Chapter 170: Sudden War

The Renaissance Era. 

"Let's build the Campus here. It's +3. That's strong enough." 

"No! We should build a Preserve. With this many mountains, the Appeal value is definitely going to be high. What are you going to do if you build a Campus and ruin the Preserve?" 

"Come on, you two. Are we really just going to ignore the Aztecs next door? There are already a million troops stationed along the border, and you're still worrying about those few points of Science?" 

The three of them were arguing heatedly over how to plan the new city they had just settled. At this point, their dorm room had practically turned into the White House, with the three of them acting as the president's inner circle. 1

"What are you afraid of? Our relationship with the Aztecs is still pretty good, isn't it? They're probably just moving their troops around normally, so don't panic." 

Hearing Mike's warning, Frank dragged the view over to the border between the two nations. Sure enough, there were already several units stationed there. 

"It's fine. Even if they really want to fight us, we shouldn't be afraid. They've only got two Medieval heavy cavalry units, while we're already in the Renaissance." 

Frank glanced at his technology tree. He was only one step away from entering the Industrial Era ahead of time. 

There was a two-era technological gap between them. How could the Aztecs possibly fight? If they really went ahead and declared war, that would be quite a feat on their part. 

"Hmm, What I'm worried about is Production." 

Mike frowned as he stared at those few units, then looked at Washington, their capital, which was right next to them. Even now, there was still a huge gap in the Production of several cities. 

If they immediately started producing military units this turn to fight back, it would take at least six turns at the absolute fastest. And that was without counting the time needed to move them to the front line, a difference of around ten turns was already enough for a city to fall. 

Mike had watched Frank manage the entire game from beginning to end, so he knew exactly how serious this problem was. 

Production was a problem shared by the entire United States. Even Boston, the Industrial city they had specifically built to improve their Production, could not escape it. But perhaps it was precisely because they had sacrificed Production that their Science and Culture were advancing so quickly. 

Long before the game had officially entered the Renaissance Era, Frank had already unlocked the Renaissance technology "Banking." 

Although this was only their first game, Frank knew very well that under normal circumstances, their Science level should still have been roughly on par with other civilizations during the Medieval Era. 

"Could it be that I'm actually really good at managing this?" 

Frank had already asked himself this question more than once. 

"Hehe, I'm actually awesome." 

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. And he grinned and waved his hand at Mike. 

"Forget about that. Once we unlock Industrialization, we'll go straight into the Industrial Revolution! Do you guys understand what an Industrial Revolution is?" 

"Once our entire country is burning coal and running railways, they will still be struggling around in the Medieval Era. Don't worry. I'm telling you, we're going to crush this game. Get it?" 

It was only Civilization. He had thought it would have much more complicated mechanics, but it was nothing special! 

Research? That's easy! 

Allen sat to the side with his arms crossed, offering no response. He was paying attention to something neither of the other two seemed to have noticed: music. 

Ever since the beginning of the Ancient Era, Allen had faintly heard background music hidden beneath the game's mechanics. 

This was "Hard Times Come Again No More," a song written by Stephen Foster and published in New York in 1854. 

It was simply arranged, with very few instruments. There did not even seem to be any chords, only a light and cheerful melody, like a lone cowboy who, despite being at the lowest point of his life, still maintained an optimistic outlook. 

The music felt worlds apart from the grand, soaring "Dream of Flight" that played on the main menu. Compared to the sheer complexity of Civilization, it was almost easy to overlook. The three of them were so absorbed in the game that they barely noticed the music playing in the background. 

It was subtle and unobtrusive, never stealing the spotlight, yet it perfectly fulfilled the role it was meant to play. 

Then, when they entered the Classical Era, Allen immediately noticed something unusual. It was still the same song, but the instruments had changed, or more precisely, they had become richer. 

More instruments and more tracks intertwined to create a version imbued with a distinctly Classical atmosphere. 

The exact same song had somehow taken on completely different styles in different eras. This made Allen look forward to seeing what kind of changes there would be after entering the Industrial Era. 

[5 turns until the Renaissance Era ends] 

"Ha! Looks like I'm still one step ahead. Industrialization will be completed next turn!" 

Frank threw his head back and laughed. After finishing his orders for all the units, he decisively pressed the Next Turn button. 

"Shing!" 

A sound like a sword being drawn from its sheath came from the television. Hearing that sound, the three of them, who had still been arguing over their strategy, instantly fell silent, their hearts sinking. 

This was clearly a warning sound. According to the logic of game design, a sharp sound that made people feel uneasy would inevitably be used for some kind of special situation. For example: 

[(Aztec) Montezuma I: You are a poison upon the world. You are the devil!] 

[Montezuma I has denounced you (They simply don't like you)] 

[(Aztec) Montezuma I: Let's see whether you are truly a coward or a warrior!] 

[Montezuma I has declared a Surprise War against you!] 

Rua! 

"Shit, you were right. He really did declare war on us?" 

"Wait, what do you mean by 'They simply don't like you'?" 

Frank clicked his tongue. To be honest, he was a little caught off guard by such a sudden and unexpected turn of events. After all, according to his plans, as long as everyone lived in peace, he could calmly focus on developing his Science. 1

Once his technology surpassed everyone else's, anyone who tried to invade him would have no chance of winning. 

"Whatever. It's not like we can't beat him. Let's do it!" 

Frank immediately canceled the projects in several cities and switched all of them over to producing Musketmen. 

He then used the Gold he had been saving because he had nowhere to spend it and directly purchased a brand-new Musketman. 

It was ridiculously expensive, but he had little choice. They might have been ahead in technology, but their military was still practically nonexistent. 

Only the two Scouts they had built at the beginning and the Warrior they had been given were still running around aimlessly on the map. For such a massive technological powerhouse to rely on two Scouts and a single Warrior to guard the gates was truly ridiculous. 

"See! What did I tell you? Now we're screwed. The Aztec units are already at our border!" 

Mike leaned back with a satisfied grin and a smug "Told you so" expression, clearly pleased that he'd been right all along. 

"Hey, why are you so worried about them? They're just a bunch of Medieval-era units, who were just unlucky enough to have run into us." 

Frank wasn't too worried. They had a clear technological advantage, so once the Musketman could move on the next turn, taking on ten enemy units at once shouldn't be a problem. At least, that was what he figured. 

"Hehe, Actually, this is pretty good. Ever since we started developing, aside from barbarians, we haven't fought anyone yet. I think we could use some practice." 

The next turn. The Aztec units followed the Trade Route and rushed all the way to the foot of Washington. 

This road, which had originally been used for trade, had instead benefited the Aztec units at this moment, allowing them to rapidly close in while consuming very little movement. Following closely behind several Heavy Cavalry were also two Catapults.