Ang slowly opened his eyes, sweeping his gaze across the smoke-filled battlefield before looking at the defenders atop the walls. In a firm, ringing voice, he shouted, "We won this battle!"
Silence fell over the walls, followed by cheers that erupted like a tidal wave.
"Victory!"
"We drove back the lizardmen!"
"The lizardmen have retreated!"
The soldiers raised their weapons excitedly, and some even dropped to their knees and wept aloud.
The tension and exhaustion of the past few days poured out like a flood at this moment.
They embraced one another and slapped hands in celebration, the joy of surviving a brush with death filling every heart.
"Have the mess hall prepare extra food." Ang smiled as he gave the order to an adjutant beside him.
"Yes, sir!" The adjutant immediately rushed down from the wall to relay the command, unable to suppress the delight on his face.
Ang let out a soft breath and turned back toward headquarters.
Not long after he took his seat, officers of every rank arrived one after another, their faces still carrying the heat of battle and excitement.
They filed in and took their seats along both sides of the long table, the atmosphere still lively.
"The lizardmen had roughly seven hundred thousand troops the day before yesterday." Ang looked around at everyone, his tone solemn yet proud. "In less than two days, we reduced their numbers by nearly two hundred thousand."
"That many?" a young officer blurted out, unable to hide his shock.
Discussion immediately broke out, whispers echoing through the room.
Some nodded in praise, while others incredulously reviewed the battle.
"Most of that was accomplished by cluster shells and magic bombs," Ang continued. "Our soldiers killed around twenty thousand enemies in face-to-face combat."
"But those were hard-fought, face-to-face battles." An