The city square was quiet, yet the air was heavy with smoke, blood, and the weight of the dead. Citizens, soldiers, and elders stood shoulder to shoulder. The sky was gray, and the towering walls of the city were now stained with blood.
The cracks and the broken parts of the walls had widened; the impact the beast tide had left on it was clear as day.
The citizens of the city, along with the soldiers who fought and survived the beast, were gathered in the area to listen to the city lord spare a few words. Xu Shang stepped onto the blackened platform in his weather-worn armor, his beard curled at the edges, his eyes sunken yet burning with will.
His presence alone silenced the crowd as they all focused on him. "People of Aradonia…" he paused, taking in each one of the faces present in the square before continuing.
"For three months, we have stood together against the endless tide of beasts."
"For three months, we watched our brothers and sisters bleed beside us."
