At last, they reached the southern bank of the Shattered Ice River before evening. The Iron Bone Tribe's people could now see the sprawling camps and countless bonfires on the opposite shore.
At first, the tribespeople thought it was the pursuing army behind them, descending from the heavens and taking a detour to get ahead of them.
Many believed it was a miracle. One after another, they broke down in tears and knelt toward the riverbank.
Only after the Iron Bone Tribe's messengers began relaying Heshima's orders and intelligence about the forces across the river did they understand that the army on the other side was not their pursuers, but another force from the south.
This southern army was nowhere near as powerful as the pursuers they had faced. As long as they could crush this force, they could return to their own lands.
The Great Chieftain ordered everyone to rest well today and cross the river to attack the city first thing tomorrow morning. In this way, the Iron Bone Tribe's morale was successfully maintained for the time being.
They knew that as long as they crossed the river and defeated the enemy, they could retreat home safely, and those terrifying pursuers behind them would never catch up.
Thus, the Iron Bone Tribe and the Faith Order's forces did nothing at all, simply beginning to set up camp and rest.
The Northern Alliance Army across the river also found it strange. The Barbarians' reaction was far too calm.
When they had first spotted the Barbarians' vanguard cavalry, they immediately went on alert. Every unit began preparing for battle, and the camp walls lining the river were packed with soldiers. Yet when the Barbarian main force arrived, they did nothing?
This did not match the Northern Frontier nobles' understanding of