The man next to me has taken a look of shock. Well, at the moment I am sure that I must have the same expression right now. Neither of us expected something like this.

  I access the formation to see what damage has happened. The damage to the wall by the spike is pretty minimal based on the damage I can observe. The iron skin has been breached in only a few limited locations. The damage doesn't explain the amount of mana they have used to craft the spike.

  It takes me a few moments but I realize what is going wrong here. The spike acts like a platform allowing the beasts to climb onto the wall. To build such a strong spike would consume a pretty large amount of ice mana. (Conjuration is very mana intensive.)

  I could try and kill them with my spears but it won't be fast enough to cause them any harm. I could only have done something with the ballista crafted. If only I had a couple more weeks. At the very least I did not need to worry about the troops as they seem to have entered into action already. They have already begun fighting and pushing off the creatures that have already made their way to the spike.

  They are not particularly successful but they are doing something at the very least. I just stand there paralysed unsure as to what I can do. I have a thousand plans going on in my head, each more unlikely than the other. The only thing that manages to break me out of my panic is the man next to me.

  “Captain, would you focus on holding back the troop leaders? No matter what happens they cannot be allowed to reach the spike.“, he speaks suddenly pointing at the troop leader in the east. Right now it is the closest to the spike.

  “I can't do that. The damn creatures are too fast for me to strike them with my spear. Even when they are relatively stationary attacking the gates I did not manage to hit them.“, I admit, trying to get a good angle at the creatures. It is a futile act though, with the creatures moving faster and faster.

  I begin by cycling all of my mana into my arms. I can feel the spear grow lighter in my hands. (This is partly mental I assure you. Things made of mana weigh only as much as you believe that they should weigh.) I wait for a few moments and chuck the spear.

  Launching the spear does not only depend on my arm's strength but it is also depending on my mana to propel it. It flashes like a bolt of lightning as it streaks in the sky. I redirect the shot which has traveled the sky in an instant. Before I know it the spear has entered into the troop leader's leg. (The one closest to the spike.)

  The force of the strike is enough that it pins the creature to the ground. The water spear is durable enough that I don't need to worry about the beast biting through it anytime soon.

  I don't get to relax, as the other two beasts are already slowing down changing their direction towards their imprisoned ally. They are channeling their mana, clearly feeling these new spears to be a threat. These spears will not be able to do as much damage as the previous ones managed to do. The enemies are prepared for it.

  I need to get rid of the trapped leader before the battle ends. Well, I can't easily manage a shot like that again. The main problem with it is how much longer it takes to strengthen my arm with my vital mana. Now, I will only be able to manage a shot every thirty seconds. As I have been speaking I have been charging another spear to throw at the second one.

  That is why I just grasp a water spear and throw it at the target. As the spear flies towards it, the trapped beast shoots a ball of ice mana at it, causing it to hit the ground next to it.

  As I am doing this, the two ice beasts have reached the location of the trapped ice beast. Well, I can't allow them to free up that one now, can I? I throw my spear aiming it at the icebeast that is now gnawing at the ice spear stuck in its leg.

  I almost succeeded at catching it off-guard too, if it were not for the third ice beast shooting an ice bolt. Picking up another spear I throw it simply. This time I am aiming at the third beast. This doesn't strike true as it hits the ground beyond them but it still manages to push the creatures into a more panicked state.

  They have finally stopped trying to help their fellow leader. The creature is still trying to gnaw through the spear trying to freeze it and shatter it. It will happen eventually but the hope for now is that it will hold for a while at least. The two ice beasts are now looking in my direction, waiting to intercept anything I throw at them.

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  This time, I begin to charge up a spear feeling my arm grow hotter. Strengthening yourself using mana like this tends to have limits. I am nowhere near my limit, but I can feel the prickling in my hand turn into a dull throb. As my mana finishes cycling I throw my spear.

  This time I am aiming at the trapped bastard. As expected it causes the two beasts to enter into a panic as they try to blow away the spear. They do end up succeeding. With this, the creatures are completely focused on protecting their third teammate. They are not particularly smart which is why I have managed to stop the creatures for now, however flimsy it is. Let's just hope that the soldiers can break that spike soon enough.

  “The creatures cannot abandon one of their own now. The burden on them must be too great already.“, he speaks, almost as if he reading my mind. “Especially if they have done what I think they have done.“

  “Care to elaborate on that.“, I ask the man, throwing another spear. The creature should be halfway through the spear binding it. I guess, I should switch my focus to trap another of those creatures. Not that it is likely to happen again.

  "Let's speak about it some other time, we can't let the creatures climb the spike. Try to strike them when they are closer to the spike. They will be slowed down among their underlings.“, he replies, as his panicked expressions begins to morph into a calmer one. “The soldiers will be able to shatter the spike as long as the only thing fighting them is the weaker ice beasts.“

  “So how long will that be taking?“, I ask him.

  “Well, I have no way of knowing that. From this far up I am not able to see beyond a few blobs.“ He replies. "Even with the spyglass, I can't see that far away now. You have my spyglass as well."

  Fuck, that was not a reply that I wanted to hear. You see, I would be able to strengthen my mana sense using my vital mana. The only problem in the process is the amount of information that I will have to process. Let's just say that it will lead to quite a few headaches.

  Using the sensory formation is still a bit easier to do than enhancing my vital mana like this. Bracing myself I do exactly that. The world suddenly takes on a new definition. It is almost like every different mana source in the area has taken on a new color. Thank god the mana sources here are so monotonous. Anywhere else this would have made the already colorful world around me almost painful to watch. (It is why I tend to strengthen my mana sense so rarely.)

  The soldiers stand out like a fire in the area surrounding us. I am not able to focus on them for long. Already I can feel a dull throb form in my head as my mana sense threatens to overwhelm me. I close my eyes to focus purely on my mana sense.

  The main problem is all the ice mana in the place. It stands out like a blinding mirror, making it seem like the area is flooded with light. Well, I force myself to focus on the soldiers. From this far it is hard to make out, but I am sure that one of the soldiers is pounding away at the Ice spike with his sword. It could also be a hammer though that doesn't matter. What matters is that they are breaking the damn thing.

  They are not making too much progress with it. They have weakened it a bit but they aren't just getting that many chances to hit the damn thing. The grunts are always there stopping the soldiers from doing anything.

  Stopping my mana from cycling, I can feel my head pounding. Forcing myself to think through it, I notice the damn beasts breaking through the spear. Finally, the damn troop leader is free of the spear. It is still limping so that is a good thing at least. They have begun to run towards the spike now.

  As they do so though, I can feel a plan form in my mind. Well, I check my mana first to make sure that I have enough mana to pull off what I plan. Well, I think it will be a bit less than needed, but I think that I should be able to make it work. What can I do, strengthening your body like this is pretty costly and I am not a martial mage. Those bastards can fight like this for days at a time as well.

  Regardless, I dip both of my hands into the quiver and hold one spear in each hand. I already begin to channel my mana into my arms. Meanwhile, the creatures have been making their way to the southern gate. Well, by the time that I am done charging the creatures have reached it.

  "Strike them already, captain.", shamon speaks behind me. The man has begun to panic a bit.

  "I have a plan, Shamon. Don't disturb me.", I reply.

  Even in this time, the three troops leaders have reached the gate. The limping leader and one of the other leaders are holding camp throwing ice bolts at the soldiers above. The last leader is now climbing the spike. Fuck, I had wanted all three of them climbing the spike.

  Taking a deep breath, I wait. Shamon next to me has already entered into a panic, but I wait. If the man could be would have slapped me. Finally, the creature is in position. I throw both of my spears at the creature at the same time, just as the creature reaches the region where the soldiers had weakened the spike.

  Both spears fly, reaching their targets in time. The first was aimed at the creature on the spike, which the creature dodges by jumping over it. The other is aimed at the spike below it. Normally, the spear would not be strong enough to damage the spike but the soldiers have been hacking at it for a while. The spear is enough to push the spike to its breaking point.

  The spike begins to crumble, as the troop leader falls on it. Its weight is enough to collapse the entire thing as the troop leader plummets to its death, buried under tons of ice.