyone has worked so hard to accumulate.

The cavalrymen left, leaving only a small number of people in the makeshift military camp converted from the market. The townspeople were somewhat confused, unsure of what had happened or whether they should start celebrating.

Soon, a group of people rushed onto the street, shouting and gathering together.

The people who had just stepped outside immediately retreated, but soon they realized that these people looked somewhat familiar.

"Isn't that little York?"

"And Lillard, he spends all his time drinking leafy water at pubs!"

"Nene? What are you doing here? What's wrong with you?"

A door opened, and an old woman in an apron came out carrying a rolling pin: "Come back quickly, Nene!" A boy in the crowd instinctively flinched, then stiffened his neck and turned his head away: "No!"

"you!!!"

The woman rushed out a few steps in a fit of anger, then suddenly realized what was happening, looked at the people around the boy, and hesitated before stopping.

"You are"

A short man squeezed through the crowd in a few steps. The woman recognized him; he was said to be a merchant who had come here.

"Auntie, those Winter Wolves bandits have left. We must drive them out of town completely!"

A hint of fear flashed in the woman's eyes: "How could this be! They're all soldiers, carrying knives. We'll be killed!"

The man looked around at the approaching crowd, then climbed the low wall by the roadside in a few steps, waving to the people and shouting:
"Everyone! I'm Leonard, the traveling merchant. Many of you know me! I went out to town a couple of days ago, didn't I?"

There was some whispering among the crowd. Grizzly Bear Town wasn't big, and many people had indeed seen him. Recently, only a few of them had dared to leave the town.

"I just received news that the Winter Wolf Guard has escaped! All the cavalrymen they sent out to scout have been killed! A large force in the North has driven them away!"

"You mean they're not coming back?"

"real or fake?"

The crowd erupted in cheers, everyone's face beaming with joy.

"Of course it's true! Right now, the only Winter Wolves left in the whole town are those few from the military camp. We'll drive them out!!"

Immediately, someone else shouted, "Get them out! Get them out!"

The townspeople looked out of the house for a long time and realized that most of the people gathered outside were acquaintances. Soon, they hesitated before opening the door.

The Winter Wolf Guard had indeed caused widespread resentment throughout Grizzly Town. Leonard had only provoked them slightly, and they angrily picked up pitchforks and hammers.

Seeing the crowd's outrage, the short man immediately pointed to the distant barracks: "Those bandits are over there! Drive these scoundrels out of town!!"

After saying that, he led the way and walked in that direction, and the people gathered together in the tavern immediately followed.

Not everyone doubted them, and some worried that the soldiers who could drive away the Winter Wolf Guard might plunder the town, but their weak voices were quickly drowned out by angry shouts.

The crowd was already like a powder keg; once it was ignited, no one could stop it. In the crowd, everyone subconsciously abandoned reason and thought.

Leonard and several merchants charged ahead, and it wasn't until they stormed into the military camp that the soldiers belatedly realized what had happened.

They never expected to be attacked on their own territory, in their own military camp!

They are the wolves of winter, always raiding others in packs, never having been attacked themselves.

Putting on armor takes time, saddled horses takes time, and loaded gunpowder and bullets into pistols takes time; they have no time at all.

Of the twenty or so soldiers who remained, only four or five drew their swords. They were then knocked down in a few blows by the rushing merchants, their faces filled with shock, and were then swallowed up by the crowd behind them.

These people, who were always as docile as lambs, would stand quietly and numbly enduring whatever was cut from their bodies, whether it was their wool or their flesh.

But today, they broke their silence and charged at the sheepdogs, making the soldiers suddenly remember something they had been overlooking—

They are the true owners here.

(End of this chapter)