120. Kane’s Premonition, Part 3

“Quick, order the city patrol cavalry to go assist him!” Cain’s fury surged up instantly. Scouts were usually sent out in groups of at least three, but now only one had returned—and badly wounded at that. The fate of the other two scouts was all too clear.

Wade followed Cain down from the city walls toward the gate. At least there was news now.

“Boss, quickly… quickly send help to our brothers! They’re still fighting fiercely against the enemy, hurry…” The severely injured scout pointed outside, but before he could speak further, he fainted.

“Move out!” Cain mounted the horse brought by his men, leading ten thousand heavily armored cavalry at a gallop toward the direction the scout had indicated.

The Death Empire’s scouts were handpicked from the empire’s elite troops—the elite among elites—each capable of taking on ten foes singlehandedly. Yet this time, out of a three-man scout team, only one returned, badly wounded. Fortunately, he said the other two were still holding off the enemy, which only spurred Cain to ride faster. He had no intention of retrieving mere corpses. These were the Death Empire’s finest—and his brothers in arms.

Not far beyond the city, the ten thousand ironclad riders formed a wedge-shaped attack formation. This formation widened their search area and allowed them to strike immediately upon encountering the enemy without needing to redeploy.

After barely twenty miles outside the city, Cain at the front heard shouts and the clang of weapons ahead. “The enemy’s just up ahead! Push harder, chop them all down!”

Uncertain of the enemy’s numbers, the wedge formation held steady. Rounding the forest’s bend, Cain’s fury ignited upon seeing a strange sight: nearly a hundred bizarrely dressed, grotesque figures surrounded two Death Empire scouts, who were riddled with arrows and severely wounded. The enemy did not immediately kill them but instead mocked and humiliated them with eerie laughter.

Cain waved his hand sharply, and the wedge’s flanks accelerated, forming a semicircular formation that bore down on the grotesque figures. The enemy, seeing Cain’s approaching army, panicked. They abandoned the two wounded scouts and fled to a nearby hill, hastily setting up a crude defense. Yet when they realized the sheer number of cavalry bearing down, despair darkened their faces.

Without pause, the Death Empire cavalry launched their assault on the encircled enemy. Tens of thousands of massive crossbow bolts flew toward the hilltop. Each quiver of the Death Empire’s giant crossbows held hundreds of bolts. When the piercing sounds ceased, nearly every enemy on the hill was impaled with these massive bolts. Their archers never had a chance to fire a single arrow.

“Boss, we haven’t dishonored the empire…” The two scouts, each pierced by several arrows, spoke these words simultaneously before losing consciousness.

“Get them back quickly!” Cain’s tiger-like eyes brimmed with tears. After dispatching men to escort the scouts back, Cain climbed the hill. He had never seen such strange beings before, but one thing was certain—they were not natives of this land.

After ordering the battlefield cleared and the enemy corpses disposed of, Cain fell into deep thought. From his instincts, these creatures were the source of his unease. But it made no sense that barely a hundred of them could cause such a feeling. Besides, they were all wiped out, yet the unease lingered. Could it be that, like the Bear Clan, they were securing territory first before plotting further schemes? But no other empire had reacted—what was going on?

“This headache will be left to Father,” Cain decided, unable to piece it together himself. With a wave, he ordered his army to form ranks and cautiously withdraw back to the city.

Wade, having heard Cain’s words, also sank into thought. He didn’t understand where these oddly dressed beings came from either, but judging from Cain’s reaction, they must number far more than what had been seen. How could so few instill such dread? Yet their scouts had only found this group… what about the others?

The thought chilled Wade with cold sweat. Could the other scouts have… “Send word immediately! Order all scouts to return to the city at once, quickly!”

The guard outside acknowledged and hurried away. Seeing his father’s pale face, Cain felt a flicker of fear himself. “Father, do you think they attacked our scouts?”

“I don’t know. I just fear something has happened to them. For now, call them back and issue strict orders. Next time, send out ten-man patrols—three is too few.”

The emergency signal arrows designed by the Dwarven weapons masters echoed throughout the city, their sounds carrying nearly thirty miles—far beyond the usual twenty miles the scouts ventured. Upon receiving the signal, all scouts were to immediately return to designated locations.

Not long after, all the scouts had returned. None reported encountering or being attacked by enemy forces. Perhaps the initial scout team had stumbled upon an ambush ring. As for their failure to send a warning signal in time, Wade judged it a targeted counter-ambush by the enemy. Otherwise, such elite warriors would never fail to send a signal.

“One scout team was attacked, all three badly wounded. From now on, I require ten-man squads for all missions. Be vigilant—if you spot the enemy, do not engage recklessly or attack first. The empire cannot afford to lose you. This enemy is unprecedentedly formidable. From what happened to that scout team, we know they caught them off guard. Two died covering the retreat of one. I don’t want this to happen again—understood?”

“Understood!”

“Rest for now. General Cain will reorganize you shortly. If manpower is insufficient, the empire will supplement from elsewhere. Your duty is to monitor all activity within twenty miles of the city. Cavalry support will be on standby behind you. Upon enemy detection, send messengers immediately. Our heavy cavalry will then strike.”

“Yes, sir!”

…

Reorganized, the scouts once again dashed out the city gates, vanishing in all directions like dust. Meanwhile, the number of heavily armored cavalry patrolling outside the city increased to forty thousand, divided into four divisions. Each division was responsible for one direction, patrolling while awaiting scout reports. They must strike the enemy decisively the moment scouts report their presence.

“The nearly hundred enemies we wiped out died under a hailstorm of bolts. We actually don’t know their true strength. But the fact they didn’t flee upon seeing our army means they’re fierce opponents. We must not underestimate them.”

“An opponent that unsettles me like this? Of course I won’t be careless. I’m just puzzled why their numbers are so small.”

“Didn’t you say you sensed something off? That means they’re more than just these few. Maybe they’re hiding somewhere, or this is only their scout team.”

“Father, do you think they might have already taken over one of the empires?”

“That’s hard to say. Besides the few allied empires we frequently contact, we know little about the others. If their forces are large and their blockade tight, it’s natural we’d receive no intel.”

“My fear is they’re copying the Bear Clan’s old trick. The Bears foolishly targeted the mighty Dragon Empire. If they had struck the weaker empires first, they might have succeeded.”

“Your concern isn’t unfounded. But I doubt they’re right next to us. We maintain contact with the neighboring empires, and their strength is considerable—total blockade is unlikely. From their small force and lack of retreat or reinforcements, we can infer their numbers are limited here. If anything, they might control some smaller coastal empire. We’ll investigate those smaller empires first. If they have taken one over, we’ll find out.”

“Then it’s up to you to arrange this. With the young master away, I don’t know the details. If I handled it, I’d probably end up fighting those empires first.”

“I’ll take care of it. Besides, the young master might be back soon. Didn’t the Bear Clan chieftain say he sent word to the young master?” Wade smiled.

“Good, with the young master here, who’s to fear?” Cain growled fiercely. Knowing the enemy struck at his scouts, his blood boiled with murderous intent. No survivors would be left in his hands. The day he merely waved his hand and slaughtered nearly a hundred enemies—without understanding the enemy’s full deployment—he would have captured some alive for questioning.

“Boss… boss! Our scouts have sent word!” Two men were discussing their next move in the command hall when a berserker guard burst in shouting.