On the Brink

"Second Elder, according to the news from the city, they only have cavalry."

"How many?" The First Elder spoke little, but he always got straight to the point.

"Reporting to the First Elder," the scout replied, "they have a total of thirty-five thousand heavy-armored magical beast cavalry."

"Is that all?"

"Yes."

"Very well, you may leave!"

After the scout withdrew, silence fell over the room.

"Chief, what do you think..."

"I don't have much of an opinion. Haven't you three elders been handling everything these days?" Udos Nahping thought that after inheriting the title of clan chief from his ailing father, he would finally be able to make his own decisions. Who could have guessed that after his father passed, he would be sidelined by the First, Second, and Fourth Elders, those three old men? During council meetings, the five elders would bypass him entirely, making decisions on their own.

Though the Third and Fifth Elders supported him, they had no choice but to follow the First Elder's orders. Besides, among five elders, their combined influence was limited.

"How did they get here?" The Second Elder, hot-tempered and impulsive, demanded.

"Now isn't the time to discuss how they arrived," the Fourth Elder interjected, "the question is how we deal with them."

"If you ask me, they're definitely helping the Minotaur tribe in that seaside village. Otherwise, how could we have lost so many men there?" The First Elder suddenly recalled the failed expedition to suppress the Minotaurs. The Minotaurs' sudden, inexplicable surge in military strength was now rationalized by the appearance of this Death Empire.

"That goes without saying. Didn't the scout mention just now that it was ten Minotaur warriors who escorted them into the city? They must be colluding." The Fifth Elder had listened carefully.

"We'll deal with the Minotaur tribe later. For now, let's send our troops to take care of them. A mere thirty thousand dare to trouble us—I wonder if they've lost their minds."

"In my opinion..." Udos Nahping, the clan chief, finally spoke. "Let the Second and Fourth Elders command the troops. Ever since our generals retreated from the opposing continent, they've lost confidence against this Death Empire. For the sake of caution, let the two elders lead. That's settled." With that, the frustrated chief rose and walked out.

The elders exchanged glances but said nothing.

"They dare invade our continent—they clearly know nothing of death," the Second Elder flared up again.

The Fifth Elder thought to himself: You sent men to their lands and never called it invasion; but now that they're here, you call it invasion. Still, he dared not say this aloud.

"Set all other matters aside. Fourth Elder, go and assemble all nearby troops immediately."

"What do we need so many for?" The Second Elder stood and shouted. "They only have thirty-five thousand cavalry. If we mobilize massive forces, aren't we showing we're afraid of them?"

"Second Elder, then what's your plan? How many will you lead? Remember, we Bear Clan have no cavalry."

"We'll take the seventy thousand warriors in the city. That's twice their number—I don't believe they can gain anything from us."

Hearing the Second Elder propose seventy thousand warriors, the First Elder said nothing further. Thankfully, the Second Elder hadn't suggested taking only thirty-five thousand. Otherwise, the First Elder might have fainted from rage.

"Very well, then. Second and Fourth Elder, you two will command the troops. Fifth Elder, you handle logistics. Go now—depart at dawn."

...

Standing not far away, Chief Udos Nahping watched the five elders disperse and leave the hall, a cold smile crossing his face.

This was his opportunity. He had insisted the two elders command the army, knowing the Death Empire's power. The thirty-five thousand heavy cavalry from the Death Empire on his side were certainly no ordinary cavalry. During his own campaign against the Dragon Empire, most losses had been caused by the Death Empire. Now, with only seventy thousand infantry sent under these two elders, the outcome seemed inevitable.

Once word came, only the First Elder would remain. Then, with any convenient excuse, he could send his guards to dispatch him. Once he reclaimed military control, he would negotiate properly with this Death Empire.

...

At dawn, the Bear Clan's encampment outside the city was abuzz with tension. Everyone was preparing to depart, the camp in chaos. Both the Second and Fourth Elders arrived early, but from their demeanor, it was clear neither knew how to command an army. In the command tent, they listened to reports from the generals. Upon learning the troops were ready to move, the elders waved their hands, and the generals followed them out.

...

"You mean they've only brought seventy thousand infantry?" In Stormwind City, renamed by Cain, Mo Fei questioned an elven scout.

"Yes, young master. They're led by two elder-like old men. A host of generals trail behind—there appears to be discord among them."

"Oh? What kind of discord?" Mo Fei was surprised by the scout's keen observation.

"The two old men are marching at the very front. The generals have ordered everyone to keep clear of them. If enemy attacks come, those two will surely die first. Only those of high status normally lead from the front, but now they're isolated from the protection of their troops. Clearly, there's tension among them—at the very least, they're not on good terms."

"The Bear Clan has such internal strife?" Mo Fei laughed.

These Bear Clan folk were careless indeed, thinking he had only thirty thousand men. Mo Fei never fought unprepared. In the dead of night, he used a magic array to summon nearly twenty thousand berserker infantry, plus nearly ten thousand elven crossbowmen. If it weren't for the difficulty of moving ballistae through the magic array, he'd have brought a pile of those too, just so the Bear Clan could enjoy themselves.

Elder Off had arrived in Stormwind City as well, bringing two thousand heavily armored Minotaur warriors, armed under his guidance. According to the Minotaur chief, "We fight for you. Though we are few, half our warriors will go, half will stay to protect the village." So two thousand Minotaur warriors followed Elder Off to Stormwind City.

Bear Clan scouts dared not enter the city, relying on departing citizens for information, reporting only the presence of cavalry.

After summoning the elven crossbowmen, Mo Fei dispatched elven scouts in all directions. Berserker scouts were too conspicuous to send out.

The intelligence returned by these elven scouts eased Mo Fei's mind. This time, he would amuse himself with the Bear Clan. If the place was ruined, it mattered not to him—he wouldn't have to pay for reconstruction. Fighting in someone else's land had its perks. No wonder the Bear Clan coveted his continent time and again; fighting without restraint was true freedom.

With the reports in hand, Mo Fei deployed thirty-five thousand heavy cavalry at the vanguard. This time, the Bear Clan would see what true warriors were.

Meanwhile, as the Bear Clan army arrived before Stormwind City, they hadn't even set up camp before seeing their opponents already arrayed and waiting.

They had no chance for rest or preparation. At this moment, the two commanding elders demonstrated their idiotic talent, ordering the entire army to form up and prepare to attack.

The generals were stunned. This was suicide! Their own troops had just arrived, while the enemy was rested and ready. These two fools wanted to die and drag everyone with them!

"Elders, our army has just arrived and hasn't rested. The enemy is fresh. If we fight now—"

"General, we outnumber them two to one! Are you afraid?" the Second Elder cried. "If you no longer wish to serve, I'll grant your request when we return."

"You..." The general was so angry he could barely speak.

At that moment, Cain gave the order. Thirty-five thousand heavy cavalry surged forward, thunder rolling, a killing aura sweeping the field.

Under the elders' shouted commands, the weary Bear Clan army advanced.

In their previous sea-crossing campaigns, the Bear Clan warriors had never faced a proper cavalry charge. The last encounter had left few survivors, and those questioned could say little. This time, facing the terrifying magical beast cavalry, the Bear Clan soldiers who had not experienced the last battle had no idea what they were up against.

As nearly twenty thousand infantry rushed forward, they were thrown into chaos by the first wave of black-armored cavalry, unable even to organize a proper counterattack.

The two elders panicked—they had never commanded large-scale battles and now had no idea what to do. Yet pride would not let them relinquish command to the general at their side.