41
In front of the collapsed parapet, working hands bustled in layers.At the innermost line stood seasoned engineers and veteran infantry.Behind them lined up crossbowmen and auxiliary troops whose role was strength alone.
Those with strength stepped forward.Those with quick hands supported from behind.Those with keen eyes climbed upward.
"Sort the stones first! Throw out the cracked ones!"
The engineer's shout fell short and sharp.Seong-jin crouched in front of a pile of stones.He rolled them with his hands, running his palms over the surface.He selected slabs with even grain and lifted one.The cold weight transferred directly into the skin of his palms.It was so cold his body flinched.
Below, large slabs were laid down first.The flat face was not placed upward.It was set with a slight outward tilt.
Seong-jin ran his hand along the slope again.Snow and dirt left on the stone fell away at his fingertips.
On top of that, medium-sized cut stones were fitted together.Gaps were deliberately left.Breath was allowed to pass between stone and stone.
"Bring dirt!"
Seong-jin took a basket and poured in soil mixed with fine gravel.He pressed it in, filling the gaps with his palms.
Only a small amount of lime was scattered.What was needed now was not hardening, but support.
An engineer tapped the parapet.Tuk, tuk—
Seong-jin lifted his head at the sound.If a hollow resonance mixed in, the stone was removed immediately.Such stones would shatter from a single hit.
If even one stone slipped,the archer standing above it would be fully exposed.
"Match the embrasure height!"
A shout came from the crossbow unit.
Seong-jin lay prone in front of the embrasure and set his crossbow.A stone blocking his view caught his eye.
He removed one stone.Scooped out a handful of dirt.Set it again.
The view opened.Shapes beyond a hundred paces became clear.
"At this angle, bolts coming from below will glance off."
O Jin-cheol said, narrowing his eyes.Seong-jin rubbed the outer face of the parapet with his hand.Blood and dirt mixed, spreading slickly.
Cloths soaked in water passed back and forth.The slope grew smooth.
"If it's slippery, they can't cling to it."
Someone muttered low.It did not sound like a joke.The inside of the parapet was left rough.It was where soldiers planted their feet and leaned their bodies.
In between, the crossbow unit reset its firing rotation.When the front line withdrew, the rear stepped in.Footing formed between the stones.
"You two, take this section!"
Seong-jin steadied his breath and touched the completed parapet.Cold and solid.For now, it would hold.Until the next stone came.Until the next rain of arrows poured down.
Nothing lasts forever.Everything endures only for the time allotted to it.Stone and walls are no different.They only need to hold for a few days now.
That time is short.Even so, for someone, it is a chance to catch their breath.Seong-jin picked up another stone and passed it forward.
The parapet grew a little higher,and the shadows on the wall lengthened with it.The sky was still gray.Under that gray,the wall stood, waiting for the next impact.
Meanwhile, the scene outside the fortress flowed as slowly as the distance allowed.The Northern Yuan camp lined across the snow had already caught its breath twice.The first assault had been blocked.The second attack had also been repelled.They were waiting.
Steppe warriors were accustomed to waiting.Rather than rushing in, they endured and observed.They measured the moment the wind would change, counted the pauses when snow ceased, read the rhythm of hands on the battlements.
A little distance from Naghachu's camp,a junior commander sat his horse and looked toward the walls of Liaoyang.The parapet that had collapsed earlier was rising again.The lowered height was slowly being restored.
"They're building again."
His words were short.On the walls, people moved like ants.Stones were lifted, soil tamped down, gaps filled.The places shattered by catapults were being rebuilt.
A mounted archer beside him spoke quietly."It's lower than before, and sloped."
The commander nodded without a word.
On the walls, crossbowmen were shifting positions.Fire, withdraw, reappear.The rhythm was constant.
"Crossbowmen."
Annoyance crept into the words.
Liaoyang Fortress was absorbing most arrows with walls, shields, and armor.The soldiers inside scarcely exposed themselves.But when they returned fire, it was formidable.
A sound came from the catapult crews.The signal to load the next stone.
"Next, there."
The commander gestured.It was a section of parapet where the earth color still showed.
"That section is still intact."
He calculated.One more solid hit, and the parapet would sink again.
On the wall, someone lay prone and set a crossbow.It was an extremely short motion.The next shot was already prepared.
A steel bolt flew.
"The Goryeo bastards… know how to fight."
He muttered.
The place that had broken earlier now stood like a clenched jaw."A little more pounding and it goes."
That was what he said.
On the walls, the parapet kept growing.Outside the walls, catapults adjusted their angles again.Going too close meant suffering from Goryeo catapults and crossbows, so they could not advance too far.They had already lost their strongest prepared card.
The wind blew, and the snow scattered.