Ashen Empire.
Southeastern part of the Anzeta Great Wilderness, known as the "City of Cast Iron," Hector City.
At four in the morning, the conveyor belt of the assembly line emitted a rhythmic clatter, those enormous machines like giant beasts devouring steel, chewing the female workers' breaths into a unified rhythm.
"Two hundred twenty-seven, two hundred twenty-eight..."
The female worker Erin counted the two hundred and thirtieth shell sliding past her palm, the copper shavings embedded in her nail crevices glittering softly under the gas lamp.
When she put her cracked thumb into her mouth, she tasted the rust of bullet lubricant mixed with blood. She knew her fingers were already worn out and bleeding, yet she couldn't stop for even a moment.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Among the roar of the steam hammer, the foreman shouted at the top of his voice: "We must complete the target set by the higher-ups before dawn! Remember, we're making a contribution to the Empire!
