Chapter 406

She thought it was an explosive device and quickly retreated to create distance. However, her body moved out of her control and she moved closer to launch a forced attack on the stone with her staff.

W threw a remote-controlled bomb, blasting Mandela's lingerie robe into shreds, leaving him looking utterly disheveled.

At the same time, Horn and Rhodes Island's forces rushed in from the west and surrounded the group.

Horn, his eyes bloodshot, and Venti led the procession to the front, staring at Mandela as they spoke slowly and deliberately:

"I am Rita Scamanderros, captain of Storm's Second Assault Team. On behalf of all the fallen team members and the people of Little Hill County who perished, I hereby bring you to trial!"

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P. S.: Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone!

Chapter 484 Long Time No See (Bonus Chapter)

Under Mandela's relentless exploitation, his body was already at its limit. Now, surrounded by a crowd, his condition and mood were at their lowest point.

"No, don't come any closer..."

"It's time for a reckoning!"

Standing at a distance, Shi Lei caught a glimpse of Mandela being engulfed by the angry crowd, his face expressionless.

War is often cruel and complex, a mixture of blood and water, a tangled web of hatred and resentment.

The Sarkaz, for example, were forced to live in the resource-scarce Kazdel because of their defeat in the war. No matter how much development is done, there's no point in developing a land whose potential is limited.

Rumors circulate that the current Regent Theresis, sent assassins to kill Empress Theresia several years ago.

As the saying goes, two tigers cannot share one mountain, and ending the civil war was of paramount importance to the Sarkaz.

They were unwilling to leave the stage of history; only by joining forces could they find a way to survive.

The rise of forces like the Deep Pool Forces is related to the famous 'Dual Monarchy' event in Victoria history.

After reading books for several years, Shi Lei has become so familiar with historical anecdotes from various countries that he can recite them with ease.

The more history one knows, the more indifferent one becomes to war. Because no matter how much one intervenes, the outcome for the local people is rarely good.

Of course, there is also the simplest and most direct path: Shi Lei conquers all nations and unifies the Terra.

But if he wanted to play with dyeing, he would have done it already.

On this land, many people have very strong racial sentiments. Even under Shi Lei's rule and with the distribution of various resources, they still feel that the previous dynasties were better.

"Buzzing..."

The appearance of a drone that did not belong to Rhodes Island interrupted Shi Lei's thoughts.

Although it avoided everyone's sight, it couldn't escape a wide-ranging Mental Scan.

After circling once in the sky, the drone headed straight for the back of the Doctor's head.

Shi Lei used his mind to conjure up solid Rock Constructs inside the drone, instantly breaking it apart. It left a black trail in the air before crashing to the ground and exploding with a bang.

Only then did the Rhodes Island forces realize the threat from the sky and hastily retreated to their aid.

Amiya instinctively stepped in front of the Doctor, but then reluctantly withdrew her hand after seeing Doctor Zhongli.

Closure surveyed the wreckage and called out:

"Amiya, that's a drone with Camouflage Paint! I didn't even see where it came from, it's so dangerous!"

Misery glanced at Shi Lei without saying a word.

He wasn't surprised that the drone could bypass everyone's sight and ambush the Doctor; that only meant everyone's attention was drawn to Mandela.

What Misery couldn't understand was that he couldn't sense any energy fluctuations when the other party Originium Arts.

How did you do that?

"I'll go and find out who's behind this."

Shi Lei walked towards the nearest city wall, placed his hand on it, and instantly disintegrated it. After entering the interior of the wall, he conjured a new structure to fill the gap.

The internal roads of Londinium are interconnected and as intricate as a maze. But under his Psychic Scan, he can quickly find the shortest route.

But Shi Lei still thought it was too slow, so he simply passed through the wall, repaired it, and headed straight for his target.

The drones he encountered along the way were all burst apart from the inside by the Rock Constructs he conjured out of thin air.

To the manipulator, this scene was utterly bizarre. It was as if getting close to him would trigger an explosion.

"I'm done playing! Lolo, run!"

This group was quite familiar with the underground pipe network of Londinium, but they couldn't keep up with Shi Lei, who was equipped with radar scanning and could quickly pass through walls.

In less than three minutes, he had caught the two young children. He then used Rock Constructs to envelop the man and woman and returned to the outside of the city walls to rejoin the others.

The Rhodes Island operator watched as if they were watching a magic trick; it wasn't long before they saw Doctor Zhongli capture him alive.

With his restraints removed, the boy looked embarrassed and awkwardly waved to the crowd.

"Hey, you guys... how are you?"

Amiya was very concerned about the Doctor's safety, and her expression turned somewhat serious when she saw that the pilot was a child.

"Who are you? Why are you attacking the Doctor?"

Upon hearing this, the boy twitched the corners of his mouth, trying to act like a familiar friend and ease the awkwardness with enthusiasm.

"The Doctor? I knew it. This is the only one hiding their face; they must be someone important. Um, please allow us to briefly introduce ourselves. My name is Fester, and her name is Lolo. We are partners, belonging to the Londinium Citizens' Self-Rescue Army."

It was a misunderstanding. I didn't know which faction you belonged to. I just noticed he was different from others, so I sent a drone to exchange intelligence with you."

"Exchanging intelligence, so kind of you?"

Now that Fester is a prisoner, he must maintain a very proper attitude and do his best to demonstrate his worth.

"Yes, it's a win-win situation. We're very familiar with the intelligence within Londinium, and we can do our best to get you any information you need."

The Doctor, who had been silent for a while, walked up to Fester, who was wearing a fawning smile, and asked:

What's the situation in the city right now?

"Well, it's neither good nor bad. The Sarkaz keep the workers confined to their areas to work, crafting all the materials they need. Ordinary citizens are restricted to certain areas, but as long as they don't forcibly cross district lines, there's no problem. If you don't want to stay in the city, you can apply to the Sarkaz for a leave permit; there won't be any review or a lot of forms to fill out."

According to Fester, the Sarkaz did not wreak havoc in the city. They conscripted workers to provide basic necessities, while ordinary citizens were kept under control.

This put the Doctor in an even more difficult position, making him feel that the idea of ending the war by attacking the Sarkaz was somewhat inappropriate.

"What about the Victoria Army in the city? Were they all imprisoned and executed by the Sarkaz?"

Fester originally intended to use drones to kidnap the Doctor and exchange information about the outside world with these strangers.

Unexpectedly, he became a prisoner of the enemy and had no choice but to provide information at a loss in exchange for his life.

"Things may not be developing quite as you imagine, the Doctor. There have been traitors in the Victoria Army, and quite a few of them."

These traitors and some nobles surrendered when the Sarkaz were preparing to occupy Londinium. Aside from the numerous Sardien District of the Sarkaz, the patrols in other districts were likely former Victoria troops. Only their commanders had become regulars at Sarkaz banquets."

Ah, classic case of surrendering to the enemy right at the door.

Shi Lei chuckled inwardly, unsurprised by such situations. He felt that traitors existed in every world, every dynasty, and every country.

To put it bluntly, they're just a bunch of selfish and self-serving individuals. They'd betray even their own family, friends, or national interests just to survive or gain wealth.

Misery didn't quite trust Fister; he wouldn't let his guard down just because the other person was a child.

"The Doctor, hearing is believing. You should see for yourself to confirm whether it's true or not."

"I know, but..."

At this point, the Doctor looked at Shi Lei. After hesitating for a moment, he proactively sought his opinion:

"Doctor Zhongli, what do you think we should do next: go deeper into Londinium, or what?"

Shi Lei twitched the corner of his mouth, feeling utterly bewildered.

An employer assigns tasks based on their own ideas; why would they ask someone else to complete the task?

Seeing that the Doctor remained silent for a long time, as if he were serious, he gave the other person a strange look and asked to confirm:

"Are you serious?"

"Yes, I... am a little confused."

Shi Lei knew he had amnesia and hadn't recovered yet, so many things couldn't be explained by common sense. Since that was the case, he reluctantly gave the instructions:

"If you haven't found the answer to ending this war, send a team deep into Londinium. I'll leave someone to protect the This Ship."

Shi Lei's two most capable generals are Niyan from the Immortal Realm Mudrock and Broca.

Mudrock definitely wants to go with me, and entrusting it to someone else isn't safe, so the final choice is obvious:

"Broca, you will remain on This Ship."

"Yes, sir."

A soldier's duty is to obey orders, and he had no objection to that. Moreover, there was a familiar face he hadn't seen in a long time on the Rhodes Island This Ship — Kal'tsit.

After finalizing the plan, Shi Lei made adjustments based on the personnel configuration on site.

Venti, Phoebe, and the others brought the nearly dead Mandela back to Rhodes Island. The Doctor only brought Amiya and the engineer Closure, in case of unforeseen circumstances.

The group included Vina, the Queen of Advance, and three henchmen of the Grasse gang: Dagda, Morgan, and Indra. Formerly natives of Londinium, they insisted on accompanying Shi Lei into the city. Horn, however, was permitted to accompany the group due to Lieutenant Victoria's status, facilitating negotiations.

Including Shi Lei's three girlfriends, and two Sarkaz mercenaries, W and Ines, there were a total of fourteen people.

The year belongs to the craftsmen and does not participate in combat. Ace, Scout, Misery, and other guards and snipers are all unnecessary, and they return to their This Ship with Broca.

With Shi Lei around, there's no need for guards or sentries. He can do the work of an entire combat squad all by himself.

After confirming everything was correct, the group split into two teams: one heading west and the other east.

Lentinium Sadien District, Command Center.

Manfred stood atop the city wall, satisfied with the outcome of the bombardment. He lowered his binoculars and said to Heredrey beside him:

"How many unseen corners do you think there are in this city?"

"It's impossible to estimate, but I feel a lot."

"Nearly a thousand factories from various industries, 60% of which are still in use. The area of these factories and underground pipelines is as complex as a maze. Even the surrendered Victoria leaders did not know exactly how many people were in the industrial zone and the old logistics zone."

I've been to those old factories, and sometimes they feel no different from the Slums of Kazdel. The poor are still struggling to make ends meet, while the Pantalone still enjoy their vast wealth and live a life of luxury.

It is virtually impossible to eliminate the potential threats in these areas before His Highness's plan can be implemented.

The poor have more backbone than the Pantalone because they, like us, have no other way out. Bombarding the industrial zone with City Defense Cannon will only provoke a backlash from them.

I know that several of the kings are not satisfied with my achievements so far. They are bloodthirsty and too easily provoked. If they had command, they would only build walls with the corpses of the Victorians."

Heredrey understood this, because the poor in the city weren't really that different from them. The only difference was that one had weapons and the other didn't.

"General, there's no need to blame yourself so much. If you couldn't do it, just let it go; His Highness will understand. I heard the plan is in its final stages, though I don't know the exact date, it should be soon."

There were no outsiders present, and Manfred felt he got along well with the mercenary, so he made an exception and revealed:

"You're right, Heredrey. As long as we can hold out until the day after tomorrow, His Highness's plan will succeed. Then we can gain access to the Main Cannon and launch a probing attack on the Grand Duke's forces outside the city. But the closer we get to the deadline, the less we can afford to relax. The Pride of Kings will not allow them to lower their Ancient Heads and take another look at this Foreign Capital. But if we want to take control of Londinium, the battles we'll face in these three days will be the most difficult."

"The day after tomorrow..."

Heredrey frowned slightly, as if he had thought of something:

"If I remember correctly, the armies led by the Blood Demon Great Lord and the King of Scavengers are about to arrive in Londinium. With their help, we should be able to hold out until the day after tomorrow without any problem. I can't believe that the Dukes can organize an effective attack in such a short time?"

The flattery was perfectly timed, which pleased Manfred greatly. He thought to himself, "People who have read books are different."

"Hahaha, Heredrey. Never speak too definitively. Always leave room for maneuver, so you won't be caught without options later."

"General, you are right. I have learned a lot."

June 23, 11:50 am

Londinium, outlying area.

After returning to their This Ship, the Rhodes Island operator voluntarily sailed away from the area, retreating thirty kilometers.

If the Sarkaz in the city start firing everywhere, the ships could easily be damaged without Shi Lei present.

After the ship was moored, Broca the Thousand Rock Spear to the deck and gazed into the distance.