My brother carried me into the war room, and I quickly forced myself to get over how awkward it felt as he took a seat at the head of the table, holding me on his lap. 'Complaining at this point will just make it worse, right? Honestly…' I sighed. "Alright, first off, we need to gather all of the gore and blood from the demon and transport it to the mouth of the bay. We can dump it slowly as we travel back towards the coast. Since we aren't dumping it all at once, the monsters will still be scared and stay away from us, too. We will also reserve portions and keep parts of it in the city of Nayana and Neymere, respectively, so the monsters avoid the populated coastlines and we don't suffer any casualties… It's weird to say, but it was lucky in some ways that it regenerated so many times. There's plenty to go around."
Dorsa stood up and leaned on the table. "The ship's speed is far too slow, we need more time to repair if we want to be going anywhere. All our masts were shattered."
"No, we don't have time…" 'Well… It's not like we haven't already been using magic…' I sighed, shaking my head. "Hara and I will use magic to propel the ship. In the meantime, focus on restoring combat functionality and hull integrity. We have to get to the riverhold as fast as possible.
Sovas slowly leaned back in his seat. " Word came from our eagles. The enemy forces occupied the remnants of the port city we left behind, but quickly continued to move south upon realizing there were no supplies. They are marching as we speak. It appears that one legion is advancing towards it, and the second is moving west to hunt monsters for food, raiding the villages and such."
'Alright… Let's take a look.' I closed my eyes, and my vision expanded outward over the whole country. I could see it all. 'A legion of… No. That's not even half a legion. It's only 3,000 soldiers moving towards the fortress… And 6 krakens in the bay scattered throughout…' "I need a map."
After being given one, I marked off the locations we needed to dump carrion and the route we would take back, predicting the movement of the monster and aligning it with the marching forces. Then we immediately got to work. Hara, Rune, and I were taken to the back of the ship, along with the navigator, quickly accelerating far past the phase we were capable of with just sails. With Run's practically limitless mana, and my ability to use magic without expending it, Hara ended up being the one to work herself to exhaustion first, after that I tapped out so as not to strain myself too much, and then Hara and Rune finished off the journey as we came into port at Riverhold just behind the other flag ship.
Before we even docked, we could already see the immediate effects of our madness as the armies marching along the coastal road were butchered by massive swinging tendrils that snapped like whips and crushed with the force of falling mountains. In no time, the entire army was reduced by half. 'Unfortunately… We inadvertently solved their food problem. Not only are there half as many mouths, but now they have plenty of seafood. If we could somehow torch the supplies, that would help.'
My eyes focused like long-range precision scopes, and I watched every detail. Somehow they won, but the fighting wasn't uniform or organised, they didn't utilize formations or tactics… And the uniforms were inconsistent. Instead of soldiers, it was more like mercenaries… Or maybe even criminals. High enough in skill, though, considering they killed 4 krackens in the end.
Dorsa stepped up next to me and stared out over the miles of sea between us, leaning on the rail as the ripples from afar gently rocked the boat. "Ha, they expect to take our land when they can't even handle a few fish?"
'There is no way these things are fish… arthropods?'
Just as he said that, as if to prove a point, Rokai slashed one in half with a single swing, it was so perfect that it cut the brain, the heart… And even the manna crystal, a blue trace of light extending from his sword like a blade of magic that killed everything it touched. "Well… I guess they can handle it… Just not very well." He groaned, turning his back to the rail, staring out at the open sky as it started to sprinkle rain.
'He doesn't look too happy… Well, hunting Krackens is considered a great honor, there's a strange sense of respect for anything strong after all…' "Dorsa…" I nudged him, pointing back to the shore. "It's true, there were a lot of casualties… But it's not over yet…"
There were two that they didn't butcher right away that came back from the dead. From afar, I could see them twitch as their souls lingered, unable to escape for some reason. Like, there was a wall keeping them here. A moment later, enraged, either by their death or because they couldn't die, they attacked even more fiercely than before. "You know… They say this land is cursed…"
"It wouldn't have happened if they had taken care of it properly right away. You just have to butcher them quickly."
"Well… If they didn't want to die, they should have stayed at home."
'This is really your own fault… I'll never forgive you for throwing away so many lives for something so meaningless…'
Unable to face off against the undead. They all fell back, not that I blamed them. From their perspective, there could have been more coming, or even more later on down the coast, and as skilled as Rokai was, cutting an undead in half just doubled the number of enemies you faced.
It grew late, and after coming into port with a grand trophy, morale was higher than ever. And after telling tales of the empire getting massacred by Krakens that we hunted for generations, it grew even more. No matter how I looked at it, though, it wasn't the time to celebrate.
'Based on their movements… They'll probably regroup, consolidate, and come back, probably avoiding the coast this time and cutting through the woods or mountains. This area around the fortress is filled with monsters, but dire wolves, spiders, and wyverns don't compare to fighting a Kraken with longswords.'
"Siya… What are you doing here? You should be celebrating with the rest of us."
I lifted my eyes from the war tables maps to see Al carrying in two mugs of ale. "Alcohol doesn't really affect me since my dragon's blood has become so strong… So all it really does is taste bad…"
He chuckled, stepping closer and looking at the map. "If it tastes bad, you're doing it wrong. Why are you so concerned with an enemy that's retreating?"
I sighed, taking the mug from him anyway and having a drink without worrying too much. After putting it down to the side, I guided his eyes with my finger. "That's the thing, they didn't actually retreat… Did they… They don't see us personally as any more of a threat than before, so they are definitely coming back… But what's worrisome is that by now, they should be aware that at least our group isn't easy to mess with. They suffered thousands of casualties at Kasesh and took no prisoners. They should know that the same soldiers there would have retreated this way, and not west, so if they are trying to siege another fort against us… Would they really not retreat if they had so few men left? They're moving fast, too, like they are on a deadline that was pushed back because of the Krackens."
"Well, if they're stupid, isn't that a good thing?" He placed his mug down as well. "But that look on your face tells me I'm missing something…"
"The fourth star single-handedly wiped out my older brother's entire force… If they consolidate, it means bringing not only him, but the third star, who is likely on equal footing, and one of the sages, who is considered much stronger than Hara. In the first place, sending only 3,000 troops to siege this castle is insane when 10,000 nearly lost at Kasesh. Furthermore, the 3,000 soldiers were mostly mercenaries, not empire soldiers. They didn't appear to have uniform equipment, even if they were all wearing empire colors."
He leaned forward, placing his hands on the table with a grimace. "True… But we have you, the so-called runeborn you created, and Hara… So it's not as though it will be one-sided."
I slowly collapsed backwards into my chair. "You really are cruel… Expecting me to fight like a devil even with a broken arm and leg…" I sighed. "Just like last time, this will all come down to us taking out the mages… Unlike last time, we don't have war beasts or a portable star to drop on them…"
He looked down at the map again. "Our cavalry is fresh, though, since we didn't take them to sea with us, but no doubt the sage will be heavily guarded… Are you sure that's our only option?"
I lowered my eyes back to the map and began moving the pieces. "Maybe not… But that depends on if they'll actually move how I think they will…"
"You've never been wrong before."
'That's… A matter of perspective…' I felt my face sink. "My original goal was always to achieve zero casualties from our side, as unrealistic as I always knew it was…" I paused before continuing to move the pieces, tracking their movements and estimating their plans. No matter what fancy words I use, though, it was all just guessing… Conjecture… Educated guessing, I suppose, but not certain at any rate.
"You have a plan for the war, right now, focus on the next battle."
'That's what I'm doing…' I groaned, trying to block out his voice while I thought. "They're moving to surround us, but this fortress is the only crossing for the river, which means their two armies will be separated… I have no doubt that the sage will approach from the front. Instead of targeting her, we hold the line with a small force defending the siege, while the rest of our army charges out the back gate to rout the enemy forces… Then the group defending the castle sets it to blow and takes to the sea, while we retreat through the pass to Neymere…"
"Retreat by attacking…"
I took another swig from my mug, the sharp, bitter flavor helping wake and distract my mind. "We probably shouldn't call it that, though… Let's call it advancing backwards… People here aren't really fond of the word retreat…"
He chuckled, shaking his head. "Yes, sir."
As I struggled to stand up, he moved closer but paused as I raised a hand. "I'm fine…" My magic is working overtime to heal my body… But it still hurts… Well, it's only been three days… Even if my bones are in one piece in my smaller body, they almost hurt even more, so I've been staying in big to try and heal faster… At least dragons seem to heal quicker than humans, and since my magic accelerates natural healing, it's even more effective… But can I really heal enough to fight in a few days?' I grabbed the crutches I was using and slowly went outside, heading up to the wall slowly but surely. 'They should be near the river by now… Only much farther north. According to the map, there's a shallow… Shallower portion. I'm sure they will just cheat using magic somehow to cross, regardless, though.
'Even together, the two legions are less than one now in numbers… They whipped out most of our army, sure, but an army of lions led by sheep and all that. Maybe not the best metaphor, but whatever, I guess…'
Upon making it to the top of the wall, I slowly approached Lord Elianara, watching over the archers on the walls. "We should prepare for a siege… They'll aim to surround us."
"How do you know that?"
'Skeptical as ever… No wonder he doesn't get along with my dad.' I suddenly felt a smile creep over my face at the thought of them bickering, my so-called father being the main problem, no doubt. "I can see it… Besides, look, the wyverns are moving east down river, likely because someone is crossing it upstream and disrupting them."
"The ballistas are loaded…" He grumbled. "Will you man one yourself? You're still injured…"
"That… Might not be necessary… order everyone to hold fire." I walked up to the edge of the wall and climbed atop the battlement, feeling the wind rush past me. 'Monsters fear those that are stronger than them… So, of course, wyverns would be afraid of a dragon… More than that, they share dragon blood like Rune does… I might be going insane but…' With a deep breath, I let out a powerful roar as best I could, cracking the sky and shaking the water. The processing of wyverns flinched so badly that they barely caught themselves before falling out of the air. When they continued coming towards us, it wasn't in a panicked flight, but rather a calm glide, slow, with talons tucked behind them.
'Uh… Why… Are they still coming this way… I mean they don't look aggressive anymore but…''
"I hope you know what you're doing…"
'Uh… Yeah…'
They calmly landed in the courtyard, all 14 of them, some injured, others carrying young or crippled. 'That wasn't the response I was expecting…'
"G-general…"
'I should play it off like this was intentional…' "Make it a habit of calling me king." I said smugly, "After this, I just might make a play for the throne." 'that's it… Just act confident, everything's fine.. Luckily, I have this body too.. It's almost too easy to act above everyone… "Order everyone to hold fire, no one is to lay a finger on them or go near them until I say otherwise." One of the soldiers nearby bowed and quickly began spreading the word. 'I thought they'd be scared away… Still, if they aren't hostile, this could be advantageous…'