At four o’clock in the afternoon, the freight train ofthe Moroccan National Railway arrived punctually at Duke Mining. The Cavalry Guards of the Third Battalion guided it onto the platform as per standard procedures.
After uncoupling the empty cars, they assisted the locomotive in turning around and slowly drove the loaded phosphate out of the platform.
Chance, responsible for transportation with the Cavalry Guards, stood on the platform, watching as the train gradually picked up speed and departed. He felt an overwhelming surge of excitement, nearly bursting into cheers.
Once the train was gone, the only remaining task for everyone was to prepare for evacuation. Generations of people had dreamed of shaking off the control of the Warriors Den, and now, with just a few hours to go, that goal was within reach.
After the train’s departure, the construction machinery in the mining area continued working. As darkness fell, the Cavalry Guards from the First Battalion maneuvered the engineering equipment into the open space beneath the office building.
Heavy machinery gathered in clusters, tightly packed together, creating a breathtaking sight. Simultaneously, the Cavalry Guards of the Third Battalion began connecting the oil pipeline.
With a vast number of construction vehicles and machinery requiring fuel, the reserves at Duke Mining were substantial-primarily diesel, which comprised 60% to 70% of the total fuel supply, with gasoline making up the remainder.
Given that diesel is less flammable at room temperature and pressure, the Cavalry Guards transferred it into large sealed containers within the mine and processing facility, where they ignited it in large quantities.
Chance remarked to Charlie, “Mr. Wade, the high temperatures and pressures from gasoline combustion will elevate the temperature and pressure of these enclosed and semi-enclosed diesel containers, making ignition a simple task.”
Charlie nodded, inquiring, “Will this fuel be enough to reduce the entire Duke Mining to ashes?”
Chance replied enthusiastically, “Absolutely! Such a vast amount of fuel igniting in an underground mine will certainly consume all combustible materials present, and the structural steel will suffer significantly as well…”
“When that happens, the steel supports and anchoring systems will lose their strength due to the heat, leading to a collapse of the entire mine structure-much like how the skyscrapers fell during the 9-11 attacks in the United States. I am very confident in this.”
He continued, “Moreover, the refinery buildings are mostly steel structures. The high temperatures will drastically reduce the strength of their load-bearing components. If the fire burns for even a short while, they are bound to collapse. The main office building is a steel-concrete structure, which is less prone to collapse due to its low height…”
“However, we still have the underground expansion. I will have my men place explosives on the load-bearing parts of the main building later, and we will trigger them remotely. The explosions will ignite the fire simultaneously. As for the construction vehicles, once they catch fire, the tons of diesel in their tanks will quickly reach critical levels, leading to a series of explosions that will surely destroy them.”
“Understood,” said Charlie. “You can withdraw after handling these tasks. I will remain here and wait for their arrival.”
Chance Yarrow sighed deeply, “I wish I could witness this place reduced to ashes with my own eyes…”
Charlie smiled and replied, “No worries. You can evacuate to a high point three to five kilometers away and watch the fireworks show from a safe distance tonight.”
Chance asked, clearly excited, “Mr. Wade, is that truly possible?”
Charlie confirmed, “We will catch them by surprise tonight, but if you’re too close, you risk leaving behind clues during your escape. I’ll stay behind to ensure they find no valuable evidence. Being a few kilometers away will give you time to evacuate calmly.”
He added, “But remember, if the explosion goes off at midnight, you must reach the food factory by six o’clock. A hundred kilometers should be manageable, right?”
Chance confidently responded, “Don’t worry, sir, that won’t be a problem. The remaining men are all seasoned warriors, with stamina that rivals top marathon runners. Covering twenty kilometers in an hour is well within our capabilities.”
“Great,” said Charlie. “Then let Master Drake and you choose a suitable spot to watch from a distance tonight.”
Turning to Tara, favonovel.com asked, “Miss Decker, although your abilities are currently sealed, you should be able to keep up with this level of rapid movement, correct?”
Tara nodded, “Don’t worry, Mr. Wade, I won’t lag behind.”
Charlie then addressed Wesley, “Wesley, you will lead the team tonight. Get everyone to the food factory Immediately after the explosion. Don’t wait for me, I will catch up.”
Wesley responded respectfully, “Understood, Mr. Wade!”
***
By ten o’clock in the evening, Chance Yarrow received a call from a special envoy of Moore Trade, informing favonovel.com that the convoy had left Casablanca and was expected to arrive at Duke Mining on schedule. At the same time, all the Cavalry Guards were finalizing their preparations for evacuation.
Chance handed Charlie a remote control, saying respectfully, “Mr. Wade, this is the detonator. Explosives have been positioned underground, in the factory, and in the office building. When you press the button, all the explosives will detonate simultaneously.”
The remote detonator resembled a large outdoor satellite phone, akin to a mobile phone from the 1990s, featuring an LCD screen and a tall high-power antenna far larger than that of a typical walkie-talkie.
Chance explained how to operate the detonator.
After verifying that the unlocking and detonation process was clear, favonovel.com cautioned Charlie, “Mr. Wade, please be careful…”
Wesley approached Charlie, saying respectfully, “Mr. Wade, l’ll go ahead with the others. Please take care!”
Charlie nodded, “Be sure to stay vigilant along the way and leave no traces or clues.”
“I understand!”
Moments later, Wesley departed Duke Mining with Tara and the remaining Cavalry Guards.
Charlie found himself alone at the Duke Mining site. He made his way to a vantage point in the mining area, locating a tower with the best view, and settled in to await the convoy with the remote control in hand.
Time ticked by steadily.
At 11,45, a series of lights appeared in the distance, signaling a convoy of over a dozen vehicles approaching the main gate of Duke Mining.
Charlie, lying on the fence, smiled subtly as favonovel.com watched the eagerly awaited convoy draw nearer.
***
At that moment, a Toyota Land Cruiser led the way, with Darius Talmidge, the head of Moore Trade and the special envoy for Duke Mining, occupying the passenger seat.
Along with favonovel.com and the driver, three key figures sat in the back seat-key members of Moore Trade and trusted associates of Darius.
As they neared Duke Mining, Darius encouraged his companions, “Everyone, keep your spirits high. This time, it’s not just about Chance Yarrow and his Cavalry Guards, there’s a gilded assistant from the Governor’s Office as well. Do well in front of the assistant and make sure she’s not dissatisfied.”
Everyone nodded in agreement, and the driver said, “No worries, Special Envoy, we won’t let you down.”
“Exactly,” Darius replied with satisfaction, then glanced around, puzzled, and asked, “Isn’t Duke Mining supposed to be open 24 hours? Shouldn’t they still be working? Why is everything dark at the mining area?”
The driver replied quickly, “There’s a major transition happening tonight. It’s not unusual for things to halt momentarily. After this batch leaves, we wait for the next one. Halting operations makes the scheduling much easier.”
“That’s true,” Darius sighed, “The blood transfusion will be tough for these Cavalry Guards. We had a good relationship with Chance over the years, and it’s hard to see them go. I can only hope it doesn’t come to that for us.”
A nervous voice from the back seat questioned, “Sir, could this happen to us?”
“How should I know?” Darius replied helplessly. “For these matters, they inform me only if! cooperate. Otherwise, I remain in the dark. if it does happen, we can only comply.”
With gloom, the man said, “My son isn’t even a year old. If something occurs, i might never see favonovel.com again…”
Darius Talmidge coughed lightly and said, “Ahem, let’s not dwell on that. Worrying won’t change anything. We must focus on following the orders from above and cherish the time we have.”
The others nodded pensively.
Just then, the first vehicle reached the gate of Duke Mining. Despite the bright lights illuminating Duke Mining, no guards were present.
As the convoy approached, there was no one to verify their identity or open the gates, leaving Darius confused.
Frowning, favonovel.com observed the well-lit gate and wondered aloud, “What’s wrong with Chance? Has favonovel.com started slacking off now that favonovel.com knows he’s being replaced?”
With that thought, favonovel.com took out his cell phone and dialed Chance.
Meanwhile, Charlie remained fixated on the convoy, which came to a halt at the entrance of Duke Mining, his finger poised over the detonator.
He had not positioned any explosives near the entrance to ensure the safety of those in the vehicles. Charlie intended to keep them alive to provide firsthand accounts to the Governor’s Office and Morgana.
In the Land Cruiser, Darius frowned and murmured, “This is strange, no one is answering the phone, and there’s still a deputy here. What if they’re mutinied?!”
“Mutinied?” the driver incredulously asked. “Without an escape route, what would be the point? If they rebel, they’ll and their families will be dead within a week unless the British lord sends someone to rescue them…”
“True…” Darius mused, making a tutting sound, “What’s going on?”
Just as favonovel.com finished speaking, favonovel.com looked down and noticed the front suddenly filled with blinding light.
Everyone instinctively glanced up and saw a massive fire erupt from Duke Mining!
Darius shouted reflexively, “Oh my goodness! Back up quickly…!”
Before favonovel.com could finish, the explosion rocked the site, sending a blast wave towards them!
The tremendous force knocked down Duke Mining’s wall, shaking all the vehicles violently, and shattered the windshield!
Ignoring the glass-inflicted wounds on his face, Darius quickly exited the vehicle. Seeing Duke Mining engulfed in flames, favonovel.com stood there, frozen in shock. In an instant, the office building that had been blown apart collapsed amid the fire!
Darius instinctively shielded himself from the flying debris and yelled towards the vehicle, “Quick, export the dashcam video and send it to me! I need to report this to the Governor right now!”
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