Admiration, and... gratitude.
For a moment, being watched by hundreds or even thousands of people at the front of the formation, I truly felt... flattered beyond belief.
"Old man, please follow the formation's arrangements. Of course, since you served in the military, you'll still be issued a weapon."
I had always instinctively respected the elderly. I turned and instructed Regimental Commander Hao, "Distribute enough weapons and ammunition to those who know how to use them. We're not short on supplies,
are we?"
The response, of course, was a resounding "Yes!!"
Afterward, countless soldiers split into more than a dozen small squads and quickly headed into the crowd. Just then, a cannon blast suddenly rang out from atop the city wall!
"Boom!"
The enormous boom shook the heavens and earth. Even the cement dust on the city wall came raining down in chunks. It was obvious that the western wall was not maintained as well as the southeastern walls.
One blast was enough to make even the ground beneath our feet tremble.
"Reporting!!"
A messenger ran up to Regimental Commander Hao.
"Speak."
Regimental Commander Hao was giving orders about something. He seemed to already have a rough idea of the situation and was probably confident about the source of the cannon blast, so he wasn't in a hurry. He merely spoke
one word in a calm voice.
"The insect swarm has broken through the gap and is gathering. It's already within the artillery's attack range, and the first howitzer shell has been fired!"
The soldier had barely finished reporting when the artillery fire rang out again. This time, it wasn't just one blast, but a continuous barrage!
"Boom boom boom boom boom boom~~"
The rumbling shook the heavens and earth, completely drowning out the surrounding noise.
I wasn't anxious. There was