In the darkest hour before dawn, Unas sneaked back to the graveyard. This time, he brought with him a half-person-high iron chest he had bought at the blacksmith's shop, and a set of chainmail armor he had obtained from the Argent Dawn's supply depot.
After descending into the tomb, Natasha let the grumbling Gnomes woman crawl into the box, instructing her not to make a sound. Natasha had already changed into her chainmail, donned her battle robes, and put on her helmet, making her look like a rather thin soldier.
Unas nodded in satisfaction, shouldered the iron box, and called out. The two quickly climbed to the surface. Dawn was breaking. He swiftly covered up the traces of the tomb entrance. "Don't make a sound on the way. I'll handle everything."
This is the time when the Monastery's guards are most lax. The soldiers on duty at midnight are at their peak of fatigue. Unas is also quite well-known in the Monastery, and he managed to get past the two patrols he encountered on the way without any real danger.
Arriving at the Argent Dawn's camp felt like returning home; there was no longer any fear of being questioned. Unas headed straight for the quartermaster's office. Yesterday, the quartermaster had assigned him a small wagon to transport provisions and supplies for twenty men. His immediate priority was to sneak the conspicuous iron box on his back into the wagon's supplies.
Having successfully retrieved the carriage, the two headed to the recruits' camp, where Raphael had already assembled everyone according to the orders Unas had given him the day before.
Unas praised the curly-haired boy a few times, then said to him, "Now I'm giving you your second task: protect our carriage and don't let any suspicious people near it."
"Yes!" Raphael responded loudly, heading straight for the carriage and standing guard to one side.
"Let's go!" Without another word, Unas gave the order and led the way to the stables.
Tyrosus's order was to depart today to assume his post, but there was no stipulation that it would be this early. Everyone assumed that Unas would need to make further preparations today and would not depart until close to noon.
Erigor had originally said he would bring members of the Brotherhood of the Light to see him off, Unas outwardly agreed, but today he secretly left early, just to avoid attracting attention. Erigor is destined to suffer a soul-snatching blow.
As for the extra person beside Unas, none of the new recruits dared to ask too many questions, all guessing that it was a new recruit that Unas had secretly recruited that night.
The group mounted their warhorses and soon arrived at the Monastery gate. The guards at the gate were quite strict with those entering the Monastery, but much more lenient with those leaving. The captain of the guard checked the pass and quickly counted the number of people before letting them pass.
After leading his team at full speed for a while, Unas finally breathed a sigh of relief. The feeling of being a thief was both tense and exciting, yet also unpleasant.
The entrance to the Venomspider Gorge is not far from the Monastery. After an hour's horse ride, Unas saw the lush green meadow again. Following the path through the green hills and grass for a little while, the stronghold built on the high ground came into view in the distance.
Not much different from when he last came here. The garrison in the stronghold had already received news that the new Warden was coming soon, but they did not expect it to be so soon. The arrival of Unas and his party immediately caused a great commotion.
After Holiya's death, this place was taken over by one of his middle-aged officers. Unas had met this Captain Qiaosen once before. After exchanging pleasantries with him, who had rushed over, Qiaosen warmly led the group toward the military camp.
With someone to take the blame, Qiaosen was very proactive, busily helping to arrange accommodations for Unas and his guards. Unas didn't complain and quickly led the soldiers to set up a row of Tents in a temporarily cleared open space.
Next came the inspection of the military camp. All the officers were gathered in the command tent in the center of the camp. Unas was taken by Qiaosen to the place where the Warden usually worked. As a newly arrived officer, he naturally had to get acquainted with his subordinates. After talking with the officers, Unas got a general understanding of the military strength here.
The Argent Dawn's garrison in Venomspider Gorge had always been around three hundred men. The large number of prisoners they captured after defeating Bessarius recently replenished the force, bringing the total to five hundred. They are commanded by five centurions, with Qiaosen being the most senior among them. The other four stand in front of him, all of whom appear to be battle-hardened young men.
The two friendly races Dwarves and Blood Elves, were also required to form their own guards, but these were kept to a very small size. There were about a hundred Dwarf Warriors, and the Elves had only half the number of Dwarves. Their leaders were the Dwarf lord Dugal Redbrow and the ranger captain Perella Swiftarrow, Unas knew. However, in formal settings, Redbrow was too embarrassed to approach and make overtures.
As for logistics, thanks to the bumper harvest from the fields cultivated by the Monastery in Farshire this season, coupled with the captured reserves from Bessarius, the soldiers' rations, though tight, are not a major problem for the time being.
The problem lies with the refugees. Besides the Argent Dawn garrison, there are over three thousand refugees and prisoners of war from various ethnic groups, and their food supply is an urgent issue.
The Argent Dawn is not a charity and has no capacity to support so many people. The refugees can only obtain food through their own labor. Among them, the Dwarves live the most comfortably. They are skilled in everything from digging tunnels and forging iron to building cities. The Stone Walls protecting the camp entrance and the dense caves that Unas saw on the mountainside when he visited Venomspider Gorge for the second time are mostly the fruits of their labor.
The Blood Elves fared worse. Due to their addiction to Mana Addiction, their magical powers were almost completely paralyzed. Elf slender bodies also made them unable to do any heavy work. However, Elf Rangers were known as the kings of the jungle. Their hunting parties could hunt animals and gather wild fruits in the perilous Canyons and Forests. Moreover, their small numbers meant they didn't need much food, so they could manage for the time being.
As for the captives of hostile races, Kobolds and Ogres are easier to tame and can be used as long-term laborers, so they are treated better. Orcs, Trolls, and Gnolls, on the other hand, are both fierce and unruly races with a deep-seated hatred for humans, so it is best to exploit them to death and kill them all overnight.
The biggest disaster was the human refugees who made up the largest number of people in the camp. Half of these people who were not accepted by the Monastery were old, weak, sick and disabled. Without the Argent Dawn's private aid, many of them would not survive. However, the number of refugees kept increasing. It was definitely not a solution to just sit around and do nothing. Therefore, the previous garrison Warden also tried to cultivate the land.
Since this stronghold was established with only military defense in mind, the high ground close to the mountain wall was indeed easy to defend and difficult to attack. However, this small area was already crowded with people, so the fields could only be cultivated outside the stronghold.
This behavior would undoubtedly provoke attacks from the spiders, but contrary to the expected harassment, these venomous creatures seem to view the land clearing as a significant encroachment on their territory, and they will come in swarms to retaliate.
In open areas, surrounded by Poison Spiders, the safety of the farmers could not be guaranteed, and several attempts to cultivate the land ended in failure.
Not long ago, someone proposed a bold idea: to relocate the entire camp to Blue Rock Pass —a very narrow section in the latter half of the Canyon, named after a giant rock covered in moss.
The spiders' lair is in a large, dark Forest at the end of the Canyon. If a fortress can be built at Blue Rock Pass to cut off the Poison Spiders ' passage, then the land outside Blue Rock Pass can be safely secured.
"It sounds wonderful, but it's a Recklessness adventure," someone immediately objected when the topic came up. "Moving the camp there will put us in a pincer attack, and we'll only be wiped out in the end!"
"That's alarmist! We may suffer some losses, but how can we break through the current predicament without paying a price?" The centurion named Liante immediately turned red in the face; he clearly supported the relocation of the camp.
Those who opposed him were not to be outdone, and several immediately started shouting at him. Almost everyone wanted to chime in with their opinions on this issue, and the officers split into two factions and began arguing. At present, the radicals were louder, but the conservatives were more numerous.
Seeing this scene, Unas rubbed his Temples. It seemed that being a leader wasn't easy.