Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord
Chapter 186: The Holy Guard

Last night’s heavy rain had accumulated a lot of water at the bottom of the pit.

Under the scorching heat, it slowly boiled, and the rising mist made the entire central furnace appear hazy, resembling some kind of eerie cult ritual.

Under the reflection of the flames, it shimmered with a pearlescent glow.

"Pressure is normal, steam transmission has begun, furnace temperature is stable, protective inscriptions are activating, ignition successful!"

"Ignition is successful!"

People began to cheer, throwing their hats, handkerchiefs, or whatever they had in their hands into the air.

They embraced each other in celebration, jumping and laughing, their joy overpowering the roar of the central furnace.

To prevent cognitive interference, Hughes had publicly explained the function of the central furnace.

The islanders of Castel knew that it was the energy core supporting the protective inscriptions.

Its successful operation meant that in this war against the deep-sea monsters, Castel finally had a fighting chance.

Even Hughes let out a relieved smile.

The recent situation had been growing more urgent, each crisis more severe than the last, surpassing even his worst expectations.

The successful operation of the central furnace at least gave him the confidence to continue the war.

Hughes turned to look at Chloe, who happened to be looking at him as well.

He waved at her and pointed to the furnace.

Chloe naturally understood his meaning, there was no need to flee anymore.

With this miraculous steel construct, they could defend this place.

She instinctively wiped the corners of her eyes.

She had long ceased to be human and no longer had weak things like tears.

The responsibility she bore did not allow her the slightest moment of weakness.

But at this moment, she seemed to forget all that.

She was simply happy, like an ordinary little girl.

It would take her a while before she remembered that she was no longer human, that flesh was merely a vessel for her soul, and that she was still walking through suffering.

People also seemed to forget the shadow of war.

At least in this moment, whether they were Sirens or workers, whether ordinary people or supernaturals, there was no difference.

They all screamed and cheered hysterically, releasing their emotions.

Steam rose from the bottom of the pit, as beautiful as a dream.

The watching workers gradually dispersed.

For some reason, even though they hadn’t spent much time with the Sirens, they felt a strange sense of connection.

Perhaps witnessing the ignition ceremony made them realize that, aside from appearances, they were actually quite similar to the Sirens.

They were all building Castel.

They were all struggling to survive.

A shared goal, a common enemy, and living on the same land naturally fostered understanding.

Together, they cheered and celebrated in the new cathedral after the successful ignition.

Different bodies held similar souls, and at this moment, they simply realized that fact.

The workers returned to their factories and shared this feeling with their colleagues who had stayed behind.

After work, they told their families and neighbors.

The public revelation of the Sirens’ identities went more smoothly than expected.

Although there were occasional voices of opposition, most people were accepting and kind.

Hughes didn’t have time to pay attention to the aftermath.

He immediately began allocating personnel, placing the Sirens in the most needed positions.

Now that the final shackle limiting the Sirens had been removed, Castel, this intricate war machine, roared to life at full power.

Sirens started participating in patrol teams.

Humans and Sirens patrolled together, freeing up emergency response teams.

On construction sites, workers and Sirens cooperated.

The workers set up molds and prepared stone blocks to be melted.

The Sirens stepped forward and used "Fossil to Mud" before quickly moving on to the next prepared location.

After dividing the work, this assembly-line-style specialization made the construction speed several times faster.

At the end of a busy day, people were shocked by their own accomplishments.

Even they hadn’t expected such efficiency.

The steam pipes of the new cathedral roared.

Hughes relocated part of the steel production line.

The Eastern Test Site was still too close to the coast, and he had to consider the risks of war.

Here, he didn’t need to install new steam engines.

The waste heat from the central furnace was enough to supply steam and power the machines.

This new steel factory was called Factory No. 2, corresponding to Factory No. 1 at the Eastern Test Site.

The workers here were all Castel islanders.

Many were experienced workers from Factory No. 1, trained by those whom the Candlelight Emblem had exiled from Rhine.

Hmm, after this war, he should send them home.

They had contributed a lot to Castel.

Of course, if they wished to stay, they could bring their families here instead.

Aside from factories and fortifications, Alexei’s recruitment efforts were progressing smoothly.

The islanders of Castel were enthusiastic about signing up.

Since the war had not yet officially begun, people viewed it with excitement rather than fear.

Alexei even had to turn away overly eager young men, as the factories still needed workers.

It was worth mentioning that this new army was ultimately named the Holy Guard—the Holy Guard of Imperial Truth.

Though Imperial Truth was not actually a church, since it bore the name, the army naturally adopted the title.

This was the result of multiple discussions among Hughes and his team.

Since they were the Holy Guard, they had to learn some doctrines.

Chloe and Alexei’s compiled scriptures now came into use.

The scriptures barely touched on faith but extensively covered strategy and tactics.

They also included fundamental physics knowledge.

Considering that the soldiers would use nitroglycerin and calculate artillery trajectories, Hughes added some chemistry and mathematics as well.

Thus, a strange religion was born.

It was called Imperial Truth, yet it cared nothing about the empire.

It was clearly a church, yet no one preached faith.

Within the church, people discussed knowledge and technology.

The cathedral’s chimneys spewed thick coal smoke and steam.

Workers hauled cartloads of ore into the church and transported out piles of steel ingots.

The Holy Guard held rifled muskets, studying marching formations and shooting techniques from the scriptures.

The leading clerics loudly explained how to cooperate with the Sirens.

Beneath their feet, at the very center of the Imperial Truth Cathedral, a massive steel furnace devoured entity pollution.

Burning pollution beneath the church.

Harboring the inhuman within the church.

Filling the doctrines with methods of killing.

Hughes snapped back to reality and realized that, without noticing, he had single-handedly created such a monster.

But he no longer had time to worry about that.

"Lord, the patrol team has discovered a large gathering of Murlocs on the coast.

It looks like they are preparing to launch an attack."