Mushroom Lord in the Underground City-Chapter 235 - 232: The Beginning of War

Angus Port, nestled along the northern coastline of the United Kingdom, has always enjoyed a peculiar tranquility.

It is neither a frontline fortress nor a crucial resource hub.

Although nominally close to the border with the Hermit Empire, the towering Red Ridge Mountain Range acts as a natural barrier, keeping war and conflict at bay.

For nearly a hundred years, even during the most tense times between the Kingdom and the Empire, the residents of Angus Port could sleep peacefully amidst the salty sea breeze.

However, with tensions rising across the Continent, the Lord of Angus Port has strengthened the monitoring and inspection of all sea-bound vessels.

The order itself was reasonable, but in execution, it became a lucrative source of income for the dock guards.

Passing merchant ships, fishermen, and even small expedition vessels occasionally docking for supplies became targets of their extortion.

A few silver coins could "accelerate" the passage of inspections, while a few gold coins could make some less compliant cargo "disappear."

The dock guards’ pockets grew fuller, but beneath the bustling surface, the port’s atmosphere acquired an uneasy smoothness and greed.

Edwin was also a dock guard, but unlike his fortunate colleagues, he was a night guard at the lighthouse.

The inside of the lighthouse was narrow and damp, filled with the smell of lamp oil, sea salt, and the aged stone walls.

Edwin leaned against the cold inner wall, his rough fingers unconsciously stroking his empty, deflated money pouch at his waist.

"Damn lighthouse!" Edwin’s voice carried heavy fatigue and resentment, echoing within the narrow space, "Outside, those brothers on the docks let a bit of profit slip through their fingers, and it’s enough for us to work a month! What about us? Guarding this broken stone, besides some meager wages, we get nothing!"

He grew more agitated as he spoke and pounded the wall: "My son, after a recent talent test, was found to have Water Magic talent, a promising student for learning spells! That damn tuition, where am I supposed to find it?"

A relatively young guard beside him, sitting on a wooden stool, was wiping the glass cover of a lantern. Listening to Edwin’s complaints, he occasionally responded with a vague "hmm" or a short sigh.

He understood Edwin’s frustration but also felt these complaints were like the nightly crashing waves, becoming part of the lighthouse’s backdrop.

He was now more worried about the other person who went out for a break but hadn’t returned for half the night.

"That fellow Big-eyed Fish, did he fall into the sea?" The young guard put down his rag and listened outside, hearing only the wind and waves crashing against the rocks, silent.

Edwin waved his hand irritably: "Let him be! Maybe he’s napping in some sheltered corner! This damn job, even slacking off feels suffocating..."

Yet the young guard grew increasingly uneasy, for Big-eyed Fish, although sometimes careless, never left for so long without reason.

"I’ll go check." He stood up and picked up the Long Halberd leaning against the wall.

He pushed open the heavy wooden door, and the cold, salty sea breeze rushed in, making him shiver.

Squinting his eyes, the young guard looked around but didn’t see Big-eyed Fish’s figure.

He walked towards the platform’s edge, usually used for a break, his footsteps making slight sounds on the stone slab.

"Big-eyed Fish?" He called out in a low voice.

Just as he drew near the edge’s shadow, an unexpected change occurred!

A dark shadow leaped from the lighthouse’s outer wall’s shadow like a ghost, its speed beyond imagination!

The young guard only caught a glimpse of a slippery scale’s reflection at the corner of his eye when a sharp, cold pain shot through his throat.

He wanted to shout but could only make "hhoh hhoh" gasping noises.

The Long Halberd slipped from his hand, clattering loudly against the stone slab. Unable to believe, he clasped his neck where warm blood gushed out and collapsed softly.

Inside the lighthouse, Edwin was startled by the loud noise! "What the hell?"

He stood up and rushed to the door, pulling it open.

The scene before him instantly froze his blood! The young guard lay in a pool of blood, his body twitching slightly.

And beside the young guard’s corpse stood a... a nightmare creature!

Taller than the tallest of humans, its slender form covered in dark green, damp scales.

A thick, powerful snake-tail trailing behind supported its body.

On its triangular head, cold vertical pupils emitted cruel yellow glows, staring dead ahead at Edwin.

It held a curved, bluish-glowing dagger, the blade tip dripping with the young guard’s fresh blood.

Snake-man! Demon Race!

He turned to run back, with the Snake-man Warrior hissing and pursuing closely!

Edwin braced against the wooden door, but the force behind him made him realize clearly; he couldn’t hold on for much longer.

"Damn, damn, damn, damn! Why am I so unlucky?!"

In the face of life and death, Edwin thought about his nagging wife at home and his child indulged in a Mage dream.

He abandoned holding the door and rushed to the unused thick rope in the opposite corner!

The Snake-man charged in. Before the dagger pierced his chest, Edwin used his last strength to yank down the hanging rope!

"Clang————————!!!"

A loud, urgent, high-pitched chime instantly echoed through Angus Port’s silent night sky!

Shortly after the bell rang, a few tall Snake-man figures silently emerged from the shadows outside the lighthouse.

The foremost one, with a more hulking physique and deeper scales approaching dark green, had a striking circle of dark red bone spurs around its neck.

Looking at the two guards lying in blood and its kind who just pulled out the dagger, its cold vertical pupils burned with fury.

"You fool!" Its voice full of disappointment and anger, "You let them sound the alarm! Because of you, the sneak attack plan is ruined at the start!"

The failed Snake-man Warrior lowered its head in fear, hissing a defense, only to be rudely interrupted by the leader.

The Snake-man leader looked toward the port, where distant lights began twinkling, and faint chaos noise and metal clashing were heard.

Several other Snake-man warriors gathered nervously asking, "What now?"

The Snake-man leader took a deep breath, a trace of fierceness flashed in its vertical pupils: "Without proving value, survival in the Empire is impossible. This action must succeed without fail!"

"Before these human swine fully react, charge in! Pave the way with their blood and fear! Seize the dock!"

Under the leader’s orders, at the dock’s edge, a multitude of Snake-men armed themselves and swam ashore.

The slaughter, unexpectedly rapid after the alarm, unfolded in even more frenzied and bloody fashion.

Soon, the dock area plunged into chaos, as Snake-man warriors attacked the hastily responding guards and awoken residents with greater agility and power than regular human soldiers.

They set fire to houses and ships moored near the shore, causing greater disorder.

Frenzied screams, weapon clashes, house collapses, and crackling flames mixed together, half of Angus Port reflected blood-red in the deep night.

"Quick! Quick! Get everyone to the dock, kill all those Demon Race!" Count Angus repeated this mission he had issued several times, now utterly panicked by the sudden assault.

And as he lifted his head, he saw a scene of despair—

Several Demon Race warships appeared like beasts crawling from darkness, their menacing silhouettes shocking his sight, slowly entering under the dock’s firelight.