As time passed, the weather grew bitterly cold, and soldiers had to spend their nights indoors. Pitching tents in the wilderness would sharply increase the risk of frostbite and illness.
Conditions were no longer suitable for fighting, and the northern campaign ground to a stalemate.
On December 21, Vitus handed military affairs over to his subordinates and traveled to Niš for a military conference.
The situation in Niš differed from that in Priština.
Rather than resist to the bitter end, its garrison had surrendered five days earlier. The town's facilities remained intact, and its grain stores could feed an entire legion for a year.
The conference was held in the town's official residence. Vitus entered the hall, where an up-to-date map lay on the table, marked with the territories currently controlled by each faction.
The first phase of the operation had now concluded successfully. The Eastern Roman Empire had recovered southeastern Serbia, annihilated Grgur's new army, and blocked Skanderbeg's route north to send reinforcements.
Vitus asked for detailed reports on each unit. The Attica Legion had suffered the heaviest losses. Near the end of the siege, a stray bullet had struck its Military Tribune in the abdomen, leaving the senior commander wounded and unconscious.
"We lost this many officers?"
Vitus read through the officer casualty list and decided to transfer personnel from home to fill the vacancies.
The second item on the agenda was the allocation of defensive sectors. The Varangian Legion would hold the northern line, the First Legion would remain in Niš, the Tuna Legion would stay in Priština, and the Attica Legion would withdraw to Thessaloniki to rest and refit.
He had yet to decide where to attack next spring. He intended to watch Jagiellon's deployments before launching a targeted counterattack.
The conference lasted an entire