The Commander of Ten Thousand had barely finished speaking when heated discussion broke out across the tent.
"Old Ba Lie has a point. Our warriors weren't there, and what good were those cannon fodder? The enemy didn't even have to take them seriously!"
"Exactly. Our cannon-fodder troops couldn't put much pressure on the defenders. The enemy needed only a small fraction of its ranged firepower to keep them pinned down.
That left their catapults free to target our ranged troops and our catapults.
That terrifying weapon took too heavy a toll on our soldiers' nerves. Of course our archers at the front couldn't hold out."
"That's exactly it. Those cannon fodder were useless. They couldn't even withstand a few scattered volleys, and they filled in the earthworks at a snail's pace because they were too busy dodging enemy attacks."
"Right! They're all weaklings. Even if they joined our tribes, they'd never measure up to our warriors!"
"They aren't loyal to our tribes, either. Just look how many followed those southerners away!
I doubt they'll come to a good end. They'll probably be worked as slaves until they die!"
Everyone laid the blame for the defeat on the herders and slaves who had served as cannon fodder.
Barbarian officers and chiefs spoke up one after another. Keledu heard some truth in what they said, but their views were badly skewed.
The herders and cannon fodder had been sent to fill in the earthworks. They had never been much help in a siege, and it was only natural that they couldn't pressure the defenders. Blaming the entire defeat on them was harsh.
Still, the Commander of Ten Thousand named Ba Lie had analyzed the situation correctly. The Barbarians had put too little pressure on the fortress defenders, leaving the enemy free