Elemental Cats

?After the potion run and the obvious revitalization of the Alliance of Kingdom's troops, the Tribe of Death's forces halted in their assault for a moment. It was only for barely more than an instant. But the fact that the Tribe of Death's forces showed any reaction at all to the Alliance of Kingdoms defenses improving was all General Scoll needed as confirmation. That reaction wasn't planned. If it was, the Tribe of Death should have gone into theater instead of war.

It was actually still too early to confirm if his hopes had come true. But General Scoll trusted his ability to read the flow of combat. And he also trusted his knowledge. Though it was practically common knowledge for everyone on the battlefield that nothing daunted the Tribe of Death. They were immovable in front of death, and yet they never stopped moving. That was the kind of enemy the Tribe of Death was.

But that kind of enemy had shown a reaction to the Alliance of Kingdoms boasting about their endurance. It was a battle of attrition where the Alliance and their allies were doing nothing but defending. If the Tribe of Death showed any kind of reaction, it should be a celebration since their victory would be guaranteed as long as the Alliance continued what they were doing.

However, the Tribe of Death didn't cheer. It was impossible to tell what their reaction was since they were so far away, and the reaction was so short. But they were probably facing the fact that they weren't invincible. The Alliance of Kingdoms hunkering down and fortifying their defenses made the Tribe of Death flinch and take a step back to realize that they weren't undefeatable.

And the only reason the Tribe of Death feared a war of attrition would be if they couldn't win it, which they should have been able to if the Fountain of Death was still in play. But if they were scared of losing, it could only mean that the Tribe of Death couldn't use the Fountain of Death at the moment.

General Scoll glanced at the descending mana storm.

Granted, it could be an elaborate ploy due to the mana storm pressuring the Fortress of Death, and that put the Tribe of Death's main forces behind their enemy and a natural disaster. 𝑓𝑟𝘦𝘦𝓌𝘦𝑏𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸ℴ𝘮

But the threat of the mana storm was only so great. Sure, it would disrupt the battle and tear apart numerous combatants. But if the Tribe of Death played their cards well, they could use it against the Alliance of Kingdoms, just like General Scoll planned to use it against them.

If anything, the Tribe of Death would be better at enduring the mana storm and winning the war by forcing the humans to stay in place and face the mana storm during the battle. It would lead to a pyrrhic victory for the Tribe of Death, which was their favorite.

But that idea would once again only be a viable option if the Tribe of Death could rely on their Fountain and the demonic energy it supplied.

General Scoll ran through the possible scenarios in his mind and confirmed that the infiltration mission had been a success. It might be due to Braxton and Seich, or it might be thanks to whatever caused the mana storm. But the goal of the mission was to destroy or disrupt the Fountain of Death. And that goal had been achieved, so the mission was a success.

That was the only thing that would explain the Tribe of Death's actions. Otherwise, there would be no reason for the Tribe of Death to change their tactics. The Tribe of Death didn't need to act or set a trap for their victory, even if it might make things easier for them.

Unfortunately, the Fountain of Death wasn't the only card that the Tribe of Death had, and before General Scoll made any moves, he had to be prepared for that as well.

He levied a deep gaze toward the battlefield.

The Alliance of Kingdoms' troops wouldn't be able to last that much longer, even with the potions. And the Tribe of Death still had their Chalices, despite losing the Fountain, so victory wasn't in his grasp yet. And that was still only the initial battle. The true fight hadn't even begun yet.

However, what they were doing now would set the stage for the next part of the battle, and if he played it correctly, General Scoll might be able to crush the Tribe of Death. But that was only if he could time it perfectly.

He couldn't let his troops get too tired, but he also had to wear out the enemies so that they would be easier to charge and kill. The Chalices were powerful, but they were like droplets of water compared to the Fountain. With the number that the Tribe of Death was using, it wouldn't be enough to sustain the entire army. Although the Chalices could only be used by those with the death attribute, not everyone fighting on the side of the Tribe of Death used death magic.

It would be difficult to find the balance during such a large-scale battle. Thankfully, it had devolved into a simple attack and defense play.

With his experience and ability to read the flow of battle, General Scoll was confident he could tell the states of both sides using the power behind the attacks and the sturdiness of the barriers. The reflexes and reactions of the Alliance's troops when their barriers were breached were also excellent clues.

General Scoll also had to take into account the waning morale that would most likely surge and fill the troops with adrenaline when it was time to push the offensive. And while doing that, he had to start preparing, planning for, and anticipating what would come next.

The war wouldn't simply end after the Alliance chased after and cut down a bunch of the Tribe of Death's forces. It would only be the end of the war's prologue.