Chapter 118 - Caution

As the darkness of the night grew stronger, so did the cold. Zaos finally felt more relaxed to take a nap, thanks to it, since the chances of the enemies attacking so early were pretty low. If he were on the enemies' side, he would attack after midnight, which would give the targets plenty of time to get relaxed. So, an unexpected attack would be as deadly as it could be.

However, things weren't that simple. Several dozens of men were trying to cremate the corpses that were left behind on the battlefield. They worked throughout the entire afternoon, but it hadn't been enough to get rid of all the corpses. They kept working through the night, but then several squads of archers used the darkness of the night to approach and attack them.

When Zaos noticed the commotion in the wall, he quickly approached, and it didn't take long for him to notice what had happened. Half of the men who wanted to cremate the corpses fell dead. Meanwhile, the others got hurt with a few scratches here and there.

"Those bastards…" Verkan said and then clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Why did they do that, sir?" Zaos asked. "Those who were cremating the corpses weren't soldiers, right?"

"Yes, but they were workers that could help us even during the battle indirectly," Verkan said. "However, the real problem here is the corpses. It looks like the enemies want them."

Zaos didn't like to hear that. He heard plenty of militaristic documents in the past year to know what was about to happen. One of the worst things that could work to decrease the morale of an army is to fight on a battlefield of rotting corpses. The mercenaries probably won't worry about that, but for the defenders… As if that wasn't enough, there was another thing that could cause problems regarding corpses.

The sudden attack of those archers put the soldiers inside Rustburg on alert, but in the end, nothing happened that night. The tension was starting to wear down the soldiers. When the sun rose in the sky, most of the soldiers looked exhausted. However, they managed to sleep for a while after breakfast because they knew the enemy would only attack at noon.

"They managed to put us on our toes just by using a few archers," Verkan said and then sighed. "Their psychological attack was highly effective."

"Their siege weapons are supposed to arrive at noon, right, sir?" Zaos asked. "Where are we going to be once that happens?"

"On the very front lines, where else?" Verkan frowned. "Your fighting style will be more effective than just firing projectiles at random enemies."

While that seemed logical, it also seemed quite insane. The whole enemy army would be outside this time, and they outnumbered them at least four to one. The enemies had better weapons and gear. As for his allied sides, they only had the experience to fight under those weather conditions.

"Our job will be different this time. We will focus on burning down their toys," Verkan said. "Thanks to you, I believe that won't be that difficult. If we succeed in that, things will become much simpler. Without siege weapons, the defending side always has the advantage, even when we have smaller numbers."

That made sense, and Zaos confirmed that in various documents that he read. Still, if the result of a battlefield could be discovered just by looking at the sides of both armies, a lot of bloodshed could have been avoided.

At noon, those who were above the wall saw a lot of snow rising toward the sky in the distance. The siege weapons and the remainder of the mercenary's army finally arrived. It was quite difficult, but Zaos still could see the siege weapons in the distance. They were four kilometers away… so he couldn't help but wonder if his magic projectiles could reach that far. He never fired them in order to discover their range.

"I guess I can't risk it," Zaos thought. "If I have a decent range with magic, I can't let the enemies see that… yet."

The soldiers inside the walls assumed their formations were still inside the walls. They couldn't let the enemies see what they were planning by showing that. Besides, they would be easy targets for the enemies' catapults and ballista if they show themselves too soon.

Despite their caution, the enemy army stopped their advance when they were three kilometers away from the walls. Most likely, the commanders of the army were receiving a report of the battle on the previous day. 

The soldiers that stayed on the walls reported to captains of each company what they could see. Essentially, the enemy had brought thirty or so siege weapons. Catapults, Ballistae, Siege Towers, Battering Ram… They really brought enough toys to knock down the Northern base. That became evident since that was only half of the resources they had. The other part was approaching the Northern base throughout the opposite direction.

It was hard to be sure from a distance. Still, the soldiers also reported that they saw forty hundred infantrymen, thirty hundred riders, and twenty-two hundred archers… that was a lot considering that they lost so many soldiers in the previous fight. They were supposed to have three hundred wounded. Not to mention the number of soldiers and wounded they lost as they attacked the towns and villages on the way.

"Shit… this doesn't make any sense," Verkan said. "Even though we achieved such a big victory yesterday, why are their forces bigger than we expected?"

"It is probably thanks to the followers of the demon god," Zaos said. "They healed the wounded, and they are in fighting shape again."

Verkan didn't want to believe that, but it made sense. Besides, they knew that the followers of the demon god could use healing magic even better than most mages in the kingdom. The thought that such enemies could become a support team in other enemies' armies never crossed anyone's armies. Still, those who realized that possibility now understood how bad things could become.