Chapter 697.3: Port Gallon
Axin froze for a moment, then nodded seriously.
“Coin, Family, Heaven, Wasted... I’ll remember.” With that, he tucked the pistol into his waistband, turned around, and sprinted toward the slums, looking like a completely different person from the timid figure he had been before.
Watching the kid disappear, Half Wasted sighed, “I don’t think this is a good idea. There might’ve been a better way.”
No Family slapped his shoulder with a grin. “But don’t you think it’s interesting?”
A guy living at the very bottom of the pyramid, bullied by everyone, suddenly tasting power one day and flipping things around, standing on everyone’s heads.
He was curious to see just how far that kid would go. For someone like him who lived for entertainment, it might turn out to be a fascinating case study.
Heaven Stepping, who hadn’t said a word the whole time, nodded in strong agreement. “I think it’s a good idea.”
...
Elsewhere, in the detention center of the Guard Station, Governor Nihark, still in handcuffs, was shoved along the corridor and sent stumbling, crashing onto the cold concrete floor of a cell.
“From today onward, this is your new home, Mr. Nihark.” a man in an exoskeleton stood at the doorway and mocked him, then turned to Bihari and two guards standing nearby. “Keep an eye on him.”
Having fully completed his ideological transformation and embraced his new identity, Bihari immediately placed his right fist over his chest, stood ramrod straight, and replied loudly, “Yes, sir!”
Ample Time said nothing. He nodded and walked out.
He was a busy man. Not only did he have to deal with port affairs, he also had to inventory and tally the spoils of war. Old White might be the commander of the entire operation, but he was the person in charge of all logistics.
Stuck at the port weren’t just nobles of the Xilande Empire, but also merchants who had come from other regions to buy goods. Their cargo and ships were trapped at the docks, unable to leave. Some of the goods were livestock, spices, dyes, linen cloth, and the like. Others were a specialty of Poro Province, people.
Since the New Alliance had arrived, the Burning Corps naturally wouldn’t allow slave ships to depart. Soon enough, they would also shut down several camps within the settlement and announce the enforcement of New Alliance law during the period of temporary control.
In addition, some nobles of the Xilande Empire were attempting to disguise themselves as merchants to flee and needed to be carefully screened.
Those people were both hostages and bargaining chips for negotiations with the Xilande Empire. They couldn’t be allowed to slip away so easily.
In short, there was still a mountain of matters demanding attention. Until those messy details were dealt with, he had no time to bother with that guy.
As the man left, silence fell inside and outside the cell.
Feeling three pairs of eyes fixed on him, Governor Nihark felt sweat bead on his forehead. He forced a smile. “Bihari... Sir, what exactly is going on here?”
“What’s going on?” Bihari narrowed his eyes slightly, sizing up the fallen governor with a trace of mockery in his voice. “You’re already sitting in here, and you still need me to remind you?”
“Bihari! Watch your tone!” Nihark glared at the man who was now looking down his nose at him, trying to press his former status, only to realize it had lost all effect. The man who once groveled and flattered him had completely changed, staring at him now with a ferocious expression.
No, he wasn’t even human anymore!
He was a snarling bulldog, baring his foul gums at his former master, wagging his short, pitiful tail desperately to curry favor with a new owner.
Raising his chin arrogantly, Bihari looked down at the pathetic figure slumped in the cell and spoke without restraint. “The one who needs to watch his tone is you, Nihark! Standing in front of you now is the chief of Port Gallon’s Guard Station! In this place, aside from the New Alliance and New Alliance law, I’m the biggest authority! If you don’t want to suffer, you had better learn to keep your tail between your legs!”
Nihark stared at him wide-eyed. “Are you insane? Aren’t you afraid I’ll deal with you once I get out?!”
Hearing that, Bihari burst out laughing. “Hahaha! Even if I treated you better now, would you really go easy on me once you were free? And even if you would, would the others? Besides, whether you even get out of here depends on the moods of those lords.”
After a pause, he added, “And they’ve promised me the position of Police Chief. Face reality, the Xilande Empire is finished! Hahahaha!”
Ignoring Nihark’s murderous glare, Bihari laughed loudly and swaggered out of the prison, leaving only two lackeys standing guard at the door.
“You bastard!” Nihark lunged at the bars, gripping them tightly and shouting at the guards. “Let me out! You traitorous dogs, do you know who I am?! I’m the governor here, the governor of Port Gallon! I was personally appointed by His Majesty!”
The two guards stood there motionless, as if they hadn’t heard a word.
“Stop yelling. It’s useless. Do you see them paying any attention to you?” A sigh came from the cell across the way, interrupting the barking tirade.
Panting heavily, Nihark finally noticed someone lying in the opposite cell, someone he knew.
His pupils shrank, and his voice trembled. “Dilrang...”
“Long time no see, Governor.” Dilrang gave a self-mocking smile and greeted him.
Nihark swallowed hard, forcing out the question. “What exactly happened? Weren’t you supposed to be at French Fry Harbor? Why are you here?”
“What happened... heh, that’s what I want to know too.” Dilrang looked at the meter-wide beam of sunlight filtering through the barred window, his expression complicated, feeling as though the past few days had been nothing but a dream.
He should’ve been on the beach at French Fry Harbor with his men, enjoying sea breezes and fruit while having fun tormenting traitors of the Xilande Empire. Instead, before he even caught sight of the docks, he was beaten senseless by mutants and the New Alliance in turn, and now he’d been thrown into a jail in Port Gallon.
That was the most absurd part.
He never imagined he would end up locked up there. At worst, he had expected to be sent to Dawn City as a bargaining chip to pressure Duke Garawa.
The New Alliance wasn’t just arresting people on their land, it was going to put them on trial on their own soil.
The humiliation was so great that he almost felt death would be preferable.
“How many of them came...?” Nihark asked nervously.
Dilrang replied casually, “Probably less than 1,000. From what I saw, maybe 500 or so?”
Nihark relaxed, a flicker of delight even crossing his face. “If there are only so few of them... they won’t last long! The Port Gallon garrison has 2,000 men, there are nearly 10,000 reserve troops! After what happened a month ago, I even purchased artillery. General Abhinan will teach them a harsh lesson!”
Looking at the man still clinging to hope, Dilrang curled his lip bitterly. “Don’t kid yourself. Those guys aren’t their match.”
Nihark froze, then forced a dry laugh. “Commander Dilrang, aren’t you being a bit too pessimistic? No matter what, they’re only 500 or so of them...”
“Do you know how many people captured us?” Without waiting for him to guess, Dilrang answered his own question. “30. All they sent was 30 people to capture us all. I only found out later, and they weren’t even their elite troops.”
At least 200 elite soldiers of the Gray Wolf Army had landed that day, yet they had been beaten so badly they never even had a chance to fight back.
And what came after was even more crushing. The Mutant Humans who had slaughtered them mercilessly were wiped out like chicks when they faced another group of people armed in steel from head to toe.
They weren’t even on the same level.
From the start, they should never have provoked the monster, much less tried to get involved when this New Alliance was already fighting another beast.
After hearing Dilrang’s account, despair surfaced on Nihark’s face. His voice trembled. “Do we really have no chance at all?”
“I don’t know.” Dilrang shook his head and sighed. “Maybe His Majesty can come up with some brilliant plan. But you and I, sitting in here, have no options left.”
The main Gray Wolf Army stationed along the Everflowing River might be able to save them.
But the problem was that only the emperor could command those troops, and that man might not even know what had happened yet.
As Nihark and Dilrang sat facing the iron bars in wordless despair, a dense crowd had already gathered at the quarantine line of the port district.
Some were merchants from Port Gallon, others merchants from afar. There were also shipowners, captains, and sailors from the cargo ships docked at the pier.
Just the night before, the entire area had belonged to the emperor of the Xilande Empire. By morning, the twin-blade banner hanging over the port had been torn down, with no replacement raised.
Most of their wealth was sitting right there on the docks.
Watching the soldiers armed to the teeth with mounting unease, every one of them was waiting for an explanation...
