A sneeze destroys a magical civilization

The lord's mansion near the southwest corner of Mailatma City is brightly lit.

Although it was already late at night, neither the master nor the servant had the slightest intention of falling asleep.

Even though they were very sleepy and exhausted, no one dared to really sleep to death.

Otherwise, God knows when you wake up, you will find that the entire city has been occupied by those ferocious monsters outside the wall and the evil red dragon who commands them.

The chief priests of all the major temples gathered together.

Even churches that believe in gods that do not deal with each other have no intention of fighting among themselves at this moment.

Because they all know very well that once the monster army from outside attacks, it doesn't matter which god you believe in, and they and the believers in the city will eventually die.

As for expecting a god to come and incarnate to save believers at a critical moment...

Don’t even think about it!

Since the Year of Turmoil, the god Io has appeared, using his supreme power and authority to bring the gods down to earth.

It even permanently changed the relationship between gods and mortals throughout Faerûn.

The gods are extremely cautious about sending incarnations to the mortal world.

At least in the past two years, I haven't heard of any incarnation of God coming to the mortal world.

In addition to the priests from various temples, the owner of the only mage tower in Mylatma was also present.

Coupled with the few elite adventurers and mercenaries who did not participate in the previous initiative...

It can be said that everyone with power in the entire city is here.

The lord, Count Wicks Targett, who had not slept for two days, rubbed his dry eyes vigorously, then took a deep breath and said: "Everyone! I think you should already know how dangerous the situation is. Wait for those monsters We have built enough siege equipment to last up to three days under the current conditions."

"Three days? Lord, please forgive me. Can those civilians recruited temporarily without any combat training really survive the brutal fighting for an hour without collapsing?"

The chief priest of the guard god Heim stood up and asked with a serious expression.

As a high-ranking priest who serves the God of Guards, both doctrine and belief itself determine that he cannot retreat or escape, and can only live and die with the city.

Because the most emphasized doctrines of the Church of Helm are persistence, protection and sacrifice.

Especially protecting the weak, poor, injured, old, young, women and children must be put above one's own life.

This is why the camp of the Guardian God Heim is clearly lawful and neutral, but is still regarded by many people as a good camp.

When cities, villages, and fortresses are attacked from outside, the priests and believers serving Helm will always appear first and risk everything to fight against the invaders.

"If the priests of all the major temples are willing to contribute and provide enough first-level divine spells [Remove Fear] and [Blessings], it should be able to barely sustain it for about three days.

Of course, this is just a theoretical state.

I'm also not sure what the outcome would have been if the fearsome red dragon had ended up in person. "

Wicks Targett explained helplessly.

He understood that the chief priest of the Helm Temple asked this question mainly to understand the current combat effectiveness of the army, rather than deliberately seeking trouble.

"I think the women and children in the city should be sent away by sea first."

The owner of the mage tower, an old mage who looked to be sixty or seventy years old, put forward his own suggestions.

Due to the awkward geographical location of Mailatma and the chaotic situation in the Kingdom of Tethyr, there is no decent arcane spellcasting power in this city.

Most of the mages and warlocks who escaped from Amn are basically willing to go to Calimshan in the south where magic knowledge and resources are richer.

Therefore, he had no confidence that he could defeat the snake mages hidden in the monster army outside the city with just a few assistants and apprentices in the spell confrontation.

"No! No one can be allowed to leave at this time!

Not to mention how vulnerable ships sailing on the sea are when faced with red dragons falling from the sky. Just one breath of flames can burn everyone to death. The possible loss of morale alone is a big trouble.

The reason why the temporarily recruited civilians on the city wall still did not collapse or escape when facing such a huge monster army.

The root cause is that they know that behind them are their defenseless wives, children, relatives and friends.

How many people would give up resistance and run for their lives once they learned that their wives and children had been moved to a safe place?

We can't take this risk! "

The middle-aged knight who was responsible for managing and commanding the army stood up suddenly and retorted loudly and excitedly.

As the person present who is most aware of the current situation of the city defense army, he knows better than anyone else that if a ship leaves the port, the momentum that has been finally gathered to fight the enemy to the death will collapse instantly.

At that time, I am afraid that there will be no need to wait for the monsters to attack, and civil strife will break out because of the competition for the right to board the ship.

After all, anyone who is not a fool knows that it is impossible for a ship docked in the port to take away everyone in the city.

"Then you mean to wait until the city is broken and let those monsters slaughter and enslave women and children?"

The senior priest of Ilmat suddenly intervened, and his tone and attitude became extremely angry and severe.

Although he was only wearing a shabby robe, he looked no different from a beggar in the slums.

But no one dared to ignore the emblem worn on the chest, shining with sacred and dazzling light.

The middle-aged knight was obviously taken aback and quickly defended: "No! Of course not! I mean..."

Before he could finish speaking, the chief priest of Heim waved his hand and interrupted: "No need to explain. I understand what you mean. In this situation, no matter who leaves Mailatma by boat, it will cause damage to the city wall. Those civilians who were temporarily recruited lost their fighting spirit."

Just when the senior priest of Ilmat was about to say something, a soldier wearing a breastplate suddenly ran in from outside and shouted breathlessly: "Your Majesty... Count! There are people outside. A group of strangers say they have a way to help us solve our current crisis."

"stranger?"

Lord Wix Targett had a very puzzled expression on his face.

"That's right! They claim to have flown into the city from the south bank of the Is River under the cover of night. There is also a paladin who serves the God of Suffering."

As he spoke, the soldier presented a wooden badge with a carved pattern of hands tied with ropes.

The senior Ilmat priest present hurriedly stepped forward to identify it, and immediately confirmed: "This is indeed the emblem of my Lord."

"Invite them in immediately!"

Count Wicks Targett made his decision with almost no hesitation.

At this moment, he was like a man walking in the desert who was about to die of thirst.

At this time, no matter what someone hands over, as long as it is liquid, he will drink it without hesitation.

As for whether it is poisonous or harmful to the body...

Does this make any sense to a man who is dying of thirst?

The answer is obviously no!

What's more, everyone in this city can escape, but only the Target family, who have been local lords for generations, cannot escape.

Once you escape, it means giving up your right to rule the land.

Not only will he lose his noble status and title, but it may also become a stain on the entire family that will never be erased.

This is why many nobles from all over Faerûn know that they have no chance of winning when facing a huge number of enemies and monsters, but they still send their women and children away, choosing to stay and fight to the death.

Because a heroic death in battle will leave a good name to the family and future generations.

Otherwise, once you are given a nickname like "The Family of Cowards," it will not be easy to take it off.