Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World

"They're attacking! They're attacking!"

A man dressed as a merchant, panic-stricken, rushed into the tavern.

He was a rather portly individual, laboriously moving his large belly, panting heavily, yet not slowing his pace at all, not even bothering about his wig that was nearly falling off.

With a thud, the merchant collided with a waiter carrying drinks, both of them tumbling to the ground, intimately acquainted with the floor.

Liszt, who was drinking, put down his glass and looked at the disheveled merchant.

Under his gaze, the merchant hastily scrambled up from the floor, ignoring his dirtied clothes, and cried out hysterically.

"Run, everyone, run! Collins' cavalry is almost here!"

"What are you babbling about? Jeb is a neutral city-state!"

Someone loudly contradicted him, though their voice betrayed a hint of fear.

He quickly climbed the stairs, heading likely to gather his belongings, as the tavern also provided lodging.

The patrons drinking in the tavern exchanged glances.

Liszt felt a chill in his heart, thinking he couldn't possibly be this unlucky. Because of the tense situation in the Horn Bay Alliance, he had left Fort Ness early to avoid getting caught in the war.

On the outskirts of Horn Bay, there were some small neutral city-states that offended neither the Church nor condemned the coastal states' heretical actions. This provided a safe haven for merchants who didn't want to leave Horn Bay—many believed the war wouldn't last long, thinking after a few large battles, with one side defeated, surrendering, paying reparations, or ceding territory, peace would soon return to Horn Bay, and they could happily make money again.

Jeb was one such city-state claiming neutrality.

But today, cavalry from the Church's side was approaching this city, which didn't want to get involved in the war.

The merchants were discussing fervently.

"Lord Jeb should negotiate, right?"

"Just now, a friend told me he saw the Lord's convoy heading out for hunting at the south gate."

"…"

Liszt hesitated no more and decided to leave the city immediately.

He felt the money bag in his pocket, deeming it enough for some time, and decided not to return to his lodging to pack.

Upon leaving the tavern, Liszt headed straight to a nearby carriage house; the horse he rode to Jeb had fallen ill.

Entering the carriage house, his nervous heart relaxed slightly. Thankfully, it wasn't crowded, indicating not many knew about the situation yet.

He spotted a mid-range carriage with two fine horses, small enough for two or three passengers.

He asked the coachman, "How much to the neighboring Playa?"

The coachman held up three fingers. "Three silver coins, sir."

Liszt promptly placed three silver coins in the coachman's hand. "Can we leave now?"

"Yes, sir."

As Liszt was about to board the carriage, a large crowd surged into the carriage house.

"How much to Playa?"

"How much to Sonson?"

"How much for this horse?"

The newcomers were all there to rent carriages or buy horses.

The coachman quickly realized what was happening. He grabbed the shirt of Liszt, who was about to get into the carriage.

"Sir, it's ten silver coins now."

Liszt's face turned iron blue. "How can you be so dishonest?"

The coachman chuckled, "The me from just now is not the me now."

Liszt didn't want to argue about philosophical matters and surveyed the carriage house.

What to do? Should he find someone else? But almost all the coachmen were busy negotiating prices with others.

"Fine, ten coins then!"

Gritting his teeth, Liszt agreed to the coachman's price increase.

"Please get in, sir. We will depart immediately."

Liszt climbed into the carriage, and with a flick of the reins by the coachman, the horses began to pull the carriage forward.

However, something seemed amiss as they left the carriage house. "Wait, isn't the way to Playa in a different direction?" Liszt inquired.

"Sir!" the coachman replied loudly, "My family lives in Jeb, and I have a wife and children. I want to take them with me to Playa."

Liszt, upon hearing this, was on the verge of tears, cursing himself for not seeking someone else when he first entered the carriage house.

By the time the coachman had picked up his wife and children, the news of cavalry outside the city had spread throughout Jeb. The streets were in chaos with people running out of the city, scrambling to buy food, and searching for loved ones. The traffic chaos greatly impeded the carriage's progress.

More than an hour later, Liszt and his group finally left the walls of Jeb.

"Can this carriage go any faster?"

Liszt, near tears and frantic, urged the coachman, who had just whipped the horses.

"Sir, this is as fast as it goes. We have four people in the carriage," the coachman replied helplessly.

With no other choice, Liszt continually traced the holy emblem on his chest, praying for a smooth journey and to avoid rogue soldiers.

Unfortunately, his fears materialized.

They hadn't traveled three miles when they encountered two groups of armies on the plains ahead.

One army bore the flag of Jeb, while Liszt couldn't recognize the other's flag; it likely wasn't Collins', but probably an ally of Collins' forces.

Other refugees on the road immediately turned around and scattered.

After discussing with the coachman, Liszt decided to hide in a nearby small grove. Following the crowd made them too conspicuous, and who knew if there were other armies nearby.

After parking the carriage in the grove, which was on higher ground allowing a clear view of the surroundings, Liszt and the coachman hid in the bushes at the edge of the grove, observing the two armies that had already formed their lines.

Soldiers from both sides seemed to be shouting at each other, gesturing in contempt.

However, the knights on tall horses and in armor remained still, just staring at each other.

Liszt noticed that the army with the unknown flag had many riderless horses nearby, suggesting their main force might be infantry rather than cavalry.

With the rising and falling of trumpet sounds and the waving of flags, both sides gradually quieted down, then slowly approached each other under the command of knights who seemed to be commanders.

The infantry mostly held long spears, with the front row pointing them straight ahead and the back rows extending their spears through gaps in the front or resting them on the shoulders of those in front.

From a distance, the spear formations of both sides resembled two porcupines slowly backing into each other.