Chapter 180

Seeing their kin suffering, the goblins who hadn't received the "fire rain" redoubled their determination in their attacks and even managed to breach the wagon fort several times. Their attacks were repelled. The losses were terrible on both sides, though the goblins never counted their dead.

Alexander did not repeat his mistake and did not destroy all the attackers. By morning, the goblins still had a significant numerical advantage, and the humans had every chance of not surviving their next attack.

As soon as the subterranean dwellers withdrew into the forests and ceased their skirmishes against the human defenses, the soldiers simply collapsed from exhaustion. Had the goblins' retreat been a ruse, they could have easily achieved their goal. Only the vampires were still able to resist.

— Do you think you'll be able to convince these idiots today that it's time to turn back? — Leonid wiped the blade of his sword; everyone had fought during the night.

— I'd be very surprised if anyone suggests going forward.

But surprise was in store. A third of the commanders still insisted on continuing the expedition. The paladin, who had been the leader of the mercenary squad hired by Baron Savoyardi, was practically frothing at the mouth, convincing everyone that reaching the goal was the only correct choice. But fewer than ten men remained from his squad, and he was hardly listened to. The captain interrupted all arguments.

— We can always come back here if we wish. For now, we rest and then head back. The two caches with artifacts that we've found are the maximum we can hope for, — evidently, the captain was indeed a good military leader and knew when to stop.

The vampire chose not to clarify that turning back didn't mean escaping from the goblins' clutches. He decided that such a reminder would be inappropriate given the corpses that had yet to be removed. But this time, fate decided to favor the humans. There were attacks on the camp for another two nights, then they stopped.

It turned out that while there were many goblins in the mountains, even they had their limits. The huge losses incurred in the fall from the Orod army and the fresh summer losses from the Duke's squad had even affected them. There were no more serious attacks. And this led to new discussions about the foolishness of the retreat.

Watching the workers carefully loading valuable artifacts into the wagons, the captain felt mixed emotions. They had recovered the most necessary items; the Duke should be satisfied. But the squad had been sent with a much greater objective than was achieved. Would the Duke be satisfied, or would he have to leave the service and retire to his castle? The captain did not even notice the knight Blood who had stood beside him.

— You're worried for nothing. We had very few options. I'm personally surprised that we even managed to get this out.

— Then why did you go on this expedition?

— For the same reasons as everyone else, — and seeing the captain's confusion, he added, — Loot! The Duke promised a very generous reward.

Vilor nodded understandingly. Indeed, a barony was a very good reward.

— But will you get your reward?

— It is in our mutual interest for His Grace to believe that we did even more than we could, — the vampire grimaced, — Then I will receive my reward, and you won't be left with nothing. Talkers can always be silenced.

The hint was more than transparent. Alternative opinions about the possible outcome of the expedition should not reach the Duke. It had been hard, but they did everything and even a little more — that was the only report the Duke needed to hear. The captain nodded in agreement with the knight. It would indeed be better for everyone this way. The knights of other barons would support their report. And the opinion of the mercenaries would not be sought. Especially since they had truly done everything for the success of the expedition, but the forces were too uneven. So let the magical treasures rest a little longer on the pass.

I've got more interesting stuff on patreon

patreon.com/Chill76