The morning chill clung stubbornly to the ground, refusing to lift even as the sun rose. Ridgebrook stood silent on the walls, every eye fixed on the dark-armored captain who now watched them from across the field. His posture was relaxed, almost bored, but there was something in the way he studied the trenches, the walls, the Shield Core—a cold intelligence that made Liam's stomach twist.
Leonidas stood beside him, jaw clenched. "That man is not like Ferric," he muttered. "Ferric was a noisy hammer. This one… is a blade."
Sun Tzu nodded. "He measures. He observes. He decides where to cut."
Orin swallowed hard, tightening her grip on her shield. "Do we call him something? I mean—what do we call someone like that?"
Liam exhaled. "A motherfucker."
The captain raised two fingers.
The drums shifted.
The earth trembled as nearly eighty soldiers advanced—double the number from the probing attack. They moved in two staggered lines, shields interlocked, spears angled. Behind them rolled two wooden frames filled with tar-filled clay pots.
Sun Tzu's eyes darkened. "Fire carriages. They mean to burn us out.
Leonidas slammed his spear into the ground. "Shield Core! LOWER WALL!"
Liam climbed down with them, heart hammering. The villagers scrambled to reinforce the gate. Oil jars were positioned on the upper ramparts. Archers nocked arrows.
Sun Tzu stood at the center of the formation, hands clasped behind his back. "Remember—fire spreads only where you allow it. Break the carriers before they reach the wall."
Liam nodded weakly. "Right. Break the carriers. Don't die."
The captain on the field raised his spear, then swept it downward.
The lines surged forward.
"ARCHERS!" Sun Tzu barked.
Dozens of arrows shot into the sky, raining down on the first line. Ten soldiers fell. More staggered, shields up. The march continued.
"AGAIN!"
A second volley. More bodies dropped—but still not enough.
Liam felt the pressure like a vise: eighty men, coordinated, disciplined, determined.
The fire carriages rolled closer.
Leonidas' voice cut through the panic. "Shield Core! FORM RANK!"
Twelve shields locked. Spears angled. Feet dug into the earth. The fear-stricken villagers behind them steadied their breaths at the sight.
The first line hit the trenches Sun Tzu planned so carefully—but this time they expected them. Planks dropped across gaps. Soldiers leapt, spears first.
"BRACE!" Leonidas roared.
The clash shook the ground. The Shield Core bent backward, boots sliding through the dirt. Liam threw his shoulder into his shield, grunting from the force. Orin nearly buckled, but Leonidas slammed his shield against hers, steadying her.
"Hold, Orin!"
"I—I'm trying!"
Spears stabbed into enemy legs. Shouts echoed. Blood slicked the ground. The pressure mounted as more soldiers pressed in.
Liam could feel his arms burning, strength fleeing faster than he wanted to admit.
Then came the roar.
The fire carriages reached the second trench and halted.
Three soldiers lit torches.
Sun Tzu's eyes widened. "OIL!" he screamed. "Archers—kill them NOW!"
But too many shields blocked the view.
The torches fell onto the pots.
With a sharp crack, flames exploded upward.
The militias screamed as heat slammed against the walls. Fire licked the earth. Smoke curled into the air. The Shield Core lost footing as men panicked, instinctively retreating from the flames.
Orin gasped as heat singed her hair.
Leonidas growled. "Hold the line—FIRE IS WIND, NOT STEEL!"
But even he was forced to step back as the flames surged.
Sun Tzu shouted orders faster than breath allowed. "Drag sand! Water barrels—MOVE! Push fire downhill!"
Villagers scrambled, throwing sand into the fire, rolling barrels to create a wet ditch. The flames sputtered but continued creeping toward the wall.
The enemy pushed harder.
Liam felt his arms shaking. "Shit—shit—shit!"
One soldier broke through the formation, lunging straight at him. Liam tried to stab but missed. The spear tip whistled past his cheek.
Orin screamed, "LIAM!"
She slammed her shield sideways, knocking the attacker off balance. Liam thrust his spear desperately. It hit the man's chest. He fell.
Orin shook, panting. "Pay attention!"
"No shit!"
Behind them, the fire took to the wooden stakes.
Panic rose again—until a shadow dropped from above.
Vlad landed behind the fire carriers, blades flashing. In three heartbeats, he slit the throats of the torch-bearers and kicked one fire carriage sideways into the trench. Flames spilled harmlessly into an already burning pit.
"Boring," Vlad muttered. "They burn too fast."
Liam yelled, "Thank you!"
Vlad winked. "Try not to die yet. I want a better show."
With the fire partially contained, the Shield Core surged forward again. Leonidas drove his spear into a soldier's thigh, then hammered the man backward with his shield.
"Step! PRESS!"
They followed.
The line moved like a single beast, roaring, pushing, driving through the weakened formation. Sun Tzu directed militia around the flanks, stabbing into exposed sides. Archer volleys continued to drop into the second row.
At last, the enemy broke.
But this time, it wasn't a retreat.
It was a tactical withdrawal.
The Rank 3 captain raised his spear again.
The soldiers parted smoothly and ran back in organized formation, not panic.
Leonidas exhaled heavily. "They test our strength."
Sun Tzu's gaze never left the captain. "He now knows our limits. He will shape his next strike accordingly."
Liam bent over, hands on knees, breathing like he'd run five miles. His arms trembled uncontrollably from the shield impact.
Orin collapsed beside him, hair singed, armor scorched. "That… was worse."
Lira rushed down from the ramparts, face pale with worry. "You both could've died!
"We didn't," Liam wheezed. "So… small victory?"
Vlad drifted behind them. "One small wave. Many more coming."
The villagers put out the remaining flames with sand and water. The walls smoked. Several Shield Core members bled heavily. Two militia lay dead. The scent of burning wood and flesh clung to Ridgebrook like a curse.
And across the field, the captain watched without blinking.
He lifted his spear one final time toward Ridgebrook.
Sun Tzu's voice lowered to a whisper.
"He knows. His next attack will not be a test. It will be to break us."
Liam opened the Ledger with shaking fingers.
[NEXT SUMMON: 27 DAYS]
"Useless," he muttered.
He looked at Sun Tzu, Leonidas, Orin, Vlad—each exhausted, burned, bloodied.
The next wave would be worse.
Much worse.