Mograine truly did not disappoint him; for infected civilians who refused to be quarantined in prison, he would directly kill them with a hammer, not giving them a chance to argue.
A paladin who could face tens of thousands of undead Scourge, lead his remaining forces not to retreat, but to charge, combined with his fiery temper, truly did not tolerate these commoners.
A prince slaughtering civilians was not a good reputation, especially when they were the subjects of other lords.
But Mograine had no such burden; he only knew that a paladin must purify defilement and cleanse the plague.
Taelan was also a soft-hearted paladin, and after being persuaded by a few words, he followed along.
In short, if you don't do it, I'll make you do it!
Arthas personally set up defenses at the gate, watching the distant Meat Wagon catapults continuously hurl stones.
An infantryman was hit head-on in front of him; his fine iron armor was dented by the powerful stone, and his health was instantly depleted, beyond even the Holy Light's power to save!
"Jaina, is there a way to attack those catapults?"
"Give me some time, cover me."
Jaina was well-rested, a hint of solemnity appeared in her azure eyes, and she began to chant her spell.
The dark night sky already carried a chill, and as the spell was chanted, the temperature gradually dropped to a bone-chilling cold.
A giant stone flew towards them, with a whistling wind; if this hit, the fragile body of a mage would not be able to withstand it!
Whoosh!
Exhaling, Arthas picked up his shield, aimed, and forcefully struck the stone sideways.
Boom!
The stone was deflected from its trajectory, incidentally crushing a few unlucky Zombies.
Arthas also felt a pang of pain; seeing his health drop by a hundred points startled him.
"Blizzard!"
Jaina chanted quickly, her expensive staff erupting in a burst of light, further amplifying the spell.
Hail began to fall above the catapults, fist-sized hailstones crashing down on them.
Each hit could deplete a significant amount of health, and the ghouls covered below suddenly slowed down, their swift four-legged crawling becoming even more sluggish.
After a round of hail that lasted half a minute, the catapults below were already tottering, and one unlucky one was hit multiple times and directly fell apart.
Swish, swish, swish!
Two magic arrows flew out, spanning a long distance to completely shatter the tottering catapults.
Arrows from Sylvanas!
"Well done, ladies. Jaina, go rest for a bit; I'll handle the rest."
"Grom, time to clean up!"
Arthas shook his aching arm, picked up his warhammer, and charged into the battlefield; only his presence here could boost morale.
The undead were not terrifying; what was terrifying was the collapse of army morale.
Under the aura's blessing, affected allies triggering the aura could also gain experience; the battlefield was a good place to grind experience!
"LOK"TAR OGAR!"
Grom was also full of resentment; despite bearing the title of prince's Guard, the humans here did not welcome him.
It was only because orcs were invaders, bringing countless pains; this deep-seated hatred was not so easily dispelled.
The two sides engaged in a tug-of-war, and before Arthas' eyes were countless green and red health bars.
While fighting fiercely, he also had to constantly pay attention to raising the health of critically wounded soldiers.
The more he fought, the more excited he became; for him, if things got too tough, he could always retreat.
There was no penalty for failing the quest; as long as the green hills remain, there will always be wood to burn.
But the generous quest rewards were truly tempting; even though he could see more red health bars gathering in the distance, Arthas did not retreat a single step.
"For Lordaeron!"
A guard eventually collapsed from exhaustion, pounced upon by a ghoul, and then more ghouls swarmed him.
The Necromancers in the distance hid outside the riflemen's attack range, constantly using necromancy to raise skeletons, turning them into Skeleton Warriors to continue the charge.
The purpose of cannon fodder was to deplete living forces; this was a completely cost-free business.
Once a human soldier fell, it wouldn't be long before he was resurrected as undead, wielding a butcher's knife against his former comrades!
There were still three hours until dawn, but after only half an hour of combat, the Hearthglen defenders had already suffered one-third casualties, which was simply inconceivable.
Arthas paid close attention and discovered that these undead were unknowingly employing tactics!
At first, these undead would surge like a tide, haphazardly attacking every living creature they saw.
They had ferocity in abundance, but lacked intelligence.
Relying on the Holy Light prayers of the priests in the rear, plus the small recovery from the Vampiric Aura, as long as they weren't simultaneously surrounded and instantly wiped out, they simply couldn't die.
War was not as simple as he imagined!
This was also Arthas' shortcoming; he could be a commander, but he was certainly not an excellent general.
Fortunately, Mograine returned at this moment, covered in blood and filth.
"Mograine, you've come at just the right time. You command the soldiers; those undead seem to have someone directing them, understanding how to surround and pick off our soldiers one by one."
It didn't matter if he was inferior; Arthas didn't feel discouraged at all. If he were omnipotent, what would he need these generals for?
"Prince Arthas, please rest assured, I will hold Hearthglen!"
Mograine immediately took command, skillfully withdrawing the severely wounded soldiers and rearranging the battle lines.
A single-file formation prevented single-point targeting, ensuring that the undead could only fight at the gate and not surround isolated individuals.
Sylvanas fired an arrow, sniping the distant Necromancer, then stood by him, a fragrant breeze trailing, her golden hair tied in a single ponytail, looking very heroic and capable.
"I thought you would stubbornly hold on, you arrogant little prince."
With a hint of sarcasm and mockery, if she were to be completely obedient, she wouldn't be Sylvanas.
Arthas rubbed his nose, shrugging helplessly.
"I truly have no talent in leading armies. In this regard, I need you, and I need the help of my vassals."
Sylvanas said nothing, but the curve of her lips indicated that she was very happy.
Her slender, pale finger pointed to the dark forest in the distance, where it was pitch black, completely obscuring any view.
"About a kilometer from here, there's a team of undead transport wagons. I don't know what they're transporting, but their direction seems to be towards the Eastweald region."
As soon as she spoke, Arthas saw the quest panel update; wasn't this the side quest from the fifth stage?
'Side Quest (Optional): Intercept undead Transport Convoy'
'Quest Content: A convoy laden with plague potions and spell components is passing through Hearthglen. Intercept and destroy the convoy within fifteen minutes.'
'Quest Reward: Book of Power.'
Book of Power: Increases hero level and skills by one.
Good stuff!
Not only could it increase his level, but it could also upgrade all his skills by one.
Looking at his level five panel, if he leveled up, wouldn't he be able to learn ultimate skills?
Moreover, leveling up would comprehensively increase health, attack, and defense; the higher the level, the more useful it would be!