"Master Oakleaf, what brings you here?" Unas hurried to greet him.
"Hehe, if you don't come soon, my roof is going to be blown off!"
Oakleaf glanced at the two young Druids. He had originally planned to stay at the outpost, tending to the mushrooms while waiting for his four other companions to arrive.
But two young Elves came knocking and kept arguing until nightfall, leaving Oakleaf with no choice but to rush over himself that very night.
The devastation and barren landscape along the way pained the three Druids, while the two young Elves were so distressed that their eyes turned red, and they had just managed to argue with the guards blocking their path.
Since Oakleaf had come, he should be treated with courtesy. Unas gestured for the old man to come into the Tent to discuss the matter, but stopped the two young Elves, saying, "You two have been making a disturbance in the camp. According to military law, you deserve at least twenty lashes. Come back after you've received your punishment."
"We're not your subordinates, don't try to bind us with your military law!"
Unas's suppressed anger surged, and he roared, "Once you come to my camp, you must abide by my rules, or get out!"
"You...!"
"Enough!" Oakleaf, who had already entered, turned around and roared, "You two stay outside and reflect on your actions. Don't come in!"
The old Druid rarely showed such anger, startling the two young Elves into silence.
The punishment of 20 lashes was drowned out by Oakleaf's angry roar. Unas didn't pursue the matter further and turned to walk into the Tent with the old Druid.
The two young Elves were left awkwardly stuck in place, unable to move forward or backward. Standing there as punishment was a small form of discipline.
"Please don't take offense, sir. They look quite old, but they're just young children." As soon as the two sat down, Oakleaf quickly apologized.
Unas shrugged, feigning magnanimity. "Personally, I certainly wouldn't mind, but military discipline is essential for any army. This is an exception, I suppose. Out of respect for the master, I can spare them from punishment."
"Your heart is as vast as the sky," Oakleaf complimented. "Thank you for your tolerance."
Unas waved his hand and got down to business, "Hasn't everyone arrived yet?"
"I was just about to tell the adults about this when I contacted the four companions who haven't arrived yet. They're less than half a day's journey from the Canyon and will be there soon."
This is not good news for Unas; if two more environmentalism fanatics arrive, it could cause even greater conflict.
Seeing that the Warden remained silent, Oakleaf continued, "As I've traveled along, the Canyon has truly changed dramatically..."
The Druid had already been quite tactful, but Unas immediately interrupted, "If the master wants to persuade me to stop burning the forest, then there's no need for us to continue this conversation. Today's victory has proven the effectiveness of fire attacks. I will not abandon a simple method of victory to save a few trees, nor will the soldiers agree with me doing so."
"Is there an easier way to win?"
The Druid had indeed come prepared. Unas asked curiously, "Master, please tell us."
Oakleaf's tactics are quite simple: he uses magic to turn trees into Treant, which can both help in combat and prevent them from being destroyed—almost a win-win situation.
"Is it possible? We have a 20-kilometer stretch of woodland ahead, with at least 100,000 trees of all sizes. Can you turn them all into Treant?"
Oakleaf explained, "Of course not. Although saplings can become Treant, they rarely survive. Only older ones can live. The target of the spell can only be an old tree with a certain level of intelligence. I estimate that finding a hundred suitable old trees in this forest would be quite good."
The Ancient of War, Unas thought of the Night Elves ' weapon of war. The Oakleaf he temporarily transformed certainly wasn't up to that level, but he could still test its effects.
How long will it take to convert these 100 Treant?
"I can't handle such a large workload by myself. After the Night Elves all arrive tomorrow, it will take about a week for the five Druids to work together, plus the time it takes to find the old tree."
"A week?!"
Unas's mood plummeted instantly. He didn't have time to wait that long. Had this old man lost his mind?
"These Treant will definitely be a great help in the upcoming battles in the Forest, so I think it's worth waiting a few more days."
Unas had originally planned the war to last only a week, because the Dwarf reinforcements had only brought a week's worth of food. If the fighting continued, he would have to feed them all, and feeding 2,500 people would be an extremely heavy burden. He couldn't afford to waste time and put himself in that situation.
"Since the Treants are helpful in attacking the Forest, we'll recruit them after we've reached the Spider Forest. I can't wait that long. Master Oakleaf, you don't understand military logistics, so don't get involved in this."
"But..."
"Master, don't you want to find the Purple-robed Person's lair as soon as possible and rescue the kidnapped Elves? Your fellow humans should be more important than plants, shouldn't they?"
The Druid was speechless, choked with embarrassment. Unas rose to see him off, saying, "It's getting late, Master, you should go back and rest. I should go to sleep too."
Oakleaf shook his head with a wry smile and had no choice but to leave the Tent. The two young Elves outside could tell from his expression that the talks had broken down. Their disappointment immediately turned into anger, and they wanted to rush in to argue with the Warden, but Oakleaf stopped them with his arm raised.
"Arguing is pointless; let's think of another solution."
Hearing the footsteps of the three Druids receding into the distance, Unas breathed a sigh of relief. He had to speed up the attack tomorrow, otherwise two more Druids might cause trouble again.
Before dawn the next day, Unas got up and urged his men to get ready to set off. By the time the first rays of sunlight appeared, the team had already marched two or three kilometers.
Yesterday's extermination operation had a significant impact; there was no trace of spiders in the vicinity, and burning several forests didn't force out many spiders. Clearly, most of the creatures had migrated towards the Spider Forest.
But the further they went, the more spiders refused to leave, and the army repeated yesterday's battles, steadily advancing forward.
Unas was working exceptionally hard today, charging back and forth like a madman. The short journey had already exhausted three horses, which invigorated the soldiers, and the army's pace quickened.
But as noon approached, the Druids finally appeared.
A scout finally caught up with the Warden. "Reporting, Commander! The Night Elves are casting a spell in a forest to prevent our troops from setting fires. Please give further instructions!"
Unas was also furious upon hearing this. He disagreed, but the Elves wanted to force themselves on him, betting that he wouldn't dare order them to be burned.
"Come on, take me to see this. I'm going to personally teach these bastards a lesson!" This time, I'll show them who's the tyrant and who's the aggressor!