Second World

White Death was silent after hearing Therribus' words. The prince let him ponder in peace.

After a while, White Death asked, "May Your Highness elaborate on this restriction?"

"I may," Therribus replied. "The majority of your kind will have to stay at level thirty and below. A portion that has supported me will be allowed to level up until level fifty. Those who are the most loyal to me will be granted the privilege to level up until level seventy, but that will be the highest level allowed. Anyone who happens to go past their permitted level will have to submit themselves to the authority. They will be executed within the safe zone. That way, their levels will be reduced by one and return to the permitted level. If their level breach is more than one level, then they will be executed multiple times until they are reverted to the permissible level cap. These offenders will also be given penalty depending on the number of levels they breach."

White Death was again silent after hearing the information.

"Do you have a problem with this arrangement?" Therribus asked.

"If I am part of those that are allowed to reach level seventy, then no. I have no problem at all," White Death replied.

"Is that true?" Therribus asked while staring straight at White Death.

White Death laughed. "My goal is to be in the position of power. If Your Highness kept the other outworlders at a low level while allowing me at a high-level, then I will easily rule them. I can even crown myself the king of the outworlders in this country. Why would I not go along with this plan?"

Therribus maintained his stare, he then said, "I'm glad we are on the same page. Do you have anything else to discuss? Our army will have to depart early tomorrow."

"I have no other matter, Your Highness. Please, have a good rest," White Death bowed and retreated out.

"Do you believe him, Your Highness?" Garland asked after White Death was gone.

"No. But I believe his self-interest is helping us at this time. We will deal with him after we are done with my last brother," Therribus said.

*

Outside the main tent, Yellow Death was waiting. White Death came out and they both used Guild Return Scroll.

Yellow Death asked what the prince had said. White Death told him of the prince's plan in restricting outworlder's levels.

"Do you agree with that?" Yellow Death asked.

"Why wouldn't I agree?" White Death said with a grin. "Our objective is to weaken Themisphere's country. If this country's forces fight among themselves and its outworlders are kept at a low-level, then our objective has been achieved. When Liguritudum's army came invading, they won't be able to resist."

"Do you believe that Master will keep his promise?"

"I don't see why not? He will need someone to help him manage this world. Since we have helped him conquer this country, it is logical that we are appointed for the management of this country."

Yellow Death nodded. He hoped that they didn't make the wrong gamble.

*

On the seventh day after the reinforcement army departed from Thereath, Therribus' army arrived in the vicinity of Fort Garadhor.

On the wall surrounding the fort, Prince Alonzo and Jeanny stood as they watched the sea of soldiers that came into view.

"Those… are a lot of troops…," Giant Steve, who stood beside Jeanny, commented.

All the players who watched the scene gulped. Even some native soldiers were having downcast expressions.

The fort had been sealed since yesterday. The supply carts had stopped coming. Hired native blacksmiths, scrollmakers, and alchemists had left. The ones still working with the fortifications inside the fort were only players with the required auxiliary skills.

"Can we truly defend this place with so few people?" Giant Steve asked, which earned a glare from Jeanny. He received Jeanny's message at the same time, 'Stop saying things that will depress the others! We need motivation at this time more than ever!'

Giant Steve lowered his head. He knew he indeed deserved a scolding.

Jeanny started yelling instructions for the players. Most of the players here were Everlasting Heavenly Legends members. Only a small portion were the ones that joined recently due to the war quest summon. Prince Alonzo had given Jeanny the authority to command these recruits.

Commander Quintus did the same to the native soldiers. Everyone had performed drills in these past few days to prepare against the incoming siege. So, everyone knew what to do already.

Out of the few days they had to prepare, the scrollmakers and blacksmiths team had managed to restore the rune diagram that was etched on the outer walls and the gate. This diagram increased their durability and also reduce damage received to a certain extent. It also gave the walls and gate a small self-repair ability. Hence, if one wanted to destroy them, one would need to deliver non-stop damage all the time.

The blacksmith team had managed to restore four ballistae and two catapults out of ten available for each. The fort was facing flat land on all four sides, so enemies could attack from all sides. Hence, the four working ballistae were placed at the four corners. The two catapults were placed in the middle of the fort. These catapults were able to shoot over a large distance and they were also placed on a rotating wheel, so they could be fired in any direction.

The 10,000 troops inside the fort were spread out along the four sides of the wall. They would have preferred a fort that had natural barriers on a few sides like Heavenly Citadel, but this was the only fort available nearby, so they had to deal with it.

Therribus' army stopped a distance away and started spreading out. They continued spreading until any direction one gazed from the fort, they would see a sea of soldiers. The fort had been encircled. There was no gap in Therribus' army formation. Even if Prince Alonzo's army decided to flee now, there was no open path.

The two armies remained still for a long time. Each side gauging the other, trying to estimate their chance in the inevitable conflict.

"Your Highness?" Arther Pendrake asked Prince Therribus. "Everyone is ready, we can begin."

"Let's test their defense first," Therribus answered. "Send a battalion to each of their four sides."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Arther then relayed the command to his officers, who sent the signals to the distant army. Soon, four small forces detached from the encircling horde. These detachments were mostly heavy-armored knights with large tower shields. The last row behind them were archers, mages, and healers. They proceeded slowly towards the fort.

"Ranged, get ready!" Commander Quintus' voice reverberated in the fort. "Wait until they come into range!"

The soldiers and players on the wall waited in anxiety as the four battalions were getting closer. The ranged units readied their weapons.

"Steady!" Jeanny uttered.

When the enemies came into range, both Jeanny and Commander Quintus yelled, "Fire!!"

Arrows, bolts, and spells bombarded the marching knights. Their shields were large enough to protect their entire bodies, including the more vulnerable units at their backs. The knights activated their protection skills, soft light enshrouded their large tower shields.

The walls of the fort were ten meters high. Hence, the opposing force needed to get nearer before they could return fire while the defenders enjoyed increased range for firing from a higher elevation.

The knights continued to proceed under the bombardment. Their defenses were too tough. The damages produced by the range attackers were so small that any lost HP was immediately recovered by the few healers at the back.

Suddenly, a whistling sound was heard. The knights turned to the source of the sound in time and saw a very large bolt heading to them. This bolt struck their shields. The bolt caused high damage to the knight that was struck despite his shield and also knocked him away. The force was so strong that it broke apart their formation. The knights near the point of impact were sprawled on the ground, opening them up for the attacks from the defenders above.

Before the knights could recover their formation, they saw a large boulder from above. The boulder landed in their ranks and created a large shockwave. Everyone in the vicinity received damage as well as getting thrown to all four sides. The vulnerable units hiding at the back were now exposed, the defenders didn't let the chance go. They threw all their assaults on those vulnerable units.

The four sides experienced similar situations. Each ballista took care of one side, while the catapults turned around to deal with two sides each. The defenders were fired up when they saw the attackers were losing. Some players even started cheering.

Arther who watched the scene, said, "Four ballistae and two catapults. That's the number of defensive weapons they had activated."

"Hm… All right. Send a legion to strike their rear," Therribus ordered and then added, "You should get ready as well."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Arther replied.