For a moment after the General's retreat, there was only wind moving through broken stone and melting frost.
Then it began.
One soldier lifted his blade into the air and shouted.
Another followed.
Within seconds, the entire Valerion erupted into triumphant roars that rolled across the valley like thunder. Weapons struck shields. Spears pounded against frozen ground. Men who moments ago had been bracing for annihilation now stood upright, voices hoarse but fierce with disbelief and pride.
They had held.
They had survived the first clash against a numerically superior force.
More than that, they had forced a third stage Sage to withdraw.
The sound was not merely celebration. It was release. It was defiance. It was the sudden return of breath after nearly drowning.
