Chapter 144 Militaily Pressure

----------------------------------------

"Carry the wounded! Doctors! Choose which one needs immediate help!"

"Yes, ma'am."

Even when the battle was over, no one rested. The casualties were severe. Many tailfolk and even elves had died. The injuries from this place had a corrupting effect, preventing blood from clotting. They needed to be purified with purification water first. Despite my dwindling mana, Lily still asked me to create a small fire to cauterize minor wounds and prevent our patients from bleeding out.

Alistar was the workhorse, tirelessly carrying soldiers from the top of the wall to the infirmary. When the infirmary became full, he resorted to using the training hall and even the sides of the street to accommodate the lesser wounded patients.

"This is terrible..." I muttered while scanning the surroundings. Almost two thousand were injured or dead in this fortress. It was a disaster since those who fell were the more experienced elves and tailfolk mercenaries.

"No... please don't die..." Lily sobbed as a tailfolk recruit fell before her. The wounds were severe, and cauterizing his wound no longer helped. He went into shock and passed away, horror flashing through his eyes.

"Lily, he is dead. Move on. There are still others who need help. We need to ask for more purification water," I said, gently wiping her tears with my tail. Her sobs didn't stop, but she stood up and ran to the apothecary section to do what she needed.

Morning was replaced by noon, and noon was replaced by dusk. An alarm bell resounded again as the undead attacked once more. Alistar cursed and dumped all he was carrying, shouting for Lily to get to the top of the wall. Lily's heart sank as she had to abandon treating the wounded, but the fortress was exhausted. They needed to deploy even the most inexperienced troops to the wall now.

This time, it was the usual onslaught of two thousand skeletal soldiers. But we were too tired to hold them off properly. The arrows from the fresh recruits didn't reach the skeletons, and none of the Vargmuth were killed below the wall. However, even the new recruits still had some modicum of training. When the Vargmuth reached the top of the wall, they were met with the sharp edge of our spears and were soon kicked off the wall to their deaths below. Only three out of ten Vargmuth managed to dodge the spear charge, and Lily and Alistar ran to them, finishing them off.

The rest of the skeletons attempted to climb the wall but met the same fate. A furious charge from the fresh recruits managed to hold them off, but several recruits lost their lives due to the unfamiliar battlefield, while many were injured. Lily could only stare at them in pain, knowing she could not add more work to Edelweiss.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

These injured Tailfolk would be out of commission for several weeks until their wounds healed naturally after being doused with purification water. Lily glanced at Alistar, and they both thought the same thing: What will happen to them tomorrow?

"Hey, you!" Alistar said. "I need you to ride to Hoeth and deliver a letter!" Alistar shouted toward a tailfolk mercenary. "Ghander will have to take charge. Bring as many as he can and more provisions, such as purification crystals, healing balm, gauze, and bandages."

"Yes, sir."

The tailfolk rushed to the stables and swiftly rode out of the fort. The night passed without anyone getting sleep for two consecutive days. Alistar requested a chair and sat at the top of the wall, prepared for any assault, while Lily continued to aid the wounded. When the worst was over, Alistar called for a meeting, and Lord Edelweiss was on the verge of collapsing. Dark circles were apparent under her eyes, and her clothes were covered in grime and blood.

"Report?" Alistar asked.

"We have done everything we could. We've had fifty elves casualties and five hundred tailfolk mercenaries. Over two thousand tailfolk and six hundred elves are injured," the doctor replied.

"I see. Good work. I expected it to be worse. When will these injured soldiers be fit for battle again?"

"I will do my best, but it will take several months at the earliest."

"Prioritize the elven soldiers. They are better equipped and more experienced with their weapons."

"But..."

"Yes, we should set aside any racial discrimination. This isn't about that. It's a simple logical conclusion. Elven warriors are more experienced and generally more formidable than tailfolk due to their higher levels. As long as we don't put their lives at risk, I believe we won't violate high magic.

Moreover, we need to prepare for the next assault. You need to rest as well, Lord Edelweiss," Alistar said. He wanted to use her name, but he had to attach "Lord" to it in this formal setting.

"Alright. The meeting is dismissed. Everyone, get some rest."

Without hesitation, Edelweiss fell asleep where she sat. As the room emptied, Alistar sighed and picked her up, carrying her to her room. I was stunned, but nobody reacted. Even Lily simply shrugged her shoulders and went back to her room. Everyone was too exhausted to fuss over minor etiquette details. Lily threw herself onto the bed without changing her dirty clothes as soon as she entered her room.

When evening arrived, the alarm bell rang again. Lily woke up feeling groggy and let out a rare curse.

"What's wrong with these undead? I'm exhausted! Couldn't they just bugger off?"

"You don't have to join the fight. It's not your duty, right?"

"No, I will go. There are many injured here. Have you regained your mana? We'll need it today. Maybe summon your dragon to help. It would ease the workload for Edelweiss."

"Alright. I think summoning one dragon should be enough. Let's go to the top of the wall."

And so, we did just that. When we reached the top of the wall, several squads of skeletons approached, and the fire dragon cleared them out within thirty minutes. Lily smiled upon seeing the charred skeletons, then skipped back to her room before realizing her own smell and the dirty clothes she wore. She turned around and lightly jogged to the bathroom to take a bath. There, she found Edelweiss, and they both bathed together before falling back onto her clean and tidy bed.