Everything happened so fast that no one was able to react in time.
Mogazar, who was standing on top of the ramparts, was blown away by the impact of the magic cannonballs. Fortunately, Barca was there to catch and shield him from further damage, but he still ended up suffering mild injuries.
Unfortunately, the Orc Hunter's subordinates weren't as lucky. Hundreds of them died, while others were seriously injured.
A good portion of the Fortress walls was also destroyed by the magic cannon, forming a gaping hole in the Orc Fortress that had stood for decades.
"Earth Mages, create an Earth Wall at once!" Lady Avyanna ordered, and the Orcs who specialized in Earth Magic worked hand in hand to create a dense wall of Earth that rose above the ground and positioned itself between the Orc Fortress and the Haca Dynasty's Army.
As soon as the walls were erected, the sound of cannons being fired spread in the surroundings.
The Earthen Walls immediately shattered, and the magic cannonballs continued their trajectory, hitting the defensive walls of the Fortress and creating deep dents in them.
Although the Earth Walls shattered, it still helped lessen the impact of the cannonballs, allowing the Fortress to withstand another bombardment.
"This won't do!" Baronar shouted to Lady Avyanna who was standing at a watchtower at the center of the Fortress, overlooking the battle. "They can hit us, but we can't hit them back. Also, look at the sky!"
The Great Orc Shaman pointed at the Giant Magic Circle that was slowly forming above the Orc Fortress, which made Lady Avyanna's face turn grim.
"A Grand Spell from that distance?!" Oreg gasped in shock as he looked at the runic symbols whose light was slowly becoming more intense, signaling that the Spell was nearing its completion. "By the Gods. How are we going to deal with this?!"
Grand Spells were High-Ranking Spells that were used to destroy entire fortresses. However, this spell was very complicated and needed tens of thousands of Mages to cast it simultaneously.
Also, while the mages were performing this spell, none of them could move, which made them vulnerable to any attacks.
Only when their safety was assured would they cast a spell of such magnitude to destroy their foes in a blaze of glory.
'How can this be... our Fortress is about to fall without even clashing with the enemy directly?' Barca glared hatefully at the giant Magic Circle above their heads.
He initially thought that they could at least kill tens of thousands of the invaders before leaving their fortress behind. However, aside from the few hundred that Mogazar had killed earlier, the Haca Dynasty's Army was still intact, making him feel very bitter.
However, he didn't have time to feel bitter for long because another side of the Fortress exploded after being repeatedly bombarded by the Magical Cannons, which were firing at them from a mile away.
"Baronar, can you delay that Grand Spell from being unleashed?" Lady Avyanna asked.
"I'll try, but the most I can do is buy us a minute or two," Baronar replied as he began to chant something in the Orcish tongue.
Lady Avyanna knew that there was no time to hesitate, so she immediately signaled to one of her Aides to blow the horn that would tell everyone in the Fortress to evacuate right now.
"Everyone, evacuate!" Lady Avyanna ordered. "Head to the Mountains of Lorgakh Kur. We will use the mountains to mount a counterattack!"
All the Orc Warriors gritted their teeth as they helped their injured comrades to retreat. Their Orc Chieftain's order was absolute, and even though they wanted to fight their enemies, they were simply too far and too many for them to mount an effective counterattack.
While the Orcs were busy dealing with the evacuation, the sound of horns erupted inside the Orc Fortress, which reached all the way to the Haca Dynasty's Army.
This made Rowan, who was standing beside one of the magic cannons, roar in laughter.
"What's this? Over already?" Rowan guffawed as he looked at the crumbling Fortress in the distance. "Great General, why don't we send our Heavy Cavalry to attack? I'm sure we can kill thousands of them if we go now."
Great General Garret shook his head. "If we go there now, we will just lose our soldiers. The Orcs would risk their lives to kill as many of our soldiers as possible because in their culture, retreating without even being able to clash with their enemies is a very shameful thing.
"If we were to do as you say, then I wouldn't have used the Magic Cannons this early in the war. Just behave yourself for now and listen to my orders. You will have your chance to kill them when we go deeper into their territory."
Ronan chuckled after hearing the Great General's reply. He was really itching to fight against Barca, who was several times stronger than him. As a High-Ranker, he knew that he was no match against the Empyrean-Ranked Alpha Monster in a one-on-one battle.
However, he wasn't going to fight the Half-Orc alone.
He had already handpicked a dozen High-Rankers who would assist him with the job. Because of this, he was confident that if he ever faced Barca on the battlefield, the one who would be dying would be none other than the Half-Orc.
It was at this moment that they saw several spirits flying toward the sky in an attempt to disperse the giant Magic Circle above the fortress.
Garret had already anticipated this move, but he didn't do anything. The Spirits might be able to delay the Grand Spell, but they could only prevent it from activating for a short period of time. They wouldn't be able to stop the inevitable.
"How does it feel, Avyanna?" Great General Garret said softly. "Do you feel helpless? Do you feel unresigned? I wish I could see your face. Perhaps, it was the same face that my father made when you forced him to retreat back to the Haca Dynasty fifty years ago."
The Great General's eyes glowed faintly with power as he looked at the crumbling fortress in the distance.
He was certain that within the hour, nothing would remain of the Orc Fortress but rubble.
This would be the first official victory of their campaign and the beginning of their invasion into the territories of the Wanid Kingdom.
