As I watched Azpen walk away, I returned to my tent and fell into a deep sleep.
A loud blast suddenly echoed through the camp.
I jolted awake, instantly grabbing the spear lying beside me.
"We're under attack!"
That was my first thought.
Without hesitation, I rushed outside, spear in hand.
Instead of lizardmen, I saw the morning sun slowly rising over the horizon, its golden rays peeking through the trees like a child hiding behind them.
For a brief moment, my heart calmed.
Then I immediately shook myself awake.
This was still a battlefield.
My sensory field spread around me.
Every mercenary had rushed out with weapons in hand, only to realize it was merely the morning wake-up horn. A few mercenary officers continued blowing the horns loudly, making sure no one remained asleep.
I walked toward the large water barrels.
A long line had already formed.
Still half asleep, I stood there holding my spear, my eyes threatening to close again.
When my turn finally came, I leaned my spear against the barrel, scooped up a bowl of water, and splashed it over my face.
The icy water shocked me awake.
It wasn't enough to remove all my fatigue, but it cleared my mind.
As I returned toward my tent, I noticed a mercenary feeding Rusty what looked like horse feed.
Rusty happily ate it.
I nodded in thanks.
The man simply smiled before walking away.
Breakfast was soon distributed.
A hard loaf of bread and a bowl of thin soup.
The soup was little more than warm water with a faint color.
No vegetables.
Almost no meat.
I noticed other mercenaries dipping their bread into the soup before eating it.
I copied them.
Even soaked, the bread was still tough enough to make my jaw ache.
While everyone was eating, Azpen climbed onto the wooden platform.
Unlike yesterday, he didn't shout.
He simply stood there, waiting.
Only after nearly everyone had finished eating did he begin to speak.
His voice remained calm and steady.
""We took heavy losses."
"We lost friends."
"We lost comrades."
"Some of us even lost parts of ourselves."
His gaze swept over the wounded.
"I won't tell you not to grieve."
"But not today."
"When this battle is over..."
"You'll have all the time you need."
"For now..."
"We still have a war to finish."
He paused before continuing.
"I intend to finish what we started."
"We're destroying that nest."
Murmurs spread through the mercenaries.
Yesterday's battle had already cost countless lives.
Charging the nest again sounded like marching toward death.
Azpen waited until the whispers died down.
"But..."
"We're not repeating yesterday."
"This time..."
"We lure them out."
"We trap them."
"And then we kill them."
"We retreat immediately."
"Our goal isn't to destroy them."
"It's to keep them occupied."
"Our scouts and mages are searching for the enemy's rear force."
"We still don't know whether their rear cavalry has reunited with the nest."
"So we'll force them to stay alert."
"Tonight..."
"Our mages will bombard the nest."
"I'll give you ten minutes."
"Prepare yourselves."
"We ride."
The camp immediately burst into motion.
Mounted mercenaries rushed toward their beasts.
The infantry received different orders.
Their task was to protect the camp and cover our retreat if things went wrong.
Unlike yesterday's assault, where our only objective had been to crash into the nest and kill as many as possible...
Today's mission was a raid.
Hit.
Retreat.
Repeat.
I hurried back to my tent.
Rusty stood quietly, watching the morning sun.
I grabbed my sword before pausing.
For a moment, I considered bringing my bow.
Then I shook my head.
The spear and sword would be enough.
Ten minutes passed quickly.
Everyone gathered before Azpen.
He looked across the mounted mercenaries.
Then he raised his hand.
"Move."
The raid had begun.