A New World, An Immersive Game Experience

The group continued to discuss the tricks the undead could pull. Since all their attempts at scouting for information had been prevented by magic barriers and seer numbers where those failed, they had to rely on their own creativity to guess at the undead's intentions.

As for Eldrian's map, he could ascertain that there were no enemies near the walls. However, they did not wish to place full trust in it. It was possible, and in fact most likely, that it did not give any information on beings below the ground.

They knew this from past experiences. Eldrian had to be of similar elevation to get the correct results. And even then, it was hard to know exactly what the results detailed.

If he was aboveground, he got information on all being above the ground. If he was below, he got information on those below. The depth limit was unknown, thus it could not be considered accurate enough to make calls on. It was like when a map switched from indoor mode to outdoor. Eldrian had little control over it.

Which brought up one of their options. "What of counter tunnels?" Nikki asked, "I know it will be dangerous, but we can also prepare for those dangers. Perhaps even lay some traps for the undead to fall into?"

"It is an interesting idea. I'll contact our dwarven friends for advice on this." Pelaros replied. While the dwarves couldn't send an army because of their own problems, they were corresponding and sharing information, resources, and some manpower with one another.

The group's biggest fear was if the undead sapped the walls or circumvented them with enough tunnels that would overwhelm their forces. After all, they only had so many free to move about. Most soldiers were stuck manning the wall.

"And what about teleportation magic?" Eldrian asked. Over the past month, he had grown extremely comfortable with the spell, along with several others. As he had been forced to remain from the fighting, he had had plenty of time—too much so—to spend on training.

"That would be impossible without a relay. The lich might teleport, but with how it has acted thus far, we can be relatively assured it won't." Sofiera replied.

As the most knowledgeable mage in the city and region, she had to plan for all magical possibilities. Of course, she would not be capable of standing against the lich, but that was why the duke stood at the ready.

"Flight then?" Eldrian asked, another magic he had come to master over the past month. Thanks to the circlet and cloak, he now had three different approaches to flight. Each with its own pros and cons.

"Only elites can accomplish something like that." Sofiera answered. "Most can only master it upon reaching Tier 6, even though it is a Tier 5 spell. Its complexity is too much for the normal mage. The same holds for teleportation. I can't do it without a beacon as support."

This news slightly surprised Eldrian. While he had struggled to master it, he hadn't thought Sofiera would be unable to use teleportation.

It made sense that she might need a beacon; it eliminated the most complicated part. If you couldn't envision your landing location, you might die from the attempt. In less extreme cases, losing a limb or two was highly likely.

On that note, Eldrian was still wearing his prosthetic. It had become a deadly weapon over the past month, thanks to Solvi's constant tinkering.

'My and Ceph's method of teleportation is more like blinking,' Eldrian concluded. In the past month, Ceph had also broken through to Tier 5. Naturally, his strength increased exponentially, as did the spells he could wield.

War certainly made for the finest furnace to improve within. Though death was the more likely outcome from its heat.

The group continued to discuss, throwing out one possibility after the other. In the end, they concluded three main possibilities. Tunnels, siege weapons, or teleportation.

While the last option was extremely difficult to pull if, it was still a possibility. If the undead somehow managed to sneak someone past the wall and Eldrian's map. They could then construct a relay and open something akin to a gate.

Its mana expenditure would be insane, but it was the only form of teleportation that would allow an army to move through quick enough to surprise them.

Naturally, the undead simply moving to avoid the walls was also possible. But no such signs had been found by Evale and her scouts.

—

For the following days, the group would meet and discuss things anew. Others would join from time to time, and of course, sometimes some would be absent.

"They are preparing for a final push." This was the consensus the group came to each time they met. The lack of attacks and lack of retreat had to mean the undead were preparing for a final desperate push.

The question then remained how they planned to claw for victory, and whether the group had to play by the rules.

"We can always retreat once they show their hands." Elizabeth had voiced. The idea had been foul tasting, but it had its merits.

And so, the day finally came.

—

"It appears they went for siege weapons. Trebuchets, mostly." This was their only option if they wanted to outrange the cannons.

Magically enhanced and made of high grade items, the trebuchet could claim a range between one and three kilometers. Whereas the defensive cannons could only meet one. This was to be expected, after all, cannons were still a new technology. Whereas trebuchets had been used in warfare to outrange magic towers for centuries.

"Shall we follow the plan?" Asked Ceph. Just because one possibility had appeared didn't mean others couldn't also be in use. They had to stay on their toes.

"Let's. We will start with the physical barrier." Pelaros replied. Giving the signal for a blue flag to be raised. Which was then relayed along the entire wall. A few minutes later, a light blue barrier surrounded the walls.

The fort, sadly, was not included. Its size made it difficult to protect, instead, its magic tower was used to protect the walls only.

They were covered in an upside down U-shaped barrier. Its height was only three meters above the wall at all points. This was to prevent mana waste. Any attack that would fly over the walls ought to do so.

A few minutes after the barrier appeared, the first flaming boulders were sent flying from the trebuchets. So far in the distance that one would miss their launch if they didn't magically enhance their eyes. Tiny little dots of flames rose into the air.

"I wonder how much ammon they have." This question was common throughout the wall. From east to west, the undead had moved in sync like no other army could. Their entire mass dotted the landscape in the distance.

Their aim, however, was anything but accurate. Not knowing the max distance of the cannons, they had placed themselves at their max. This wasn't uniform, but each trebuchet was at least two kilometers away.

The flaming boulders flew in a massive parabola. High into the air as it soared. One, two, three...

"This is anti-climatic." Eldrian murmured as the seconds ticked by. It was taking ages for the flaming boulders to come back down.