Chapter 419: Chapter 35: Firearms War
Tens of thousands of troops gathered in front of the fortress, and the border army in white winter clothing was not conspicuous in the vast snow.
They all knew that war was coming, but they were not afraid. War occurred frequently at the border, so it was just a routine affair for them.
The massive army gathered with great momentum, and the Elric brothers stood in the fortress, somewhat dazed, witnessing the scene before them.
"What’s going on? Is there an invading enemy army?"
Although Edward was a State Alchemist, he didn’t understand the concept of war.
"No, brother, these troops seem to be moving inland."
"Moving inland? Could it be..."
Edward thought of a terrifying possibility: Vice Admiral Olivier Mira Armstrong was planning a rebellion.
"What does she want to do? No, we can’t allow this to happen."
Just as Edward was about to turn and rush out of the fortress, a figure blocked his path.
"Little dwarf, mind your own business."
Su Xiao looked at Edward Elric intently.
"Who are you calling a little dwarf? And what are you planning to do?"
"What are we planning? Of course, to attack Central City and overthrow a certain someone’s rule in passing."
Upon hearing Su Xiao’s answer, Edward’s pupils contracted sharply.
"What about the citizens of Central City?"
"Leave it to fate."
"What a joke, that’s tens of thousands of people."
"So what if it’s tens of thousands?"
Edward’s breathing became heavy. If the Northern Army pushed forward and directly engaged the Central Army, the civilians of Central City would suffer. After all, cannonballs have no eyes.
"You must have eavesdropped when we were negotiating, right?"
Su Xiao suddenly laughed.
"I heard it... so what."
Being watched by a smiling Su Xiao, Edward felt a chill, as if he were being eyed by a smiling Soul Reaper.
"Go find your father and tell him that the Little Man in the Bottle’s plan has been interrupted. He must participate in the final battle; otherwise, no one can deal with the Little Man in the Bottle."
Edward Elric’s father might not be extremely powerful, but he had a special connection with the Little Man in the Bottle, which was born from his blood.
"My father? He..."
Just as Edward began to speak, Su Xiao threw a folder at him. It was information about the Little Man in the Bottle.
After hesitating for a moment, Edward finally opened the folder.
"How... how is this possible."
"There’s nothing impossible about it. This is the process of the Little Man in the Bottle’s birth. The Nationwide Transmutation Circle has already been activated once, and let me tell you, half of the Philosopher’s Stone from that transmutation is inside your father. It’s a Philosopher’s Stone containing the souls of hundreds of thousands of people."
Von Hoenheim was very important; he was the key to defeating the Little Man in the Bottle.
Edward stared blankly at the documents in his hand.
"This is simply demonic behavior. But what does defeating the Little Man in the Bottle have to do with Von Hoenheim?"
"You don’t need to know that. See you in Central City."
Su Xiao turned and walked towards the outside of the fortress.
"Wait, the Northern Army can’t just..."
Before Edward could finish, Su Xiao suddenly turned his head.
"Mind your business. If you block my way, I’ll kill you."
Su Xiao’s black hair moved in the wind, and his right hand unconsciously rested on the hilt of Dragon Slash.
"Then go ahead and try."
Edward clapped his hands together, and a blue alchemical glow flickered.
"Ha~ I was just joking. You can’t die yet; you’re an important Human Pillar."
Su Xiao turned away and left, leaving Edward standing still, his calves trembling for some reason.
"This isn’t good, really not good. Why does this guy give me an even more dangerous feeling than the Little Man in the Bottle? Alphonse, Alphonse..."
Edward turned to look at his brother, who was also standing there in a daze.
"Did you see the pendant in that person’s hand, brother?"
Alphonse spoke with a trembling voice.
"What pendant?"
Edward tried hard to recall and quickly remembered the pendant in Su Xiao’s hand.
"That’s... Winry’s pendant?!"
Winry Rockbell, Edward’s childhood friend.
"That bastard, did he take Winry?"
Edward, filled with rage, was about to rush in the direction Su Xiao had gone.
"Brother, don’t go. We need to leave right now and find Winry."
"But..."
Edward forced himself to calm down.
"Right, let’s find Winry first, then... go to Central City to stop this war."
The Elric Brothers hurriedly left the fortress, and soon only a few thousand troops remained inside to guard against a sudden enemy attack.
...
After two days of marching.
Kano Town, located at the center between the northwestern fortress and Central City, had few residents but was heavily guarded because of a large station here.
Tens of thousands of troops wanting to go to Central City couldn’t walk there and they needed to carry cannons and tanks, or else there’d be no war.
The Kano Railway Station had strategic significance; capturing it was essential to reach Central City, ensuring later supplies as well.
Twenty thousand Central Army troops were deployed here. The Northern Army moved out in force, and the Central couldn’t possibly be oblivious; they knew the Northern Army’s intentions.
On the way, they received countless warnings from the Central Army. Olivier led the troops to Kano Town.
Rumble.
Over a thousand tanks slowly moved forward, leaving track marks in the shallow snow.
The Northern Army mobilized over fifty thousand people, with roughly fifty people per tank.
These fifty people weren’t inside the tanks, since the tanks couldn’t fit so many.
Su Xiao sat on the shell of a tank, seeing Kano Town in the distance, a peaceful little town.
A half kilometer in front of Kano Town, a row of trenches was already dug, with sandy yellow sandbags stacked in front. The Central Army infantry was hidden inside.
"Bai Ye, the battle is about to start. Don’t sit on the tanks."
Olivier put down her binoculars.
"How many enemies are there?"
"About twenty to thirty thousand, all useless; they dig trenches like dung pits."
"I’ll handle the enemy’s overall command after the battle starts."
During the war, Su Xiao didn’t plan to deal with ordinary soldiers. It was pointless. Beheading was the fastest.
"Alright, then let’s start the battle."
As soon as Olivier finished speaking, a shout came from the trenches ahead.
"Olivier Mira Armstrong, surrender! Considering you’re the former vice admiral, the High President will leave you a way out."
A shout came from the trenches without anyone in sight; it seemed the person yelling had no guts.
"Assemble the war formation, prepare to fight!"
Over a thousand tanks lined up in a row, each followed by more than fifty infantrymen. The tanks advanced, and the infantry followed closely.
This was what large-scale warfare with thermal weapons looked like; tanks blazing the trail, infantry right behind.
Boom, boom...
The main guns of the tanks continuously fired shells, sending earth flying from the trenches hundreds of meters away.
A Central Army officer, terrified by the bombardment, quivered behind the trench. He had become a lieutenant through family connections and had never seen war. As soon as the cannons fired, his useless nature was exposed.
Whoo~.
The rapid sound of something cutting through the air came. A black shell flew over, resembling a bullet enlarged dozens of times.
Thunk.
The shell lodged in the soil of the trench, landing right beside the useless lieutenant.
The useless lieutenant turned to see what it was.
Boom!
The shell exploded, but the explosive power wasn’t the scary part; the real terror was the scattering shrapnel. The useless lieutenant was struck by the shrapnel and reduced to pieces, killed forty-three seconds into the opening battle.