36 Escorting the Wounded

The demonic army suffered a disastrous defeat today as the first-level mages arrived on the battlefield. Additionally, with the fortresses reclaimed and Commander Erwin's attacks on other fronts, they were able to repel the enemy once again.

After defeating the orcs, Lieutenant Colonel Marvin did not enter the castle to join the Eighth Brigade but took the time to gather the remains of the fallen soldiers and treat the wounded.

Damian led the troops to the Seventh Fortress and met with the remnants of soldiers from other squads.

After more than a month of not seeing each other, everyone was thrilled to reunite with their comrades. After the brutal battles, everyone now felt they had survived the battle of the century.

Especially the main squads from the last three fortresses, which had been holding the defense line for over a month, had suffered very heavy losses. Except for the Sixth Squad, there were fewer than 400 soldiers left, including over 100 wounded.

"How's the situation with the Seventh Squad?"

Seeing Damian, everyone who had ever seen him on the battlefield recognized him. Many faces that had lost the will to live regained the flame they needed to keep going.

It seemed that the war for more than a month had pushed their spirits to the limit.

"After replenishing the fallen soldiers, the Seventh Squad has not experienced tough battles during this recovery time. But they have fought several victorious battles with Lieutenant Colonel Marvin. This time, there are over a thousand soldiers helping with the evacuation of the wounded."

After hearing Damian's report, Captain Dante said in a serious tone, "Among all the remaining squads in the fortresses, you are the ones holding the front line the best. We need to reinforce some defenses and replenish the defense line."

He knew this man had stayed on this battlefield for a long time. Damian had no possibility of refusing, much less criticizing him, because many humans had died at this warfront defending the fortresses.

If, for some reason, the fortresses were taken by the enemy, Damian was aware that humans would be pushed back to the cities with magical shields. That would not only cause them to lose many resources but also prove them inferior to the demons they were tasked with eliminating.

Now, with the appearance of the orcs, this problem could become even more complicated. However, in these battles, they had not been overpowered, which was important as it showed how strong the human army had become in the north.

"Captain Dante, rest assured that we will keep these fortresses strong, but we have to transfer the thousands of wounded from these battles. What should we do according to these ideas?"

"So many have been injured?"

"Even the priests cannot do much with such injuries. It would be wise to consider that those soldiers will not return to the battlefield." Damian had seen many severed limbs and soldiers dead in a pool of blood; those images still lingered in his mind.

When Dante learned of this, both began to devise a plan according to their main needs.

Damian was left with the task of keeping the fortresses safe, but now the most important thing was to count the casualties.

Marvin had returned with his army, and in the strategy chamber, he asked, "What are the casualties?"

"The First Reconnaissance Squadron suffered 15 casualties; 35 were severely wounded, and 9 were lightly wounded. Among the allied fortresses, enemy attacks resulted in over 1,500 dead, 2,300 severely wounded, and 500 lightly wounded. The combined attack with allied forces resulted in a total of 5,600 casualties, 7,283 severely wounded, and 12,733 lightly wounded. We lost a total of 1,300 warhorses, and the reconnaissance squadrons have been wiped out."

Damian closed his eyes as he listened to the report. Only now did he know how many people had died, and that was a terrifying number.

After several battles, the casualties exceeded 10,000.

Especially in this battle, although the results were brilliant, aiming to exterminate the enemy resulted in very disastrous and unproductive losses. But considering they were going to be wiped out, what greatly improved the battlefield was the appearance of the Eighth Brigade, led by Commander Erwin.

Now, including Damian's half-squad of mounted infantry, the total number of soldiers able to fight was only about 240.

As for the mages, fortunately, none of them had died. Everyone knew that the most important resource currently was the mages; they had kept the battlefield in line, so no mage should die.

Additionally, considering the wounded, who must be immediately removed from the battlefield, everyone was aware that they should be evacuated immediately or they would be questioned by everyone, which was not favorable at all.

After crossing the mountain range, Marvin's detachment fought without reinforcements. Once morale collapsed, there was no possibility of continuing to fight.

Lieutenant Colonel Marvin thought for a moment and decided to send the wounded soldiers back to Harden Castle, as it was the most prudent thing to do at this time.

"Damian, you will lead two small teams of soldiers to carry out the mission of transporting wounded soldiers. The others will follow me on the main road to cooperate with Baron Harden in an attempt to ambush the demons.

Although Damian still wanted to keep fighting, since an order had been issued, he could not refuse, especially when thousands of lives would be in his hands.

Lieutenant Colonel Marvin left all the carriages with Damian and then mobilized some packhorses for the Eighth Brigade.

The severely wounded were crowded into the carriage, and the lightly wounded clung to their horses and returned to the rear with Damian leading the way.

Half of the soldiers stayed behind to rebuild the fortresses and clear the battlefield.

The demons in the mountain range did not want to fight now, but at that moment, they discovered Damian's squad. But fearing that something like this might happen, Dante sent a squad of reinforcements from the rear.

The convoy of wounded soldiers boldly crossed the canyon pass and returned to Harden Castle.

The mission went smoothly, but unfortunately, six of the severely wounded died.

Soldiers severely injured in battle could basically save their lives if they survived three days afterward. However, many wounded soldiers did not survive for three days, and the most important factor in the deaths of wounded soldiers was poison that even priests could not cure.

Furthermore, although the priest had healing abilities, he would prioritize treating officers.

The soldiers would die in the next two days. The waiting process for death was undoubtedly very distressing.

Especially for the surviving soldiers, seeing the tragic deaths of their brothers filled many people's eyes with tears, which was very sad.

"How is the situation on the defensive line? Have they seen Baron Harden?"

Many of the soldiers who stayed behind to protect this castle were glad to see Damian return with many wounded, which meant only one thing: they had won the battle.

"We have regained lost ground. Right now, the baron is in battle, but many of his men have fallen. Captains of all levels are waiting for medical help, so it would be better to send requests for help to the main city."

Damian, hidden under his hood, looked at the soldiers and ordered, "You may not know me, but I am in charge. Everyone go to rest, and let the wounded enter the rest tents; they will be attended to immediately. I will take care of protecting this place, so don't worry."

Seeing that everyone had arrived without any problems, Damian manipulated some magically created soldiers around the castle to serve as sensors.

Being in such a dangerous place, it was the least he could do. Even sleeping should not be a problem in this place, so staying focused should at least help him survive.

"Bringing out my Divine General would cause a lot of chaos; I think he should not be introduced to the battlefield yet." Damian thought as he dressed after bathing.

Conditions in the north were so torturous that he should stay focused; magic could at least make life easier in many ways.