Chapter 190: Dad is a Hero! 【Double】

“Creak…”

After the old door closed, the small room fell into silence.

“Tap… Tap…”

As the man’s footsteps faded, all strength seemed to drain from Janice! She leaned weakly against the door, motionless.

She knew what Lowell was going to do.

During that time, the streets and alleys were full of discussions about the Strike and Raise Movement, and the Security Bureau was arresting people daily.

They even stormed into their textile factory, claiming young women were involved.

Janice knew the Strike and Raise Movement was good.

It gave a voice to poor workers and sought welfare for the underprivileged! But… But… Movements could result in death!

She saw captured workers hanged in the Square, their corpses stinking from afar.

During that time, she preferred to take a detour in the morning rather than passing through the Square.

Whenever Lowell went out late at night, she lay awake, anxious.

She was afraid!

She feared waking up to find Lowell hanging from the scary gallows in the Square! She had strongly opposed Lowell going out, hiding his night cloak, arguing, and breaking a cup in anger.

She shouted, ‘Even if it’s the right thing, why must it be you?’

Lowell stared with wide eyes, ultimately not answering her.

He stubbornly continued, becoming even more radical, even modifying his body.

Thinking of this made Janice cover her face in pain.

She wanted to cry but didn’t dare, afraid of waking the children.

“Whoosh!”

The dark room suddenly brightened from the light outside.

Janice looked up in surprise, still confused.

“Bang, bang, bang…”

The intense gunfire echoing like torrential rain reached them, making them shiver.

“Boom! Boom, boom!”

Along with gunfire came deafening explosions.

The gunfire and explosions quickly spread throughout, engulfing the Infir city as if in flames.

In the dark house, the outside flames flickered on and off.

“Mom—”

The older son and younger daughter were awakened.

They screamed in fear, rushing to their mother.

Janice hurriedly embraced them, her face pale and shaking.

Her husband was out.

The whole city was at war.

What about her husband…? “Mom, where’s Dad?”

The daughter suddenly asked.

Janice was at a loss, unable to answer.

She could only comfort them repeatedly, “He went out, he’ll be back soon. Don’t be scared!”

The gunfire continued for a while before gradually stopping.

But Janice’s heart grew more uneasy.

She didn’t know what was happening outside. The intense shooting made her anxious and fearful! “Screech…”

Suddenly a light from outside illuminated the dark room and then went out.

In that moment of brightness, Janice saw her children’s frightened eyes.

“Boom!”

It was thunder! That was lightning before the thunder! Is it thundering? “Boom, boom… Boom…”

Then, the room flickered ominously. The low rumble of thunder echoed, unusually terrifying.

Until a calm voice spoke.

“Darkness has shrouded the land too long, I think it’s time for daylight!”

As the voice fell, daylight suddenly appeared outside, with rays of sunlight streaming in, brightening the room.

In the streaks of sunlight, dust particles shone like little elves, playing and dancing.

Janice had never seen her home at noon.

She always left early and returned late, momentarily entranced.

The frightening lightning and thunder stopped quietly at that moment.

“Mom, it’s daylight!” the daughter reminded.

Outside, the sound of commotion could be faintly heard.

Janice gathered herself and cautiously looked out the window. Her neighbors were gingerly peeking out to check on things.

Janice watched for a while and, seeing no abnormalities, opened the door to find out what happened.

“Mom, look, it’s Dad!”

“Dad’s in the sky!”

The son and daughter exclaimed in surprise! Janice looked up in fear and saw a giant picture in the usual gray sky.

The painting was enormous! It almost covered the entire royal city.

It showed a man covered in smoke and blood, grinning with blue teeth, standing on the luxurious palace roof, waving a bright flag! An alarming message was written beneath.

“The Emperor of Infir is dead. Starting today, the people of Infir stand tall!”

Janice stared blankly at this scene, her mind shocked and blank.

The next time she saw her husband Lowell, it was already dusk.

He was disheveled, his clothes dirty and blood on him dried black. He looked very tired, but his eyes were exceptionally bright.

“Dad, I saw you! How did you appear in the sky?”

“Dad! You’re a hero, right? Everyone says you are a big hero! They even call you the Blue Tooth King!” [Note 1]

The daughter and son rushed into Lowell’s arms, chirping excitedly.

Janice walked over and pulled the children, saying, “Stop asking questions, let your father sit and rest!”

Lowell laughed heartily, looking spirited: “Haha, of course! Do you know where Dad was? Dad went to fight the bad guys!”

“Dad and the brothers stormed the palace and killed those damn noble lords sucking our blood! From now on, we rule the Infir Empire!”

“See? Now we can have canned meat at every meal. I guarantee you’ll get tired of it!”

Lowell said, taking two cans of meat out of his pocket, teasingly handing them to the kids.

“Wow! Canned meat!”

“I won’t get tired of it!”

“Yay, Dad, I want canned meat!”

Meanwhile, Janice brought a big bowl of mashed potatoes, a plate of toast, and a large piece of sliced cured meat.

It was clear that Janice had prepared these foods earlier while waiting for his return.

Seeing her husband’s inquisitive look, Janice said, “This was distributed during the population survey by your people in the morning.”

Lowell’s eyes brightened even more: “Really? I knew Mr. Akide wouldn’t forget any of our compatriots.”

Although victory had been won for a day, the fulfillment of the result still could not calm him.

“Where did these canned meats come from?” Janice asked, curious about the children’s cherished canned meat.

“The team distributed them. I didn’t eat mine, so I brought it back!”

“Huh? There’s food at home; you mustn’t go hungry,” Janice worried.

“I wasn’t hungry. The team’s canned meat was free. There was roasted meat too. These are just snacks. I’m full. I only came back to reassure you. I have to leave soon.”

“Huh? You have to leave again?”

“Yes, we just took Infir, and there’s plenty to do. I can’t slack off!” Lowell said spiritedly, “Oh, do you know who the great Mr. Akide is?”

“Isn’t Akide a thought? Is he a person?”

The daughter interjected, confused, having often overheard grown-ups talk about “Akide’s thoughts,” thinking it was a profound concept.

“He’s not a human! He’s a god! The great Internet God! Haha, I knew whoever could lead us to victory wasn’t ordinary.”

“Do you know? We had already stormed the palace to depose the damned emperor! However, the cursed Four Primordial Gods suddenly appeared, intending to kill us all for that damned emperor. Fortunately, the great Mr. Akide stood up and said, ‘Darkness has shrouded the land too long, I think it’s time for daylight!’ And daylight came!”

“Can you imagine that scene? It was my first time seeing a miracle! It was amazing and magnificent!”

“The great Mr. Akide is the true god!”

Lowell excitedly and fervently described the miracle to his family!

“Dad, I heard this voice too. Was it a god speaking?” the son asked excitedly.

“That’s right! You heard it too? Haha, excellent, that was divine sound. You’ll have good fortune when you grow up!” Lowell affirmed.

“Dad, I heard it too!” the daughter urgently exclaimed.

“Yes, yes, our little tulip will also have lots of luck!” Lowell quickly replied.

The daughter was satisfied, clapping her hands excitedly.

Lowell suddenly slapped his forehead: “I have to go. Oh, here’s Mr. Akide’s prayer. Chanting it will make miracles happen! I promise.”

Lowell took out a paper and pressed it on the table, winking at his family before leaving.

The paper contained the prayer he copied, worried he wouldn’t have enough time to teach his wife.

After leaving the note, Lowell hurried out.

Though tired, his enthusiasm made him feel endlessly energetic!

He’d never felt so passionate about life! Tomorrow was exciting!

“Creak…”

The old door closed again.

As his footsteps faded, Janice’s face no longer showed panic. Despite still worrying, she felt relieved.

She turned and picked up the note her husband left, smiling.

During the food distribution by the Strike and Raise Movement members, they casually gave out a leaflet with the prayer.

She unconsciously began to chant it:

“Great Being from Azure Star, you are the master of language and writing. You are the pioneer of the Internet. Under your protection, I will connect with all beings.”

As her words fell, a virtual screen appeared before her.

Even though she’d seen the Internet before, Janice couldn’t hide her novelty and amazement.

Two icons surfaced on the virtual screen.

Janice had tried them both.

One was a lighting function;

The other was the Infir Gazette.

The lighting function needed no explanation. Clicking the Gazette, the virtual screen transformed, showing a colorful page.

The page resembled the fields outside town, arranged in blocks like a virtual newspaper.

The largest block prominently read:

——The Emperor of Infir is dead. From today, the people of Infir stand tall! Clicking into it revealed Lowell’s photo.

Of course, the report also included Mr. Ben Keming and countless Movement members fighting on the frontlines, with photos and videos.

Especially the videos, faithfully documenting the Strike and Raise Movement’s process! It’s immersive and thrilling.

Besides the largest block, other blocks also primarily covered Infir news.

Mostly related to the Strike and Raise Movement.

On the left side, dynamic updates scrolled, occasionally flashing “Alva City announces allegiance to Infir Republic” “Chelston Cavalry pledges to join Infir,” and more.

This news was one reason Janice felt at ease.

The newly formed Infir Republic, after defeating the royal family, rapidly took control of the Empire, almost without bloodshed. How could she not feel reassured?

However, was the unification of Infir Republic really that easy? Clearly not.

As Mr. Ben Keming’s Strike and Raise Movement took Infir Royal City, negotiations between Yu Sheng’an and the Four Primordial Gods concluded.

Both parties agreed:

All deities from both sides, including those with Virtual Divine Spark, shall not participate in the fight!

The Internet God shall not send beings outside Velia Plane to intervene, preventing exposure of Velia Main Plane.

All disputes will be resolved under the context of earthly empire conquest.

Deities can only intervene by spreading Divine Magic.

Frankly, this treaty severely restricted Yu Sheng’an’s power.

Yu Sheng’an, who negotiated this outcome, loathed Emperor Aalvis of Infir and the Royal City Red-Clothed Archbishop! If he hadn’t colluded with the Archbishop in war.

Or if the Red-Clothed Archbishop had merely observed the mundane royal power shifts as a shepherd.

Then there was no need to show up to overturn Infir Empire.

Once he accepted Infir properties, it would be smooth.

At least it wouldn’t be this troublesome! Now, due to his exposure, the treaty nearly paralyzed Infir’s military and industrial capabilities.

The Velia Main Plane, developed over millennia, had long diverged in magical development.

It’s evolved into two branches: mechanical steam and flesh magic.

They have no absolute boundaries, mutually integrating and complementing.

Mechanical steam flow heavily relies on the God of Mechanical Steam’s Divine Rune.

A lot of flesh magic accumulates mana in flesh and unleashes power through mechanical steam Divine Rune.

Now, due to his exposure and the Four Primordial Gods’ intervention, Infir mechanical steam Divine Runes became ineffective overnight.

The frontline army paralyzed, factories stalled, trains halted, society nearly paused.

Facing the paused Infir, the Falai Dynasty naturally launched a massive invasion!

Currently, Infir swapped space for time.

It won’t take long for the Falai Dynasty to invade Infir Royal City. Whether the fruits of victory can be retained remains uncertain.

“Mr. Akide, all factories’ steam engines in the royal city are mostly replaced. I’ve dispatched personnel to transport the Magic Steam Engine to the rear. However, time might not suffice. The Falai Dynasty’s army has crossed the Austin Line and will reach the royal city in three days. Do you think we should relocate the capital?”

In the former Infir Empire Cabinet meeting room, Mr. Ben Keming reported to Yu Sheng’an at the head.

He looked haggard, his eyes sunken, bloodshot, and exhausted.

The joy of victory was long swallowed by the new enemy, the Falai Dynasty.

He never expected the movement to involve a divine struggle.

Nor that the steam Divine Runes would all fail overnight.

Although Mr. Akide leveraged the failure of mechanical steam Divine Runes to rapidly integrate local forces.

And used the miraculous Internet to control public opinion and stabilize morale.

But Mr. Ben Keming still fell into deep anxiety.

Mr. Akide had said that this war could not have direct divine intervention.

Given this, how could they fight the war?