Chapter 117: Tactics

"All five hundred kobold soldiers patrolling the perimeter have been wiped out!"

"The Luluto swarm is engaging the enemy in fierce combat, but they are completely unable to hold them back!"

"The enemy has a priest supporting them; the damage caused by the Luluto is being restored almost instantly. So far, we have lost over a thousand Luluto, while the enemy has yet to suffer a single casualty!" Wolf reported the reconnaissance findings to Klein with a solemn expression.

"They're that formidable?" Klein was taken aback. He had assumed that nearly ten thousand giant bees, combined with the kobold forces on the forest outskirts, would have dealt a significant blow to the enemy. He hadn't expected the priest to be able to cast healing spells so repeatedly.

"Lord Klein, when shall we sally forth?" Buddy asked, stepping forward.

"What's the rush?" Klein remained unhurried. "Wolf, Carl!"

"Here!" The werewolf, Wolf, lifted his head as another robust man emerged from behind him to stand side-by-side with him.

"Wolf, go to the mine and bring back my mount!" Klein commanded. "And bring all the kobold troops stationed at the mine, excluding the miners, along with you!"

"Understood!" Wolf set off immediately.

"Carl!" Klein looked toward the other strong man—the second werewolf subordinate he had recruited during the Blood Moon. "Go to the kobold den and recruit as many as you can using raw meat. Bring them to assemble as well!"

"Understood!" The werewolf Carl turned and left at once.

Because of the current policy of cremation, there were basically no large beast skeletons around the city. Since the Blood Moon, aside from some small creature skeletons scavenged by wild animals and a few strays wandering in from other parts of the forest, the terrifying armies of the past were no more.

The arrow towers around the city, which had been upgraded to at least level five over the past half-month, were enough to shatter any skeleton before it could even get near the walls. Combined with the flaming torches used by Klein's troops, even the Blood Moon no longer posed any danger.

Wolf returned to the city with the ordinary kobolds, kobold warriors, kobold soldiers, kobold slingers, and the shapeshifter in its dragon form stationed at the mine. Carl also recruited an equal number of all four types using raw meat. Together, they formed a force of four thousand kobolds, commanded by the kobold chieftain.

The town guards were also fully assembled. Many villagers had joined the ranks, undergoing training to become new guards. Now totaling about 150 men, they were led by Buddy.

Klein distributed honey to all the town guards in advance as combat rations. The kobolds and werewolves did not need any—the former were disposable cannon fodder, and the latter possessed extraordinary regenerative abilities.

He gave Pelin some honey and red herbs, provided Tina with a large supply of blue herbs, and then both girls climbed onto the head of the shapeshifter.

The villagers gathered around, their faces filled with confidence.

Lord Klein controlled a giant dragon; even if the Imperial army came in person, they would be no match for him!

"Lord Klein, can we head out of the city to meet the enemy now?" Buddy asked impatiently.

"Don't be hasty!" Klein remained calm. "Wolf, go scout the battlefield once more!"

"Understood!" Wolf dashed out of the city.

After a while, he returned to Klein: "Over three thousand of the Luluto swarm have been consumed! Though the enemy hasn't suffered injuries thanks to the priest's healing spells, they appear somewhat exhausted!"

"Has the frequency of the priest's healing spells decreased?" Klein asked.

"That..." Wolf hadn't paid close attention to that.

"Go back and check!" Klein said, tilting his head.

"Understood!" Wolf hurried off.

On the battlefield, Zhuoma led the city guards in a desperate fight. The giant carcasses of the Luluto were scattered everywhere.

Zhuoma appeared calm, his breathing steady, as if he were finding it quite easy. While the city guards were also fighting with all their might, a few were already showing signs of fatigue.

Of course, the most exhausted were Alex and the town guards; their strength was relatively weaker, making the struggle against the Luluto even more arduous.

At the rear of the army, Christina was breathing slightly heavily. Repeatedly casting group healing spells, which she was not yet fully proficient in, was putting a slight strain on her. However, she could still hold on.

"Everyone, push hard! These Luluto cannot stop our advance!" Zhuoma rode back and forth, slaying with brilliant axe techniques. Generally, any Luluto that approached him died; it was difficult for them to even touch him.

The battle continued for another half hour before Wolf returned to report: "Five thousand Luluto have been consumed; only half remain! The enemy commander looks as if he is expending no effort, but the enemy troops are clearly showing signs of fatigue. The enemy priest is using group healing spells with decreasing frequency."

"That's it!" Klein laughed heartily. "No matter how strong they are, or how much the priest can heal, endurance will inevitably be depleted! When a priest casts healing spells, mana is consumed just the same. Without potions to restore stamina and mana, once they're drained, they're essentially useless! The city guards have been invincible until now likely because their previous opponents were just brute-forcing it; facing an army with a priest, of course they were just throwing their lives away. Let's not rush! We have plenty of giant bees anyway. Let's slowly wear down their stamina and mana, then strike when they are exhausted! As the saying goes, the first drumbeat inspires, the second flags, and the third runs dry! Warfare is just like playing a game; seizing the enemy's weaknesses—or creating them—to achieve victory is the correct approach!"

"Persist! We will achieve victory soon!!" Zhuoma felt no fatigue from start to finish, slaughtering the giant Luluto bees frantically. As the swarm before him dwindled and was soon to be entirely wiped out, he laughed triumphantly, "The city guards are unstoppable!!"

Led by their commander, the city guards gave their all. Finally, they eradicated every last Luluto!

Although they had wiped out the entire swarm, all one thousand city guards were gasping for breath, and their horses were visibly unsteady on their legs. Alex and the town guards were even worse off, sitting on the ground, sweating profusely.

Christina's face was also pale; the excessive mana consumption left her feeling drained. Though she hadn't reached her limit, she had depleted at least half of her mana reserves.

"All troops..." The high-spirited Zhuoma turned around, only to see the exhausted state of his troops, which dampened his mood. "Hold on! We will be victorious soon!! All troops, charge!!"

"General Zhuoma!" Alex hurried forward. "It is not suitable to attack now. We have expended too much strength against the Luluto swarm, and morale is flagging. I propose we retreat to the village to rest for the night and attack the city again tomorrow!"

"How can we stop in the middle of a battle?" Zhuoma retorted angrily. "If we don't break through the city in one go now, they'll run away tomorrow!"

"But..." Alex was about to persuade him further when a thunderous boom suddenly echoed through the air.

"What is that?" Zhuoma snapped his head up toward the cloudless sky.

"ROAR—!!" A terrifying silhouette appeared on the horizon, emitting a sound like a thunderclap.

"A dragon! A dragon!"

"Impossible!"

"How could a dragon exist in the Magical Beast Forest?"

"It's a dragon! It's really a dragon!"

"General Zhuoma, there's a dragon!"

"Help! The dragon is here!!"

The city guards fell into chaos in an instant. No matter how brave they were, they had no confidence that they could defeat a giant dragon—a creature capable of challenging the gods themselves!