I can evolve everything

Chapter 84 The Calm Before the War

After the meeting, the entire encampment sprang into action.

Under the command of Ryan and Hank, five hundred soldiers began to work methodically in the canyon.

Renn was not idle.

He personally led his men, carrying heavy barricades, and walked on the front line.

Now, his physical strength is incredibly formidable.

While others struggle to lift even one wooden stake with two people, he carried two by himself, walking on the snow as if it were flat ground.

"Is this the power of the Knight?"

Several soldiers watched Ryan's retreating figure and whispered among themselves.

Night falls.

The basic framework of the defense line has been completed.

Raine stood on the cliff face of the narrow passage, looking down at the narrow passage below.

"What are you thinking about?"

Ella came over carrying an oil lamp and sat down next to Renn, her legs dangling over the edge of the cliff.

"I'm wondering how long we can hold out."

Raine looked down at the soldiers wiping their shields.

Many of them may not survive this winter.

"Don't be so pessimistic." Ella took out a piece of jerky from her pocket, broke it in half, and handed it to Rein. "Although that mage uncle seems quite unreliable, I've seen the explosive magic circle he set up. Its power is definitely strong enough. As long as those monsters dare to rush in, it can definitely blow them to the sky."

Ryan took the jerky and took a bite.

"The Dire Wolf King isn't stupid."

"and----"

Ryan recalled what Barron had said to him that day.

"There's that old monster named Hughes directing things from behind the scenes. This won't be just a simple beast tide."

Ella was silent for a moment, then stuffed the rest of the jerky into her mouth and mumbled, "Who cares? You're in front of me anyway. As long as you don't fall, I can plunge the sword into the monster's throat."

She turned her head and looked at Ryan's profile.

"Hey, Ryan."

"Um?"

"If we make it back alive this time, that two-handed greatsword—" Ella pointed to the huge thing behind Renn, "can I borrow it for a couple of days?"

Renn paused for a moment, then a slight smile appeared on his lips.

"Sure. As long as you can carry it."

Renn gave a casual reply and said no more. He took the two-handed greatsword off his back and planted it on the snow.

The sword tip sank three-tenths of an inch into the ground, producing a dull thud.

Night gradually enveloped Shattered Tooth Canyon.

The snowstorm did not stop as night fell; instead, it became even more intense.

There is no warm fireplace here, nor a soft bed.

The soldiers stationed at the base are taking every opportunity to rest and replenish their strength.

To save fuel, the campfire was kept small, just enough to keep people from freezing.

The firewood exploded in the flames, scattering a few dark red sparks before quickly going out.

This is the taste of battlefield.

Raine found a corner to sit down and took out a piece of bread from his pocket. He drew his longsword from his waist, sliced ​​the bread into thin slices, and then toasted them one by one over the fire until they were soft.

"You really have a good appetite."

Ella sat opposite him.

Ryan stuffed a piece of hot toast into his mouth and swallowed it without chewing it much.

"If you don't eat, your muscles will protest when you swing your sword later," Renn said casually, cutting off another slice. "You should eat some too. You'll miss this dough ball when the fight starts."

Ella pursed her lips, but still took a piece of bread from Ryan's hand.

She took a small bite, and her brows furrowed instantly.

"What's mixed in here? Sawdust?"

"Who knows? As long as we can fill our stomachs, that's fine."

Just as the two were having this pointless conversation, a clanging sound came from not far away.

The ever-slovenly battle mage, Thales, was walking back from the direction of the narrow passage.

His mage robes were so worn that their original color was no longer visible, and they were covered in all sorts of oil stains.

At this moment, he had none of the elegance expected of a mage; the short staff inlaid with rubies in his hand was being used as a crutch.

"This awful weather—!"

Thales walked to the campfire and plopped down on the ground.

He took a slice of bread directly from the campfire and swallowed it in two or three bites.

"Is the magic circle over there all set up?" Renn stopped eating and looked at Thales.

"It's done, it's done."

Thales waved his hand impatiently: "I buried twelve explosive magic circles on the rock walls on both sides."

When the topic turned to his professional field, a gleam of light flashed in the eyes of this disheveled middle-aged man, and he appeared much more energetic.

"As long as those monsters dare to squeeze into the narrow passage—hehe." Thales stretched out his filthy fingers, "I can make the rocks on both sides collapse, giving them a live burial and cremation. I'll make sure even their bone fragments are buried solid."

"However—" Thales changed the subject, "this has wiped out half a year's savings. The materials for making those magic arrays were sold by the gram! If I can't get reimbursed by the Northern Fortress, I'm not doing this."

"As long as we can hold on, money is not a problem."

On the other side of the campfire, the silent priestess Vina was kneeling on the snow.

She didn't join in the chatter; instead, she was organizing her first-aid kit.

In this world, low-level priests don't have the luxury of using divine spells to heal wounds at all times. Most of the time, they only perform simple treatments and bandages on superficial injuries.

She threw rolls of linen bandages into boiling water, then used tongs to take them out and hung them on a rack next to the fire to dry.

On the spread-out tarpaulin, there was a row of tools: a saw, tweezers, and a red-hot iron rod for cauterizing wounds.

"Do you need any help?" Ella looked at the medical equipment and couldn't help but shrink back.

Vina raised her head, her cold face devoid of any expression.

"unnecessary."

Her voice was as cold as her eyes: "All you need to do is focus on how to kill the enemy, and make sure your intestines don't spill out. Stitching up internal organs is a hassle, and in this low temperature, wounds heal very slowly. Most people don't die from the pain, they freeze to death."

She picked up the barbed saw and checked its sharpness by the firelight.

"If it's just a superficial injury, don't expect me to use high-level divine magic to regenerate your limbs. I have a limited number of divine magic slots, which are reserved for seriously injured people."

Ella stuck out her tongue and whispered to Raine, "This woman is scarier than those dire wolves."

Raine didn't say anything.

He looked at Vina's hands, which were covered in chilblains, even though she was only in her early twenties.

Those weren't hands that had been pampered and spoiled; they were hands that had pulled people back from the brink of death countless times.

That's enough.

Ryan swallowed the last piece of bread and patted the crumbs off his hands.

He stood up and walked to the edge of the cliff.