"I knew it!" Quentin snorted coldly. "Who but the Amnians could do something like this? They have absolutely no bottom line!"
If the werewolves occupied Durlag's Tower, they would definitely spread the werewolf curse like mad. Every new werewolf would inevitably be accompanied by killing, and several thousand, perhaps even over ten thousand, people might die.
Moreover, werewolves did not produce anything and were hard to control. If they had nothing to eat or drink, they would run rampant everywhere. They were even more annoying than a plague.
Anser did not get angry. Tapping the table, he mused, "The timing is off. The Amnians' move... is a little late. If the werewolves launch their attack at midnight, the Amnians definitely won't make it in time."
The Amnian military camp was over 30 kilometers from Durlag's Tower. A force of two thousand armored troops would move slowly, and before they had even covered half the distance, it would already be dark.
And night was not suitable for battle. Humans had no darkvision, and many also suffered from night blindness.
"Maybe they were afraid we'd seal the city, so they waited until the werewolves had finished infiltrating before taking action," Quentin speculated.
Leaning back on the sofa with her arms folded, Iris said mockingly, "Maybe both sides are scheming against each other, mistrusting each other and using each other at the same time. The Amnians want to wait until the werewolves are exposed, weakening both them and us.
"The werewolves want the Amnians to strike first and help them pin down the Union's main force. My guess is that the werewolves definitely won't make a move tonight."
"That makes sense." Anser gave a slight nod.
If they were only lying low for one night, then the werewolf leader could have as many werewolves slip in as possible. It didn't matter whether they were elite or not.
"We can't wait. The Amnians are outside the city after all, so we have to deal with the werewolves first." Salian had seen werewolves before and knew how terrifying they were.
"Have the people from the Emerald Enclave arrived?" Anser looked at Quentin. He had been focused on controlling Arcane Eye just now and did not know the situation clearly.
"They've all arrived." Quentin stood up. "Should I go call Karisha and Makaria?"
"Call in all the councilors and elite-class professionals."
"Got it."
Very soon, a burst of disorderly footsteps sounded from downstairs, and a group filed in one after another.
Graham, Giant Tail, Karisha, Makaria...
The Emerald Enclave and the Flamerule Mercenary Company each had three elite-class professionals. By contrast, the Union's talent pool was withering. Excluding Anser and the people he had brought, they only had Quentin, Graham, and Iris.
The captain of Fort Jacqueline's knight order was also an elite-class professional, a middle-aged man named Auston. He was taciturn, holding his helmet under one arm, his face stern.
It was Anser's first time seeing him with his helmet off, and he could not help taking a few extra looks.
Fort Jacqueline always revealed its deep reserves when least expected. Among the Union's cluster of decayed forces, it stood head and shoulders above the rest. No wonder Iris could do whatever she wanted so easily.
"The situation is urgent, so I won't introduce everyone one by one. Let's discuss it and have a big fight today." Anser took paper and pen and began planning the operation over a rough sketch.
He had found a total of nineteen groups of werewolves, but even at the fullest count, there were only thirteen elite-class professionals.
The Emerald Enclave would handle three groups of werewolves. The Flamerule Mercenary Company would deal with three groups as well, and they would still have enough strength left to support other battle groups, so the pressure was not great.
Fort Jacqueline's knight order had more than seventy men. Divided into three teams and led by Iris and Captain Auston, taking down three groups of werewolves would be relatively easy.
The guard force had more than three hundred men. Several teams would be left behind to watch the city gates and the Union, while also maintaining order.
This time, a little over two hundred men would be deployed, divided into six teams of forty each. The four captains were all low-level professionals, each paired with one elite-class professional or several level 4 professionals. Taking down the werewolves should not result in too many casualties.
The Union had many level 4 professionals: the three councilors, Sheriff Pardo, Kaleno, Colin... They were distributed among the weaker teams to make up their combat strength.
But that still made only fifteen combat teams, leaving four teams short.
However, Anser did not split the teams further. A small shortfall was still a large shortfall. Insufficient combat strength could lead to excessive casualties or let werewolves escape, which would have even worse consequences.
Of the remaining four groups of werewolves, three had no fixed residence and had gathered together. He decided to handle them himself and wipe them out in one go, while the remaining group would be assigned to Iris, who had the greatest mobility.
"Team One, Captain Giant Tail; Vice Captains Colin and Finn. Lead four squads of guards. Target: civilian residence at South Gate Point One. Remember the location..."
"Team Two, Captain Councilor Diero; Vice Captains Pardo and Kaleno. South Gate Point Two..."
"..."
"Remember this: do not hesitate, do not show mercy. Eliminate the targets as quickly as possible, support the adjacent teams, and deal with any other werewolves who may be exposed!"
"Understood..."
Anser assigned tasks one by one. After confirming the locations and timing, he had each team go to the training ground to organize their men and stand ready to depart at any moment.
A few minutes later, teams of fully armed soldiers left the Union, their expressions taut as they rushed straight toward their respective targets.
"The Amnians are coming! Don't wander outside if you don't have to..."
"Curfew after dark! Taverns are not allowed to stay open..."
"No troublemaking! Everyone back to your homes..."
"..."
There were too many guards and knights to conceal their movements, so they simply strode openly along the streets, pretending to be preparing for battle in advance while maintaining public order.
Those with farther destinations left first, while those closer set out later, so they would not remain around the target areas too long and arouse the werewolves' suspicion.
It was now five in the afternoon. There were still more than two hours before dark, and one hour remained before the agreed time of action.
Wearing a cloak, Iris blended in among the knights and headed straight for the northern district.
Riding Nornoth, Anser made for the western district alone. He was dressed in a luxurious formal suit and was extremely conspicuous, but no one became suspicious, because this new chairman often appeared in the western district.
Day after day, there's no end to the worrying.
In the past, he had only been one of those fleeing after disaster struck. Now, he had to prevent disasters from happening in the first place. The difficulty was on an entirely different level.
The werewolves offered quite a lot of experience points, but he still preferred grinding monsters outside the city. Within the city, he was too constrained; at the very least, he did not dare use the fire-aspected Fireball.
More than half of Durlag's Tower consisted of wooden buildings. If one Fireball went off, it could probably burn down half a street.
The gathering place of those three groups of werewolves was just behind the Hunters' Guild warehouse. It had originally been a goods yard used for stacking odds and ends, but now the Hunters' Guild used it to house refugees, and it had become a refugee camp.
The Hunters' Guild had cheap labor available, and the refugees could regularly get animal offal and the like to eat. It could be considered a win-win.
As he drew near the refugee camp, a rank stench went straight into his nostrils, and swarms of mosquitoes buzzed everywhere. Nornoth snorted, his eyes full of disgust.
And those werewolves were living in a shabby wooden shack on the very edge of the refugee camp, covered on the outside with a layer of old canvas. In order to avoid exposure, they had deliberately stayed far away from the crowd.
"Mr. Anser?" At the warehouse entrance, a man covered in blood stared at Anser in surprise.
Anser turned his head and recognized him at a glance: the warehouse manager who had once sold him an entire warehouse full of prey.
"It's me. You're still doing the work yourself?"
"So you really are the chairman." The man came closer, his face full of disbelief, muttering, "I told other people, but they wouldn't believe me..."
Anser had just been about to speak when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a figure rise into the air in the northern district, ten miniature meteors circling around her as they bombarded the ground below.
Something's happened!
Iris had moved ahead of schedule!
The agreed time of action was six o'clock, but if the situation changed, then meteors or fireworks would serve as the signal to attack immediately.
Anser no longer hesitated. Magic Power surged around him as his mind locked onto the shabby wooden shack dozens of meters away, and the elemental orb shone with brilliant prismatic light.
"ફાયરબોલકલા"
Innate Spellcasting + Metamagic: Empowered, Transmuted + Fireball—Cold!
Accompanied by a sonorous and forceful draconic incantation, a bright flash shot from his fingertips and struck the shabby wooden shack at the edge of the refugee camp in an instant. Then, like hellish cold erupting all at once, it exploded.
White mist spread, water condensed into ice, and frost blanketed the area for more than ten meters around the shack.
Midsummer turned to winter!
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