Pale Emblem

Chapter 204 Reaction
The thick fog obscured the view, and even Clark, a level six swordsman, could not see the camp hundreds of meters away from the west gate city wall.

However, the Orc Butcher's signature kill roar echoed around the camp, indicating that the enemy's vanguard had already penetrated inside.

The half-elf soldiers on the city gate were all ashen-faced.

The Godore Line is situated in a strategically important location, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. The "difficult to attack" aspect primarily refers to the fortifications built at the pass, which are not easily breached.

Because there is only one narrow slope that can be traversed from the Godore Mountains to the Bron Lake basin, while the rest of the terrain consists of steep cliffs that large forces simply cannot cross.

Due to geological limitations, the half-elf artisans of Fallen Leaf City could only build a wooden fortress at the top of the slope as a pass.

However, there were watchtowers on both sides of the pass. As long as the sentries spotted the enemy and gave an early warning, the garrison would orderly push the prepared logs, stones, and burning grass balls down the hillside, so no matter how many enemies there were, they could not break through.

However, the sudden fog rendered the watchtowers useless, and the orc army took the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on the camp, giving the defenders no time to rearrange their defenses.

"Could this thick fog be a sorcery cast by an orc shaman?"

"How dare these monsters launch an attack on the Godore Line?!"

Clark screamed at the city gate, completely unlike a calm and collected commander.

"What's the panic? We're standing on the city wall! Could the orc sow's magic really make orc boars fly up here?!"

There was only one person in the legion who would publicly reprimand Clark without showing any mercy. That person was the sage Bograk, who had served the prestigious Silverhorn family for over thirty years.

Not long ago, Clark had clearly sent people to imprison the sage Pograk. No one knows who it was, but they secretly released the old man and even allowed him to ascend the west gate.

General Clark wouldn't blame his men for acting on their own initiative at a time like this; he was even grateful for Pograk's appearance.

“Mr. Pograk, you’ve come at just the right time!” Clark was quite surprised.

Pograk was a thin, gloomy-looking old man with thinning hair. He glared at Clark with annoyance and then said, "Close the city gates immediately, sound the alarm, and have all legion soldiers on the city walls on alert! Also, notify the commanders of each battle group to come in person or send someone to be under their command!"

"Quickly! Do as instructed!" Clark turned and ordered his messenger.

“Oh, then… what about the garrison at the camp?” a messenger reminded them.

The fortified pass is only about 300 meters from the west gate of Echo Town, and is usually guarded by a single warband. After the Wildfire Adventurers withdrew from the Bolang Town outpost, Clark sent another warband to garrison the fortified pass, bringing the total number of guards to over 560.

Under normal circumstances, these 500-plus legion soldiers only need to hold off the enemy for a short while before the main legion force stationed in Echo Town can immediately provide support.

However, the dense fog at night severed communication between the camp and Echo Town. Although everyone on the city walls could hear the sounds of the camp's defenders fighting the enemy, indicating that they were still putting up a fierce resistance, the legion commander unfortunately could not clearly see the enemy's situation and dared not launch a rash attack!

The Sage of Pograk demanded the immediate closure of the city gates, revealing a cruel truth:

The 560 legionary soldiers stationed at the fortress were abandoned.

Clark's eyes flickered, and he immediately changed his words, saying, "Close the city gates first... You, go to the camp and relay my orders. The garrison commander is to immediately organize a retreat to Godore Fortress to reorganize and await further orders!"

The talkative messenger was dumbfounded, but General Clark's guards didn't give him a chance to beg for mercy. They forcibly stuffed the messenger into a basket and hoisted him off the city wall.

The guards were in a flurry of activity, and the basket lost its balance halfway through, knocking the messenger off course.

The messenger disappeared into the fog, and no one paid any attention to his shouts and curses coming from below the city wall.

In fact, Clark didn't expect this self-righteous fool to be able to relay the retreat order to the camp commander.

When the orc butchers stormed into the camp in droves, the defenders were already doomed, and there was no point in trying to rescue them!
The heavy iron gate crashed to the ground, and the drawbridge slowly rose, dragged up by thick iron chains.

Clark's panicked feelings finally subsided.

Echo Town is a military town with sturdy walls, 28 meters high, and all kinds of defensive facilities and equipment. The town has ample food and supplies, enough for 3000 legion soldiers to hold out for seven or eight months.

Moreover, orcs are not good at siege warfare; they only dare to attack a city when they have ten times the strength of the half-elf garrison.

Furthermore, Echo Town was not an isolated city, nor were the defending troops isolated.

The Clark Legion is said to number 3, most of whom were conscripted laborers, and most have now been repatriated. The legion's elite warriors total 7000, with 3000 stationed in Echo Town, 2000 in Iron Helmet Town, and 1000 each in Wolf Tail Town and Stone Shield Town in the rear.

Several military towns and the Godore Fortress formed a defensive system, supporting each other from all sides.

Conversely, the orc invaders were truly isolated and outnumbered. Even if they successfully raided the fortified camps and checkpoints, they would be surrounded by several military towns and the Godore Fortress. If they refused to retreat under these circumstances, the orc army would surely be defeated.

The alarm bells rang urgently in Echo Town, and squads of fully armed half-elf soldiers rushed out of their barracks and quickly climbed the city walls to carry out their defensive duties.

Commanders of each battle group either personally or by sending messengers to the city gate at the east gate to pay their respects to the legion commander and await further orders.

Clark remained calm and issued commands methodically.

"Orc invaders launch a night raid on the checkpoints and fortifications... All chapters, hold your posts and be alert!"

"Scout battalion, go down the city wall to scout the enemy situation and report every 45 minutes."

"Messenger, notify the commanders of the Iron Helmet, Stone Shield, and Wolf Tail Garrisons that the enemy situation is currently unclear, and they must hold the city walls and are not allowed to engage in battle without authorization!"

"...Also notify General Barturu of Godore Fortress that Echo Town is under attack by orcs and is in dire straits. His Flame Tiger Legion is urgently needed to come to its aid!" Even at this critical moment, Clark still remembered to dig a pit for his old rival, the Flame Tiger Legion.

Sage Pograk paid no attention to the orders given by Clark. He frowned, carefully recalling what loopholes they had that allowed the orc invaders to launch an attack on the Godore Line.

"Has the garrison regiment at the East Gate not sent anyone over yet?" Pograk suddenly asked.

The legion is strictly disciplined. When the alarm sounds, all battle groups must respond. Even non-main force garrison regiments must send people over immediately to await the commander's orders.

The alarm bells in Echo Town have rung five times, but the Sage of Pograk has yet to see the commander of the East Gate Garrison report for duty.

A trusted servant replied, "Commander Bill hasn't sent anyone yet... a messenger has already gone to inform them."

“How long have you been gone?” Pograk pressed.

"About... fifteen minutes."

Upon hearing this, the elderly, gaunt half-elf sage jumped up, stamped his foot, and roared, "It's over! It's over! Something's happened at the East Gate!"

Clark was startled by the old man's seemingly insane behavior and quickly stepped forward to hold him down, asking, "Dongmen, what happened to Dongmen?"

“You’re such an idiot! Your messenger is either a stealth hunter or an archer; at their speed, a quarter of an hour is more than enough time for them to reach the east gate and come back…”

"Still don't understand?!"

"These past few days have seen so many things go wrong for the legion. Haven't you always suspected that someone was plotting against you?"

"The person who plotted against you is right here at the East Gate!"

"Otherwise, how dare the orcs and barbarians launch a full-scale attack on the Godore Line? Because they have an inside man!"

Clark's expression changed drastically as he heard Pograk shout, "Quickly! There's still time. Send more battle groups to control the east gate. If anyone resists, kill them without mercy!"

"Pass on my order: the Fourth Regiment will take over the defense of the East Gate, with the Fifth and Second Regiments assisting. Anyone who dares to disobey orders will be eliminated on the spot, no need to ask for permission!" Clark shouted, emphasizing:

"We must act quickly!"

…………

At the top of the East Gate tower, Victor stood like a reef, with thick, moist mist flowing gently beside him like river water.

A gentle breeze swirled around him, parting the thick fog, but visibility remained impenetrable even a hundred meters away. Even with Victor's exceptional eyesight, he couldn't penetrate the dense fog.

However, his extraordinary senses also include hearing, smell, and touch, and under the control of 19 points of mental attributes, they constitute a comprehensive perceptual ability.

Hundreds of legionary soldiers were approaching the east gate, their slightly disordered footsteps carrying a chilling aura.

Victor clearly identified that there were three enemy warbands: one on the left wall, one on the right wall, and one on the street below the city gate.

They are advancing side by side, with their ultimate goal being the fully open East Gate!

Victor couldn't understand why Clark's countermeasures came so quickly and so fiercely.

Shortly after, a messenger ran over with news that the checkpoint camp had been attacked and ordered Commander Bill to immediately close the city gates and then go to see the legion commander for orders.

Victor was actually happy to play along with Clark in order to buy time. Unfortunately, the puppet controlled by the succubus could not be more than four hundred meters away from the main body.

It was impossible for Bill and his two deputies to go to the other side of Echo Town to receive orders and missions from the commander.

They killed the messenger and drank his blood. Then they waited for Clark to send another messenger. If the messenger was a succubus servant, they sent him back to deceive Clark; if not, they did the same.

The reality was that Clark didn't send any more messengers; instead, he sent three menacing standard battle regiments!

The standard combat group of Fallen Leaf City has a full strength of 280 people, with half being low-level professionals and half being awakened individuals. It is also equipped with an elite squad, which includes six Dragon Vein Shield Guardians, four level-four archers and four level-four swordsmen, specifically to deal with certain powerful enemies.

Clark had ten warbands stationed in Echo Town, two of which had fallen to their fortifications outside the town. He then deployed three of his remaining eight warbands to cause trouble at the East Gate.

Victor didn't know what went wrong, but he was under immense pressure!

A flapping sound came from mid-air, and then Dili, dancing wildly, landed next to Victor in her demon form.

She folded her enormous bat wings and reported to Victor, “My lord, the orcs have captured the camp and are regrouping their troops. But the fog is thick over there, and the scene is chaotic. An orc butcher even threw axe at me… I haven’t found Ingrid or any barbarian women I can communicate with. I estimate it will take the orcs at least eight quarters of an hour to restore order to their army.”

This time, the allied forces of the Riftrock and Frostblade clans mobilized their entire army, numbering nearly ten thousand. Moreover, the orc army was inherently poorly organized, and with the thick fog at night, Dili estimated that it would take them two or three hours to reorganize, which was an optimistic estimate.

Judging from the current situation, Victor couldn't help but suspect that the most intense battle of the night would likely fall on him and his followers.

"Keep looking for Ingrid and tell her to send reinforcements quickly, otherwise East Gate will be lost..."

Dili nodded, preparing to fly off to search for the barbarian slave leader Ingrid, when Victor said again, "...Before that, go and teach that warband on the left wall a lesson!"

The alchemist demon was stunned for a moment, then revealed a cruel and bloodthirsty smile.