Ivanovna asked in confusion, "The Earth Magic we cast, the sand and soil, can block the enemy, but they have mages among them who can dig their way out. So what's the point?"
"Ah!"
Dania flicked Ivanovna on the forehead, looking thoroughly smug. "Of course it's to help our allies by slowing down the enemy's advance! And covering them with sand and soil will cut off the Empire's trenches, so they won't be able to maneuver or find shelter. Several assault troops down there are already dead, and the infantry are exchanging fire too. It looks like dozens of casualties already."
"Our enemies seem to be doing about as well. Their mages are putting shields on the people firing from behind them. Neither side is charging right now, so they're just wasting bullets—their kill rate is low. But the enemy's main force is almost impossible to hide from us. Look, they're coming out of those trench openings one after another. There aren't many at the front; the enemy's probably planning to feed them in gradually and wear down our ammunition. If we charge, those people carrying Cold Weapons will probably come out too. Then both sides will be fighting with Cold Weapons, just like a few years ago."
"Slowing their advance lets our side shoot at them instead of letting them get close and forcing us into Cold Weapon combat. Though eventually we'll all end up fighting at close quarters anyway, since they'll be able to charge us sooner or later."
"But the longer we can drag out the ranged fighting, the greater our advantage."
Ivanovna nodded and called over a messenger to pass on the news.
Using Earth Magic to plug machine-gun ports and enemy bunkers, blocking enemy attacks, had become basic military knowledge in the Northern Territory Army.