Work Prophet
Chapter 628 - 1 The Catastrophe Arrives

Chapter 628: Chapter 1 The Catastrophe Arrives

Just like all those who found themselves at important historical junctures, in the beginning, nobody realized that their lives were about to be completely changed that day.

So, when the sun rose from the sea, the people living in the harbor began their day as usual.

The first to wake were the small vendors in the town, who headed out as soon as day broke and arrived early at their stalls to start their day’s trade.

Then came the dockworkers, most of whom were landless farmers or people seeking a living in the city, residing in the area of Stinky Shrimp Street in the north of the town.

That area was filled with densely packed, low-lying shanties, like a maze, easy for outsiders to get lost in if they wandered in carelessly.

Thanks to the thriving sea trade, the port saw a continuous flow of merchant ships every day. Both buyers and sellers needed to hire these dockworkers, thus providing a living for many.

The exact number of dockworkers in Crab’s Corner remained a mystery.

When the Drummond family still ruled the newly discovered lands, they attempted to count them several times, but eventually had to give up; the dockworkers were highly transient, often juggling several jobs at once.

Sometimes they disappeared, only to return after a while, or vanished suddenly while working— even the foremen couldn’t say for sure how many people were under their command.

It was only when the morning sun passed over the great statue of the Sea God Claudius outside the harbor and arrived above the trident in the statue’s right hand that the nobles of the town would open their eyes from their soft, large beds.

A quick wash was nearly enough time for lunch, and afterward, they would either handle official duties, go hunting outside the town, or visit friends...

In short, everyone was busy following their set trajectories until a single-masted sailing ship from Cyprus Free City first spotted a cluster of tiny black dots on the distant horizon of the sea.

When they first saw the black dots, they thought they were a flock of birds.

Though flocks of such size were uncommon, it seemed there was nothing else that could fly in the sky but birds.

The people on the single-masted ship thought this, yet after a while, the lookout on the ship suddenly exclaimed,

"My God! Gods above, what... what am I seeing, why can those people fly?!"

Hearing the lookout’s words, those with sharp eyesight looked again at the cluster of suspected birds.

This time, because they were a bit closer, more and more people began to make out the features of those objects.

They were indeed humans, flying humans! And they seemed to be an army, each clad in leather armor, armed with weapons, looking quite unfriendly.

The captain of the single-masted ship, having traveled repeatedly between Cyprus and Crab’s Corner on business and even acquainted some of the empire’s nobles,

was inclined to side with the Red Lion Empire, whether considering his future prospects or simply from an emotional standpoint.

Therefore, seeing the enemy approaching, his first thought was to inform the city’s garrison.

However, those flying Birdmen approached quickly, and while the sailors were still adjusting the sails to proceed at full speed, the Birdmen were already a mere few hundred paces away.

The captain was terrified and hesitated, debating whether to surrender immediately or to resist a bit, but those Birdmen, as if they hadn’t seen them at all, just flew directly over their heads towards the nearby harbor.

Those on the ship felt the sky darken suddenly, fortunately, it wasn’t long before they saw the sun again.

If it weren’t for a feather drifting down from the sky, many would have doubted whether the scene that had just unfolded was real.

A moment later, the first mate was the first to recover and asked the captain if they still needed to dock at Crab’s Corner.

The captain’s face looked awful; their journey here had not been easy. They had been at sea for over four months, with the expenditure of wages and food supplies being a significant amount.

Turning back was definitely not an option, but Crab’s Corner was clearly no longer a viable destination either.

More importantly, a great battle was about to erupt there, and the captain didn’t have much faith in the nobles of the city.

All in all, being able to fly was just too much of an advantage; they had already secured an unbeatable position without even starting the fight.

Thus, the captain asked the first mate to pull out the sea chart, looking for the nearest alternative harbor. He planned to sell the cargo on board and leave immediately, returning to the Free City.

He had a bad feeling that not just Crab’s Corner, but soon the entire Red Lion Empire would be engulfed in war.

This grand empire built by the Half-Beasts, humans, and Dwarfs, was about to face its most terrifying disaster.

The single-mast sailboat could still escape upon seeing trouble, but most people in the city weren’t so lucky.

As the Wing Tribe approached, more and more people noticed the abnormal occurrences in the sky.

The dock plunged into chaos. People began to scatter in all directions, leaving their goods strewn all over the ground. Some bold individuals did not flee but took advantage of the chaos to pick up scattered items.

News of this reached the city’s guard, and shortly after, Du Sang, the head of the Drummond family, was informed about the arrival of the Wing Tribe.

In the initial shock, Du Sang had the intention to organize a defense; however, facing enemies who could fly freely in the sky, the tall and sturdy walls that the nobles of the Bratis Continent prided themselves on were rendered useless, as ineffective as papyrus.

Du Sang had also heard about the previous burning of Junlin Tower in Lion Heart Castle. Reports claimed that a group of highly skilled and well-equipped Imperial Guards were helpless against just one enemy.

And this time, what he was facing was not just one flying enemy, but a group of them.

Just thinking about it made Du Sang feel a deep sense of powerlessness.

What Lady Ireya had said turned out to be true; the Wing Tribe really had come.

And of all places, they had to land at Crab’s Corner.

With many thoughts racing through his mind, Du Sang even considered fleeing, but he couldn’t bear to abandon the harbor that had just come into his hands, and running away might not have been possible against those wing-backed enemies.

As for surrender, it had never crossed his mind. Everyone in the city could surrender, but he, as the de facto lord of the land, couldn’t.

If that was the case, then there was only one option left—fight.

With gritted teeth, Du Sang said to Bales, who was nearby, "Gather all the archers in the castle. Crab’s Corner is too large to defend, but we can still use the castle to resist the attack of the Wing Tribe."

Bales nodded and hurriedly left the room. Du Sang later called a guard, instructing him to gather anyone in the city who could shoot a bow—mercenaries, hunters, and the like.