Iris looked out at her people, camped out in tents or with simple tents hung up above their heads. They were refugees. Cast out of their home by the war that had marched upon them.

The City Lord of Galmore had managed to clear all but one of the Military Parade grounds for the refugees, but even then, many of the people were still in the underground train station and even a little bit in the tunnels.

Food was distributed among the refugees twice a day, when the sun rose, and when it set. It was always the same porridge. Filling, but bland. People were hungry, but far from starving. There was plenty of water to go around both for drinking and cleaning.

With the spring winds being comfortably warm but not hot, and no storm clouds in sight, her people were well off considering the situation they found themselves in.

Without the worry of food, water, or shelter, the biggest issue now plaguing the refugees of Onigas was boredom. To such a degree that those of age, who had not yet volunteered, enlisted merely to kill their own boredom.

This problem, that seemed like such a minor inconvenience, was in fact anything but. Without anything to do, the people found whatever they could to keep themselves busy, mostly involving theft and fights with the Galmorians.

The few Onigarian Guards that had been ordered to stay with the refugees struggled to keep the peace, as the Galmorian Guards were busy training within an inch of their lives, preparing for the war to reach them.

Despite being willing to help before, the Galmorians were rapidly growing sick of the Onigarian Refugees plaguing their streets, taking anything not nailed down, and otherwise being a nuisance.

Several fights had already broken out. Thankfully the Guards had been close enough to break it up before there were any serious injuries, let alone deaths.

Iris found herself in the Galmore Castle practically every waking moment, trying to find solutions to her people's struggles.

While they might be fine now, health wise, without proper shelter, disease was bound to spread, especially when winter came back around. And what if the food ran out? Or the water became sick?

No one wanted to speak it aloud, afraid doing so might make it happen, but Iris knew that it certainly would happen. This was not a war for riches, insult, or territory. This was a war of extermination.

The Demons would not stop with just burning Onigas to the ground. They would not be satisfied until every human was dead and bleeding out.

Such a war, such a horror, would not end in just a season. Even now, Iris heard reports about the other Kingdoms fighting back. None were retaking any ground, but they were slowing the Demonic advance, or even managing to halt it in certain locations.

Iris would not be surprised if this war was waged for years.

But such a war could not be fought on preserves and storages. Such a war required sustainable food, clean water, and dry shelter. If any of those three could not be achieved throughout the war, the Demons would not need to attack. They could merely sit back and wait until the Humans were too weak to hold their weapons.

No Kingdom had prepared such facilities. No Kingdom had prepared for such vast swaths of their land to be taken and burned. No Kingdom had prepared to muster their entire populus in just one or two cities. No Kingdom had prepared to draft the vast majority of their people, let alone feed and house them.

This war was not one that any Human had thought would happen. And none were ready for it.

Iris was not the only one to have noticed this, not in Galmore, and not just in the Alliance. The City Lord had understood the issue when it was brought to him and had ordered for Enchanted Devices to be sent to each of the surviving Kingdoms. Along with instructions to use them.

Each Device cost more than a Castle, and was as delicate as Chicken's Egg, but it would allow the Kingdoms of Man to communicate each other.

This war could not be fought independently. Their enemy was certainly not, nor could they.

Zalar had already responded with their suggestions. Taria and Celarn were already arguing about how many troops they had. But Kemore was even more chaotic. Their cities were so independent from each other that they could not agree on a single voice for the single Device.

The other Devices were on the way to the other Kingdoms, something that was proving difficult for the Western Kingdoms, as the Demons lay in between. Days passed where the Devices had to be sent to Zalar first and sent on from there.

It would be another week before Hason or Xedora got their Devices. And a week after that, at a minimum, before the Gilaen Empire or the City States received theirs. As for the Tauras Diarchy? No one knew about them.

They had been quiet before the Invasion, and had gone completely silent since. No one knew what was going on. Had they barricaded themselves off in their Mountain fortresses? Were they already being attacked by the Demons somehow? Had they already been conquered? Or was there some other threat they were facing? No one knew. At least no one willing to share.

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And so, the Kingdoms were moving on without them. The region of Taurus was too treacherous at the best of times to simply send scouts to figure out the situation. And now was far from the best of times.

Iris merely hoped they were alive and well, because if they weren't, Humanity's chances would plummet, and they weren't great to begin with.

So, while the Devices were being sent out, and the City Lord was handling the international matters, Iris stayed to the matters of her people.

It quickly became clear that the best solution would be to expand outside the city. A typical solution that would normally be easy to accomplish. Had it been any other city.

This was Galmore.

They were surrounded on all sides by a thick and dense forest home to Monsters even Experts worried about. Any expedition outside the city walls was bound to be attacked, and any additional Soldier Galmore had previously maintained, had already been sent to the ongoing siege in Onigas.

Now, only the minimum number of soldiers required to man the walls of Galmore remained in the city, including any of the recruits still being trained, either Galmorian or Onigarian.

They did not have the soldiers required to clear enough land for the refugees.

Once it was clear of monsters, workers could move in, clearing the trees and using the wood to create palisades and more permanent shelters.

Iris had already spent several days at her borrowed desk, batting her brain for some solution.

She could not simply order the untrained refugees to clear the land. Doing so would result in only sixty percent surviving. She had done the numbers and estimates.

Wouldn't that be a show?

To leave their home city for safety, only for such a large amount to die for temporary shelter.

Iris even considered using one of the Earth Mage Masters in the remaining Galmorian Guard to dig large trenches and conjure tall walls around the area and clearing it out afterward. Unfortunately, despite her impression that Masters were all powerful, the man himself had informed her that such a project, while possible, would take him nearly two months to complete, as there were no other Earth Mages of comparable power.

Still, the man was willing and had already begun with clearing the earth of any trees or bushes where he was planning on raising the walls. It was quite easy to spot him from the wall because there were falling trees and a great plume of dust wherever he went.

Despite his impressive speed and progress, it would still take over two weeks before the outline was completed, allowing him to finally begin the raising of the Earth Walls. Which would take at least a month. All of which was dependent on him not being attacked.

The man was not worried about being killed by the multitude of Monsters, just that their attacks would delay him.

Loka stayed with her the entire time, trying to help her figure out solutions, and forcing her to eat and rest. It had actually been his idea to have the Earth Mage help. Unfortunately, he had not expected there to be only a singular one remaining.

The rest had all been sent to Onigas and were no doubt using their Magic to reinforce and rebuild the city as it was destroyed around them. The ability to create fortifications in mere moments was no doubt invaluable and could make or break a siege.

Iris held her face in one hand on the desk, while she used her other hand to point to the various numbers on the numerous papers spread out before her. She had already read the numbers countless times. She was just hoping that by reading them again she would miraculously figure out a solution to all her problems.

Loka had already fallen asleep at the desk across from her in the small office room they had been allowed. While she had spent the entire day in the office, fussing over what all those numbers meant, he had been sent running throughout the city to receive and give reports and to also get food for the two of them.

Iris sighed out loud, annoyed at herself. Had her father been there, he would have no doubt found a solution as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. But he was not there. Instead, he was back in their home, fighting to keep it out of the hands of the Demons.

Loka shot to his feet, startling a gasp from Iris, "I figured it out!"

"Figured out what?" Iris exclaimed, clutching her chest and pounding heart.

"You know how I told you I wanted to be an Adventurer when I was young?"

"Yeah?" Iris briefly recalled when he had told her this on one of their Knight Order's expeditions, where 'somehow' they were the only ones on guard duty.

"That's it!"

"Loka, please, full sentences."

The man rubbed the back of his head in guilt, he had a habit of speaking in incomplete sentences when he was excited. Something Iris, and many of the other Knights, had already chastised him about several times.

"That's the solution to our space problem. Adventurers! We can have them clear the area."

"The Galmorians already drafted all their Adventurers."

"Not all of them! According to the Record Keepers, there was no official draft. Most of them signed up anyway but were some that didn't. And we never drafted our Adventurers either! I'm sure we can find some of the Guild Employees who have the records, find the Adventurers in both Galmore and Onigas, and have them clear the area.

They are already combat trained and experienced, and we could even saddle them with workers afterward, to keep them safe until the palisades or walls are up. We can even keep them on as the Guards to patrol the walls after they are up. Cause I doubt the Galmorians would want to have their own limited number of Guards patrol an even larger area."

Loka was rambling now, but Iris was liking the idea more and more. She fumbled through the papers on her desk, struggling to find the paper detailing the relevant information.

She did eventually find it, crumpled from her excitement, "By the gods, you're right. There was never any official draft for either cities."

"And as per Guild Law, should they be called upon by their City, they are required to provide full aid, payment to be determined at a later date."

Iris jumped to her feet and grabbed Loka's face, kissing him deeply before she thrust the papers into his chest.

"You are a beautiful man, Loka! Go to the Galmorian Guild, get their records. Then go to the Quartermaster and get their records of who they gave equipment to. We will have to cross reverence them to figure out which ones enlisted, and which ones are still in the city.

I will run the idea by the City Lord. If you run across someone from our Order, tell them to find someone from the Onigarian Guild and get their records."

Loka smiled wide, and not because of his brilliant plan. He ran out of the small room without a word.

Iris left just after him, running to the City Lord's office, where he had his perpetual court. Finally, Iris had a goal and a plan.

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