Chapter 159 Post Tailwar

"The Vargmuth won't stop coming. How many of them are there?" Lily whined as she slashed another Vargmuth in the neck. Within seconds, the creature died, black blood gushing from its severed neck like a fountain.

I, too, felt the anxiety creeping in. My mana was dangerously depleted. Despite summoning a fire dragon, there were still numerous monsters to contend with. Our soldiers maintained their formations, but the tailfolk soldiers appeared exhausted from the prolonged battle. Meanwhile, sporadic black arrows continued to rain down upon us. Our archers and mages did their best to counter the onslaught.

"The end is nigh!" Alistar shouted. "Stay strong, everyone! This is the final push."

The soldiers roared as they tried to gather the last of their strength. Alistar was right. The undead archers ceased their attacks, and the number of Vargmuth dwindled with each passing minute. Two clones of Ghander could be seen atop the walls, while another aided the phalanx formation. As the battle neared its conclusion, the sun finally set. We breathed a collective sigh of relief when Ghander dispatched the last of the Vargmuth, and Lhorne shot down the final archer.

"Those wounded by the undead corruption, head to the infirmary! Everyone else, grab timber and seal the gate. We must dispose of the ram!" Alistar directed the surviving soldiers toward the skeletal battering ram that had breached our gate. Though visibly exhausted, he persevered into the night, assisting with the fort's emergency reconstruction. The fortress was in horrible shape. The undead has perished, but the damage lingered. Smokes rose up as houses crumbled.

Lily did not remain idle. She helped Edelweiss in the infirmary, where fatigue weighed heavily upon her. Soldiers had to insist she took a brief rest. Grimaces adorned the faces of onlookers as they witnessed unconscious soldiers being carried out of the infirmary. Carrying the wounded out of that place could only mean one thing—they had perished, their lifeless bodies destined for the mortuary.

"Lily..." Edelweiss approached her, her gaze cast downward. The shadows cast by her hair spoke volumes about her despair at the loss of so many soldiers that day.

Lily could not console her; there were many tailfolk soldiers who had also fallen. Instead, she pulled her close, sharing in their mutual sorrow. Three hundred elves and over a thousand tailfolk had lost their lives. Despite our victory, the casualties were severe.

"Lord Lily, Lord Edelweiss. I beg your pardon. Lord Alistar has called for you in the headquarters," a soldier arrived to fetch us. Judging by the state of things, we hurried to him without taking time to freshen up.

"Lily, Edelweiss, good work out there," Alistar attempted small talk, but our expressions remained sullen.

"Why did you summon us?" Edelweiss asked him directly.

"We need to discuss our next course of action," Alistar coughed. Ghander echoed the sound. "The damage is significant. Our gate is in ruins, and many of our buildings, such as the barracks, training field, and shopping area, have suffered severe damage. Moreover, our cannons and ballistae were destroyed by those Vargmuth."

"I have spoken with Ghander, and he can coordinate with various workshops to repair this fort within a month. However, we need crucial resources and time."

"Yeah. And no matter how we approach this, we can't replace the hundreds of fallen brethren. There are no more elven soldiers to recruit. We'll have to use your tailfolk army to bolster the numbers in this fort, with the remaining elves acting as their tutors once the fort is repaired."

"We might have to involve students in this effort," Ghander nodded, his face filled with disbelief.

"What?" Edelweiss snapped, "They're not ready for this! It goes against our war regulations to recruit them!"

"Yes, Ghander will plead with the council to make an exception to the regulations."

"What about after the war? Those students are needed to secure our border with the humans once the war is over! At this rate, we'll lose Northlangard to the humans!"

"They shouldn't be in a position to attack us. Humans have also suffered from undead attacks."

"What if we recruit humans to join our side?" Lily suggested.

"A single human, like Mattheus, wouldn't make a difference, Lily," Alistar sighed.

"No, I mean the refugees. There are about two thousand of them, right?"

"Will you negotiate with them? I don't think they'll accept. They are just civilians, right? Are there any mercenaries or soldiers among them?" Alistar asked. Nobody criticized us for making such a suggestion, showing how desperate they were to find a solution.

"No, they are all civilians. They have no military training," Lily replied. "However, if we can go to the human fort, maybe we can ask them to join us?"

"I see. But we can't do that. If that fort disappears, this fort will also be in danger. And most importantly, can we trust the humans?"

"Probably not."

"I suppose so. Ghander and I have made a tough decision just now," Alistar sighed again. "This tactic is highly unconventional, but it might work."

"What is the tactic?"

"We will leave forty people here with the gate open. If the skeletons come, they will march towards the gate, and your dragon will annihilate them. If they attack more persistently, like today, you will let them into the fortress, and then we will burn the fortress with all of their forces."

"Ah, that seems like a good idea!" I muttered.

"But what about the forty soldiers? Our war regulations prohibit suicide missions."

"We must do this to survive, even if it goes against high magic. I will take responsibility," Alistar said.

"No! You can't do that, Alistar!"

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that. And even if it does, we believe that you and those soldiers can escape the burning fortress."

Lily clenched her fist, feeling the weight of the cold and calculated battle plan. Alistar explained how the trap oil would be set up in the fortress.

"We shouldn't defend like this. We should attack them!" Lhorne raised his voice, surprising everyone with his departure from his usual meek behavior.