Chapter 186 - Weight of command (3) (1/2)
Contrary to the scene of Lenia calmly mounted on her horse as she watched the battle taking place, the scene at the Dark Elven encampment was not as calm. Matron Akasha was furiously smashing things as she whipped one of her male slaves in her tent. Reports were streaming into her command tent as the battle progressed and each was more bleak than the last.
”It's as if that bitch has a counter to every move we make!”
The fact that their spiders were discovered before they could ambush the enemy and the complete failure of their assassins infuriated her. She had never expected to win the first exchange as her enemy's army was formidable despite the inferior numbers. However, she expected there to be some damage. She wanted to give her opponent a serious set back in the hopes of pressuring her into submitting. Unfortunately, not only had her plans so far not been effective, even the slave army was barely making a dent in the opponent's forces.
Some of Akasha's aides flinched at Akasha's scene of anger, but there wasn't much they could do. They also didn't care to stop her from beating her male slave. She eventually tired and took a deep breath.
”Have the Cuirassiers and Rangers focus their attacks on the right flank. The reports have stated that there have been some gains there. They aren't holding as strongly as the other positions. Have we any word from the Matriarchs? Have their armies returned yet?”
One of the female Dark Elven aides replied, ”Matron, the feudal armies of the Matriarchs will soon return. It seems that the Dragonmen army they were chasing escaped their pursuit and they are returning empty handed.”
”Useless! How could they let twenty thousand Dragonmen escape? Did they all teleport? They had more than twice the numbers of the Dragonmen and they couldn't even finish a simple task! Every one of those Matriarchs is an embarrassment to our goddess. Most likely they let the Dragonmen escape on purpose to avoid losing any of their soldiers. Traitors, the lot of them!”
Once more Akasha was filled with rage and struck the male slave who had just risen from the ground. There was a small pool of blood forming from how badly he had been beaten.
”Hmph, if they think they can get away without taking any risks they are only fooling themselves! Summon the Matriarchs immediately, and carry out my orders. Let's see how they respond to our cavalry!”
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The sound of a bugle horn blasted through the din of the battle and the slave army began to recede as quickly as they had come. They pulled back to their own battle lines, weary from the extended and bloody melee. Mortals who did not possess a class normally could not fight for too long without tiring, but those possessing classes could fight for much longer periods of time. The more powerful the being, the longer they could fight.
There were exceptions to this of course and it depended on how well they could conserve their abilities or spells while fighting prolonged battles. Those who continuously used their skills, abilities, or spells without using them sparingly could easily tire themselves out quickly. Normally this wasn't done, but if someone was in a tricky situation where they were in danger, they might quickly blow through all of their Vitality or Magic Power without holding any back. Nonetheless, even beings with classes could only fight for so long before they became too weary to continue.
Lenia watched the enemy fall back. She hesitated on whether she should have her army pursue, but ultimately she decided to be cautious. They had an advantage in the terrain and if they pursued the enemy, they may become vulnerable to an attack by cavalry. She didn't want to take the chance.
”Get me the number of casualties as soon as possible. It might be necessary to reinforce the right flank, they were lagging in the battle and I am concerned about the enemy taking advantage of this. Hmm.. maybe sending more Shamans there would be wise just in case. It would be suicide for them to attack the center formation with their cavalry, but the flanks are vulnerable. The right flank especially.”
Lenia turned to her side and called out, ”Nelay.”
Nelay soon appeared from somewhere hidden, ”I am here.”
Lenia nodded and gave a rare smile, ”Thank you. Your assassins lived up to my expectations.”
Nelay snorted but she was inwardly pleased with the praise, ”It is as it should be.”
”I need you to watch the movements of their cavalry. We can't take any chances, they are too powerful and are the only force I am most cautious of. If we had the Dragonmen Chevaliers I wouldn't be so concerned, but we truly lack a sufficient force of cavalry.”
Lenia frowned as she considered her plans, ”No matter what, we can only hold them off as best we can.”
”If you are trying to save everyone, you might as well give up that notion Lenia. In war, soldiers die, that is their purpose. There is no need to concern yourself too much with their lives.”
Nelay's words were callous and Lenia was not pleased, but she also knew there was some logic in it. She couldn't bring herself to accept those words though.
”That is easy for you to say. You do not have the weight of their lives on your shoulders. You are someone who lives in darkness, what could you possibly understand about the responsibilities of a leader? It is my responsibility as their leader to bring as many of them home as I can. They may not be like us, but they also serve our master.”
Nelay grinned, showing her teeth, ”Don't worry. Whether alive or dead, they will serve our master well.”
Lenia only stared at Nelay without saying anything more. It was pointless to argue with her. She had no empathy at all and this was something Lenia already was aware of. It wasn't as if Lenia was a saint or anything, but she wanted to at least protect the lives of her own soldiers.
”Just go.” She finally said with cold eyes.
Nelay didn't mind and disappeared once more. She always thought that Lenia was too emotional and cared too much about things that were irrelevant to their purpose. In Nelay's mind, there were very few who were worthy of her care and consideration. Lenia's feelings didn't matter, as long as she fulfilled her master's expectations.
It wasn't long before the Dark Elven army reformed and began its preparations for a new offensive. Only a few hours had passed since daylight and there was still plenty of light left until nightfall. Of course, even nightfall wasn't a surety that there would be no fighting. An army couldn't fight continuously all day though and would eventually need to rest, that went for both Lenia's army and the Dark Elves. It would become a matter of endurance to see who could hold out the longest, but the battle wouldn't end in just this one day of fighting.