Chapter 113: The Sound of Gunfire
In Hope Lane City, both sides accused each other of being traitors, and the situation escalated again. They began to hurl insults at each other, making it unclear who the real rebels were.
Apart from the five major guilds, some small factions in the city remained neutral, such as branches of other large guilds, the Pure White Church, the White Orchid Cross, and tourists visiting Hope Lane. Since the situation was still unclear, neither side would deliberately attack these neutral parties, so they chose not to get involved.
Lanlier and Lingxin sat on the third floor of the “Flower Beach,” watching armed guild members walk past below. The two whispered to each other.
“Lacy is obviously a good person, so Tisiphone and the others must be bad people.” Lanlier took the typical stance of siding with her own.
“It’s complicated between the guilds. Lacy might be good, but she may not know what her subordinates have done,” Lingxin seemed to have a different perspective.
“Really? Lingxin, you don’t support Lacy?”
“Lanlier, didn’t your teacher warn you at school? As students of Emanas, we cannot participate in any organizational or national conflicts before graduation. We can only defend ourselves.”
“That’s true,” Lanlier shifted her gaze, seemingly with another thought.
“You won’t get anywhere. Your mentor, Phyllia, is downstairs and definitely won’t let you go out,” Lingxin reminded her.
“Ah, fine. I should have gone home earlier. I wanted to show off a bit,” Lanlier sighed.
—
At the Tisiphone residence.
In the brightly lit hall, two rows of fully armed warriors stood in neat formation. They wore black cloaks with white skull patterns pierced by short swords. These were the captains of the Tisiphone family’s combat team, all ranked above Sequence 3, with several reaching Sequence 4.
As a guild that started with the trade of weaponry, the Tisiphones often took on bodyguard jobs and even assassination tasks in their early years. However, after growing larger, they ceased such activities due to concerns over their reputation. Their armed forces were far more extensive than those of other major guilds.
If we consider combat strength, even combined, the Anemias and Nisos might not match the Tisiphones. Although the newly ascended Karites were powerful, their land-based armed forces were still inferior to the Tisiphones.
The head of the family sat at the upper seat, closing his eyes to rest. Next to him were Edley and Wick. From time to time, someone came in to report the latest news.
“Now that our three families have sealed off Hope Lane, we control the northern gate, and we’ve sent some of our elite troops to assist at the eastern and western gates. Even if the enemy tries to break through, we have ample time to counterattack,” Wick summarized the current situation.
“How are the Anemias and Nisos performing?” Edley suddenly asked.
“Can’t rely on them,” one of the captains with a scarred face said casually.
“They’re used to peaceful times, so getting them to enforce lockdown is…”
Sure, here is the translated romance novel:
“Being a guard is fine. If it comes to killing with real weapons, I doubt I’d have the courage.”
“Is that so?” Edri listened but was not upset; this was quite normal and had been expected.
“But since they’ve joined our ship, thinking they can gain benefits without getting their hands dirty is too naive.”
“As per our previous agreement, after we succeed, Carithes will be ours, Nisos and Aneimi will split Helis, and the three families will jointly rule Hope Lane, gaining high positions in the new national structure.”
“The future looks bright, but one cannot expect to get something for nothing.”
Edri tapped his fingers on the table, paused for a moment, and then continued asking.
“How’s the adaptation of the new weapons going?”
Wick called a squire and gave him some instructions; he quickly left the hall.
After a while, the squire returned and whispered something to Wick.
“They said it’s ready,” Wick replied affirmatively.
“Then let’s start. Have the Black Robe Squad protect us, and storm Carithes headquarters to capture that Young Lady Lacy.”
“Let’s give those cowardly allies a good demonstration.”
Edri stood up and began issuing orders. Then, the various captains in the hall filed out one by one.
In the vast courtyard, a sea of black-armored soldiers stood still, arranged neatly. There were nearly three thousand of them, all dressed in black armor, exuding a chilling aura and overflowing with killing intent.
With the thunderous sound of hooves, the battle began. A small number of elite armored cavalry led the way, charging directly towards Carithes’ checkpoint on the street.
Custom-made heavy lances were held before the horses, surrounded by a dark spiral energy field, shattering wooden crates and sandbags on the street.
The warhorses trampled the debris and continued forward, several Carithes guards who couldn’t dodge were pierced by the lances and thrown aside, unable to rise again.
But the Carithes merchants knew that the Tisiphone family had many cavalry, so caltrops were scattered along the subsequent streets. The front horse stepped on a caltrop, screamed in pain, slipped, and fell to the ground, throwing its rider off. The caltrops pierced through, causing blood to flow.
A dense volley of arrows and crossbow bolts started ringing from the other side of the street. The Tisiphone family’s front-line cavalry fell one by one. The narrow alley provided no room to maneuver, and their speed could not be increased.
Following the command whistle of the Tisiphone family’s combat captain, the cavalry stopped, and the infantry behind them moved in. They carried thick tower shields, advancing slowly and clearing the caltrops to pave the way for the following troops.
“Release!”
One of Carithes’ guard captains ordered, and a row of archers shot flaming arrows.
Red-flamed arrows pierced through the dark alley, smashing earthen jars in the corners of the street, spilling oil. The flames spread with the oil, igniting the remaining wooden crates, debris, and rags, turning the alley into a sea of fire.
The raging flames turned the narrow alley into a blazing inferno.
The sky illuminated, and the scorching wave of fire surged forward, making one feel suffocated, while the acrid black smoke entering the lungs felt like burning flames, preventing anyone from getting close.
Just as the crowd of Calytes heaved a sigh of relief, a loud explosion echoed from across the way, followed by the sound of massive water currents. The spiraling water, like a cannonball, shot through the alleyway, lifting debris and burning oil directly onto the people behind them. Several combatants from Calytes were engulfed in flames; their teammates immediately forced them to lie down and helped put out the fires.
Another rush of water sounded, and the swirling currents dispersed the debris within the alley, thinning out the flames. If this happened again, the opposing side might be able to push through once more.
“We can’t hold them back anymore, Captain!”
A guard shouted loudly, his face covered in soot, his voice urgent. This scenario was playing out in other streets as well; the Tisiphone family lived up to its fearsome reputation with their formidable fighting prowess.
“Hold them back or charge! Do you want to run away like a coward?”
The captain roared at his subordinates, his face twisted in anger, veins bulging. They had all come from poverty; if not for the Calytes family’s support, they might still be struggling in some corner.
Now that they lived happily, if anyone wanted to drag them and their families back to those days of hunger and hardship, they would fight to the death. Having experienced the darkness of mutual exploitation at the bottom of society, they knew better than to believe surrender would solve everything; any benefits must be earned through their own efforts.
Who would want to return to a life of insignificance after living as human beings?
Under the dark night sky, flames flickered everywhere, battle cries and the clash of weaponry echoed throughout the city. Initial hesitation vanished when comrades fell bleeding, and both sides grappled fiercely against the cold, backs to the fire, swords clashing and blood spraying.
On the main road leading to Calytes, the Tisiphone family’s black-clad troops advanced with thick shields, moving like a mobile wall.
Facing the impenetrable shield wall, the heavily armored cavalry of Calytes charged forward. The sharp lances gleamed with a ghostly blue light, and the hoofbeats quickened from slow to fast, accelerating within seconds before plunging into the enemy ranks amidst the glow of fire.
Suddenly, the black-clad troops lowered their shields, revealing silver-white rods extending from behind them, each rod with a dark hole in the middle.
“Fire!”
At the command, hundreds of rods released a burst of flame and smoke from their holes. The warhorses whinnied in agony, and the Calytes’ cavalry fell to the ground, riddled with holes, blood gushing, screaming in pain.
The rods were then retracted, and the Tisiphone black-clad troops continued advancing, pushing the Calytes back further.
This new weapon made its debut in this world, destined to elevate the efficiency of taking lives to unprecedented levels.
Thank you xFrostyFeetx and Commander Zhang of the Strategic Deception Bureau for your support~
(End of Chapter)
