Chapter 194: Long Range Concerns (1/2)

Mike found the scene a little surreal. Here he was, standing on the top of a magically reinforced tower, watching an army assault a series of walls that made the medieval defenses of his own world look like children's toys by comparison, and contemplating when he would ride into battle on the back of an actual dragon.

The situation might have been a bit confusing, if it wasn't for the stream of commentary that quickly developed between the mage Harnik, and the stern-looking commander of the 1st University Division.

”They're keeping their mages in reserve from the looks of it.” Kiera, as her name appeared to be, commented.

”Probably in preparation for staving off whatever mass devastation spell our resident Dragonknight intends to throw at them next.” Harnik commented lightly, shooting Mike an amused glance, before continuing. ”Although that won't be particularly effective right now.”

Kiera nodded her agreement. ”Another meteor could easily prove our undoing.”

”Would you mind explaining that?” Mike asked, curious. He'd been contemplating simply raining death on the army, resting, and then repeating the process until they gave up.

”They have a Tier 3 mage capable of space magic. It's a well-known fact that space mages make the traditional magic and artillery strikes difficult, or even dangerous. Even the most inexperienced practitioners of spatial magic can deflect projectiles with relative ease. Skilled ones, like the Tenundian mage commander, could even use their opponent's spells against them.” Harnik replied solemnly, before gesturing towards the wall. ”Imagine how devastating a meteor would be, if it was redirected to strike against our defenses.”

”A fair point, but why didn't he attempt to do something like that the first time?”

Frowning slightly in thought, the instructor eventually answered. ”I suspect it had more to do with the timing of your attack, coming as it did immediately after two other offensives that he was forced to defend against. He likely didn't have time to do more than slightly alter its trajectory. That won't be the case now that the Tenundians are aware of your abilities.”

[So I either need to distract Nurenal in some manner, or find a new method of attacking that isn't susceptible to spatial redirection.]

He had a few ideas, but nothing he could simply roll out on a whim. That said, he did make sure to message Red, confirming that the dragon was on standby in the high altitudes above the city. Assuming that the opportunity arose, he would like to try his hand at reducing the enemy's numbers to some extent.

”On the positive side, this means that the enemy is keeping their most potent mage on standby, likely with a group of others capable of supporting him should he be called upon to defend against any major attacks.” Kiera muttered absentmindedly while concentrating on the approaching Tenundians.

”That means we won't have to worry about as many hostile spells being thrown our way.” Harnik commented with a smile. ”Besides, if it gets too rough, Emmanuel will likely jump in. A Space Elemental Mage as powerful as him could turn the tide of an artillery duel relatively easily.”

”Then why isn't he here?” Mike questioned, a little annoyed that he was standing on the front lines while someone better qualified was elsewhere.

”And reveal our strongest Tier 3 mage? No, it's best for him to remain hidden until needed, to avoid any complications caused by whatever mage hunters that managed to sneak past our security.” Kiera replied with a scoff.

”Mage hunters?” He asked Sera quietly, not wanting to display his ignorance further.

”Assassins that specialize in taking down mages. It's pretty common for most armies to have a few, but the Tenundians are somewhat famous for theirs. Historically, it's been the only reason they've been able to compete with Almir and it's significantly larger population of mages.” She answered simply.

[Great. Something else to keep an eye out for.]

Nodding his thanks, Mike stood and walked over to one of the windows. The walls of this section of the tower were partially composed of large panes of a transparent material called Steelglass, an alchemical product that was fairly popular for military purposes. It was remarkably durable while still allowing viewers to see through it. Unfortunately, it had a dark brown tint, which made it unusable in conditions of poor lighting. In the midmorning sunshine, this wasn't a problem, however.

[Kind of reminds me of sunglasses.]

Stretched below him was the impressive outer wall. The observation tower was far enough away, that he would have had trouble recognizing any of the soldiers moving along its parapets, if he knew who they were.

He could see that the Tenundians were marching forward in several long columns, each spearing towards a part of the wall. From the looks of it, they were carrying extremely tall ladders while they did so. Far behind them, he noticed a large amount of activity as a second group of the enemy started pushing forward or constructing large artillery pieces.

There was a rather eclectic mix of equipment arrayed against the city. Trebuchets seemed to be the most prevalent, but smaller catapults and even cannons were also visible. From the looks of it, they were setting up a little too far from the city. At their current range, the cannonballs would lose much of their momentum, while the trebuchets would have a hard time hitting at all, or so he assumed.

Nevertheless, they posed a significant enough threat for the division commander to take action.

Kiera frowned at the distant siege equipment and the much closer assault forces. She issued as series of commands to the two aides that were waiting near the staircase. ”Have our artillery focus on the trebuchets, we need to keep them occupied during the assault. Tell the archer units to fire at will, and get the 12th, 6th, and 4th infantry platoons ready to respond as needed. Place them in sections three, seven, and ten respectively.”

The pair hurried downstairs to relay the orders. In a short span of time the walls erupted in a cloud of white-gray smoke as cannons, built into the structure itself, opened fire. Mike had only seen a handful of muskets and pistols in the city, so he was a little surprised by the number of pieces at the defenders' disposal. However, it made sense after he thought about it.

Cannons, with their incredible stopping power and long range would be much more useful in a world where skilled combatants could take on entire formations of enemy troops with relative ease, and mages could launch devastating spells from a distance. While muskets and rifles likely saw more use in fights with the large wildlife that cropped up from time to time, they evidently weren't potent enough to dominate the battlefield like they did on Earth.

The volley fired from the walls mostly fell short of their intended targets, and Mike could see several cannonballs slamming harmlessly into the ground. Some actually managed to overshoot, demonstrating that the enemy was within range, but even they proved ineffectual. After a few minutes another, more ragged, volley was launched with much the same effect.

[Looks like our side lacks skilled artillerymen.]

It didn't take long for the Tenundian artillery to begin launching their own attacks, most of which either fell short or slammed into the wall. Somehow, they were able to match the range of the defenders, despite the height advantage. Even the trebuchets and catapults were able to launch their ammunition farther than he would have thought possible. Luckily, the wall was solidly built, suffering almost no damage from the blows.