Byron and Asalina had no intention of wasting too much time at the banquet. Vanessa, being a sea siren, had even less need for human food. King Audris clearly understood this, so once everyone had eaten their fill, the three expeditionary commanders and the human king immediately headed to the castle's military hall, where a sand table displaying the overall situation on the Southern Front Battlefield was waiting for them.
"This is Fort Greta, where we are currently located—this is the largest military fortress on the northwestern frontier of the Highland Kingdom, as well as a defensive stronghold directly bordering the Ogre Tribes Nation. Centered on this place, the surrounding six castles and twelve highland Mage Towers all belong to Fort Greta's defensive system. These facilities are linked by underground tunnels, and to prevent those monsters from attacking from below, we reinforced the underground structures of the defensive belt with elemental magic and set up a large number of traps."
King Audris introduced the models and markers on the sand table, then drew an arc in front of Fort Greta with his finger.
"This used to be part of the forest barrier. There were several strongholds inside it, but they have all been destroyed now. The forest barrier was burned away by wildfire, and some of the surviving ancient guardian trees have temporarily retreated to the hills to recover. But although the line of defense here has been breached, many of the fortifications and underground shelters should still be usable—the Aberrants do not need those 'dwellings,' but the commanders behind them do, so quite a few of those structures have been preserved."
"It looks like a very... solid defensive system," Byron said after studying it for a while. He had to admit that the Highland Kingdom's preparations against wasteland incursions