Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king

Chapter 337: Other side of the coin

Chapter 337: Other side of the coin

The first rays of the sun broke over the horizon, casting a soft golden light across the rebel camp perched atop the fortified hill. The morning mist clung to the trenches and palisades, painting the scene in an eerie stillness that felt like the calm after a storm.

Inor stood near the edge of the hill, his arms crossed tightly against his chest. His face was drawn, his gaze fixed on the winding path leading to the camp. The faint sounds of weary footsteps and clinking metal grew louder as the remnants of the night attack emerged from the distance. He had risen before the dawn, unable to sleep, and now watched the somber procession with growing dread as he sadly found out that his worries were well-founded

Of the three hundred who had departed under Gerric's command, fewer than fifty returned, their leader not even being with them.

Their battered forms shuffled up the slope, their heads bowed in defeat. Mud and blood caked their clothes, and their hollow eyes saying everything that words could not 

As the survivors neared the trenches, those within the camp sprang to life. Soldiers helped their comrades over the earthen barriers, while others formed a silent line, their expressions grim as they counted the few who had made it back.