Chapter Twenty-Three

On top of the watchtower, Mikael stared at the retreating army of beastmen beyond the wall. Even from this distance of almost a kilometer, he could see the swarm of green and brown entering the burning forest. With his amplified senses, he could see the desperate attempt of those beastmen to rescue their comrades burning inside the forest. 

"But how?" he mumbled. 

How did Lark Marcus predict all these things until now? 

Three days before this attack, he ordered his men to spread castrel oil inside the forest, along with several dozen barrels of dried leaves. Mikael could still remember the words the young noble said that time: 

The enemies will arrive in three days. They'll surely enter this part of the forest. 

It was as though he knew everything from the start. Did he plant a spy within the ranks of the beastmen? That was the only possibility he could think of. Otherwise, it would have been impossible to monitor the movements of their enemies from so far away. 

The tactics used by Lark was simple, almost an out-of-the-textbook method of dealing with the enemies, but it proved very effective. Even now, Mikael could see the fiercely burning forest ahead. Even with the summoned rain, the fire continued to blaze. With this single exchange, probably thousands of beastmen succumbed to their banes. 

Mikael knew that anyone else would be hard-pressed to mimic this feat. Although it looked simple at first glance, a lot of variables played vital roles in initiating this plan. 

First, one needed a wide view of the battlefield as a whole: Where the enemies were. Where they would come from. Their numbers. Their strengths. And even the personality of their commanders. If even a single one of these things were missing, this plan was doomed to fail. If the enemy's leader did not charge recklessly while bringing all of his magicians with him or if the enemies took a different path in the forest, things would have unfolded differently. 

"Do as we planned!" the Commander of the Blackstone Soldiers shouted. "Open the gates! Move out!"

The gates opened and several men started pushing a removable wooden bridge. After it perfectly crossed over the trench, the soldiers started moving out of the town. There were several hundreds of them. 

The man next to Mikael struck the gong then blew the horn. 

A war cry. It signaled the counter attack from the humans. 

The retreating beastmen looked at their rear. They were clearly flustered after seeing hundreds of soldiers armed to the teeth. They clearly did not expect to see such an army from a very small town. 

Since these soldiers were originally from Lion City, most of them have experiences in subjugating monsters. Almost all of them had experienced war. 

The beastmen knew that if they were to clash now, they would be unable to save the thousands of beastmen trapped in the forest. Those who survived the forest fire must have been too weak to move right now. Even with the help of the pouring rain, they would be unable to get out. 

"Split into three groups and enter the forest!" roared the General. "Phantomim! Valanar!"

The two officers nodded their heads. The two led their own detachments. They entered different paths of the forest and started rescuing their comrades. The General, on the other hand, stayed behind to confront the army of humans. With only a thousand soldiers, he stood right before the forest's entrance. 

"Warriors!" roared General Urkawi. "We'll slaughter these damn humans! Be ready to charge at any time!" 

"Understood!" 

Each of the warriors with him have rage burning within their eyes. They could still remember the defiled bodies of their comrades. With vehement fury, they all steeled themselves for the upcoming clash – 

—But it never came. 

Half an hour had passed since the human army came out of the town. But peculiarly, they simply stood there, unmoving. 

After several more minutes, the gates opened and the army retreated inside. 

"What was that?" mumbled the General. 

By estimate, there was almost a thousand soldiers on the human's side. They could have turned the tables around had they attacked them right now then retreated after a clash. 

Still baffled by what transpired, General Urkawi ordered his men to enter the forest. Now was not the time to think about these trivialities. 

"Spread out! Bring back the injured!" 

Upon his orders, the beastmen warriors started rescuing their comrades. 

***

An hour after the beastmen retreated, several dozens of soldiers stealthily went towards the southern gate of the town. They took a roundabout path in the forest until they arrived at the southern plains. 

The gates opened and the wooden bridge was pushed over the trench. The group of soldiers entered the town. 

"Welcome back, Young Master," Gaston greeted Lark. 

Lark was carrying a bow with him, with an almost empty quiver on his back. Behind him were the hunters from Gahelpa and several archers from Lion City. 

"The beastmen have retreated," reported Gaston. "And just like you've ordered, we did not clash with the enemy directly."

Lark already knew this. He nodded in satisfaction. "Good work."

According to the vision sphere, the Third Legion stayed overnight in the dead forest filled with miasma. An army as large as that would be hard-pressed to treat all of their soldiers. All they need to do right now was to wait for the effects of Magic Poisoning to kick in. Clashing with them right now would lead to innumerable casualties. 

"Where's Commander Daltos?" said Lark. 

"Ah, he's at the eastern gate. They started repairing the broken parts of the gates and the blocked trenches," said Gaston. "Do you want me to summon him, My Lord?"

"There's no need for that. I'll go see him myself." Lark wanted to see the aftermath of the battle up close. 

Lark rode the carriage and went towards the eastern border. The gate was open, and several soldiers were busy moving about outside the wall. Some of them were carrying wooden planks, while some carried shovels and pickaxes. 

It was impossible to see from the outside through the gate, but a stone wall was being made right next to the wooden palisade. Thanks to the cement and the hundreds of helping hands from Lion City, constructing the stone wall went at a quick pace. At this rate, it would probably take less than a week before the eastern wall was completed. It did not have to be perfect right now, Lark knew. 

"Ah, Young Master!" one of the soldiers noticed the arrival of Lark. 

Immediately the soldiers stopped in their tracks. Some bowed, while some made their salutes.

After driving away the Third Legion, Lark earned the respect of the majority of the soldiers. When they first saw the enemies numbering in the thousands, everyone froze in fear and shock. Just like what the Young Master said, the enemies did come. 

But thankfully, everyone had been briefed of their strategy beforehand. A small detachment of archers lied waiting inside the forest, while the rest of the soldiers cooped themselves inside the walls, all the while retaliating with clay boulders and arrows.

Still, the wooden wall was not enough to deter the advance of the beastmen. Had it not been for the sudden forest fire which burned down the reserved soldiers of their enemies and their supplies, the town would have already fallen to the beastmen's hands by now. 

Just like what Lark predicted, the Beastmen could not risk losing a third of their forces on the first day of the battle just to capture a small town. They immediately stopped in their attacks and prioritized the rescue of their comrades. 

Everything until that point had been according to the Young Master's plan. Knowing this, the soldiers could not help but look at him in awe. A simple but effective tactic. They did not expect someone so young to be so well-versed in the art of war. 

"Young Lord." Commander Daltos approached him upon receiving news of his arrival. He scrutinized Lark from head to foot. "Thank God. It seems you're fine."

"Of course." Aside from his sweaty forehead, Lark was unscathed. The moment the beastmen retreated into the forest, he immediately ordered his men to stealthily go back to the southern gate. "How's the preparations?"

Daltos looked at the soldiers behind him. All were busily moving about with their own tasks. "We're ready to move out at any time. Like you've ordered, we made three small detachments. Forty soldiers each."

Lark looked at the sky. It would soon become dusk. 

"Gather the first detachment. We'll move out half an hour from now."

"Understood!"

***

The beastmen army busily moved about in the forest. With the help of the summoned rain, they found it possible to rescue their comrades. Still, the results were rather disappointing. More than half of the beastmen trapped in the forest fired were burned alive, while the remaining ones were crippled by the fire. The survivors were on the verge of death after being scorched by the flames and after breathing thick smoke. 

General Urkawi personally led the rescue operation. 

Sadness. Hatred. Frustration. All sorts of emotions ran through his mind as he pulled out the surviving beastmen from the forest fire. 

He had not expected his enemies to be this thoroughly prepared. As a war veteran, he expected the town to simply open its gates and let the Army pass through in exchange of preserving their lives. And even if there was some resistance, it would have been all for naught before his Legion. That was, after all, nothing but a desolated town in the middle of the wilderness. 

Was he too arrogant to assume easy victory over these humans? 

General Urkawi shook his head. Now was not the time to think of these trivialities. He needed to prioritize the rescue mission right now. 

If he lost a third of his army here, he would lose face before his entire Clan. After all, this was just the first step in their goal of conquering the Eastern Region. To reclaim the land originally theirs. 

General Urkawi carried two unconscious beastmen on his arms as he made his way towards the camp. 

"Ah, General," Phantomim's voice trailed off. "About the thing you asked us to do–"

General Urkawi stopped in his tracks as he silently listened. 

"It seems the enemies purposely targeted our supplies during that attack." Phantomim was grim. "I've checked the remaining rations. We only have enough to last a day or two at most."

General Urkawi suppressed a sigh. His head throbbed. "The medicines?"

Phantomim shook his head. "They were all burned during the attack, including several of our shamans. Right now, we only have three shamans remaining. Even if we rescue everyone, it'll be impossible to treat the entire army."

No one expected such an attack during this clash. Who would have known that the enemy would purposely light the forest on fire to burn down their supplies? It was a strategy impossible to pull through unless the humans have been given several days of preparation. 

Was there a spy among their ranks? General Urkawi had yet to find out. 

"Phantomim," said the General. 

"Sir?"

"For now… Keep this a secret for now. I'll be bad for the morale if the warriors find out. Two days, huh? Then we'll just have to conquer that damn town in two days." General Urkawi tried his best to remain calm in front of his subordinate. "And I have a task for you."

General Urkawi lowered his voice. "Find the spy among our ranks."

Phantomim's eyes widened for a moment. "A spy? I see… It makes sense."

General Urkawi nodded. "The humans knew the path we would take and even the formation of our army. They wouldn't have been so bold in their strategy otherwise. There must be a spy among the warriors. Find him."

"As you wish." Phantomim bowed his head. 

After his right-hand man left, General Urkawi laid the two unconscious beastmen on the ground and went inside his tent. Outside, he could hear the numerous footsteps of his men as they moved about. 

He opened the map on the table and analyzed the topography of the region. 

"General?" Fior entered the tent. After locking eyes with the General, the Rabbit bowed. "The enemy started moving, Sir."

General Urkawi frowned. "Report."

"According to our scouts, over a hundred infantry soldiers stood guard before the walls. The humans started burning the dead bodies of our warriors." Fior chocked the words out. "They also started repairing the broken walls."

General Urkawi trembled in rage. Just like before, the humans were defiling the dead bodies of their comrades. 

Burning the dead bodies? How loathsome. He vowed within his heart that he would rip them to shreds once given the chance. 

"General," said Fior. "After recovering the bodies in the forest, I suggest that we immediately resume our attack."

It seemed that the Rabbit was thinking the same thing as him. General Urkawi also planned on immediately launching an offensive once they secured the beastmen trapped in the forest fire. He knew that if he delayed their attack any longer, the humans would have fortified their defenses even further. And to make things worse, the entire Legion have been inflicted by that damnable Magic Poisoning. 

Right now, time was the ally of humans. 

General Urkawi was about to summon the officers to tell them about the plan when suddenly, commotion broke outside. The sound of metal clanked and shouts reverberated. 

"We're under attack!"

"Protect the injured! Go towards the back!"

General Urkawi and Fior momentarily looked at each other. Immediately, they went out of the tent and was surprised by what they saw. 

The camp, which served as infirmary, was in chaos. From the sky, numerous arrows rained down. 

Numerous beastmen carried the injured with them towards a safer place, while the warriors raised their shields to block the attacks. 

"General!" Several warriors ran towards Urkawi. "Your orders, Sir!"

General Urkawi's eyes swiveled left and right. He quickly scanned his surroundings. 

"Two places," said General Urkawi. "The enemies are over there." He pointed at two parts of the forest. He was sure that that was the place where the enemies were hiding. 

"Gather the Black Scimitar. We're moving out!" 

On his command, several beastmen with chain mails and black scimitars on their waist gathered. General Urkawi summoned their leader. "Jakal, take the left side."

"Understood!" Jakal saluted. 

The Black Scimitars separated into two groups. One was led by Jakal, while the other was personally led by the General himself. They did not waste any more time and immediately chased after the humans hiding in the forest. 

At the same time, Lark, who had been watching everything using the vision crystal, smirked. In this attack, they managed to kill less than a dozen beastmen, but that was more than enough. 

The real goal of this mission was to buy enough time for the Magic Poisoning to kick in. Lark knew that if he did not initiate these guerrilla attacks, the Legion would catch its breath and launch an all-out offensive against Blackstone Town. 

Even with poisoned bodies, the sheer number of enemies would be enough to topple the town's defenses. 

What Lark needed right now was time. And once the time was right, he would retaliate with an offensive lethal strike. 

Just as planned, all of the soldiers separated into smaller groups and spread out into the forest, then gathered at a set coordinate. Lark purposely left fake trails for their pursuers. Although it may not be enough to completely fool the enemies, it would be enough to buy them time to escape and return to Blackstone Town. 

"We're returning to the South Gate," said Lark. 

With that single command, the small group stealthily moved through the forest, circumventing the beastmen camp.