95 Seron, the captain of the guards (1/2)
Klek Klek Klek Klek
The sound of bones hitting the malleable ground resonated across the walls like a perfect musical piece. There were only two different cadences, ringing the tempo of the march of the undead. The only reason why it was made obvious that it was not the same group that produced this sound was the fact that one was slightly delayed compared to the other. Coupled with the knowledge of two different liches, it made sense that they were not facing just a single army but two, each controlled by one superior undead.
Nonetheless, thousands and thousands of bone feet crushing, stamping and trampling everything on its path was still a sight to behold. A terrifying one for sure, especially for the guards that were more used to fight against bandits and thugs, rarely patrolling the outskirts of the mountains. In that sense, they were most of the time used as bait, and whether the patrol was totally slaughtered or just partially indicated which group of adventurers would be qualified for the task.
Whether the Mayor remembered that a peculiar patrol in the area where the undead should have appeared had actually gone missing was a mystery. If he knew, it would be a certainty that he would be immensely regretful for not investigating more that disappearance. At the same time, since he was oblivious of the participation of the demon commandants, that wouldn't have produced any results, besides more death.
Directly under him, near the ramparts, some moats were barely dug, proof that they weren't expecting it at all. Centuries without any problems had made the city save the funds for all the external defenses, judged far too costly when not used. Even if they were relatively close geographically to the Kingdom of Massalia, they weren't considered as such in reality. The natural defenses that were the mountains and the underground mazes were far more efficient than all the fortresses in the world.
As for the three passages that were void of monsters, there was at least a city between those and Archet. Therefore, like all the city deep inside the territory of the Republic, its defenses and garrison were not really the best.It was a clear oversight to think that nothing will leave the mountains, but with all those years without any problems, it was human to relax and forget the threat. But the unsightly face of the Mayor clearly showed how deep was his regret. At best, the moats would be able to have a dozen skeletons to fill the hole, but what was that number in front of the gigantic army?
”Seron, prepare the scorpions and the balistas. And make this damn ramparts trafficable, how can someone bring any additional ammunition when they are as close to each other as that.”
The Mayor angrily ordered the captain of the guards, Seron, to reinstate the order on the ramparts. At the same time, the numerous nobles and merchants felt that the time for sightseeing was done and that they should probably just hide in their manors during the crisis. For their own safety. Only the Guild Master of the adventurers stayed at the same place, not feeling concerned by the anger of the man next to him.
Right now was the only time where they could inflict any type of damage to that sea of white bones without having to suffer any casualties. Without any words, the numerous officers spread the word and everyone that carried any sort of bows or crossbows was quickly prompted to climb the stairs. Magicians were told to save their mana for later, especially to deal with the liches. At every meter, a barrel filled with iron arrows could be seen, surrounded by quivers filled to the brim.
Hundreds of machinery were brought from the other walls on the eastern one, and a few different types of siege weapons could be observed. Most were either balistas or scorpions, with a principle similar to the one of a crossbow. But instead of having a simple bolt that was the length of a forearm, the projectiles launched by those deadly devices were larger than the full arm of an adult. On such a plain environment, it could pierce a good amount of skeletons without any issue.
There was also a sort of small catapult, albeit with a smaller range. It could propel a stone at more than two hundred meters away, but with slightly less strength than a complete catapult. Compared to the rest, it seemed weirdly comic, but after looking at what would be launched, no one dared to laugh. In fact, if Ymir was present, he would have already started to run away, not wanting to deal with those bombs any time soon.
The products of the White Hand were renowned in the entire world, both for their power and their hefty price. Fortunately, the cuts of the budgets of the defense of Archet didn't touch the stock of bombs, reaching the impressive number of 2. Coupled with the catapult, it was the perfect weapon to behead a careless leader that approached too close the ramparts. Because of both the dangerousness of the bombs and the fact that every shot had to hit, only a few were able to get close and operate the mechanism. And in that case, the heavy charge ended up on the shoulders of the Guild Master.
Seron grabbed a magician nearby and ordered him to amplify the volume of his voice. Without caring at all about the fact that he slightly pushed the mage or his visibly angered face, the captain of the guard transmitted his last instructions.
”LISTEN UP EVERYONE! Every officer is responsible for his part of the walls. If you still haven't organized who will resupply the ammunition, do it now. I don't want any unwanted elements on this wall until the undead army is close, am I clear?For those that have served with me, you know what to do. As for the rookies and new recruits, if you think what your sergeant is telling is stupid, bash your own head on the wall first and then think again. Most of them are veterans of the war with the goblins or Massalia that sought a peaceful location.They have already met such a dire situation, trust them, trust the man on your left and the man on your right.”
Seron paused for a bit, and then looked at the nearby adventurers that were already displaying the difference between them and the guards. Their nonchalance, their carelessness, their freedom.