Realm stood with a casual demeanor as his assailants circled him, his hands held in his pockets as he does. They clearly expected him to break down, beg for mercy, or try some deception to escape, but there he stood, unwavering. They clearly were not prepared for the emotional attrition required to win such a standoff, and nobody wants to be known as the one who cut down a healer, but that didn't extend to verbal abuse, clearly.

"Stand down! The citadel is ours, and your defenses have crumbled!" One of the more gruff warriors belted at him, a large woman, who looked as though she could break him over her knee like he were a random stick, which was probably true.

"No." Two minutes, he needed to buy two minutes, and despite the consequences of failing to do so, he felt no pressure in the slightest. He looked at the woman with an almost bored expression, paying no heed to the bodies of his allies, his friends around him.

The soldiers all looked like they were about to have a vein burst, they all must have been fuming at this situation. Nobody could do a thing to him, not because there were rules about it, but because of how quickly information spread. People talk, and one way or another someone would find out about a healer being killed, the reputation of the killer would be ruined within days, even quicker if it was known that the reason involved a bad attitude. Fortunately for Realm, this means that they'll be hesitant, especially fortunate because he is not harmless, and he is in fact not unarmed.

"And what exactly do you think you have here? Your friends are dead, we killed your warriors! We already have your general's head on a pike!" One of the more angry looking men clambered forward, holding a spear up to Realms neck, something at which he didn't flinch.

One minute, fifty seconds.

"You won't see it, the most dangerous threats are the ones that go unnoticed." This tactic was tried and true, giving them just enough information to keep them hesitating, keeping your true intentions veiled at all times. Realm felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest, but he managed to make his expression reflect only disinterest.

"You're bluffing! I'm going to walk right past you, those doors have nothing stopping me." The man wound up as though they would strike him, but they decide against it. An attempt to open the doors revealed they were blocked from the inside, as the inner chamber would be, "Ugh, of course it's barricaded. Get the ram!"

Realm made no attempt to stop them, simply stepping to the side as he watched them with his hands in his pockets. One minute, thirty seconds. Unfortunately he didn't have the resources to do what he needed to any faster, so this would have to do. He simply took deep breaths, enjoying the scent of almonds that permeated the air now, unnoticed by the bloodstained warriors.

"One minute left, you may want to leave. Pretty soon occupying this area will be impossible." Realm didn't raise his voice, he just stated a fact, though he omitted about half a minute for his own sake.

"Shut up! Your mind games won't work, we know you've lost! That doesn't change whether you admit it or-" The gruff woman screamed at him, but after seeing something behind him she shifted into a salute. Realm turned around to see a sight he was dreading.

Behind Realm stood one of the generals of the radiant highlands, Red Grover. Nobody called him General Grover, Red Grover just had a ring to it that the soldiers liked, it inspired fear and laughter any time someone misspoke and said Red Rover. Despite all of this, Realm didn't waver, simply giving a lazed salute when he saw him.

"You left one alive?" Red sized Realm up for a second, before snorting and moving past, "Status on breach? The inner chamber is the only safe haven they have left."

"Moments away sir, this wannabe mastermind got us spooked for a second, but he's just a harmless medic." The woman drops the salute and turns to the rest of the soldiers, who had slowed in their attempts to ram the door down.

Realm hadn't anticipated they would attempt physical labor during this, that speeds things up drastically. He waited patiently, only a few moments until he saw the sign. It started with one man, one man coughing and collapsing to one knee, trying to catch their breath. The rest laughed at the one man's misfortune, thinking nothing of it, until another started, and another.

"What the? What's going on?" Red bellowed out, taking a step towards his men as though to intimidate them into working harder, though little did he know that would be his last step.

A bolt of radiant light pierced through the general's chest, he was seemingly unwounded at first, but after a second he collapsed to the ground with a hand clutching his chest. When the gruff woman looked back Realm was holding up two fingers that were pointed at him. It was the perfect moment to explain to all of those present what was going on, it was too late anyways.

"Hydrogen Cyanide. I didn't have a lot, the dosage was meant for one or two people, not a dozen. Don't worry, none of you will die, you'll just take a nice, long nap, and by the time you wake up the siege will be over." Realm walked forward as he adjusted his sleeves, knocking on the door rhythmically as he cups his hand, the remaining gas in the air concentrating above his palm.

"What- how? What did you do to-" The woman coughed as she tried to lift her weapon at him, but by now the poison had been present long enough to weaken her muscles, "What did you do to the general?"

"Oh, Grover. He's dead, don't worry, his death didn't hurt too bad, at least not compared to wounds." The sound of the barricade moving brought a smile to Realm's face, and he turned back to face everyone, about half of them had passed out by now, the others were vainly trying to gasp for breath, breath that would not come, not until he healed them, "I stopped his heart, apply radiant magic just right and the heart gets thrown out of rhythm, shuts down, and boom."

"You still... lost." The woman had collapsed, but was clearly still awake, "They're all dead."

"Again, no." Realm pulled out a glowing purple gem, holding it above her while shaking it, "Soul gem. What's normally cruel and illegal will be my friend's salvation. I'm sure they'll be cross with me for using it, but I don't care, I don't care that planning for the worst meant hurting them, I would rather have hurt friends than no friends."

Realm turned back to the door as it opened, beholding what was on the other side. Realm was going to get into a heap of trouble, but the healing circle assembled in there, along with the shelves of similarly glowing gems would save everything. In just a few minutes, every ally who perished would return, good as new.

The woman looked on in shock, her eyes going wide before her eyes lulled over. There's work to be done, and a siege to undo.