Chapter 32: Brick by Brick

"Shield Bash!" Faced with the surging orcs, the Zaltarion City Guards, despite their disdain for these creatures, still treated them with the utmost respect.

"Buzz~" The battle aura rapidly spread across the broad shield, forming a battle aura shield that was several circles larger than the shield itself.

"Bang~ Bang~" A series of thumping sounds erupted as the guards raised their large shields, taking a half-step back before charging forward with a fierce impact.

After a series of sickening, ear-splitting cracking sounds, every orc struck by the light shield fell to the ground, convulsing. 

Those fortunate enough to survive were swiftly impaled on the ground by the advancing city guards with their steel spears. 

After the initial strike, the battle aura dissipated, reverting the shield back to an ordinary one.

"Why are there more and more orcs?" The Zaltarion City Guards were dumbfounded, realizing they had stirred up a hornet's nest. 

They could only helplessly watch as the orcs continued their guerrilla tactics.

"The civilians should be safe now; we should retreat."

"We need to find a way to shake them off; ahead lies Riverguard, and we can't lead the orcs there."

"Our battle aura is running low; we need to break away from the fight and rest." 

The guards exchanged hurried words during the brief lull before the orcs attacked.

"Awwoooo…" A howl pierced the air, and everyone's expressions darkened instantly.

"Wolf Riders!" The guards' eyes contracted.

"Creak~" Accompanied by the sound of iron armor clanking, the Zaltarion City Guards quickly formed a three-layered circular formation. 

The outermost soldiers held steel spears and shields, the middle ones raised throwing spears, and the front layer lifted crossbows.

"Awwoooo~" 

Dozens of mounted wolves charged in, accompanied by their riders. The guards breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, these were not the wolf knights. 

One letter difference, but the power was worlds apart—a single wolf knight could easily kill ten or more ordinary wolf riders.

"Stay calm and maintain formation; they won't charge!" The guards reminded each other. 

The wolf riders, lacking a charge skill, were powerless against the tightly clustered Zaltarion City Guards. 

They could only roar from a distance, knowing that they could not take advantage of this situation. 

Recognizing that there was nothing to gain, they soon retreated with the other orcs, disappearing into the wilderness.

"Radir." Rynar sought out Radir, requesting his assistance in reinforcing the city's defenses in Riverguard.

"Your Majesty, what brings you here?" Radir cheerfully lay back in an old wooden chair, basking in the winter sun.

"I need you to create magic pattern stone bricks to strengthen the city's defenses!" Rynar explained his purpose.

"Hmm… I see. But what are the specifications for the walls you need?" Radir sat up, his demeanor shifting as he sought to clarify the task requirements.

"Based on the current wall, let's construct a wall that is 5 meters high and 5 meters wide." 

Rynar pondered for a moment, deciding to lay the foundation for a future upgrade to a 10-meter high wall.

"How long will it take to complete?"

"This winter, at most." Rynar thought for a bit.

"By the Dragon God! Are you trying to kill this old man?" 

Radir's eyes widened, surprised that his king, who seemed affable with his thick brows and large eyes, was in fact a heartless capitalist.

"Your Majesty, have you considered how much magic power it would take for me to condense the magic pattern stone bricks, then stack them and cast reinforcing spells again?

I'm just a humble war mage, and my magical capacity isn't that great! 

There's no holy spring here, nor any moon well or sun well; I can only recover my magic power through meditation…" Radir rambled on, finally summarizing it in two words—"Dream on!"

"Uh…" Rynar awkwardly scratched his nose.

"Radir, here's my thought: you just need to create the magic pattern stone bricks. I'll handle the heavy lifting of stacking the walls, and you only need to reinforce them at the end," Rynar quickly proposed a compromise.

"Calculating this, I'll need to produce enough magic pattern stone bricks for 45 meters of wall each day… Alright, I'll do my best," Radir finally agreed after a moment of contemplation.

"Oh! By the way! A small squad of wandering Zaltarion City Guards is coming to seek refuge with you; they should be arriving soon." 

As Rynar prepared to leave after receiving a satisfactory response, Radir hurriedly shared this information, believing that the glory of Zaltarion shone upon this final lord, drawing countless souls to his side under the guidance of the Dragon God.

"Okay, understood. I'll send someone to receive them," Rynar realized that Radir had sensed the arrival of the Zaltarion City Guards.

"Your Majesty!" 

As the recently arrived Zaltarion City Guards reached the city, they spotted Rynar standing on the dilapidated city wall, tilting his head back at a 45-degree angle, striking a pose.

"At ease! Welcome back to bask in the glory of Zaltarion…" Rynar extended his hand, signaling them to forgo formalities, while simultaneously employing his charming rhetoric. 

Sure enough, under Rynar's call, a group of naive Zaltarion City Guards, who had never experienced the malice of mankind, nearly swore an oath to serve Rynar loyally.

This scene was witnessed by Aivy, who happened to pass by.

The young girl's eyes twitched as she suddenly felt her lord must possess the potential to become a grand priest (or a master manipulator).

'Look, ready-made bricklayers have arrived?' Rynar felt a contractor's inner voice chuckle within him.

"Huh?" Upon hearing Rynar's orders, the Zaltarion City Guards' brains momentarily stalled… What kind of lord was this? 

He was instructing the city guards to do this kind of labor… Soon, they witnessed knights clad in imperial knight armor stripping off their gear…

"…" The Zaltarion City Guards exchanged glances, silently removing their infantry armor to join the bricklaying family.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~" Radir, panting heavily, leaned against the wall, clearly exhausted. Before him lay a pile of magic pattern stone bricks that resembled a small mountain.

"Just these; take them away," Radir pointed at the pile of engraved magic pattern bricks before him. 

These bricks, inscribed with the magic of solidity, were far more robust than ordinary stone bricks. 

Rynar had seen the walls of Zaltarion, which boasted at least ten types of magic inscriptions, even capable of reflecting magical attacks. 

However, the magic pattern stone bricks produced by Radir were merely the most basic level. 

Given that this was the era of the Battle of the Lonely Mountain, the demand for advanced walls was not particularly high. 

If it were the era of the War of the Ring, such walls would be somewhat inadequate.

Due to the lack of large transport vehicles, the knights were fortunate to have tied the bricks with ropes and hung them on horseback. 

The Zaltarion City Guards, without warhorses, could only grimace and move the bricks by hand. 

For a time, nearly two hundred people were busy building a section of the wall less than 50 meters long, and Radir closed his eyes to meditate, the profound magic power slowly surging within him…

"Finally, things are getting back on track…" Watching the busy crowd, Rynar smiled with relief.

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