It was with his head held high and pride for his men coursing through his veins that Tiberius strode into the mining town, clad in full armor that gleamed in the sun. All of his worries, contingencies, and tireless planning had proved superfluous—something which he took as a positive. The men had performed adequately in the assault. Even more, they had faced enough of a challenge that it had felt like a real battle.

Despite being only a hundred or so in number, the defenders had fought well and coordinated their efforts. They obviously couldn’t stand up to the Legion, not with their advantages in both tactics and manpower. However, each of the defenders had put up a significant effort. They’d also demonstrated some of the issues Tiberius and his men would need to consider when facing a larger force of enemies trained in the use of skills and the System.

Altogether, his Legion had found many areas where they could improve, particularly in cross-cohort coordination and their general lack of siege weaponry and preparedness. Given their other priorities, they had not built a proper battering ram, siege towers, or any other catapults before this assault. They were drawing up plans for such things back at Habersville, of course. But they hadn’t been deemed necessary given the light defenses of this town. Especially so once they’d moved up the timeline of their invasion.

Tiberius found himself rather pleased about that. It meant that they’d been able to capture the town mostly intact without having to destroy the wall or gates. They were well made enough that, while they could use some improvements, they would serve as a solid starting point.

As he strode through the streets and made his way toward the center of town, Tiberius scanned his surroundings. Collections of buildings, primarily constructed from stone, clustered along the narrow streets. Several of them bore signs with symbols of clothing or shovels or anvils, marking them as businesses. Some of his finest Legionnaires lined the streets, ensuring that any residents were kept back. The area appeared relatively clean, if a little plain and underwhelming.

Lucius marched ahead of him, the golden eagle standard held high, and the men saluted as they passed. To either side marched Tiberius’s honor guard. One of his officers scribbled madly on a slate, taking notes and compiling reports on the fly. He already had a list of dozens of Legionnaires who had earned merits for the battle prepared and ready for review. However, that would have to wait. Before that, Tiberius wanted to establish his presence here and address the newly conquered citizens of this town.

As he strode into the square, Lucius lifted his voice. He bellowed with the help of [Orator]—a vocal performance that even Tiberius, during his long time as a senator, had never heard even an emperor himself match.

“The Emperor of Rome, Tiberius Rufius Maro!”

The captives turned to look at Tiberius. He could see as the fear written plain across their faces morphed into looks of uncertainty and confusion.Still, for the most part, they took their cue from the Legionnaires’ salutes and bowed their heads respectfully from where they knelt. Tiberius saw a few of his men mentally marking the ones who did not bow or maintained looks of defiance. They would be watched and dealt with if necessary.

Tiberius glanced around the area once more. Quintus wasn’t there to welcome him, which was not too surprising. His Primus Pilus was probably busy finishing off the last holdouts or attending to his men. Either way, he was certain that the man would make an appearance sooner rather than later.

“Bring me your leader,” Tiberius ordered in a calm and steady voice.

A portly man wrapped in finery was dragged forward and planted in front of him, looking up in fear. Tiberius wondered for a moment if all of this world’s leaders were similarly soft. If so, conquering them may be easier than he’d hoped.

“This mine and the surrounding area are now under Roman control,” Tiberius informed him in a matter-of-fact tone. “Your citizens and forces shall henceforth be subject to our laws and expected to adapt to your new leadership. Know that there is every opportunity for you and your men to thrive if you comply. However, my patience will not be tested. Do you understand?”

The man nodded vigorously. Tiberius remained still. “Good. Now, you will direct me to records of the mine’s production schedules…”

[You have successfully seized the town of Stonewake! You have gained experience. See a Class Stone for territory management options.]

Tiberius hid a smile at the message. Yet no sooner had he read over it than a second message followed it up, the golden letters materializing before his eyes.

[Your town of Stonewake is currently under attack from a hostile entity. You have seven days to successfully repel the attack, or the territory will enter a contested state.]

***

Pulling Myra into a side alleyway, Marcus peered at the former guards and priests gathered near the gate. He activated [Sleight of Hand] in some vague hope that it would help them remain unnoticed. It was a bit outside of what the skill was meant for, and he honestly hadn’t focused much on it—most of his skills were designed to draw attention, not deflect it. Thankfully, the group were facing away from their hiding spot. But he didn’t particularly feel like taking chances.

No one looked their way. Marcus’s gaze darted about the scene as he searched for an opportunity to dash past and escape with Myra. However, any hope of slipping away vanished as the glow from the priests’ hands intensified, shooting upward into the sky.

Now, Marcus wasn’t exactly the religious type. Besides availing himself of the common curses and an occasional muttered prayer to the god of performances before a particularly nerve-wracking set, he didn’t have much cause to bother with them. He had other priorities and better things to do, especially given how much effort it took to earn any real amount of divine favor. And so, he lived his life, doing his own thing while the gods did theirs.

Despite that, he did have some idea of what these priests were doing. His [Spellcraft] skill, while incredibly limited and entirely insufficient to be a full mage, allowed him to recognize spells rather well. Sort of. He didn’t get names or descriptions or anything like that. But he could generally tell the purpose of a spell by looking at it, and that sometimes extended to divine prayers or spells powered by the divine instead of mana—like the one these priests were casting.

The light arced into the air, joined by a collection of others from elsewhere in Habersville. They pulsed once in hues of white and gold. Then, they expanded, motes rocketing toward the town’s perimeter. The light rushed over the walls, coating them in a semi-transparent glow that shimmered in the night.

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As they looked on, the wall seemed to expand upward, the glowing logs reaching toward the sky and curving inward to form a dome over Habersville. The night sky disappeared behind the glowing dome, illuminating the town below in soft light.

Marcus’s eyes narrowed. A barrier. The priests had somehow erected a barrier around the town—a rather robust one, too. Fueled by not only the divine, but life energy and some other nasty things. Its exact capabilities were unclear, but it was obviously not something that the Legion would simply be able to scale as before. And based on what his skill was telling him, breaking through it would be no small task either.

He focused again on the priests. The golden geometric patterns embroidered on their robes indicated that most were likely adherents of Arashim—god of wealth and architecture. There were also a few priests of Kyraz and Kona among them as well. This had been a coordinated effort, and one that had come at a steep cost. Many of the priests were staggering in place after willing the barrier into being. Evidently, something like this required a bit more than just being in a deity’s good books.

Still, judging by the breadth of the spell and the amount of divine favor they had to be burning through, Marcus figured they wouldn’t be able to keep this up forever. But perhaps they didn’t have to. If they were just stalling for time for reinforcements to arrive, then maybe it would be enough—especially if there were more priests willing and able to recharge the spell and give their lives for this.

Suddenly, the mayor’s plot made just a little bit more sense than it had before. Marcus swore internally at the realization. He couldn’t believe that he’d missed out on such a critical detail. Did that mean there were other cards being held in reserve, waiting for just the right time to be revealed?

Of course, it seemed as though he wasn’t the only one who had been kept in the dark. Myra’s surprise indicated that she had no idea about this, for one. Even the guards wore shocked, open-mouthed expressions as they tapped experimentally at the barrier. Regardless, it didn’t stop them from mobilizing.

Marcus watched as a rather worrying number of former guards gathered around the gate, the rest of them forming groups and swarming Habersville’s streets with a bone to pick. He didn’t see the two Legionnaires that should have been guarding the town’s entrance anywhere, which didn’t bode well. Still, he hadn’t felt any deaths yet.

“…This isn’t good,” Marcus muttered.

Myra shook herself and tore her eyes away from the golden dome hanging above them. Her tone was dry as she whispered a response. “What an astute observation.”

Marcus didn’t take the bait. He was too busy considering the implications of this development. If the mayor really could keep the city walled off from the Legion until the baron could gather reinforcements, then it would put those reinforcements in a far better position to take on Habersville’s resident rulers. At the very least, it would keep the people inside of Habersville safe, away from the action, and protected from becoming hostages.

As for what those reinforcements would have to look like… if the baron was able to gather enough powerful people, conceivably, they really might be able to take on the Legionnaires outside. It would only require a significant sacrifice from the priests, who, well, were known for talking about sacrifice a lot.

From what Marcus knew of the barons out here in the East, he would be very much surprised if his forces would be enough to do battle with the full Legion. But with only less than half the soldiers left? And if the baron himself was being supported by higher powers like the duke? Could they field a small army of level fifteens? The Legion had handled two such adventurers, sure, but there was no telling if they’d be able to tackle more. Or how they’d handle even higher level threats. The duke was known to be on friendly terms with a few old monsters and maybe even an archmage. If he called in some favors…

Marcus swallowed. He had known that siding with the Legion was going to be risky, of course. But the idea of the mayor’s plan actually having some teeth to it was making him rethink how open he had been about his allegiance. If Novara took the threat of war on another front seriously, he and the Legion both could be in some pretty serious trouble.

He caught himself. No, it was unlikely. There was no way they’d divert resources like that away from warring with the Horde to the west. Not yet, at least.

“I take it that we’re not getting out of the town, then?”

Myra’s soft voice pulled him from his musings. He shook his head and ducked back into the alley as the guards began to jog through the streets, spreading out across the town in groups. “No. Not at the moment, at least. Luckily, I doubt that the rebel guards know to look for us at the moment. Perhaps we can hide and wait for all of this to simply blow over…”

The beauty a gave him a strange look. “That’s it? That’s your plan?”

As he met her gaze, he saw a hint of disappointment there. Disappointment and… maybe a bit of expectation? Though what exactly she expected, he wasn’t sure. This was a rebellion, an active conflict, and he was no fighter. His involvement in things like this was limited to roles before the battle started and only picked up after it ended. He was already far too close to the action for his liking. But then again…

“Not exactly. I’m just thinking out loud.” He fixed his cap and scratched at his temple. “Despite the barrier, there will still be Legionnaires in the town—either men on patrol or ones who got caught out during their leisure time, the unlucky bastards. They’ll surely be tipped off that something is wrong.” He glanced upwards at the shimmering dome that hung over their heads. “However… I expect that they’ll be scattered and separated, for the most part. Which does not bode well for them. Perhaps they could use some help coordinating and locating each other amidst the chaos…”

“That sounds a lot more dangerous than simply hiding,” Myra pointed out. He noted that she didn’t seem particularly displeased at the plan, however.

Marcus nodded. “True. But also possibly more effective. The more of them there are together, the harder it will be to take them down, and the better chance we have of getting out. Or at least organizing some sort of way to break through this dome from the inside.”

He closed his eyes briefly. The faint, ever-present strands connecting him to each Legionnaire seemed to glow in his mind. It would be a simple matter to track the groups down. Still, it might be a moot point.

“…Be that as it may, I don’t think they’ll face any real danger from the guards. I would put any Legion patrol up against any number of them.”

“What about if the priests are backing them up?” Myra countered. She nodded toward the robed priests around the corner.

Marcus cooked his head. “Why would that make a difference? It seems to me that their role is largely played out.”

Her eyes flashed. Myra’s tone took on a particular note of zeal that he’d heard before, back when they’d visited the ruins and she’d launched into a veritable lecture about their history. “Just because Novara doesn’t properly utilize priests in battle doesn’t mean they’re useless,” she began. “Why, historically, priests were a core part of any fighting force,, applying blessings and filling the role of support mages in some cases. Of course, they’re less versatile, and many priests have objections to such fighting based on their god’s domains, but…”

The woman continued on for a while, launching into a full tirade about the differences in the roles of priests and gods in ancient warfare. Despite her obvious enthusiasm, it wasn’t exactly the most relevant at the moment.

“All right, I understand your point,” he interrupted, cutting her off before she worked herself up too much. “Still, warning and gathering the Legionnaires is far from a bad idea—especially if we want to make sure that we get out of here in one piece. But then, we need to hurry and find them first. Something I think I’m uniquely suited for.”

“I never said it was a bad idea.” She huffed. “Just that you might be underestimating the abilities of priests in combat.”

“Sure,” Marcus replied, not wanting to get into an argument right now. He suspected that they would end up standing here for the rest of the day if he did.

He grabbed Myra’s hand and turned, pulling her further into the alley. “Why don’t you consider how to deal with the priests while I start looking for the Legionnaires? We just need to make a few quick stops along the way…”

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