Nil layered the buffalo's path with traps that progressively increased in strength so that the buffalo would keep moving forward at a careful pace. There were a few times when the traps couldn't even budge a single hair on the buffalo, and the buffalo started regaining its confidence. But before it could build momentum, another trap sprung up and threatened to trip it, stable it, or chop off a foot or two.
Slowing down the buffalo gave Nil a lot more time to finish his preparations, but it still wasn't enough, and he used his magic to move around on top of the large flat sheet of metal. The sheet was already larger than the ship Toz, and the cats rode when they traveled to the battlefield, but it kept expanding. Nil absentmindedly shifted his body away from the buffalo by moving the metal under him.
He sat motionlessly with closed eyes, but he still made sure that he stayed within the buffalo's sight while he kept strengthening his magic.
