Chapter 555: Extra Chapter 5: Conquest 3

The roar of cannons signaled the start of battle!

Bloodfall’s warships reached their destination at dawn, just as the sky began to lighten. It was the former Summers Family base, now a production facility for Morindale Island.

At this hour, few people were awake.

The island’s director had originally assigned guards, but it had been so long since any outside ships had appeared that everyone had grown lax. And so today, the guards on duty were still lost in their dreams, just like everyone else. But what greeted them wasn’t the usual morning peace—it was the thunder of cannons!

The cannonballs were specially made for Bloodfall’s warships by Paige Summers.

Many of the materials, sourced from the Black Market in Jovitas, were incredibly rare. Despite Paige Summers’ best efforts, she hadn’t been able to produce many, and their long-range destructive power was limited.

But Bloodfall never intended to level the island with cannon fire anyway.

The first shot took out the production base’s communications tower.

Without the tower, the island couldn’t report the situation to Morindale Island. All they would hear over there were cannon blasts, leaving them in the dark. It was highly likely they’d send ships to investigate.

Bloodfall’s first wave consisted of seven warships, just enough to encircle half the island.

They fired a volley in succession, targeting unoccupied factories and warehouses, as well as the director’s residence.

Everyone had long since memorized the island map drawn by the Summers.

As the cannons roared, the island descended into chaos!

There were three main types of people on the island.

The first were the managers and directors sent by the Island Master.

The second were foreigners, including Astorians. Most were shipwrecked or had run out of supplies. After landing on Morindale Island, they were captured by the Rovarians and sent here as laborers.

The last type were Rovarian nationals—criminals sent here for various offenses. Of course, once they arrived, their fate was the same: to work as laborers.

These last two groups formed the bottom rung of the base’s hierarchy. They were forced to work day and night and were sometimes even used as bait during hunts… Their tragic fate was easy to imagine.

And for that very reason, beneath their numb expressions lay a deep, seething hatred.

Just like the Summers once felt.

With their residences shelled, some of the managers were injured. Some took a direct hit, while others were crushed by collapsing buildings. Witnessing this carnage, something snapped in the laborers!

‘So these vampires, these butchers, could be this weak!’

It was as if the thunderous cannons had jolted them awake. These people, who had always been oppressed, suddenly realized their captors were merely human—not invincible monsters!

And so, while the director was trying to organize teams to defend the island, close-quarters combat erupted in small pockets all across it.

Meanwhile, after the bombardment, Bloodfall’s fleet began looking for an opportunity to land.

The landing went smoother than they could have ever expected.

Enemy resistance met them from only three directions; the rest of the coastline was wide open!

Just like that, they executed a pincer movement and secured the beachhead. The entire process took less than half an hour.

They soon discovered that conquering the island wouldn’t take long, either. They encountered few enemies, but plenty of laborers who had successfully fought back. Since the Summers could all speak Rovarian, communication was no issue, and soon, their ranks were trailed by a large following.

Bloodfall’s teams split up and quickly eliminated the remaining enemies one by one.

The entire raid lasted four hours. By the time the sun was high in the sky, the whole island belonged to Bloodfall!

All enemies were killed. They didn’t need prisoners.

When all who remained—the island’s former laborers—were gathered in the clearing at the island’s center, they looked around at the faces of strangers. But it was these strangers who had killed their oppressors and promised to spare them! A cheer went up, followed by another and another, until the entire clearing was filled with roaring shouts. They didn’t know how else to express their elation!

Meanwhile, another contingent of Bloodfall’s warships successfully ambushed the ships sent from Morindale Island.

Unfortunately, there were only two.

The weapons on these two vessels were primitive catapults. As soon as the Morindale Islanders realized they were surrounded, they hastily activated them.

But these things were completely incapable of damaging Bloodfall’s warships!

The warships’ outer hulls were made of a lightweight but incredibly hard metal. The stones launched by the catapults barely left a mark. The cabins were even sturdier. A cannonball might have posed a threat, but a rock… at most, it caused a slight vibration. The members of The Power Corps on board paid the minor issue no mind and continued the fight as planned.