Chapter 598 - The Situation

'If Diades falls, then Ganalin will be the only thing between us and the orcs. And there isn't much geographically between us after Diades. Pediades already fell, they would not even need to destroy the other two small cities for a clear path... They are too far to the north...'

Granted, the city of Juzna was only a few hundred kilometers from Ganalin and launching counterattacks from there was completely possible. Thus it wasn't certain if the orcs would prioritize it or Kynigo. 

Both would be able to support the other, though if either had the capability was the true question. 

Regardless, raiding bands could no longer be stopped. Even if Diades stood, as long as it was surrounded it could offer no assistance against raiding bands. 

Naturally, or maybe not so easily the orcs could come from the south. The lands were that of The Encroaching Border and the Vrikolas Drylands. It might be of a condition that the orcs found unhospitable. 

Eldrian assumed that even amongst the races of chaos, not all could live in such baren dead lands. There was also a possibility that they were not on speaking terms with the owners of these lands. Though Eldrian had no way of knowing if this was true. He had to consider it a possibility, if slim.

Thus, in a strange turn of events, the fact that they had undead to their south was a hidden blessing. He would place the most focus on the north, the inner of the kingdom. For the south recapturing a few forts would suffice as a warning system. 

'At least until the undead recovered and send another attack.' The thought gave Eldrian chills. 

"Elizabeth!" Leaving the confused Evale, Eldrian realized just how urgent things were now. How bad it had been of them to not consider the geography at play.

He hadn't realized just how close the kingdom was to losing the entire southern line. After Diades, only Kynigo would be left in the southernmost line.

Ganalin could not be considered more than just a mountain range as the dwarves were under pressure and unable to give support atop the surface.

Sure, the distance that Ganalin spanned was around 500km and Diades was another 500km from the range. That mattered little, Eldrian understood well that an elite group of orcs would be able to cross such a distance in a few days. If they had vargs, maybe in just a day or less.

Due to these vast distances, he had simply not realized how close the world actually was when you added magically enhanced races to the equation. It had never crossed his mind because until recently he wasn't part of that group.

But now, he himself would be able to cross a few hundred kilometers in a day if he went all out. Especially on the lands of Taurus that were mostly plains with few rivers and natural obstructions in the way. 

This had always been to the centaurs' advantage. Flatlands that they could ride through with ease allowed them to use the speed of their race to its fullest. Launching attacks from cities and towns that are used as resting and resupplying hubs. 

The orcs were also aware that this was the centaurs' strength, and hence why they had made sure to burn every single town and village they came across to the ground. Cities instead they turned into their own hubs of resupply. 

With there being few woodlands and even fewer forests spread throughout the kingdom it made launching a surprise attack much harder for the kingdom. Without a city to prepare and gather at, their situation would simply turn from bad to worse. 

One silver lining was that the surroundings of Kynigo were not similar to the rest of the kingdom. There were a number of large lakes, forests, cliffs, and mountains. Placing key fortifications would be completely feasible, however, the true problem for them was their lack of people. 

Eldrian was keenly aware that they had almost no elites left, with them being countable on one hand. The number of Tier 5's was also less than a hundred. The situation was truly bleak. 

"Why do you look like you just saw a ghost?" Elizabeth was shocked, so far there were no signs that the mission would not go smoothly. 

"I just realized how screwed we might be. I need you to contact the players who went to the dwarves. Now!"

Elizabeth nodded, shocked by how urgent Eldrian was, to even command her instead of calmly ask. Luckily, one of the players were online. 

"What should I tell her?"

"Tell her to contact someone, anyone immediately! Go to the gate or anything to get a military commander's attention. We need to build fortifications between the mountain and the cliff north of it now. Before it is too late."

Taking a moment, Elizabeth called the player and made sure she understood that this was urgent. After confirming that she was running to find someone in a high enough position Elizabeth turned to Eldrian. "Now explain what this is about so I can send her a better explanation."

Taking a breath to calm down, Eldrian realized he had acted in bad form. "The orcs might soon if not already be able to simply ride through the kingdom, laying waste to all villages they come across. Towns will likely also not be able to withstand them either, though they might be able to last a bit longer."

"If we do not build fortifications now, the dwarves will be locked in their mountain. Trade will be impossible, and we will be pushed back to Kynigo. Without more material we will run out of ammo and it will just be a matter of time..."

Eldrian was so worked up that he didn't manage to keep his voice in check, nor did he ensure that they were alone. Turning around he found that everyone was looking at them, a mix of confusion and terror.

'Fuck!' Eldrian cursed and he tried to wrack his brain on a plan. Ignoring those around him he continued to share with Elizabeth, even going so far as to activate his friend system finally as he needed to be able to effectively communicate with the others himself. 

He didn't even look at the XP cost, he just immediately contacted Therdul and Erik, telling them both that the farming needed to be done ASAP. That they should rush finishing more than specializing and optimizing it. 

Eldrian hoped that him being on the run meant that even if an AI would somehow use this to find his location -and was on the side of Miracle- that Miracle would not be able to make use of the information. Understanding well that he couldn't stay inactive if he wanted to help everyone survive this.

"We need to move quick, clearing the undead just became priority one as we need to establish a secure line between us and the dwarves. We also need to immediately set up fortifications at these locations." Eldrian found that he could activate the screenshot function, and after a slight moment of hesitation he did and sent that to her too. 

The places he indicated were the locations of possible mana veins. However, he was focused on three specific ones.

One near the river originating from the cliffs north of Ganalin, one near the mountains to the east and the massive lake there, and the last north of Kynigo. Near a destroyed village.

If these three could have forts installed on defensible grounds, and the dwarves secured the western approach between Ganalin and the cliffs, then it would be extremely hard for the orcs to enter the region without being discovered. Though, doing something about them was another story. 

AN: A big thank you to everyone who continues to read and support the story on WN.