Frilian at Elden Ring

Both commanders understood that this battle was not about victory, but about who could control costs to achieve their respective goals; it was a battle of cost-effectiveness.

The defending side must cover as many conscripts as possible as they enter Stoneville.

The attacking side must take down the Storm level with minimal cost and as quickly as possible.

Fight.

~~~~~

63

Chapter 63: First Battle, A Victory.

Now that the battlefield has reached this point of intense conflict, there is no need to hold back.

Edgar ordered, "Have the winged hybrids begin harassing from above to divert some of the pressure from the front walls. Also, have the trolls advance with their catapults."

The Southern army's troops are certainly not as well-trained as the enemy's, so he must use surprise tactics. He can't afford to hold back, and playing his special unit card early will avoid some losses. The only concern is what to do in a real siege.

To put it bluntly, the vast majority of surplus troops are reserved for attrition warfare in siege battles.

However, is the current consumption too severe? If it exceeds the threshold, it will definitely affect the subsequent plans for Stoneville.

Seeing the difficulty on his face, Frillie spoke up:

"Don't worry, I have the means to save up for a large fortress like Stoneville City. You can push forward to it."

"But as far as I know, there is very little magic with physical attack effects in the border areas, and even fewer that are large enough to breach a city."

"The composition of an excellent mage's combat power is always varied."

Edgar's confident statement convinced him that his boss, who had created countless miracles, was the biggest asset in this victory.

"As ordered."

At a command, the Southern Army advanced in an orderly fashion, taking another step forward and establishing a foothold under the cover of aerial fire. At the same time, several teams arrived at the high ground at both ends of Storm Pass to set up catapults.

Although the defenders took this into account and built a fortress specifically for this purpose, it was not large enough to hold out for long.

It was not as advantageous as Stoneville, and it had the weakness of being situated on a hillside, which is why the bloodiest meat grinder battlefields were on the hillside.

Amidst shouts of battle and curses, the soldiers grappled together.

Whether on high ground, along main roads, or within city walls, the air was thick with the smell of blood, and deafening roars filled the air.

A massive swarm of people rushed up the hillside, stretching as far as the eye could see. The soldiers of Grik, who were guarding the narrow bunker, felt a chill run down their spines, but they still managed to hold on.

"Hold on, hold on, if we fall, then Storm Pass is finished."

That being said, the situation is dangerous.

There was already fierce fighting between aerial units. The Stormhawk tore through the winged hybrids, and the two sides circled and confronted each other at a higher altitude. Even worse, the corpses fell to the top of the tower and smashed down on several soldiers, making it no longer safe.

"Aurora, was the Shattered War this large-scale back then?"

Frillie asked the black-knife assassin curiously.

"Much more powerful. I'm afraid even the border regions now can't muster a combined force that includes the Flame Cultivators, the Corrupted Knights, the Red Lions, and other armies."

"I've never seen anything like it before, it's truly spectacular."

This was actually the first time Frilian had experienced such a large-scale legion war in a game, and she was even in the position of a front-line commander. No, this kind of war was unheard of in reality, probably once in ten years, right? Because not everyone is like the people of the borderlands who don't need supplies.

I learned a lot, and it had a unique local flavor, with all sorts of forces gathered together.

Under her command and control, the ashes firmly occupied the main road pass, and the former camp in front of the checkpoint became a place where the Southern Army crossed with shields.

Arrows whistled overhead, piercing flesh at the slightest provocation, bringing death to their side.

In addition, hybrids, demi-humans, trolls, and zombies also helped, although only with basic tasks such as moving and filling, but they undoubtedly saved a lot of work and supported the continuous high-intensity attacks on the front line.

They are inherently prone to errors because their bodies are aged and show signs of being living corpses, making them often counterproductive to use.

However, soul magic changed this awkward situation, allowing it to participate in high-intensity conflicts.

The most valiant were the Dragon Eaters squad, who carried ladders and ran all the way to the bottom of the checkpoint, while others carried siege spikes to the front of the iron gate.

"We must not let them break in."

The commander urged loudly, warning that if the gates could not be defended, the center would easily be overwhelmed, and that would be disastrous. After all, they were outnumbered and could be easily crushed by sheer numbers.

The defenders, not to be outdone, relentlessly hurled logs and stones from above, leaving many dazed and disoriented, some even dying on the spot. Meanwhile, long weapons were constantly being thrust through the gaps in the fence.

The two sides were surrounded by corpses piled up around the gate, making it difficult to make any breakthroughs. One side couldn't get in, and the other side couldn't get rid of them.

"Hurry up and crash."

The officer kept calling out the rhythm, but urging him on was useless.

The sappers defending the city were constantly repairing the structures. If they couldn't repair them in time, they would block the entrances with all sorts of debris and throw logs and stones down from above.

Siege warfare is a complex undertaking that requires multi-faceted coordination, and now the chance for victory lies on the city walls. One after another, huge stones fill the top of the pass, making it difficult for the Grik soldiers to continue.

They were suppressed, especially under the rain of arrows, they couldn't even lift their heads.

On the contrary, with a force of 20,000, the sheer number of troops allows for the redeployment of some to the second line for treatment, preventing further casualties and maintaining a stronger state of readiness.

Frillie patiently witnessed the entire process, offering no further support beyond basic healing magic.

She needs to have a general grasp of the combat capabilities of her soldiers to decide how much energy she should spend on direct confrontation with the enemy's powerful figures. After all, Markit and Grek should be quite difficult to deal with, so how much magic power will she have left to support the army?

If possible, it's best to preserve as much strength as possible, because it will be necessary for future rule.

Boom!

The first outer reinforced gate had already creaked and bent, collapsing.

Hearing the loud explosion, the attacking side became even more excited, knowing that defeating the enemy was paramount, and pressed on with renewed vigor. This undoubtedly put immense pressure on the soldiers behind the pass.

"Rotate! Quickly rotate the second team to reinforce. Hold on and buy time for the engineers to repair the equipment."

The commander reacted quickly, but the soldiers' actions were not necessarily fast enough. By the time the manpower arrived, the second, and final, gate had developed worrying cracks.

Admittedly, their mission was not to stop an army of 20,000 with a single checkpoint, but their effect on weakening the enemy was too poor.

……

Storm Hill.

Bernal, who had been keeping his distance, stood up.

He needed to see the battlefield on the higher, more distant hillside, which was now the key point. Whoever occupied the advantageous terrain would end the battle faster, so the fighting was fierce, with people's brains turned to mush, blood and gore, and corpses strewn everywhere.

Blood flowed like a river at the foot of the two bunker towers on the hillside. Attackers kept rushing up and dying, while the defenders were constantly being worn down and could no longer hold out.

"...How many years has it been since the world has seen a war of this magnitude?"

The last time this happened was probably during the Fragment Wars; a commander capable of unleashing such destructive power would certainly be considered a demigod.

They all possessed noble lineage, genuinely privileged backgrounds, inherent legitimacy, and an aura of prestige. In contrast, the newcomers and those who had faded into obscurity were alone, having earned their place purely through hard work.

It surprisingly gives off an atmosphere of the rise of the first king.

Even though Ge Fulei has been away from the border region for many years, those legends have never faded. Everyone knows that the War King is the one who conquered everything from scratch, and he has the absolute qualities of a king.

After a long period of time, it is once again the goddess Marika who summons the Faded Ones to break the deadlock and stir up the stagnant waters. Who will be swept away by the turbulent waves brought by Frilian?

Roar!

Suddenly, the battlefield took a new turn when Feilong arrived at the hillside watchtower and defeated the defending troops at the stronghold.

They looked quite excited, and they shed the stereotype of being crazy and unstable. They also had an aura of soul healing. The silver-haired girl gave a few hand signals to take over the stronghold.

Frilian caught some dragons while passing by Lake Yakil.

I originally planned to try using taming or puppetry magic, but these big guys were willing to pledge allegiance to the strong, so it was much easier to just release their pressure. I decided to just use that.

Could it be because she had come into contact with many ancient dragons and flying dragons that she sensed a strong sense of kinship and chose to trust them? But that's not important; for Frilian, pragmatism comes first.

"She really did tame the dragon!"

The battle was unfolding so rapidly that Bernal was no longer in a state of shock; the hillside bunker had changed hands, and now the Southern Army was launching an attack from its elevated position.

Meanwhile, the dragon riders kept banging on the iron gate, making it creak and groan under the strain.

The Southern Army had the numerical advantage, and even after a series of repairs and reinforcements, Storm Pass could not accommodate too many people, barely managing to hold out with only a thousand men.

Immediately afterwards, the command flag fluttered, pointing far into the distance, signaling the start of the general offensive.

Their shouts of battle were deafening as they rushed up and blocked the gate. Their weight alone was enough to make it shake, and they had reached their limit. The only question now was: how long would it take to completely eliminate them?

"Smash the checkpoints."

The effect of the flying dragon combined with the hillside bunker is not just about having an additional attack point, but about having a commanding position over the Storm level.

The soldiers guarding the city wall looked up and saw the flying dragon baring its fangs and claws, their hearts pounding with fear.

"Don't get distracted, stay focused."

However, the warning came too late. The mountain demon quickly pushed the catapult back to the original position of the bunker, and huge rocks flew in with a whooshing sound, instantly casting a large shadow overhead and crashing down with the wind.

Boom!

A single boulder can leave indelible damage on a narrow city wall, or even cause it to collapse.

Storm Pass, after all, is not a world-class fortress like Stoneville City that needs to defend a region. It is much more fragile, and it was immediately reduced to ruins. The temporary fortifications were collapsing.

"Quickly push the stone away."

Worst of all, it blocked the flow of traffic on the city walls.

The defending soldiers frantically pushed it away with all their might, and it tumbled into the city with a crash. The sudden commotion caused their allies below to shout angrily, "How are we supposed to defend against a frontal attack if you throw it like this?!"

Before he could finish speaking, a long spear pierced through a gap in the fence and took his life. He would never be angry again.

Even if you manage to push a rock away, it doesn't mean it's over. The catapults on the other side of the hill are also fully armed and aimed.

dong dong!

The relentless attacks covered the area above the city walls. Although there weren't many firing points, their overwhelming suppressive power forced the attackers to flee in panic. No matter how much the commander urged them, they still huddled together in large numbers.

"A bunch of cowards, you left the front line to the enemy."

Without the suppression of the city wall's firing positions, the Dragon Eater squad pushed the battering rams even harder, ramming them with increasing vigor, causing the iron fences to bend and collapse with a sickening sound.

They vowed to be the first force to storm the city, certain that they would receive a reward from Lady Frilian.