Steampunk Era: Mad Abield
Chapter 626: Section 439: John Wick (5)_2

Chapter 626: Section 439: John Wick (5)_2

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The third bullet struck the doe as it turned, burrowing into its abdomen; the animal collapsed on the spot.

The fourth bullet hit the doe that was nearing the bushes, entering through the back of its skull and blowing its entire face off, turning the deer’s head into a historical term.

Malin stopped shooting and turned to look at Rager.

"I must be dreaming," Rager exclaimed, then watched as Malin turned the gun around and removed four cartridges from what he called a rapid loader, smoothly loading the bullets in two moves: "Shotguns can be loaded like this?"

"Yes," Malin nodded.

Baron Brice Shelton ordered several soldiers to cross the river and drag the deer back, then he approached Malin: "New gun?"

"Yes, but it’s too small for a big guy like you; you need a specially-made big one," Malin said with a smile.

Shelton nodded: "I think so, too, but your marksmanship is really good."

"It’s honed on the Chaos Folk. Believe me, if you walked the streets every day with a Punisher and mingled with the Chaos lads like I do, you’d be just as good at shooting," Malin said while flipping the shotgun’s safety on. He continued—you could even learn to discern whether the wall in front of you can be penetrated with a hollow-point for a kill shot.

"It looks like I should also learn to use firearms," Shelton remarked, looking at the deer carcass being dragged back.

"I’ll teach you," Malin said with a laugh: "And you, Rager, you’re just a bit taller than me. When we get back, I’ll give you one of these shotguns. Trust me, it’s great for flesh."

......

When the troops were assembled and ready to depart, Malin received new information from Jason.

"One good news and one bad news, which do you want to hear first?"

Jason’s question was simple, Malin thought about it: "Let’s have the bad news first."

"Nagoth’s forces have left camp and are headed straight for the hunting camp; the Chaos forces there far outnumber yours... about six to one."

Malin cursed in his native language—he had just been thinking about fighting a wave battle at five to one, but now it seemed the tide had turned, and they were the ones being hit: "What’s the good news?"

"The Druid masters have confirmed the situation; they’ll be here shortly." As soon as Jason finished speaking, Malin heard the call of the Storm Crows, followed by both masters landing about two meters above the ground after reverting from their transformed state.

"Lord Malin, Your Grace the Duke of Brice, we have observed the movement of the Chaos, and they are heading toward the hunting camp; their numbers far exceed our intelligence," one of the masters reported.

Hearing the Druid master’s words, the faces of several barons and their knights and esquires turned pale.

"Did that Chaos agent lie?" the Duke of Brice wondered.

But Malin didn’t think so: "He probably told the truth; he also said they had observed these camps half a day ago and had sent believers to notify their leader. It seems that their capital has called for new reinforcements. If we flee, the nearby villages and towns will be contaminated, and we will need more time and effort to resolve everything." Malin looked at those present after speaking: "My suggestion is to rely on the little river outside our camp to establish a defensive line. I have many ideas; perhaps we can test them out in this battle."

"Lord Malin, the enemy is five or six times our number; these are thousands of Nagoth Chaos units, not some crazed believers," someone cautioned.

"I know, come, let me explain." Malin said as he walked onto the sandy bank of the river.

The Duke of Brice, several bishops, and distinguished personages such as the Tower Master of the Mage Tower followed suit.

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Malin used Fio as a makeshift rod to sketch a diagram of the riverbank defense line on the beach.

"Does anyone local know where the river is deep and where it’s shallow?"

"One of my knights is a local; he should know." A baron summoned a knight who quickly pointed out several shallow areas.

"Faye, Clovis, Rewo, and all the colleagues from the Mage Tower, please summon stone elementals to absorb all the sand and stones from these shallows, and then work hard to create deepwater areas along the entire river section," Malin ordered.

The mages had no objections.

Then, on the riverbank above, Malin had the saplings arrange an array, with all the water flowing through here undergoing Sanctification. They didn’t need people to guard them, and the sanctified river water would give the Nagoth units a good "drink," stripping them of a layer of skin, if not outright killing them.

The weakened Nagoth Chaos units would at least give the rank-and-file soldiers a fighting chance, and significantly increase their chances of survival.

"After digging the river channel deeper, we will mud the beaches. The weight of the large Nagoth units will be their downfall, and we should focus more on these large units, striving to eliminate them before they can charge into our defenses and inflict casualties on our soldiers," Malin explained.

"This plan is good," the Tower Master of the Mage Tower was the first to support, "What we mages need is time. If the Nagoth troops are indeed here to eradicate us, they will certainly come looking for us."

"If they aren’t targeting us, we can even lure them with a light cavalry unit," said His Grace the Duke, Brice, as he turned his head towards the smallest of his adult children.

"Although I don’t want to be bait, the thought of sending so many Nagoth Chaos to their deaths makes it seem not so bad. Father, please entrust this honorable task to me," the youngest child said with a smile.

"It’s yours, Silem. If the time comes when we truly need you, remember to run fast," Duke Brice said, and then turned to Malin, "Is there anything else you need to tell us?"

"Much more."

After saying this, Malin started arranging the defense lines and the rear platforms. In his mind, they would be on the first line of defense, while the factory guard archers, the Punishers’ sharpshooters, and the mages that Malin summoned would be stationed on the elevated platforms behind.

"Platforms? How high? Can we build them in time?" This was the solid Benevolent Church’s Bishop.

Malin and the Tower Master of the Mage Tower smiled like two foxes, large and small. Malin specifically demonstrated, "This is how we mages erect platforms."

With that, Malin raised his hand, and a large section of ground immediately rose one hundred twenty centimeters.

"We raise the platforms, then dig three layers of trenches in front of them, with the trench closest to the platforms going under them, nearly two meters or even taller. We can fill these trenches and the two central trenches with various sharp implements, preferably those enchanted with holy weapons. Moreover, we can connect the front two trenches with the river channel, letting water flow into them. Then we cover them with a thin layer of mud-hardened stone slabs, which the Chaos will break through and fall into," detailed Malin.

"These are all excellent defensive measures. If Nagoth is truly attacking us, they will come. How shall we direct their attack towards us?"

"The simplest way is to widen the river channels upstream and downstream, and then artificially narrow the river in the middle of our defense line. The Nagoth troops are unlikely to ignore the narrow part of the river and take a longer route to attack us," Malin said.

He had made all the preparations — scouting had not revealed any Great Demon, which meant this was likely a hit-and-run type of attack. These Nagoth units couldn’t be so scheming. If they were Mimicking Bird Jianqi’s troops, they wouldn’t be so easily fooled.

"I have no objections. The problem now is that we need a second scouting mission; I entrust this to the two masters," Duke Brice said to the two Druid masters.

"No need for such formalities, Your Grace. To assist you and Master Malin is our congregation’s honor. Please await our latest scouting report."

After the Druid masters left, Malin began creating the elevated platforms with the mages, while all the rank-and-file soldiers started digging trenches — making the most of resources was key.

As for how to get the tools, Malin would have to mention his Everlasting Transportation Channel.

Borrowing a thousand tools from the grand construction site of Carterburg was quite