Fortress Where the Sun Never Sets

High Court
Corner of Holder Street
Old Gil was leading a group of ratfolk, distributing all kinds of weapons.
A number of farm rats crowded around him, queuing up to claim their arms.
"Everyone gets one weapon. If you've trained, take a crossbow. If you've never been on the battlefield, take a sword and shield. The rest, take a spear."
"Each crossbow comes with twenty arrows. Once you've got your weapon, come to me for registration."
Old Gil called out tirelessly amid the crowd, maintaining the order of the line.
"Are these weapons for us to go to war? We've never fought before!"
"That's right!"
"With skills like ours, aren’t we just going to die on the battlefield?"
The leader, a ratfolk with a crooked mouth, voiced his doubts, and many others echoed him.
"If you want to join the fight, head to the north side of Central Square and enlist—there you’ll even get rations. Here, we're handing out weapons just for your self-defense. No one is forcing you."
"It's simply so you have something to protect yourselves in critical moments. Don't overthink it."
Old Gil explained patiently; in his view, this was all he could reveal.
Yang Jie had insisted that everyone be armed, and during these golden days of preparation, the arsenal was working at full capacity.
...
At the same time, Old Sha’s construction team had quickly grown to over two thousand rats with the addition of many female ratfolk.
He designated five hundred for reinforcing the city walls, five hundred for hauling timber, and the remaining thousand were split by Old Sha into fifty work groups.
Every five groups were led by a team leader for command.
On the sand table, High Court was divided into fifty districts by nine vertical and four horizontal lines.
Each group was responsible for its own area, operating under performance evaluations.
...
Just last night, Yang Jie had sought out Old Sha alone.
Yang Jie’s intentions were clear, direct and to the point:
"Based on my assessment of the enemy’s and our strengths, it will be difficult to withstand the human coalition’s assault with only these five hundred meters of city wall.
It’s not a matter of doubting our troops’ capabilities, but with their overwhelming numbers, they hold the absolute initiative in siege warfare.
If they want to fight, we must engage; if they wish to pause, we have no way to stop them.
Forget about night raids—if you were on the other side, Old Sha, would you sleep soundly under our noses, completely unguarded?"

"What are you suggesting, Chief?"
Old Sha asked. He could guess part of Yang Jie’s meaning, but some things remained unclear.
"My meaning is simple: we have the advantage of city walls, but we cannot rely on them alone.
We need a defensible depth—if we depend solely on the walls, the burden on our warriors will be too great. I want the entire tribe to share the stress with the fighters.
The enemy’s numbers appear to be nearly three times ours. To win, we must mobilize the farm rats, labor rats, and female rats alike."
"I agree. We have ten days—more than enough!"
Through the discussion with Yang Jie, Old Sha’s thoughts became sharper.
Yang Jie sighed deeply and continued:
"Mobilization alone isn’t enough. In terms of fighting spirit and combat ability, a ragtag militia cannot compare to a regular army.
Therefore, we must transform most of High Court into a defensive stronghold, using our familiarity with the terrain to make the enemy pay dearly for every step forward!"
"Have you seen ‘Tunnel Warfare’? Of course you haven’t!
Let me give you a few ideas. Look over there."
Old Sha followed Yang Jie’s gesture but saw nothing special.
"Isn’t that just a common residential house?"
Old Sha asked, puzzled.
Yang Jie patiently explained:
"This is an ordinary two-story dwelling. But if we open a path to the roof, it becomes a makeshift arrow tower where rats can stand guard."
"Of course!
Now that you mention it, Chief, it all makes sense. These houses are everywhere, and many can be connected just by laying planks.
Both sides of Sunset Avenue are full of such duplexes, all ready to be modified."
"Exactly!
That’s the plan—we must use our knowledge of the terrain to extend our defensive depth. If the enemy dares to enter, we will ensure they never leave!"
Let High Court become the empire’s graveyard!
"This is our operational strategy!"
Yang Jie’s words struck Old Sha like a revelation.
"The enemy has come from upstream, far away, and surely can’t bring much food. They’ll inevitably plunder the city for supplies!"
"But we just need to move all grain and crops to the eastern side of High Court, to the Warton District."
"If their logistics fail, the enemy will soon withdraw!"

With this realization, Old Sha grew more excited—the power of hope surged within him.
"Exactly!"
Yang Jie walked to the sand table, pointing as he spoke.
"As soon as the city gates fall, the commercial district on High Court’s west side becomes the main battleground—the dense buildings are perfect for ambushes."
"And here!"
Yang Jie pointed to another spot.
"This is Sunset Avenue, leading from the gates straight to Central Square.
If the enemy breaks through, they’ll pour in along Sunset Avenue! The road is wide, flanked by tall buildings. I’ll station heavy troops here—once the enemy enters, we’ll close the trap, attacking from three sides!"
"So we should focus our defenses here, right, Chief?"
Old Sha picked up the thread.
"Precisely! The alleys along Sunset Avenue are barely three meters wide. I’ll have Johnny’s city guard defend this area."
"We can set all kinds of traps in the residential zones, using the terrain to block the enemy."
"Not only must we fight on the ground, but we should also connect the two-story houses into a vast network, allowing us to strike from above."
"That’s exactly what I mean!"
Old Sha quickly grasped Yang Jie’s tactical thinking, which pleased Yang Jie greatly.
"We also need to build a field hospital behind Central Square, in the Warton District. Time is very tight!"
"Minister Sha, the burden on you is heavy this time. Whether our ratfolk can survive this ordeal depends entirely on you."
Yang Jie wasn’t trying to pressure Old Sha, but the situation was dire, with much left to prepare and little time remaining.
"Chief, there’s no need for formalities. Everyone knows what kind of rat I am!"
"With this plan, I’ll need a thousand more workers!"
Old Sha did not hesitate, asking Yang Jie for another thousand rats to reach his ideal standard.
"Not a problem—but you’ll have to wait two days. Once the batch of field nurses finishes training, and Old Gil completes weapon distribution, I’ll send you two thousand more!"
...
Meanwhile, Viktor stood on the rostrum at the training grounds, facing the sea of newly enlisted reserves.
He began his first address...