Retreat

Harald's eyes regained their sharp, eagle-like light, all hesitation and deliberation vanished.

He had made a decision, a decision that would break the deadlock and end it all.

He turned to Leon, his voice low but carrying an undeniable resolve and powerful confidence, as if he could already foresee the outcome three days later. "Leon, go and write a letter for me, and send it to Ulf as quickly as possible."

He paused slightly, then spoke clearly, word by word. "Tell him, and tell all those who have doubts, to wait patiently for the last five days! After five days, Carnford will fall! Let the warriors of the Sparrow Corps hold on for the last five days. Victory and the glory of returning laden with spoils belong to all the Sauron warriors!"

Upon hearing this resolute command, Leon's spirits lifted, and he immediately bowed in acceptance. "Yes, Great Chieftain! I will carry it out immediately!"

He could sense the powerful determination and confidence in Harald's words, which was undoubtedly a strong boost to morale.

Leon said no more, quickly turned and left the tent to draft this crucial letter.

After Leon left, Harald stood alone, once again casting his gaze towards Carnford Castle in the distance.

The morning sun began to shine on the stone walls of the castle, but it could not dispel the coldness in his eyes.

A cold, confident smile slowly curved his lips, as if he were talking to himself, or perhaps shouting to his opponent in the castle, "Karl von Schmidt... it seems you can't always anticipate your opponent's moves. This time, I've won by half a point."

"Very well, that's settled... Stay up there and watch how your walls are gradually eroded, how your hope is slowly extinguished. Now, just stay obediently in your tortoise shell and await the carefully prepared death for you and your castle."

The night breeze ruffled the hair on his forehead, but it couldn't dispel the predatory, predatory glint in his eyes.

In the days that followed, the development of the situation completely confirmed Harald's predictions.

After suffering heavy losses in that night raid, the Carnford garrison was no longer able to mount any effective offensive.

The cliff behind the mountain was also completely sealed off by the patrol team sent by the Sauron, and even the pulley system used for secret lifting and lowering was discovered and destroyed.

The defenders were completely trapped on the mountain, and could only watch helplessly as the two giant arrow towers in front of the Sauron camp rose up at an astonishing speed from the fortifications and city walls on both sides of the passageway, with an increasingly heavy sense of powerlessness. They eventually stood proudly, their height even exceeding that of the mountain where Carnford was located!

When the Sauron craftsmen hammered in the last reinforcing rivet and removed the last scaffolding, the two arrow towers, like towering giants, had become the most oppressive presence in the sky above the battlefield.

The soldiers had to crane their necks to see the towering platform at the top of the tower, and an unprecedented psychological pressure weighed on everyone.

Harald gave the defenders no time to adjust. On the afternoon the arrow tower was completed, at his command, the already prepared Sauron elite archers quickly climbed to the top of the tower along the sturdy spiral staircase.

Each tower's platform is spacious enough to comfortably accommodate thirty archers.

Two arrow towers, and sixty top-notch archers, selected from among hundreds, quickly lined up behind the crenellations at the edge of the towers, led by officers.

Unlike the previous use of light arrows for hurling, this time all the archers switched to heavy arrows with heavier arrowheads and greater armor-piercing capabilities.

They calmly drew their bows, the bowstrings pulled taut, the sharp arrowheads gleaming coldly in the sunlight. From their high vantage point, they aimed directly at the Carnford garrison positions, clearly visible hundreds of paces below, and at the fortifications hidden behind breastworks and under wooden roofs.

"Release the arrows!"

The officer waved the command flag!

"Buzz--!"

A chilling chorus of bowstrings rang out! Sixty heavy arrows did not trace parabolic trajectories, but rather, taking advantage of their immense height, hurtled towards the defending positions at an almost straight, even faster and more terrifying angle, like javelins hurled by death, their sharp whistling echoing through the air!

"Thud! Thud! Thud! Snap!"

A hail of arrows instantly covered the defenders' fortifications on the mountainside! The heavy arrows slammed into the wooden roofs that the defenders had hastily built to defend against the projectile fire!

These canopies, originally designed to protect against light arrows falling from the sky, proved incredibly vulnerable under the direct impact of such powerful heavy arrows! Many arrows pierced right through the wooden planks, sending splinters flying everywhere!

Even more extreme, arrows with tremendous force pierced through several layers of wooden planks, nailing the roof straight through like nails!

"Ah!"

"Watch out above!"

From below the ceiling, a chorus of screams and cries of terror erupted!

The arrow that pierced the wooden plank lost some of its momentum, but it was still deadly!

The soldiers on duty or resting below were caught off guard, and more than ten of them were hit by arrows that pierced through the roof in an instant!

The heavy arrow easily tore through the leather armor, embedding itself deeply into the body and causing a terrible wound! Blood instantly stained the ground red.

This is just the first wave!

The Sauron archers on the tower fired with a steady and efficient rhythm, nocking and drawing their bows again without pause after each volley!

A deadly rain of arrows began to fall relentlessly! The wooden roofs of the defenders' fortifications quickly became riddled with holes, greatly reducing the protection they provided.

"Counterattack! Counterattack now! Aim at the archers on the tower!" the defending officer inside the fortifications roared hoarsely.

The surviving Musketeers and archers braved the constant barrage of arrows, peering out of their firing ports to try and return fire at the enemy atop the tower.

However, the situation has now reversed!

They need to shoot upwards, which makes the trajectory of arrows and bullets curved, more affected by wind, and significantly reduces accuracy.

Sauron archers, on the other hand, had a significant height advantage, making their shots more accurate and direct.

To make matters worse, the Sauron ground archers, who had been suppressed for a long time below the tunnel, took this opportunity to resume their volley fire for cover. Although the firepower was not as strong as the heavy arrows from the tower, it further disrupted and suppressed the defenders' counterattack.

For a time, the Carnford defenders found themselves in an extremely passive position.

They were exposed to crossfire from both the air and the ground, and casualties began to rise rapidly.

Inside the fortifications, the groans of the wounded, the shouts of officers, the clash of weapons, and the clatter of arrows piercing wooden planks mingled together in a chaotic and tragic scene.

Their geographical advantage, which they once relied on, has vanished in the face of the Sauron's ingeniously crafted arrow towers.

The fortifications on both sides of the mountainside, the core of this tunnel defense system, are facing an unprecedented and severe test.

The one-sided barrage of arrows, which lasted for more than two hours, caused catastrophic casualties to the Carnford garrison, who were holding out in the fortifications on the hillsides on both sides of the passageway.

Nearly a hundred Musketeers and archers were either killed or wounded, and the wooden roof had been torn to shreds by heavy arrows, losing most of its protective function.

Each deadly arrow shot vertically from an extremely high place inflicted immense psychological pressure and physical casualties on the defending soldiers.

Watching the wounded and dead being carried into the castle and fortifications, a scene of utter devastation and low morale, Karl knew that with the complete loss of height advantage and only able to passively endure attacks, continuing to hold these outer positions was pointless and would only result in unnecessary sacrifices.

Ultimately, he had no choice but to order the abandonment of all positions on the hillsides on both sides of the passageway, and for all personnel to retreat to the inner city walls!

This decision meant that they voluntarily relinquished the most crucial passage to the castle gate, and also signaled the end of the more than twenty-day siege of the passageway with the defenders' strategic retreat.