Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

When the seawater finally surged to the foot of the Castel Cathedral, it finally began to recede.

The cathedral's concrete walls were excessively thick—near the furnace, the thickness even reached six meters. These weren't originally intended for real use, merely a surplus margin for contingency.

The result was that this immense wall saved Castel.

The sudden surge of seawater and monsters had taken everyone by surprise. The outer defenses had been built to withstand the intensity of human warfare. Their standards were merely enough to resist bullets and explosions—no one had ever imagined facing colossal beasts several stories tall crashing straight into them.

As a result, the outer fortifications simply couldn't hold against the onslaught of the sea urchin monsters. One by one, they fell. Had the retreat order not been given promptly enough, the casualties would've become unspeakable.

But once they reached the cathedral, there was nowhere left to retreat. They could only rely on the heavy fortress to hold the line.

Fortunately, they barely held on.

The Holy Guard stationed inside the fortress stayed under cover, having laid out a large number of explosive packs and ignition markers on the outer grounds. The soldiers observed the positions of the sea urchin monsters and then shot the prepped fuel sources to detonate the charges.

The results were decent. Even without the banshees throwing explosives, they managed to slow down the advancing army of monsters.

They launched repeated charges—colliding again and again. The sea urchin spines snapped from the impacts, but the reinforced concrete remained unyielding. Eventually, a few walls were breached, and smaller murlocs crawled inside, launching another round of skirmishes with the Holy Guard within the fortress.

The Holy Guard tenaciously fought for every line of defense, holding out until reinforcements arrived.

The banshees joined the battle!

Monica's vitality was like the ocean—almost limitless.

Knowing this, the heavily armored banshees launched waves of assaults like rolling tides. They would charge forward—slash—and then retreat, immediately replaced by the next wave of banshees taking over the fight.

The murlocs inside the fortress were quickly cleared out.

After rapidly sealing the breaches using *Fossil to Mud*, the banshees moved to the top of the fortress.

Alexei organized the Holy Guard to continuously haul up explosive packs. The banshees then used their superhuman strength to hurl them down from above.

Though few in number, the banshees' throwing speed was terrifying—each of their six hands could operate independently and without interference.

Soon, the sound of explosions outside blended into a continuous roar.

When Hughes switched to an aerial perspective, the scene left him speechless. The banshees' primitive method of hand-throwing explosives had somehow achieved the effect of a slowly advancing barrage.

The battle line stabilized.

At that moment, Monica finally reached the vicinity of Castel and began using the Sea God's divine power to drive back the seawater.

With the retreat of the sea, the once-indomitable deep-sea monsters reverted to their land-based forms.

The tide of battle instantly turned one-sided.

The roar of heavy machine guns was deafening, and for the first time, the monsters were falling faster than they could advance.

Forget the banshees—even Alexei organized a few Holy Guard charges. Though, these assaults soon became awkward.

They simply couldn't run faster than the banshees were killing—the reverse push of the frontline left them trailing behind.

Standing amidst a field of corpses, the Holy Guard looked at the scarred cathedral. Their previously numb expressions finally regained a trace of spirit.

They had held on. Castel had not fallen!

Kyle was among the crowd. He was one of the first to rush out from the fortress, having just fought on the frontlines resisting the murlocs. He stared blankly at the scene before him. The ringing in his ears gradually subsided, and he began to hear the surrounding cheers, joining in with the crowd in loud celebration.

The soldiers hugged one another. Tears and smiles appeared on the same faces.

They had once been nothing more than workers, islanders, teachers, and researchers—but to defend their home, they had taken up arms.

They had survived. They had defended their homeland.

In the distance, the banshees halted their pursuit, as the monsters had already fled back into the sea.

They turned to look at the Holy Guard in the distance, expressions touched.

Those mortals—frail, small—often could only serve as support. Yet they still stepped onto the battlefield, fighting monsters they could never hope to defeat.

They were just as brave.

Even Ash had paused. She gave no orders for once and simply let the banshees gaze into the distance, whispering softly among themselves.

The sun gradually dipped below the horizon, and the evening breeze swept across the battlefield.

They were the victors. Let them enjoy this brief moment of respite.

"We've successfully held the line," Hughes said, both hands propped on the table, looking out at the lowering sea and the retreating monsters.

"幸不辱命。" ("Glad I didn't fail my mission.")

Alexei stood not far behind him, the dark circles under his eyes prominent.

The intensity of this battle had escalated too quickly. The Holy Guard lacked enough junior officers, so Alexei had to personally step up. The continuous, prolonged combat had left him mentally and physically drained. Only now did he finally show a relaxed smile.

They had finally held the line.

No one knew how much pressure Alexei had borne. From frontline command to logistical coordination, he had been involved in every step. This young man, once a bit green, had now transformed into a capable commander.

The Holy Guard had played a crucial role in this battle—their courage and resilience had even earned the respect of the banshees.

"But this isn't the time to celebrate. What's your take on the Pirate King's Court?"

"There are two plans, my lord," Alexei said without hesitation. After hearing about the Church of the Sea God, he had already started plotting how to eliminate the Pirate King entrenched in Gem Bay.

He spread out a map on the table. "The simplest option is an airship bombing—Miss Chloe failed last time, but I think the main issue was the payload wasn't sufficient. This time, we use a bigger bomb. That should take care of the Pirate King."

Hughes looked up at him after hearing this plan.

Why did his territory have so many TNT worshippers?

But then again, Alexei's reasoning wasn't wrong. Last time, Chloe hadn't carried much explosive—it had mostly been ceremonial gear.

Even summoning a heretical god hadn't helped. How much TNT could a heretical god even withstand?

If they fully loaded an airship with explosives, hauling several tons shouldn't be a problem. And several tons of explosives... well.

"What's the second plan?"

"Have the Holy Guard and banshees form a strike force and push straight toward Gem Bay. We're not far from there. If the seawater keeps receding, those monsters won't be much threat on land—just a bullet sink. At this distance, we'd only need to set up camp twice on the way, and it'd be faster than building another airship."

Another simple and brutal plan. Hughes sighed.

"My lord, what's your decision?"

"Let's do both."