"Sandworm Hollow lies beneath the cliffs. From high ground, they could easily destroy this town—they brought in huge quantities of boulders and used catapults, or something else, to smash the stone houses one by one."
Surveying the terrain of Sandworm Hollow, Shalti considered how this transport checkpoint had only been established within the past two hundred years. Sheltered by the Great Wall, it had little in the way of fortifications. Only its crudely built perimeter walls offered any defensive advantage.
Against a beastfolk tribe occupying the high ground, mounting an effective resistance would have been difficult. Fulfilling her duties as a ranger, Shalti analyzed the situation. "Then they brought in fire, forcing the people in the streets out of town. Other than jumping into the sea or fighting back, they had no third option."
Tang Qi nodded and turned to the adventurers. "See if anyone is still alive."
The three-thousand-strong allied force poured into Sandworm Hollow's tangled streets and alleys, searching for anyone who had survived among the mountains of corpses.
Their feet sank into muddy water mixed with yellow sand, blood, and flesh. The stench of decay in the air made some of the less experienced adventurers retch up bile.
They ventured beneath the collapsed ruins, searching for cellars where people might have hidden, hoping to find survivors inside.
At last, they discovered a passage to a wine cellar in the tavern at the center of Sandworm Hollow. Ruins and a torn carpet concealed it, but lifting the carpet revealed a lock. "Found something! But the door's locked!"
Tang Qi arrived with the others, only to find the adventurers exchanging helpless looks in front of the locked cellar.
Someone pounded on the door. "Is anyone alive in there? We're the allied force from Dragon Gold City!"
There was no