After the barbarian commander appointed a specific general, the scattered barbarian troops quickly reorganised. Hesitant soldiers gathered under the wolf flag, and almost a third of the barbarian army in this invasion assembled in a small town. Enrique, the "Head Wolf," did not rush into battle. Instead, he waited for all his troops to arrive and surrounded the town on all sides, clearly intending to wipe out everyone inside.

Derek stood beside Baron Palmer, who had managed to rush into the town just before it was completely surrounded. It was clear that Baron Palmer was going all-in for this endeavour, perhaps to secure a future for himself. Derek had no objections to the reinforcements. Even a hundred-man team could play a critical role at such a moment. However, when he saw the sheer size of the enemy army outside, Baron Palmer’s legs began to shake. To be honest, he was beginning to regret his decision.

"Knight Derek," Palmer said nervously, "If we survive this, I must introduce my daughter to you." Derek glanced at him in surprise. The baron’s serious expression made it clear he wasn’t joking. Derek thought for a moment; after all, his performance thus far had shown potential, and it was normal for people to take notice.

"Baron, let’s talk about that after we survive," Derek replied. As the number of barbarians swelled, he too couldn’t help but feel some concern. However, he had chosen this town for its strong position, including a solid city wall. It was small, but the stone wall was in decent condition. With over two thousand men under his command, Derek was confident the barbarians would suffer significant losses.

"Here they come!" Derek shouted. As he and Palmer spoke, the barbarians had already begun their assault. The town’s city wall, though decent, lacked corner towers and had low parapets. It was barely better than nothing. Derek quickly organised a team of sword-and-shield soldiers to act as defenders. The barbarians, inexperienced in siege warfare, rushed in without any strategy or coordination. Derek observed for a while before making some adjustments to the defences, giving instructions to his junior officers to take charge.

Baron Palmer, however, was confused. "Won’t it be easy for the city to be breached if we have insufficient manpower on the walls?"

"I’ve arranged reserves inside," Derek explained calmly. "If things get dire, we can patch up the defences. We’re not sending everyone up at once; overcrowding makes it hard to manoeuvre. By keeping defenders in layers, we can eliminate more barbarians. The most important point, however, is that I’m deliberately showing weakness to the enemy."

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Baron Palmer looked puzzled, but wisely did not press the matter further. Derek had earned his trust over the last few days, and Palmer knew there was little point in questioning his methods.

Meanwhile, Enrique, watching from the south gate, couldn’t help but shake his head at the barbarians’ chaotic assault. "Haven’t these fools learned anything from the Lockes? When we get back, they’ll be trained properly, especially in city sieging," he muttered to himself. Despite the barbarian generals' attempts to teach siege tactics, many of the soldiers were still just tribal warriors, skilled only in close combat.

Enrique watched as his men rushed the city walls again, but they were repelled once more by the Lockes' forces. The barbarians suffered heavy losses, but Enrique, ever the optimist, was still confident. "At most, three days, and we’ll break through by piling up," he said to himself. "The walls will give eventually." He sent his personal guards to take over command, smoothing out the siege efforts. Instead of charging recklessly, the barbarians now attacked in waves, steadily increasing the pressure on the town.

By the second day, the barbarians had lost around 500 men but had identified the south city wall as the weakest point. On the third day, Enrique decided to push harder, sending a hundred-man guard to storm the walls, determined to break through. But again, the Lockes held firm. Enrique gritted his teeth. "It’s only a matter of time. We’ll breach the wall today or tomorrow."

Yet, as the days passed, the situation began to feel like a trap. Despite the increasing pressure, the city wall refused to crumble. Enrique had already executed several deserters for cowardice, and the looming sense of failure began to gnaw at him. His superiors in the barbarian base camp had been asking for updates, but Enrique kept reassuring them, "Soon, very soon."

By the fourth day, Enrique had had enough. He was under pressure from both his commanders and his soldiers. The city wall was clearly on the brink of collapse—yet it still stood. "It’s impossible. We’ve been at this for too long," Enrique muttered to himself. He began to suspect that the Lockes had lured them into a trap. He still had over seven thousand men, and he felt confident that sheer numbers would eventually wear the defenders down. But the longer he waited, the more uneasy he became.

Inside the town, Derek’s plans were coming together. Baron Palmer, who had been watching Derek’s every move, began to understand the purpose of the large piles of firewood and flammable materials. Derek was preparing for something big. His strategic mind had worked wonders, and even though the town had lost some soldiers, the casualties were not as high as they appeared. Derek had mixed conscripted militiamen with his regular army, and though they were inexperienced, they held their own on the city walls.

To the barbarians, it seemed the Lockes were running out of resources, but in reality, Derek had managed to sustain his forces far better than his enemies realised. While the barbarians thought they had the upper hand, Derek had carefully managed his defences, knowing that the real fight was still to come.