Chapter 15: The Underground City
Su Xiao walked along the street, his eyes taking in the countless homeless people. The Council had distributed batch after batch of tents, but it was a drop in the bucket.
Angor City was the most prosperous city; there was no doubt about that. But no matter how you looked at it, it was still just one city. According to incomplete statistics, Angor City's permanent population was around 150,000. Including transient merchants, travelers, and the like, its maximum capacity was 200,000 people.
When the Storm Kingdom fell, 110,000 civilians and 160,000 soldiers arrived in Angor City. They were truly transporting people like cargo. Over 300 steam trains made three round trips. When they prepared for the fourth batch, the steam trains were attacked by humanoid monsters.
The Lehman Kingdom didn't send civilians. What they shipped over were 720,000 soldiers. King Lehman had already prepared himself; no matter what, he would have his revenge, even if it meant the complete annihilation of his people.
A total of 990,000 people flooded into Angor City. Adding the original residents, the population reached around 1.17 million.
Angor City was nearly bursting at the seams. Soldiers were people too. While Lehman's soldiers were valiant in battle, they also had fiery tempers. When they were starving, not everyone could remain calm.
Food became the most critical issue. Fortunately, Angor City was a trade hub. Large quantities of grain were shipped in daily, and there were grain storage facilities. But these supplies would eventually run out.
"Over here, there's food over here."
A loud shout caused a commotion in the street. Before long, several men in white robes, carrying large bags and bundles, were surrounded. They opened their bags, revealing bread, fresh water, and even some dried meat.
Dozens of civilians ran past Su Xiao, scrambling for the food. One of them tripped and was trampled, letting out a few screams before the surrounding crowd quickly dispersed. This was a good sign; the civilians weren't yet desperate enough to lose all reason.
After a frantic scramble, the bags on the ground were all snatched up. The men who had distributed the food left. Judging by their eyes and the scars on their hands and faces, these were clearly not kind-hearted people. Their food distribution likely had ulterior motives.
The soldiers knew this, but they could do nothing. Stop them? Don't be ridiculous. Hungry people don't listen to reason.
If this situation continued, it wouldn't take long before small factions sprouted up like mushrooms after rain within Angor City.
Weaving through the rows of tents, Su Xiao and his group headed towards the Council building.
Half an hour later, the Council building appeared ahead. The area around it was packed with soldiers who had established a defensive line. Lehman soldiers, still carrying the scent of blood, stood guard here. All steam-powered firearms had been confiscated; they were now armed with cold weapons.
These soldiers were adept with cold weapons. After all, steam weapons in this world were just emerging and were still in a transitional phase. Even the Lehman Kingdom maintained training in cold weapons. Steam cores were expensive, and aside from a few advanced steam firearms, almost all steam guns required the steam core to re-pressurize after a single shot.
With a clang, two pikes crossed in front of Su Xiao. These were the original guards of the Council building, and their auras were noticeably stronger.
"Please present your authorization."
"Are you sure?"
Azaz smiled, and the corner of the guard captain's mouth twitched. He had forgotten a crucial detail: the official in charge of approving entry permits had fled at noon today.
This guy was a master of the unexpected. Upon realizing that a massive number of civilians had arrived in Angor City, he immediately knew things were going south. So he packed up his family and supplies, hopped in a steam car, and fled out of the city. His reverse escape was a masterstroke.
Acting Councilors didn't have the same authority as full Councilors. The guard captain, clad in full plate armor, deliberated for a moment before deciding to let them through. The situation had changed.
After entering the Council building, Su Xiao went straight to the third-floor meeting hall. Pushing open the door, a large group of people came into view, all murmuring and talking amongst themselves. At the center of the room was a round table with eight seats.
At that moment, only three of the eight seats were occupied: two men and one woman. One was a thin old man with sharp eyes, another was a burly middle-aged man, and the last was a woman who looked under thirty, flipping through documents.
The thin, sharp-eyed man was Councilor Frost Serpent. He remained silent, and no one dared to speak to him.
The burly man was King Lehman. He was gently rubbing the back of his neck, a bruise on his forehead. Behind him stood a young girl with a blue-purple ponytail. She looked very nervous. A few hours ago, she had kicked King Lehman in the back of the neck, knocking him unconscious. This girl was Nancy Erna, who had once escorted Su Xiao.
Nancy Erna felt she was done for, about to say goodbye to this beautiful world.
The last person, the woman flipping through documents, was Councilor Rose. Her gaze was very aggressive. She was the ruthless one who had once instigated the war between four nations.
Su Xiao found an empty seat and sat down. Immediately, gazes were cast his way. Seeing this, Puri stood beside Su Xiao's chair, making the onlookers even more puzzled.
"Puri, don't be ridiculous. We won't recognize the proxy you've found. You yourself are the proxy for the Holy Realm."
Councilor Rose's eyes remained fixed on the documents in her hand as she spoke in a flat tone.
"Madam Rose, you look even more beautiful."
As soon as Puri finished speaking, the room suddenly fell silent.
"What did you say?"
Councilor Rose shifted her gaze, looked at Puri for a moment, then smiled and shook her head.
"Moo."
Amu behind Su Xiao was a bit unhappy. In his simple understanding, whoever provoked Su Xiao, he would beat them up.
"He, him, and Azaz. We're together."
Puri pointed at Su Xiao and Azaz respectively, but didn't deliberately emphasize his status as a proxy councilor.
"Everyone's here. Let's begin."
Councilor Frost Serpent didn't say much else. The meeting hall quieted down. The Council officials all took a step back, keeping their distance from the council table. In the past, they weren't qualified to enter the meeting hall. Today was different; they were to directly receive orders from the councilors and execute them immediately.
Of the eight councilors, only two had arrived. Of the remaining six, five were dead and one was unconscious. Before the council even convened, Councilor Frost Serpent had ordered the secret execution of those five powerless councilors to centralize authority as much as possible. The situation was chaotic enough; those five were already troublesome in peacetime, and now they could become spoilers.
"I don't want to repeat myself, so let's get straight to the point. Do you all know what Angor City once was?"
Councilor Rose flexed her pale wrist, which had an old injury and was a bit uncomfortable.
"This was once the capital of the Light and Dark Empire."
King Lehman spoke. He appeared calm, but rage was boiling inside him. His kingdom had fallen.
"That's right. This was once the capital of the Light and Dark Empire. Beneath our feet lies a much larger underground city. Every year, the Council secretly allocates 5% of the trade tax revenue for the annual maintenance and reinforcement of this underground city. The underground city built by Emperor O'Kaz."
At this point, Councilor Rose's brow furrowed. Opening the gates to the underground city meant that someone would have to stay behind in Angor City above to hold the line. Otherwise, if everyone was trapped in the underground city, it would only be a matter of time before they were wiped out. Sooner or later, their resources would be exhausted.