Chapter 337: Seige

Hundreds of hobgoblins slammed into the outer stone while those behind them continued pushing forward. Bodies pressed together until the base of the wall became a churning mass of muscle, crude armor, and raised clubs. Several creatures broke away from the horde and struck the gate hard enough to make the reinforced structure shake, but it held beneath the assault.

Kael stepped closer to the battlement and looked down. His instincts reacted before he fully understood what he was seeing, and he tilted his head just as a fist-sized stone flew past the side of his helmet and struck the wooden housing of the ballista behind him.

The impact cracked the outer panel. Several more stones followed before the fortress officer shouted, "Shields!"

Soldiers carrying kite shields rushed forward, positioning themselves around the ballista crews before raising their shields. Another volley struck the wall, rocks hammering against wood, iron, and reinforced leather.

Kael searched deeper within the hobgoblin ranks and spotted several creatures carrying shepherd slings. They were crude weapons, little more than strips of hide and cloth, but the hobgoblins possessed enough strength to turn ordinary stones into lethal projectiles. They spun the slings above their heads and released, sending rocks toward the battlements with enough force to crush skulls or damage the restored mechanisms.

One soldier cried out as a stone struck his shoulder. His armor dented, and he fell against the wall while clutching the injured limb. Another rock caught an archer in the chest and knocked him backward, though his breastplate kept the impact from killing him. The defenders immediately tightened their formation around the siege weapons.

Then the first hobgoblin began climbing.

Kael stared over the edge. "Damn. They can climb this?"

The wall was nearly vertical, but that did not stop them. The hobgoblins drove thick claws into the stone exterior, their fingers piercing cracks and mortar lines to create grips where none should exist. Some used the heads of their clubs as crude climbing hooks, wedging them between stones before hauling their bodies upward.

It was difficult. The fortress had not been constructed with convenient handholds, and several hobgoblins climbed ten or twenty meters before losing their grip and falling backward into the ranks below. Others were struck by arrows or stones thrown by the defenders. Their bodies tumbled down the wall, knocking more climbers loose as they fell, yet a few continued rising.

One reached the upper third of the wall, with another following several paces behind it. Soldiers moved away from the ballistae and met them at the battlements. Spears stabbed downward, axes chopped into hands gripping the stone, and one hobgoblin reached the top only to have three blades driven through its chest before it could pull itself over.

Kael watched a second creature climb near his position. "I guess this is another way to force climbers to stay active."

The hobgoblin’s hand rose above the battlement, its claws digging into the stone. Kael leaned over, drove his right hand downward, and caught the creature by the face.

The hobgoblin was huge enough that Kael’s hand barely covered half its features. His fingers closed around one eye socket and the side of its jaw while the creature roared and tried to pull itself higher.

That was more than enough contact.

"Get cooked."

Kael released internal energy through his right arm, and the Fire Rune ignited. Heat flooded through the gauntlet before erupting directly into the hobgoblin’s head. Flame poured through its eye sockets, filling its skull before bursting from its ears and mouth.

The roar became a choking sound as smoke rose from its nostrils. Kael released it, allowing the dead creature to fall backward and strike two hobgoblins climbing beneath it. All three lost their grip and plunged into the packed ranks below.

Kael glanced toward the other sections of the wall, where the other climbers had entered the battle as well.

The spear user moved constantly, running from one threatened section to another. Whenever a hobgoblin reached the battlements, she drove her weapon through its face or throat, then used the shaft to shove the body back over the edge. Her footwork was quick and controlled, allowing her to support the fortress soldiers without obstructing the siege crews.

The burly man had finally lifted the sword resting against his shoulder. Up close, the weapon was larger than the body of an ordinary man. He swung it in broad, brutal arcs, cutting through every hobgoblin that managed to pull itself onto the wall. One creature climbed over with its club raised, only for the massive blade to pass through its waist and send both halves falling in opposite directions.

The staff user remained upon her tower. She raised both hands, and a formation of pale symbols spread across the air above the eastern wall. Pressure descended over the climbing hobgoblins, slowing their movements and making their limbs heavier. Arrows and spears struck them while they struggled beneath the magic, and several lost their grip before ever reaching the top.

The walls continued holding despite the injuries accumulating among the defenders. Several soldiers had been struck by sling stones, while another had suffered a broken arm when a hobgoblin club clipped the top of the battlement. Yet no one had died. The defenders dragged the wounded away from the front and replaced them before gaps could form in the line.

The gate remained secure as well. Hobgoblins without siege weapons could do little against it. Their clubs struck the reinforced wood and iron repeatedly, creating loud impacts that echoed through the fortress, but the gate barely moved.

Soldiers stationed above the entrance poured heated sand through murder holes. The grains slipped beneath armor and cloth, clinging to skin and burning anything they touched. Hobgoblins screamed and clawed at themselves, only to be shoved forward by those behind them. Buckets of boiling water followed, falling across the creatures gathered near the gate and producing clouds of steam alongside another wave of howls.

Barrels of oil stood nearby, but the defenders did not touch them.

Kael understood why. Oil was more effective, especially when followed by fire, but it was scarce. The fortress commanders likely intended to preserve it for a more dangerous assault. If later waves brought proper siege engines, battering rams, or larger monsters, burning oil might become the only way to destroy them before they reached the gate.

The defenders were experienced enough to avoid wasting their strongest resources on the first attack.

A number shifted at the edge of Kael’s vision. His defensive currency had been rising steadily since the wave began. Bolts from his ballistae continued earning kills, while the cannon had claimed even more with its single shot. Every enemy slain by one of his controlled relics added to the total, and the amount was already climbing toward one thousand.

The same amount he had handed to the Leonard.

Kael’s brow twitched beneath his helmet. "Well, that didn’t take long."