Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 502 Castel's First Contact with the Resistance

Both of them were members of the Fire Moth and had worked together for a long time. How come I never realized that my mother-in-law loved fighting so much?
Perhaps as a nymph, I was constantly suppressed by other superhumans throughout my life. Now that I have the ability to fight, I want to make up for it?
It's like those toys you couldn't afford when you were a child; as an adult, you'll be particularly determined to buy them, even if you don't like them as much anymore.

Perhaps the mother-in-law killed too few people before, and now she's killing more to make up for her regrets.

"Well, anyway, we're very close to Sladedinburgh from here, and not even far from the Kohler River. We can even get support from the Banshee Squad nearby and head straight for the Resistance."

Once he arrived, Isaac became quite familiar with the area. Although he had been operating within the Empire, he had been in this vicinity when he was with the Resistance.

"How much longer until the journey?"

"If we travel at full speed, we can get there in half an hour, but we'd better make some preparations first."

"What preparations are needed? You've met Gwen before, why not just make direct contact?"

The mother-in-law asked with some surprise.

Isaac shook his head and said in a deep voice, "There are too many superhumans in the North lately, which is not normal. The Candlelight Society sent people here to investigate the Investigator you killed, but half a year has passed. Whether they found out or not, they should have withdrawn long ago."

"You mean there's something unusual in the North?"

"It could be an anomaly, or the church might be searching for something, or they might be investigating the truth of something. All of these are possible. And you should know just how ruthless the Candlelight Church can be, right?"

The old woman frowned, thought carefully for a while, and then suddenly looked up: "You mean, the resistance army?"

"Without superhumans in the resistance, the Vatican's superhumans can infiltrate almost freely. Given the Vatican's modus operandi, I'm worried."

The mother-in-law's face darkened, and she said nothing more.

Isaac sighed. "So I've decided not to meet them openly and publicly, but rather to make contact privately and secretly, at least to get to the bottom of things."

"Is Gwen still the same Gwen?"

Gwen was hunched over the table, intently examining the ledgers in front of her.

She was originally a peasant girl, and she couldn't even read, let alone read account books.

It was Nora who taught her a lot in her spare time, which enabled her to write her own name.

The experience gained over the past six months has transformed her from an ordinary soldier into a leader capable of leading from the front lines, engaging in combat, logistics, and material management.

Unfortunately, there were few literate people in the resistance army, so she often had to do things herself.

The battle itself was difficult, but the logistical problems were even greater.

Sladedinburgh is a fortress with some land within its walls, but it is far from self-sufficient. Fortunately, it has a considerable amount of stored grain, which is enough to sustain it for half a year.

Distributing food, maintaining the army's organization, and treating and settling the wounded all required a great deal of effort. Gwen had spent countless hours over the past six months resolving one problem after another.

Moreover, the troubles don't just come from within; there are also occasional external spyings.

For example, right now. Gwen's fingers, which were turning the pages of the report, paused slightly, then she suddenly put it down, drew the longsword that was lying on the table, and slashed behind her.

"Damn spy, your breathing is too loud!"

The longsword drew an arc through the air, slashing quickly and swiftly, showing that Gwen was already used to such sudden attacks.

But when she saw the face of the person behind her, she froze for a moment, and her longsword lost its power, easily deflected by that person.

“Long time no see, Gwen,” Isaac said in a deep voice.

With a clatter, the musket in Gwen's hand fell to the ground. Isaac's eye twitched. When did she draw it? How come he didn't even notice?

"Your reaction is really something."

“Mr. Isaac!” Gwen’s face lit up with joy, and she went up to give Isaac a hug, which made Isaac wince – she was still wearing her armor.

"Why are you wearing armor while working?"

Gwen was wearing almost a full suit of plate armor, the style of which was somewhat similar to the three-quarter armor on Earth. This type of armor was well-suited for mounted combat, so it didn't really prevent her from sitting in the chair.

Contrary to popular belief, plate armor is actually quite flexible. Gwen's armor was clearly meticulously designed, maintaining considerable defensive capabilities without significantly hindering her movements.

No one knows where she got it from, but when Isaac first met her, she was wearing this slightly worn-out plate armor.

But no matter what type of armor it is, you can't reduce the weight out of thin air. Although Gwen wasn't fully dressed, the armor plates covering the main protective parts were still on her body, and her suit of armor weighed at least several tens of kilograms.

Wearing armor weighing tens of kilograms in combat and wearing it in daily life are two completely different things. Even knights who have undergone long-term training generally only put on their armor on the battlefield. As for Gwen...
"Hehe, I'm quite strong, and I've been able to help with chores around the house since I was very young." Gwen chuckled for a while, then spoke with some excitement:
"Mr. Isaac, you're still alive! I didn't see you during the siege, I thought... I thought..."

"Back then, I encountered their superhuman, and then went through some trouble. Anyway, I'm alive now, and I've even made contact with Castel. How have things been going on your end in the last six months?"

Gwen's eyes dimmed slightly: "We...lost many comrades, but at least we held Sladeingtonburg. Now the allied forces have retreated for some reason, and we took the opportunity to go out and collect a lot of food. That should last us for another six months or so, if everything goes smoothly."

Isaac nodded, then asked seemingly casually, "Have you encountered any trouble lately? Like an assassination attempt or something?"

“Yes, yes!” Gwen nodded obediently. “The allied forces on the other side always send people to assassinate us every now and then. They’re quite capable; they can evade the guards.”

"And then? How did you deal with them?"

"Oh, at first I had no experience and it was quite dangerous several times. Later I started carrying weapons with me and always wore armor, which made it much easier to deal with those assassins."

Isaac's eyes widened: "Wait, you fought them bare-handed at the beginning?"

"Yes. Oh, you misunderstand. Those assassins are indeed good at infiltration, but they are very weak in combat and often make some stupid mistakes. I live in a castle, so I can call out and someone will come to help me very soon."

Isaac opened his mouth, but hesitated, and after a long while, he finally said, "Here's what we'll do: you swing your sword at me with all your might. Don't worry, you won't hurt me."

Zheng!
A flash of sword light appeared, and Isaac's gaze gradually became unfocused. His body was split in two from the middle, and after a moment, he slowly fell to either side.

(End of this chapter)