Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters
Chapter 1118 - 96: Monsoon (End)_5

Chapter 1118: Chapter 96: Monsoon (End)_5

In the eyes of the mayor of Shovel Port Town, these bloodied ruffians were the ideal recruits.

However, looking at the so-called "ideal soldiers" in front of him, Mr. Alpha couldn’t help but doubt—could they really handle the army of Revodan?

Mr. Alpha gazed at the dark clouds looming on the horizon.

"It’s going to rain."

...

[Southwest of Iron Peak County]

[Upstream of Mirror Lake]

[On a bed inside a ship cabin]

"So..." Anna asked curiously, "What happened to Mr. Borso da Este in the end?"

Winters, who was flipping through a box of sketches, asked without looking up, "Who’s Borso da Este?"

Anna gave Winters a gentle kick. "It’s the White Eagle."

Winters curled his lip. "Oh... what else could’ve happened? Of course, it ended how it was supposed to."

"And how is that?"

"He wasn’t the mastermind, and I proved he wasn’t directly involved in the arson. Smuggling, for the White Eagle family, is hardly a big deal." Winters turned a page of sketches. "They’ll hold him for a while, then maneuver to get him out. He’s a ’noble’ White Eagle. The Montan people wouldn’t dare kill him. Even if I didn’t testify, at most, they’d just cause him some temporary trouble."

When he said "noble," Winters deliberately emphasized the word.

"Well, that’s good then." Anna lowered her head and continued sketching lines on the paper. "That’s good."

Winters used the wooden box to shield his face, sulking as he muttered, "So it turns out twenty-four dresses really do work."

Anna couldn’t help but laugh and cry. She gave Winters another gentle kick, but he pretended not to notice and continued flipping through the sketches with a rustling sound.

Anna put down the charcoal pencil and sketchpad, propped herself up, climbed to Winters’ side, and took the wooden box from his hands.

Winters wanted to resist for a moment, but didn’t dare use force.

Anna set the wooden box aside, then nestled herself into Winters’ embrace.

Wrapping her arms around her lover’s chest, she whispered softly, "You, you’d never order twenty-four dresses just to make me happy. If it were up to you—you’d at most buy one dress, then use the rest of the money to buy food for the starving..."

"So." Anna traced circles on Winters’ chest with her fingertips. "You’re the one who’s more lovable."

Winters held Anna in his arms, staying silent.

"Don’t you think you ought to say something touching to me?" Anna teased.

Winters cleared his throat and said, "I think I got some sand in my eyes."

Anna smiled faintly, pushing Winters away to return to the other side of the bed. With a playful tone, she said, "Of course, I do quite like those twenty-four dresses. At the very least... they’re romantic."

As soon as she finished speaking, Winters jumped off the bed and protested loudly, "I’m not completely clueless about romance either!"

"Oh?" Anna’s eyes curved into a smiling crescent. "Is that right?"

Flustered and indignant, Winters marched out of the cabin. Before long, he returned carrying a large wooden box.

He placed the box heavily on the table and feigned nonchalance as he said, "I was planning to give you a surprise when we returned to Iron Peak County... but fine, I’ll give it to you now instead."

When Anna opened the wooden box, what greeted her eyes were glass vials filled with powders of various colors. Each vial was labeled, and wooden panels and padding were carefully placed between them to prevent breakage from knocking against each other.

Lapis Lazuli, Red Ochre, Orpiment, Azurite, Cinnabar, Shell White... all were pigments.

"When did you buy these?" Anna looked up and asked Winters.

"When we were in Steel Castle." Winters turned his head away and said casually, "It didn’t take much time, just bought all the pigments available in the Steel Castle market and..."

Before he could finish speaking, Anna pounced and kissed him.

The kiss lasted a long time, only interrupted by a knock at the cabin door.

Pierre’s voice came from outside, "Your Excellency, we’ve reached the South Bank."

Winters and Anna broke apart like lightning. Winters quickly tidied his appearance, walked to the door, and opened it. "Have the men from the Terdon Tribe arrived?"

"Our scouts have come into contact with the Terdon Tribe’s outriders," Pierre reported methodically. "They brought as many draft horses and carts as they could, per your request. But Tie Chi didn’t show up—his son came instead."

"Tie Chi didn’t come?" Winters mused aloud. "Things might be unsettled within the Terdon Tribe."

"I think so too." Pierre nodded.

"Anchor the fleet. Have the engineering team disembark and start building the temporary dock," Winters instructed after a moment’s thought. "Pick a squad of elites—I’ll go meet Tie Chi’s son personally."

"Understood." Pierre saluted and turned to leave.

Winters closed the cabin door and turned around. Anna was already holding his coat, waiting for him.

"I..." Winters hesitated, unsure of what to say.

"Go," Anna said quietly, helping him put on his coat and fastening the buttons carefully. "You were never meant to be mine alone... I’ve known that for a long time."

Winters nodded. As one boot crossed the cabin threshold, he turned back and asked casually, "By the way, where’s the portrait you painted of me in Qingqiu? The one where I’m in the Hurd robe... I didn’t see it in the sketchbook."

"I lost it," Anna replied with a gentle smile.

Winters didn’t say anything, merely nodded before striding out.

Outside the cabin, a guard fired three signal shots, and the flag bearer waved a small flag to transmit the orders. The fleet, loaded with weaponry and personnel, anchored at an open water area near the South Bank.