Iron Powder and Spellcaster

Clearing St. Paul Street is just a prelude. The old city is still burning. It is urgent to suppress the riots and restore order.

In order to avoid complications, Winters pretended to be injured and handed over the command of the North City Free Cavalry to Colonel Berne.

His casual false identity cannot withstand scrutiny. Although it can scare citizens without military background, it can be revealed in front of people who are familiar with the inside story.

Now that the real top military commander of Solingen has appeared, Captain Bern doesn't mind giving up the center stage.

However, Winters's guards were really eye-catching and looked out of place wherever they stood - there was no cavalry under Colonel Berne's command, and the militia cavalry in the North City were not as well-equipped.

Winters exchanged a few words with Pierre and Charmire, and then the two men led the guards to break away from the garrison and still followed the river and ice road towards the city.

Winters himself and Kaman put on military police robes and remained with Colonel Berne to guard against possible beheadings.

In addition to suppressing bandits and deterring lawlessness, the troops stationed in various autonomous prefectures in Monta also have an important responsibility - suppressing rebellion.

The garrisons in each state had secret plans to take over the main towns in the state, so Colonel Berne's "occupation" of the steel fort was very easy.

His orders were clear, precise and in order:

(1) Control the main roads of Steel Castle to ensure smooth flow of routes into and out of the city;

(2) Occupy bridges, intersections, and landmarks along the river, and divide the steel fort into disconnected blocks;

(3) Starting from the main road along the river, mop up the rioters block by block and advance to the edge of the city.

The plan was initially implemented smoothly. After receiving support from the Beicheng Militia Cavalry, the efficiency of the garrison was greatly improved.

Although the "free men" of Steel Castle were clumsy with their sabers, with the tall horses under their crotches, they could often disperse the gathered rioters with just a few riders feigning a charge.

Even if individual riders are trapped in the crowd and are besieged, the infantry following closely can rescue them in time.

Suppressive troops entered the city from the north and south at the same time, occupying intersections and bridges along the way, and stormed towards the lakeside pier with great momentum.

But the deeper we go into the city, the greater the resistance we encounter as we move forward.

Because the main perpetrator of this disaster tonight is no longer the rioting unemployed workers, but the fire.

…

Winters had experienced the fire at Victory Arsenal and thought he would never see a comparable doomsday scene again.

But now the steel castle in front of him seemed to be re-enacting the drama of the Great Fire of Guitu City.

The heat wave surged, making the helmet and breastplate scalding hot. The smoke was billowing so thickly that people couldn't open their eyes.

The main roads on both sides of the Rose River are filled with people's shadows and bright lights.

The thieves who took advantage of the chaos stumbled through the crowd with their stolen goods in their arms, and ducked into the alley. The fleeing citizens dragged their families and fled out of the city in panic.

The essence of Steel Castle is the large and small workshops densely distributed along the river. The "workshop belt" is not only the area with the highest building density of Steel Castle, but also the area with the most convenient transportation.

However, most of the workshops along the river had been looted, and the warehouses and workshops with tall walls and narrow doors that had narrowly escaped being robbed were set on fire.

The road, which at its narrowest point could accommodate two trucks running parallel to each other, was now crowded with carts and horse-drawn carriages carrying all sorts of things.

Suddenly, a loaded trolley lost its balance and capsized amidst the screams of its owner.

The clothes, porcelain, and silverware piled high on the car were scattered all over the floor, attracting others to grab them. In a blink of an eye, only a few bloody pieces of porcelain and the owner of the car who was sitting on the ground and crying were left.

At a glance, everyone was carrying their belongings, but they had no time to pay attention to the spread of the fire.

In mid-air, flocks of pigeons circled around their homes that had been turned into a sea of ​​flames, unable to bear to leave. There are pigeons whose flight feathers are burned and they fall to the ground and die.

Churches, houses, workshops, everything was burning; the flames roared horribly, and the unsupported roofs collapsed.

The anti-riot troops entering the city and the refugees leaving the city met each other, blocking the arteries of the steel castle from both ends.

The army can deal with heavily armed thugs and gangs, but the refugees with bare hands are helpless.

The soldiers guarding the bridge at the intersection tried their best to maintain order, but all their efforts were in vain.

Those who wanted to get in couldn't get in, and those who wanted to get out couldn't get out. The sound of exploding wood mixed with the cries and curses of men, women, old and children, flooding the streets and roads.

…

Colonel Berne's temporary command post is located in the [Chapel Covered Bridge] over the Rose River.

The chapel covered bridge is one of the landmark buildings of Steel Castle. The interior of the covered bridge was originally occupied by a large number of vendors' stalls, which occupied nearly half of its width. Now it has been rudely cleared away.

The messengers with dusty and smoky faces ran in and out, constantly bringing back worse news and sending away the latest instructions.

Standing on the top of the octagonal water tower in the middle of the covered bridge, you can clearly see the fire in the old city.

It was very different from the disasters caused by fires in the past. Tonight's steel castle fire obviously had multiple fire points and spread in all directions.

The old city was ablaze. From a distance, Nancheng District and Beicheng District, which have not yet been affected, are like sandbanks hanging in the Red Sea, in danger.

Realizing that the plan could not keep up with the changes, Colonel Berne immediately revised the main tasks to "evacuate people" and "put out fires."

But compared with suppressing riots, putting out fires and evacuating people is not at the same level of difficulty.

Two large groups of soldiers entered the city and were instantly diluted by tens of thousands of refugees. Not to mention putting out the fire, even evacuating the people is far from enough. It is a drop in the bucket.

Colonel Berne was watching the fire from the top floor of the water tower. His hands seemed to be just holding the window frame, but the fingers pressing on the red bricks were already livid.

"That won't do," said Winters, who was standing behind the colonel.

The colonel asked without looking back: "What did you say?"

Reason warned Winters - don't talk too much.

As an outsider, what happened to Steel Castle after tonight had no direct bearing on him. Even the more severe the fire, the more beneficial it will be to him in the future.

But something still drove Winters to speak up: "I said, 'This isn't going to work.'"

Colonel Bern turned around and looked at Winters coldly: "How?"

"You know better than I do."

But "clear" is one thing, "hands on" is another.

Only when you are on top of the octagonal water tower with a wide view can you truly understand how bad the situation has become.

The steel castle is now an iron pot on the fire, filled with boiling oil. The oil pan is pouring at an accelerated rate, and once the hot oil is poured on the firewood, the entire house will burst into flames.

Now has reached the moment when the defeat cannot be reversed without drastic measures - No! The moment has come when even if we use drastic measures, we may not be able to save Steel Castle.

If you want to prevent the whole house from being reduced to ashes, you need to have the courage to use your hands.

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas squeezed through the fleeing crowd, galloped to the end of the chapel bridge, and returned to the temporary command post from the front line.

He jumped off the saddle, didn't even bother to hitch the horse, rushed into the covered bridge in three steps and two steps, and ran up the water tower.

"This can't go on like this! Our troops staying in the city have blocked the roads." Thomas's cheeks were already blackened, and he spoke urgently: "Otherwise, while the fire scene is still some distance away, we temporarily order each hundred-man team. Retreat. Make way out of the way and ask the civilians to evacuate first."

Winters might not have understood it in the past, but now he could understand what Lieutenant Colonel Thomas was really saying.

"Our troops staying in the city have blocked the roads" which means "our people will be trapped in it if this continues."

"Get out of the way and ask the civilians to retreat first" was the high-sounding reason given to the colonel by the lieutenant colonel.

The garrison's duty is only to suppress riots and rebellions, not to put out fires.

Even if the Legion just sits back and watches the steel fortress turn into ashes, and if someone wants to hold them accountable afterwards, they can excuse it by saying that it is too late and they have tried their best. But if the legion takes the initiative to jump into the quagmire, it will never have the chance to clean itself up.

The more you do, the more you make mistakes. The world is like this, helpless and sad.

Bern did not pay attention to the deputy, but gave Winters a sideways glance: "Boy, do you still need to make up your mind for me?!"

The colonel took off his hat and smoothed his gray hair: "Lieutenant Colonel Thomas."

Thomas subconsciously touched the heel of his boot: "Sir."

"Convey my order to all the centurions." The colonel put on his hat again and straightened the hat: "As the highest military commander of Solingen State appointed by the Army Congress of the Republic, I believe that Steel Castle is in a 'completely out of control' state. According to " With the power granted to me by the non-disclosure clause of Article 17 of the Hornford Agreement, I decided to activate the emergency plan - [Steel Rain]."

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas was startled, and his expression suddenly became nervous: "Sir, that is a secret payment that can only be triggered by the rebels occupying the city..."

"From now on." Colonel Berne stood still in front of the window, staring at the Elin Cathedral in the sea of ​​fire, and continued to state without any influence:

“All property of the Steel Castle, whether private, municipal or republican, shall be taken over by the Solingen Garrison; all adult males of the Steel Castle, whether citizens or non-citizens, shall be drafted by the Solingen Garrison;

Civilians who have not been drafted will also be placed under military control; any civilian who disobeys orders will no longer have his or her private property and personal safety protected. "

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas was dizzy, his mouth was dry, and he was unable to speak.

Colonel Berne glanced at the adjutant: "Anyone who leaves his post without permission, cowers, or talks about failure tonight will be punished according to the military law of cowardice in battle."

Thomas' Adam's apple twitched and he struggled to spit out the answer: "Yes."

"Repeat my order."

Thomas took a deep breath and recited what Colonel Berne said word for word.

"Form a written order and file it." Colonel Berne said expressionlessly, "Communicate it to the centurions now."

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas gritted his teeth, raised his hand in salute, and ran down the tower "dong dong dong dong".

"What is Steel Rain?" Winters asked softly.

"You don't need to know that. You just need to know that I have obtained the power of life and death." Colonel Berne took out the wine bottle from his arms, slowly unscrewed the lid, and replied calmly: "Tonight."

…

In Steel Castle City, the originally scattered garrison troops clenched into fists again.

A team of hundreds on each of the south bank and north bank retreated to set up camp outside the city.

The remaining centurions, led by officers at all levels, began to clear the main road out of the city.

The method of "unblocking" is simple and direct: all carriages and carts blocking the road will be pushed into the Rose River.

The Monta soldiers carried out orders silently, efficiently and ruthlessly.

The military tradition of the country of mountains believes that "shouts" and "war cries" are self-comfort for the weak and have no practical effect. Soldiers must remain quiet to hear commands and drumbeats. So after being recruited into the army, the first lesson the Monta people learned was silence.

In addition to the belongings that many people carried with them, other things they brought out of their homes were all pushed down the river bank along with the carriages.

This rough style immediately triggered a strong backlash. Some citizens shook their fists at the legionnaires in a hurry, and then were severely punished by rifle butts and sword hilts.

The soldiers were not good at words, but someone spoke on their behalf - a free rider from the North City who patrolled along the road and shouted tirelessly:

"Listen! Steel Castle has been officially taken over by the Legion!"

"All adult males, report to the nearest sergeants and officers immediately. You have been drafted!"

"Women and children get out of the city immediately! Go east! There are temporary shelters on St. Paul Street and St. John Street!"

“Only bring what you can carry with your hands!”

"According to the order of the highest military commander of the garrison, only people are allowed to walk on the road out of the city! No driving is allowed!"

Meanwhile, just off the road, a makeshift gallows was pulled up.

A still warm corpse was swinging from side to side under the beam of the gallows. Hanging on the corpse was a huge wooden board with a short sentence written in eye-catching red paint: [I stole]

Under the burning red sky, the fleeing people walked out of the city with tears and grief.

…

At the intersection of Feiyu Street and Swan Lane, a double heavy-duty carriage was blocked by a Luka from the 400th Team.

"Untie the draft horse and take what you can take with you." The sergeant guarding Luka repeated the superior's order: "The carriage cannot go forward."

The driver ignored him and instead waved his whip.

"Spearman!" The sergeant reacted quickly and immediately took a step back: "Leave the spear level!"

Ru Lin's spears forced the draft horses back. The two strong beasts neighed and raised their front hooves, not daring to take a step.

There were a total of five people sitting on the carriage. Facing the soldiers who were surrounding them, the leader took off his hood and revealed a pampered face: "Call your centurion."

The centurion came on horseback.

"I am the Reformed Pastor Johannes." The middle-aged man in the lead showed the holy emblem on his chest: "The car is carrying holy relics and books from Elin Cathedral."

The centurion's voice was a little hoarse: "Is Elin Cathedral also finished?"

The priest shook his head.

The centurion glanced at the holy objects and the four priests on the carriage: "Take what you can carry, the carriage cannot go any further."

The pastor's expression changed and he argued forcefully: "But..."

"An order is an order. The church's property has also been placed under military control." The centurion wrinkled his nose and said: "I will send you a few draft horses to carry everything to the chapel bridge."

A priest exclaimed: "Aren't you going outside the city?"

"Outside the city is not as safe as the chapel covered bridge. The legion's command post is on the covered bridge."

Several priests in the car thanked him repeatedly: "May the Lord bless you."

"Don't be in a hurry to thank me." The centurion whistled and patted the fence of the carriage: "Everyone, get off the carriage! One person takes his things to the covered bridge, and the others take off their robes and go to Swan Alley. Assemble—you’ve been drafted too!”

The reins were cut, the harness was taken off, the draft horses carried the holy objects and books and left, and the other four priests were led to Swan Alley, turning back three times at a step.

…

[Rose Riverside]

"Be careful!" The warning echoed on the river: "Go down!"

Accompanied by shouts, a heavy carriage was pushed down the Rose River.

First, only the shaft of the carriage slowly came out. When the front wheels were completely suspended, the carriage suddenly fell, overturned and fell into the river with a height difference of one person.

A huge hole was opened in the frozen river, but the carriage itself refused to sink.

On the north shore, a dozen men whose faces were blurred by the smoke carried barrels through the fleeing crowd, rushed to the shore, and fetched water from the holes in the ice.

After finally getting the water, the men didn't drink a sip, but poured it on themselves.

Even though they were all wearing thick felt coats, they were doused with ice water on a very cold day, and their teeth were chattering from the cold.

After soaking all their clothes, the men fetched water again, then picked up the buckets and left.

"What is that?" asked a young voice.

The leading man turned his head and watched, catching the sight of the legionnaires pushing the cart into the river. Taking a closer look, the dark river bank was filled with floating carriages and wreckage.

Looking back at the road along the river on the north bank, although fleeing citizens are still crowded together, after clearing away the thrombus-like vehicles and horses, the river of people has begun to "flow" smoothly - there are even heavily armed soldiers maintaining order.

Listening carefully, you can vaguely hear the sound of houses collapsing from the south bank. It's just that I can't tell whether the house was burned down or if someone was demolishing it.

The young voice asked with great surprise: "The Legion is also here to put out the fire?"

"Hmph." Another old voice was full of resentment: "The Legion won't care about us! They will only save the rich people in South City and North City!"

"You bring water back." The leading man handed the bucket to his companions and wiped his face vigorously: "I'm going to see the garrison master."

…

[Chapel Covered Bridge]

At the temporary command post, several orderlies hurriedly moved tables and chairs, and rejoined the small tables used by vendors to set up stalls into large tables.

Everyone else's attention was focused on the mysterious little Captain Bern.

Under the gaze of everyone, the mysterious little Captain Bern rolled up his sleeves, held a graphite strip, and moved his pen quickly on the uneven table.

He moved almost without pause, occasionally closing his eyes to recall for a moment before continuing to wave the graphite strips.

The map of the old town of Steel Castle was sketched on a long makeshift table - accurate to the streets and blocks.

The legion did not carry a city map of Steel Castle when it set off. Fortunately, there was a young Captain Berne who "grew up in Steel Castle since childhood and was very familiar with Steel Castle" in the command post.

The lookout post placed on the water tower continuously transmits the latest fire information.

Little Captain Bern was drawing, and the clerk next to him was placing newly cut wooden wedges on the map, marking the location of the fire.

In this way, it is easy to see where the fire has spread.

"Southeast! Urwei Church!" A hoarse shout came from the water tower: "Fire!"

"Ulwe Church." The clerk hurriedly searched for it on the map, but couldn't find it anyway. He was so anxious that he kept repeating: "Where is the Ulwe Church? Where is it?"

Little Captain Bern tapped his helmet, thought for a moment, and pointed to the empty space on the edge of the long table: "Here."

As soon as he finished speaking, the orderly brought in another table and connected it to the edge of the long table.

Little Captain Bern's map continued to extend outwards, outlining the criss-crossing streets, and he drew a circle on the spot he just pointed at: "Urwe Church."

The clerk hurriedly put the wooden wedge up.

Several officers at the command post compared the location of Ulwe Church on the map with their memory, and there was almost no error.

On the side of the long table, the old Colonel Bern, who personally held the lamp for his "son", suddenly smacked his lips.

Winters threw away the graphite strip, and a muffled voice came from the helmet: "Personal hobby."

Colonel Berne sneered and didn't comment much. He just pointed to the location of Ulwei Church: "The fire on the south bank is about to burn up the mountain."

Other officers in the command also gathered around the map, watching in silence as the clerk continued to place wooden wedges on the table.

The situation was so clear that the officers didn't know what to say.

Most of the blocks on the south bank have been engulfed in flames. Several fire snakes have merged to form a huge arch-like fire scene, which extends from the lakeside to the steep mountain forest in the south of the city. The fire scene is sweeping towards the Rose River.

The situation on the north shore is slightly better than on the south shore, with fires only existing in individual or nearby blocks and not converging into one place - but only slightly better.

"What's there to think about?" Colonel Bern said in a stern tone: "This fire can't be extinguished! Demolish all the houses around the fire scene! When there is nothing left to burn, the fire will disappear naturally."

While the colonel was talking, black soot continued to float into the covered bridge with the wind, and spiraled down on the long table.

More than ten meters away, on the street separated by two walls, men's shouts and curses, women's quarrels, children's cries, and the screams of the injured blended into a cacophony, bombarding the nerves of all the soldiers present.

"Sir, we have done our best to evacuate the citizens." An officer hesitated: "But if we demolish the houses, there will definitely be people who will pester us for compensation afterwards, and maybe..."

Colonel Berne called his name loudly: "Secretary!"

"Here!" The clerk, who was placing the wooden wedges, was excited.

"Record!"

"yes!"

"Tonight, all decisions executed by the Solingen garrison were made by me alone." Colonel Berne's voice was steady and powerful: "When I made the following decisions, I, Max Berne, was conscious, normal in thinking, and had complete behavior. abilities, and know what responsibilities you will be undertaking—have you written them all down?”

The clerk licked his quill and swallowed: "Write it down! Sir!"

"Gentlemen." Colonel Berne propped up the long table and glanced at all his subordinates with piercing eyes: "I will be responsible for all the accountability afterwards, including beatings and killings, and it will not affect you. Tonight, you only need to consider how to Save this city.”

The colonel slammed his fist on the long table, and the wooden wedges all over the table jumped: "Or at least save what can be saved!"

"Colonel!" Thomas strode into the covered bridge, leading a charred man: "You must meet this gentleman."

After hearing this, everyone present turned their attention to the visitor - he was short, strong, and his clothes were dripping wet as he walked. There were stains all over his face, one after another, as if he had just gotten out of mud and water. Just like fishing it out.

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas pulled the coke man to the long table: "He is the captain of the fire defense team of Steel Castle."

The lieutenant colonel's simple introduction made all the members of the temporary command post stand in awe. Regardless of whether they were officers or soldiers, they all took the initiative to make way for the coke man.

As much as people are afraid of fire, they admire those who dare to fight with fire. As a part-time job, fire fighters do not receive a salary, but they have to fight fires immediately. They are warriors among warriors and are respected wherever they go.

"Mr. Ulrich and his companions have been fighting fires on the north shore." Lieutenant Colonel Thomas coughed and said: "He is a real expert. The fire on the north shore can be controlled, all thanks to the desperate efforts of the fire defense team."

Hearing this, the others couldn't help but look at the charred fire defense captain again.

But the man named Ulrich acted very reserved, probably because he was surrounded by a group of officers.

His eyes lit up when he saw the map drawn on the table. But when he saw the wooden wedges scattered all over the map, his eyes dimmed again.

Colonel Bern narrowed his eyes and asked bluntly: "Can you understand?"

Upon hearing this, the clerk hurriedly rearranged the wooden wedge that had just been shaken by the colonel's hammer.

"A small piece of wood is fire?" Ulrich asked hoarsely.

"right."

"Then I can understand what it means."

The map on the table continued to be updated, and the clerk continued to place more wooden wedges. Every small wooden wedge means the fall of a neighborhood or an important building.

"There is no time to waste." Colonel Berne made a decisive decision: "Since you are an expert, then you draw a line. Wherever you draw, my people will demolish it."

The fire defense captain stared at the map: "That line has been drawn."

"where?"

"it's here."

The fire defense captain walked to the map, stretched out three fingers, and cut the old city in half along the winding Rose River.

silence.

silence.

silence.

The officers present were in an uproar.

"What does this mean?" someone asked.

"That's what I mean." Ulrich replied in a neither humble nor condescending manner: "My companions are still waiting for me. Sirs, please allow me to leave."

Colonel Berne stared at the back of the fire defense captain: "Is the city on the south bank hopeless?"

"Instead of wasting manpower on the south coast, it is better to concentrate manpower on the north coast where there is hope for rescue." Ulrich turned around and whispered tiredly and heavily: "If you could come earlier, if you could come two hours earlier... One hour."

"You don't know what happened." Lieutenant Colonel Thomas said: "We have tried our best."

"Stop talking nonsense." Colonel Bern interrupted the deputy impatiently and continued to ask the fire defense captain: "Drawing a line along the river, does that mean that all the buildings on both sides of the river will be demolished?"

"right."

An officer was surprised again: "Sir, all the buildings along the river are workshops and workshops!"

Those dilapidated houses built haphazardly in the old city will be demolished. But every workshop and waterwheel along the Rose River belongs to the people who truly own the city.

The clerk continued to place wooden wedges on the table.

"Workshops that are already on fire can be demolished, but in these places, the line of fire is still five or six blocks away from the river." Another officer pointed to the map and asked quickly: "We will demolish them two or three blocks apart. , isn’t it too late?”

"no."

The officer who had just made the suggestion suddenly turned back: "Who is talking?"

"Me." Winters' voice spilled out of the helmet and reached everyone's ears clearly: "I said no."

The officer immediately asked, "Why not?"

"Because I experienced a fire of the same magnitude. That time we were two blocks apart, no." Winters paused for a moment and said slowly: "In Guitu City."

"Guitu City?" Some officers present thought of something.

Ulrich returned to the map table and tried his best to explain to the officers with gestures: "There is very little land in the old city. The old houses have been built with three or four floors, and the top floors will expand outwards, taking up more space." . The houses facing the street look like they are separated by a road, but in fact there is only a wall between the top floors. If a house catches fire, it can affect a large area immediately. The fire will even spread on the roof, just like the crown of the forest is on fire..."

"Then don't waste any more time!" Colonel Berne made a decision directly: "[The viper stings, the strong man relieves his wrist]. If the south bank cannot be saved, then only the north bank will be protected. Just along the river, demolish all buildings that may cause fire! Send an order to everyone. Centurion, shrink your troops to the river bank. Set off now!"

The officers present saluted and turned to leave.

"I have a way." Only Winters was still standing: "Maybe... I can save a few more things."

"Say!" Colonel Berne said without any pretense.

Winters' face was hidden behind an iron mask: "Fight fire with fire."

…

[Nancheng District]

The defense line set up by the South City Sheriff on Republic Street has actually collapsed.

The ill-prepared militias were unable to manage the refugees and did not have enough space to evacuate the refugees. After several rounds of crowds, the refugees completely broke through the roadblocks and poured into Nancheng uncontrolled.

"How is it?" Fuller stood behind the Baroness, spinning anxiously, and kept asking: "How is it?"

Anna looked at the noisy flow of people in the distance through the crack in the window and comforted: "Don't be afraid, Mr. Fuller."

Anna, Balian, Fuller, and the guards who failed to go to the North City with Winters are all hiding in the house of Covilyan, the hotel foreman.

Covilyan's home is a two-story townhouse. The old foreman went to the North City with Winters, and now there was only Covilyan's wife and a pale little girl at home.

Covilyan's wife is a fat, timid woman. Ever since Anna and others stepped into the house, she took the little girl and hid in the master bedroom and never showed up again.

At present, the personnel distribution in the small building is as follows: five guards stay on the first floor to set up defenses, and Balian is accompanying Anna and Fuller on the second floor.

"Can I not be afraid? Think about it, just a few of us, wouldn't we be dead all at once when we encounter a mob?" Fuller covered his heart: "Madam, when will the Baron come back?

"Mr. Fuller." Balian reminded: "Don't you have a gun?"

"Gun? Oh, yes! Gun!" Fuller quickly pulled out the gun from his coat: "But I've never used it! I don't even know how to use it!"

Balian pushed away the gun pointed directly at him: "Please remember, never point the gun at your own people."

"Mr. Fuller." Anna took the short gun, opened the lid of the gunpowder tank, pushed the flint crank, let the flint contact the friction wheel, and put the trigger in a ready state: "That's it."

…

[Constitution Avenue]

Beicheng District also evacuated a considerable number of old city residents. Compared with the route out of the city and to Nancheng District, the evacuation operations in Beicheng District were much more orderly.

On the one hand, this is because not many civilians fled to Beicheng District, and on the other hand, it is because of strong management.

And Paul Wooper finally found the job that suited him best - acting.

No matter how others persuaded him, he insisted on standing at the diversion point in the middle of the roadblock and nodding to every civilian who entered Beicheng.

But it has to be said that the mayor braved the severe cold and took charge personally - and even wore eye-catching costumes to ensure that everyone could see him, which indeed greatly reduced the panic among the fleeing people.

The sound of horse hooves comes from far to near.

A cavalry herald held a green flag and galloped to the roadblock on Constitution Street. He saw Paul Wooper's fine uniform at a glance: "Your Majesty the Mayor!"

When Paul Wooper saw the communication flag, his heart beat wildly, but the other party came straight towards him. He couldn't hide even if he wanted to, so he had no choice but to step forward: "It's me. What?"

"Colonel Berne orders you to lead all the diverted male Old Town citizens to the Rose River for support. Set off immediately without delay."

"He...I..." Paul Wooper was dumbfounded: "I am the mayor, he...why does Colonel Berne order me?"

"The colonel wants you to go immediately."

"That... Senator Servetus is here too!"

"The colonel ordered Senator Servetus to take over the defense of the North City District. He asked you to go by name." The cavalryman ordered the horse to lightly stab the horse's ribs, pull the reins, and turn the horse around: "Little Captain Bern asked you to go to the North City Sheriff and take him to the basement." Everything but money'."

…

[Old Town]

Winters had already chosen a location, right at the riverside intersection facing Elin Cathedral.

Fire fronts from Bailey Street and Brook Street were meeting at Al Ain Cathedral, creating a huge blaze.

The stones of the church wall were shattered and shot out like cannonballs under the scorching flames. The lead roofs melted and flowed like streams into the streets, reflecting the pavement a flaming red.

Many citizens moved all their belongings that they could not carry into the church because they believed that the stone wall could block fire or that the church was blessed by the gods.

Now, they are all burned to ashes.

"You're crazy!" Kaman shouted, covering his ears.

Deafening explosions came one after another from the east and west. It was the garrison using gunpowder to blow up the houses near the fire scene and create an isolation zone.

Winters felt the force of the wind: "I'm not crazy. Fire can put out fire. You've seen it with your own eyes."

"That's not what I'm talking about!"

"Then you don't have to worry. Look!" Winters pointed to the rolling mountain ridges surrounding the city: "It is surrounded by mountains on all sides, and the east and west ends are crisscrossed by convection. Even on weekdays, the wind in the steel castle is swirling! All I have to do is push!"

"Push it?" Kaman said angrily: "Can you push it?"

Winters showed a subtle expression belonging to the "blood wolf" again, and he laughed and said: "How will you know if you don't try it."

On the buildings on the left and right, someone was waving flags to indicate that evacuation and preparations were complete.

Winters waved back.

Following his response, soldiers along the road threw torches into the houses facing the street, and then quickly retreated.

The inside and outside of those houses were doused with liquid fire collected from the imperial spy warehouse. In an instant, flames rose, and there were crackling sounds and thunderclaps everywhere, like a terrifying rain of fire.

The Imperial spies probably never imagined that their inventory would come in handy at a time like this.

Winters climbed onto the roof of the house across the street from the fire scene. There were already three Monta officers waiting for him, and all the garrison's caster officers were in place—Colonel Bern among them.

Winters took off his helmet for the first time in front of other Monta officers, revealing facial features and hair color that were very different from Colonel Berne's.

"The last time this spell was used, it destroyed a city." Winters felt the breath and pulse of the steel castle: "This time, it will save a city - of course, more accurately, half of it will be burned to the ground. At the expense of the other half seat.”

"Stop talking nonsense, boy." Colonel Berne took a deep breath: "Let us see what you are capable of."

"Okay." Winters turned and faced the fire: "Listen to me!"

The moment he raised his hand, a swirling air flow rose from the ground. When the airflow touches the fire scene, it is also dyed orange-red.

Another invisible vortex firmly grasped the three Monta officers who entered the spell-casting state, causing them to resonate uncontrollably and unable to break free.

The speed of the airflow is getting faster and faster, and it naturally produces a centrifugal inertia, but it is forcibly restrained, compressed, and plasticized by unnatural forces.

The burning dead branches, leaves, and wood chips of the walls were swept into the whirlwind, and the air temperature rose rapidly, making Winters feel like he was in a furnace.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Kaman picked up the ice water prepared in advance and poured it on Winters and the other three spell casters. He also covered the four people with fire blankets used by the fire defense team.

The invisible vortex continues to rise into the air, and it becomes increasingly difficult to restrain it. Both parties in the struggle are approaching their limits.

An older Monta spellcaster was the first to fall unconscious, followed by another younger spellcaster just behind Winters.

Only Colonels Winters and Berne were left holding on.

Winters' whole body was burning hot. He no longer knew whether it was the heat of the fire storm or the phantom pain that overflowed the dam of reason and began to affect the material world.

"Stop!" Carman grabbed Winters' shoulders and yelled, "You're going to burn yourself to death!"

However, Winters didn't respond. He couldn't hear what Kaman was saying.

Finally, Colonel Bern also fell headlong. Winters was left alone to support this massive spell, unprecedented in the history of spellcasters in the Alliance.

The fire storm swirled and roared, rushing upward with huge potential energy, and was about to form a self-stable positive feedback structure.

But no one knows whether Winters will break first or whether the fire tornado will form first.

In desperation, Kaman put his hand on Winters' head and gave Winters his most sincere prayer.

…

[covered bridge]

One militiaman exclaimed: "What is that?"

Paul Wooper turned around disapprovingly and was shocked to see a fire python rising into the sky.

…

[Constitution Avenue]

"Look at that!" one of the refugees screamed, pointing at the city.

Old Schmid and Senator Servetus saw a red chain connecting the sky to the earth.

…

[Nancheng District]

"Savior!" A scream came from the bedroom with the door closed.

Anna and Balian entered the bedroom, the window was wide open, and Covilian's fat wife was holding the little girl in her arms and praying tremblingly.

In the Old Town, a tornado of flames roared and collided head-on with the El Ain Cathedral.

The roof of the latter collapsed.

[Work hard to pay off debts (full of energy)]

[As much as people are afraid of fire, they admire those who dare to fight with fire]

[Fights and fires are the two major sights of Edo]

[Regardless of east and west, ancient and modern, firefighters are brave men who are highly respected and loved. During the Edo period, Machiya Riki, Huo Xiaotou and kabuki actors were collectively known as the "Edo Three Men". Even many children from wealthy families became members of Wo Yan because they envied the honorary status and dress of Wo Yan, a professional firefighter.]

[Even to this day, firefighters are one of the "very manly" professions]

[Of course, the kind of extortionist fire brigade that Krasu raised is not among them]

[Thank you book friends for your collection, reading, subscription, recommendation votes, monthly votes, rewards and comments, thank you all]