Gun of Ashes

Chapter 12: Chapter 6 Midcourt Serpent_2

At this moment, Lorenzo finally felt the thorny nature of the situation. He was facing not just a simple group of thugs; ordinary thugs didn’t possess such unyielding will. There must be someone among them acting as insurance, responsible for killing all those who fall behind and guarding the secret of the Silverfish.

This isn’t something the small-time hoodlums of the Lower City District could pull off. Lorenzo was in a stalemate, but the way to break it was simple: take them down to the last man.

Human will is both unyielding and fragile. Lorenzo was gambling that when he caught the one acting as insurance, that person wouldn’t have the courage to put the gun barrel in their mouth.

Back and forth, a rare chase unfolded in Old Dunling.

The suspect began to change direction, continuing forward would lead them to the Inner City District, filled with patrolmen. Their goal was to reach the Lower City District; once there, even the Suyalan Hall couldn’t extract them. It’s a tumor growing atop Old Dunling, forcibly tearing it off would result in mutual destruction. That’s why that bastard Bola is so arrogant and has survived so long.

They must be intercepted before reaching the Lower City District, or else Lorenzo might not be able to ensure his own safety once there.

Come on, flex that brilliant brain of yours, even though your moral actions may be second-rate, your brain is first-rate!

Straining to recall everything he could use, countless lines formed a map of Old Dunling. On it, Lorenzo, represented by a blue line, chased after a red line, which was about to reach its destination—the Lower City District.

The blue line kept stretching, but at the next intersection, it shattered into countless threads, filling every street of Old Dunling, converging from all directions to surround and intercept the red line.

Finally, just as the red line was about to reach the endpoint, a blue line blocked it.

Thanks to the old steam tram operation map hanging in the driver’s cabin, Lorenzo found that only path.

Eve used all her strength to finally crawl into the steam tram’s carriage. During training at the police academy, her instructor had said Eve was an excellent detective, just not very strong. However, that wasn’t an issue anymore with various modes of transportation available, sparing detectives from running half to death in pursuit.

If she could meet her instructor next time, Eve would definitely discuss this issue with him. But first, she had to stop this damned steam tram.

”Stop it!”

Eve raised her gun, aiming at Lorenzo in the driver’s cabin. Despite the distance not being far, and the machines roaring loudly, her voice still reached clearly.

But Lorenzo didn’t stop. Instead, he turned his head with a kind expression.

”I’m not your enemy, detective. They are.”

Eve knew Lorenzo was referring to the fleeing group, but she still remained cautious and unwilling to lower her gun.

”I’m a detective, a private detective.”

”A detective with a shotgun?”

”Most colleagues carry guns; mine is just a bit special. You could consider me a minority.”

”Do you realize how much chaos you’ve caused? I might even have the authority to shoot you dead on the spot!”

The latter half was Eve bluffing. She wasn’t very sure under what circumstances she should shoot; this should have been practiced several times under Pres’s guidance in the field.

”Such chaos? You could say it’s my personal signature. I’m more of a doer than a thinker,” Lorenzo adeptly labeled himself. Just a small label could make people think a lot, a trick his cheap teacher taught him at the Royal Academy of Arts.

Without giving Eve time to ponder, Lorenzo quickly changed the topic.

”Detective, did you know this thing could run faster?”

He gestured at the steel creature beneath his feet, unconcerned by the gun barrel pointed at him.

”All technology in human history was initially military before gradually becoming civilian. Just like the Zeppelin Airship being prepared to join the Midcourt Serpent system in recent years. It was originally a military airship that surface artillery couldn’t reach due to its altitude. It could deploy troops and conduct air raids from the cover of clouds.”

”In fact, the Midcourt Serpent was initially just a military system aimed at, with one command from the Queen, allowing us to bombard the continent across the sea. Anywhere the railroad reached, a steam train could transport Ingwig’s soldiers to the battlefield. Our steam tram is the same, born when Old Dunling was in its worst law-and-order state.”

Placing his hand on the throttle, Lorenzo slowly stood up, leaving the shotgun on the control panel to prove to Eve that he wasn’t threatening. He raised his other empty hand with deliberate intention.

”This thing called the Iron Serpent was indeed an Iron Serpent, filled with armed soldiers in its seats, its exterior clad in sturdy armor, resisting bullets with mere dents. The Zeppelin Airship in the sky was commanding; wherever there was unrest, the Iron Serpent would arrive there, lifting its armor in unison, extending gun barrels from the openings, pulling its trigger.”

At that time, Ingwig had just become the leader in global steam technology, and spies from many countries were everywhere, and Old Dunling was in turmoil.

Lorenzo gulped before continuing.

”What I’m saying is, this thing has far greater power than what its specifications state. Even after all these years, it’s still running on a Watt III steam engine, which used to carry a carriage full of soldiers and several tons of armor with ease. Now it struggles to carry a few citizens.”

”It’s the mechanicians being lazy, limiting its power under the guise of being a civilian vehicle, but in reality, it remains a blood-stained weapon. However, if you know a little about mechanics and the structure of steam trams, this limitation is easy to bypass.”

Eve sensed something was wrong. Clearly, her intuition, which she always relied on, hadn’t abandoned her this time. Just as Lorenzo forcefully pulled the throttle, Eve instinctively pulled the trigger.

The bullet was fired; the steam tram violently swayed as if it would fall apart. The tremendous shock threw Eve up, slamming her heavily against the iron wall. Amid the sound of shattering glass, an endless gust of wind rushed in.

Why?

Struggling to lift her head, Eve saw the damned detective standing stably inside the driver’s cabin; her bullet had missed, merely shattering the windshield.

She didn’t understand where this change came from, but she soon felt it. The entire carriage was shaking violently; the steam tram known as the Iron Serpent had freed itself from its original restrictions, with its speed continuously ascending to its glorious past.

Seemingly to answer Eve’s question, amidst the intense turbulence, Lorenzo pointed to her side—those were several bags hanging on the iron wall.

The steam tram’s commute would take long, and to help passengers pass the lengthy time, they usually included today’s newspapers and some other dull books.

The mechanicians would conveniently place the steam tram’s operating manual and some publicly available blueprints there for easy maintenance. The intention was to educate the masses, but it seemed only Lorenzo would flip through these boring books, and today it all paid off.