38.
The siege tower did not stop.Arrows poured toward it, but it kept coming—slowly, without pause.It caught fire, yet its speed did not diminish.
The second siege tower reached the wall first.Hooked ladders caught, and iron claws bit into the gaps of the stone like beasts.The timbers that made up the tower screamed.
"It's attached to the wall!"
With the shout, arrows rained down from the top of the tower.The shields on the wall lost their angles, and several of the Goryeo crossbowmen were knocked backward.Arrows driven from above rode over the tops of shields.
Seong-jin pulled back with his crossbow in hand.The air atop the wall changed instantly.It was a crisis. If they were pushed by numbers, they would be forced back.
A banner fluttered atop the tower.The emblem of the black horse swayed at the same height as the wall.
The Great General clenched his teeth."Spearmen forward! Pull them down!"
Iron struck iron atop the wall.The battle had now begun on the rampart itself.Enemy soldiers spilled onto the wall.
---*
They had prepared thoroughly.Several siege towers attached themselves to the wall in succession.
The tops of the towers stood level with the rampart.Through flames and smoke, wooden planks split apart, and from the gaps rose black iron helmets.The first to climb up were shield-bearers.Holding round leather shields overhead, they pressed their bodies up against the wall.
"They're on us!"
With the shout, the balance atop the wall collapsed.The crossbowmen fell back, and spearmen rushed in to fill the gaps.But blades striking downward from above came at a different angle.They rode over shields and cut into shoulders and necks.
For the first time, blood splashed across the wall.It was Goryeo blood.
Seong-jin set down the crossbow and took up a spear.This was the crossbow unit's position.Originally, it was a place to bring enemies down.Now, it was a place to hold.
"Don't give ground!"
Hwang Hyeon-pil's voice was close.He was already up on the north wall.He held not a sword, but a short iron mace.A weapon meant to break shields.
The mace struck a shield.Bang.Once more.Bang.
When the shield broke, the face behind it was exposed.Hwang Hyeon-pil did not hesitate.He brought the mace down through the shattered gap.A man's face twisted. Crushed. Flesh burst and blood sprayed.
From atop the siege tower, enemy troops kept pouring down.Not a single line.Two lines. Three.
Command on the wall began to shake.The crossbowmen abandoned firing and took up close-combat weapons.The spearmen who met the enemy head-on were pushed back helplessly.Shoulders collided, formations collapsed.
"The rear is open!"
Someone shouted.But there was no time to look back.They were being pushed from the front.Enemy soldiers were pouring in.In situations like this, the exchange rate becomes one to one.
The Northern Yuan did not miss the opening.A banner rose atop the siege tower.It was a small signal.But on the steppe, it was enough.
Outside the walls, a drum sounded.Short. Twice.A command-change drum.It seemed to signal sending more troops up.
At the same time, the cavalry beneath the wall changed direction.Not toward the main gate, but toward the southeastern watchtower.They moved the moment the wall was bound by close combat.
The Great General caught the scene with his eyes.He did not move a single step from the tower.He only raised his hand.
"Rear reserves—move up."
The order was brief.But the reserves were not many.They were already scattered across other sections of the wall.
The fall of the wall was a matter of time.The fight atop the rampart was no longer a battle of numbers, but of time.
As Seong-jin drove his spear forward, he felt it.If this fight dragged on, even the side that won would collapse.The wall was wide, and men were limited.
Another shield rose atop the siege tower.Behind it appeared a commander with a red cord tied around him.A leader.That he had come up himself meant how important this point was.
At that moment, the air atop the wall changed again.The enemy knew it too.If this point broke, the entire fortress would shake.
Strength flowed into Seong-jin's hands.This was no longer a fight of endurance.It was a fight over who would lose command first.
On the wall,the war was revealing a different face.