A trap—a colossal trap.
Arthur's vast army had descended upon the Fourth Abyss with the force of Mount Tai bearing down overhead, yet what awaited him was a formidable trap the natives of the Fourth Abyss had prepared who knew how many years ago.
That demon castle, perfectly sized—not too strong, yet not too weak—had made Arthur's vanguard abandon any thought of assaulting it directly. Built beside a great lake, the castle had clean water and level ground, the ideal place to pitch camp.
Thus, Arthur's endlessly arriving forces set up camp around the lake, neatly encircling the demon castle from all sides.
Once Arthur's central command arrived, the demon castle seized the moment and issued him an ultimatum: withdraw, or go to war. And there were only a little over two hours left before the Abyss creatures' reinforcements arrived.
Another exquisitely calculated manipulation of human psychology.
A little over two hours was just enough for Arthur's troops to organize their encampment and wait at their leisure on the flat battlefield for the enemy reinforcements to arrive. His army even had enough time to eat a full meal, sharpen their swords, arrange the camp more neatly, and prepare some field defenses in the wilderness—trenches, chevaux-de-frise, even low walls.
Meanwhile, the Abyss creatures' reinforcements had come from afar. They needed to march at full speed for over two hours to reach the battlefield.
Arthur's army could have waited in comfort for the weary enemy, meeting them head-on with elite troops rested and ready. Therefore, Arthur would never take the risk of sending cavalry out to engage them proactively. He would only gather his forces methodically within the camp, mixing the units according to the optimal arrangement in an effort to draw out the greatest combat strength from the army under his