The blazing heat of the sun above and the rhythmic march of the enemy caused their hearts to race and their breaths to quicken.
Some felt their palms slick with sweat, while one soldier noticed his spear trembling faintly in his grasp. Beads of sweat dripped from his fingers to the earth below, his heart already gripped by terror as if he were staring down the edge of an enemy's blade.
Sergeants moved through the ranks, patting soldiers on the shoulder and urging them to overcome their fear. Yet, their reassurances barely scratched the surface of the mounting panic.
"They're just numerous, not strong!" one sergeant shouted, but his voice failed to penetrate the soldiers' terrified minds.
The scene before them was nothing short of harrowing. The enemy's march felt like an unstoppable tidal wave bearing down upon them. Dust swirled upward, almost touching the sun, and some soldiers instinctively stepped back, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.