âMy Lord, what is going on?!â
King Charles, together with the nobles and commanders assigned to the Po River, were confused.
âThose soldiers are shouting that the Scourge of God is here, the end is nigh, and all sinners here will be subjected to the Lordâs judgment. Whatâs going on?â
King Charles had barely managed to establish himself as the leader over the Crusade troops stationed at Po Riverâhe enjoyed significant prestige as the French king who had concluded the Hundred Years War.
âThose soldiers are spouting nonsense. They are saying the Scourge of God is a Horseman of the Apocalypse, and he has descended to the mortal world with his undying army,â a Holy Romain Prince-elector said.
As the next emperor of the Holy Romain Empire hadnât been decided yet, the prince-electors had been going around soliciting allies to reinforce their position. This prince-elector had chosen to woo King Charlesâ support.
âIt sounds like something has gone wrong over at the Duke of Milanâs side.â
The commanders in the Po Riverâs barracks began studying the map to analyze the situation.
âMost of the soldiers who escaped here are their mercenaries. Did the Duke of Milan lose?â
âIâm not surprised if he did. The Khitans have never lost a single battle over the last two years.â
âBut thatâs an army of 60,000! Can it be obliterated just like that?â a noble exclaimed in disbelief.
âMaybe it wasnât completely defeated?â someone suggested. âThe vanguard troops could have been defeated, resulting in some soldiers getting separated from their allies and escaping here. The Duke of Milan could be defending the city with the remaining troops now.â
âEven so⊠the question still stands: where did the Khitans come from? Did the camp at Venezia-Giulia collapse too? That canât be, right?â the prince-elector took a bite of holy biscuit as he murmured.
Venezia-Giulia had a prince-elector too, as well as troops from other cities and nations. Their army was at least 50,000 to 60,000 soldiers strong. It was hard to imagine that they would fall just like that.
âCould the Scourge of God have climbed across the Alps?â someone raised a frightening possibility. âThatâs why the Duke of Milan was caught off guard, and his army of 60,000 was vanquished just like that.â
âYouâre talking nonsense.â
A snowstorm was raging in the Alps, and crossing it under such weather was bound to result in huge casualties. Even if the Khitans survived the ordeal, it was unlikely their steeds could do the same.
And there was no way for the Khitans to acquire new steeds after crossing the Alps.
âArghâŠâ King Charles was getting a headache from reading the map. âSend more scouts to Milan and Venezia-Giulia to investigate the situation. We must get to the bottom of this matterâŠâ
âYour Majesty!â A messenger suddenly rushed into the tent. âEnglandâs regent is back!â
âOh?â King Charles raised his pitch. It was hard for him to bear any goodwill toward England. âWhat are we waiting for then? Letâs welcome him in.â
His voice was dripping with sarcasm.
âYour Majesty, about thatâŠâ the messenger stuttered, âHe might not be able to enter by himself.â
âHm?â
King Charles could hardly believe his eyes when he saw Englandâs regent.
The brawny man who was still standing with gusto not too long ago had been reduced to a pathetic state. He lay in a carriage, wrapped in bandages, his face pale and his eyes dead.
âRegent?â King Charles called out. đŁđđąđđŽđđđ«đŹđđąđ.đ đŹđȘ
Englandâs regent immediately hugged his own head, trembling and sobbing. âWuuu⊠Heâs here. They are all here. The Horseman of the Apocalypse has come to end the world.â
The nobles and commanders exchanged looks, knowing that Englandâs regent had lost it.
The aides who escorted Englandâs regent here had dead eyes too. It was hard to remain spirited after witnessing thousands of archers and over ten thousand heavy cavalrymen being pounded into bits like onion in a mortar.
They explained how Shu Yichao had crushed their formation with his Metal Fortresses with a simple frontal charge, but the French knights merely gloated at their plight.
âHahaha! This bunch of lowly farmers deserve it!â
âThey think that they can compete with cavalrymen just because they can shoot some arrows!â
âUltimately, you need knights to deal with cavalrymen!â
Over the past century, the French knights had suffered lots of arrows from the English archers over many reasons, so they were overjoyed to witness the latterâs misery. Other than that, they also felt a surge of passion.
3000 armored cavalrymen crushing down an army of 60,000 with a frontal charge?
This was the prowess of a knight! That was the epitome of how a knight should be!
With their steed and lance, they would conquer their enemies and return to a rain of flower petals and the cheers of their people.
âYour Majesty!â The French knights turned to King Charles. âLetâs prepare for battle. Letâs have a dignified showdown with the Khitans in the way of the knights!â
The French knights were the only cavalrymen in Europe who could compete with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealthâs Winged Hussars.
Even before King Charles could say a word, the knights had already begun cheering among themselves.
âLong live King Charles!â
âLong live France!â
âLong live the valiant knights!â
The enthusiasm displayed by the French knights appalled the English soldiers. âYour Majesty!â
They had to concede that the French knights were formidable, but the Khitans were different. Those metal cans were monsters!
âYour Majesty, you mustnât go on the offense!â they cried. âItâd be safer to remain here and focus on defense. You are one of the last pillars in the Crusade. If you fall here, it will really be the end of the world. shouldnât go on the offense. You mustnât clash face on with the Scourge of God!â
Had it been in the past, they would have been more than happy to see those French fools leaping to their deaths, but things were different now. They were too exhausted to find other places to seek refuge if River Poâs barracks crumbled too.
King Charles was displeased to hear that.
He was contemplating the dangers of directly waging war with the Scourge of God, but the nature of the matter changed after the English soldiers spoke up.
What did you mean by that? Are you insinuating that Iâll lose? Are you looking down on our French knights?
Franceâs military prowess was at a different level after he pushed out a series of reformation policies. This was no longer just a matter of military affairs but pride too!
Moreover, King Charles believed that he had a decent shot at victory even in a direct confrontation. He had brought almost 30,000 soldiers with him, and 15,000 of them were knights!
Other countries would have trembled in fear if he brought this huge army out for a walk.
And if he included allied soldiers stationed in the River Poâs barracks too, their army strength totalled to 80,000. With this much military power, it was hard to imagine losing to the Khitansâ army of 3000.
Even if the Khitans were as valiant as the legends put them out to be, capable of fighting one against five, that merely equated to a military prowess of 15,000. That was nothing compared to their army of 80,000!
We have the absolute advantage here!
Before King Charles could say a word, his allies, the nobles, and the knights were already lashing out in anger.
âOi, what do you mean by that?â
âYou lost a fight, so you praise the enemy as if they are some kind of supernatural force⊠Thatâs what a coward would do!â
âThereâs no place for cowards like you in our Lordâs heaven!â
âHow dare you call yourself a soldier of the Holy War?â
âRun home and cry for your mother!â
The English soldiers felt both infuriated and frustrated. In the end, they quietly trudged off under the tirade of insults.
We need to leave. This place isnât safe. We should escape as far as possible.
Seeing the English soldiers leaving with hung heads, as well as the heightened morale of his knights, King Charles nodded in satisfaction. He drew his prized sword and roared, âBrave knights, pick your lances, ride your steeds, and raise your flags! We shall spill the enemiesâ blood to forge a great legacy that the world will never forget!
âYour king will accompany you in this noble Holy War. Donât ever forget that the Lord is looking upon you!â
âWOOOOO!!!â
âLONG LIVE THE KING!â
âLONG LIVE FRANCE!â
The cheers nearly brought down the barracks. To everyoneâs excitement, King Charles issued his order.
âWe shall fight the Khitans!â
â
Starveâs Historical Trivia:
France emerged victorious against England in the Hundred Years War, managing to drive off England from their soil and taking away their continental territories.
Interesting fact: it is also during his rule that Joan of Arc appeared. She reinforced Charles VIIâs position by insisting that he has to be crowned king.
He created the first French standing army (aka full-time army), and Niccolo Machiavelli (the man whose name is behind the term Machiavellianism) famously said that France would have been invincible if his successor Louis XI had maintained and built on the standing army.