Aiden stood in the war room beneath the main temple, staring into the scrying pool. Shadow Veil mixed with the Heart of the Grove let him see straight into the sorcerer's tower. The rival had pulled in desperate nobles and their guards, plus crates of dark artifacts that pulsed with corrupted energy.
Aiden counted the forces: roughly eight hundred mixed troops, heavy on mercenaries, and several summoned constructs already active on the outer walls.
"Real-time strategy it is," Aiden muttered. He assigned strike teams through the system interface. Three priestess squads—each led by one of Elizabeth's trained lieutenants—would hit the flanks.
The main army units received temporary buffs: +25% stamina, +15% resistance to shadow magic, and a basic regeneration field. The costs were low because the ley lines near the tower fed straight into his network.
