𝐎𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐚𝐭 (1)
Johan changed the subject just before Iselia noticed the abnormality and asked.
“It’s good that their numerous enemies are scattered, but wouldn’t that mean we won’t be able to catch the really important people?”
“That is true.”
It was a hard situation to chase after important people because there were too many of the remaining defeated soldiers scattered around.
Although the knights were satisfied as long as they were able to capture those with some wealth regardless of who they were, Johan wanted to capture the commander if possible.
Although there wasn’t much of a need to worry about the individual lower aristocrats causing conspiracies, the enemy commander was a different story. There was no knowing what he might try if he was left alone.
In addition, he felt a sense of unease from the fact that they tried to escape so desperately to this extent.
Could it be that there was a hidden plan?
There was no reason why they would abandon such a large army and run away if that wasn’t the case. Any competent commander would have tried to retreat in an orderly manner even if he had to step back.
“Aren’t you being a bit too sensitive?”
“I also think it’s like that, but. . .”
Suetlg and Caenerna cautiously opened their mouths. Although they might be arrogant, this victory was a truly great one.
It was a decisive victory that annihilated the fighting strength of the Sultan’s army that had landed.
Even if there was a great commander, it would not be easy to recover from this defeat. It would take years just to gather the scattered forces.
“He could bring more tribes from the south, or call for reinforcements from the sea.”
“That’s. . . but. . .”
It was a slim possibility, but it was possible. Caenerna did not think that even the enemy commander, no matter how great he was, would be able to persuade the tribes in the south to provide support after suffering such a defeat.
The lords in this vicinity all had eyes and ears. . .
‘𝘏𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘋𝘶𝘬𝘦.’
Caenerna thought as she stared fixedly at Johan. Her standards for the impossible had been lowered quite a bit after following the Duke around and gaining experience. It was not a bad idea to be prepared just in case.
“What then? What are we going to do?”
“As planned, we will send forces to the Holy Land to begin the siege, and chase after the enemies with the elites. Whatever they’re planning, they won’t be able to do anything if we capture them.”
Their top priority right now was recovering the Holy Land. They could not tell the pilgrims gathered here to ‘𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘓𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘮𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩’.
In any case, the number of soldiers remaining in the Holy Land would only be a handful, so Johan himself did not need to go.
Since a siege was something that took up quite a bit of time, it was not a bad idea to move while preparing for the siege in advance.
“However, it seems like the cities on the southern coast will be unnecessarily vigilant. . .”
“Let’s utilize the feudal lords here. They won’t dare refuse the Duke’s proposal.”
The monotheist feudal lords who had deep roots established here were somewhat familiar with the cities further south. They were not close enough to send messengers, but they were at least familiar.
Of course, the magistrates or the city nobles who ruled the city might make annoying requests, but that was something the feudal lords had to figure out.
Because the Duke was the victor.
The Duke who led his army and swept away the enemies while the monotheist feudal lords cowered within their castles and sent a few soldiers or some silver coins. Even the feudal lords had probably not expected the Duke to achieve such a great victory.
“No. . . isn’t that a bit much? It’ll be annoying if they end up harboring grudges for no reason.”
“Why are you worrying about something like that?!”
“You should at least do that much!”
Suetlg and Caenerna who were listening from the side shouted at once in disbelief.
They couldn’t believe that he was still being considerate of the feudal lords after literally crushing the enemy’s large army. How could he be so cautious, even if he was being prudent?
If it was the Emperor, he would have said ‘𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘶𝘥𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴! 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘭 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘱 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘈𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘥!’ It was a victory that allowed for such arrogance.
“. . .You’re being too careful, but I think it’s fine for you to ask for it this time. The feudal lords may harbor grudges in their hearts, but there will definitely be no one who will show it on the surface.”
Even Valeon, the son of the old king, had stepped up.
Originally, there was no reason for him to step up since he was basically brought here against his will, but he ended up speaking because he felt stifled.
As Valeon was a knight and led his soldiers into battle, he was fully aware of how great his performance on this battlefield was. None of the knights in his fiefdom had ever shown a performance like the Duke’s.
It was not limited to just battle. Everything from gathering soldiers before the battle, creating rifts in the enemy, leading them to an advantageous battlefield, and finishing them off seemed like one perfect calculation.
Of course, the truth was a bit different, but it was easy to make such a mistake when looking from the outside.
Although Valeon himself did not admit it, Valeon was now firmly captivated by the outcome of the battle. It was because he was taking Johan’s side rather than the monotheist feudal lords.
“Right. If you say it to that extent, let’s send a messenger. Let’s be as polite as possible, just in case. . .”
“The underlings will take care of such things, so stop worrying about that.”
Suetlg scolded the Duke for the first time in a long time.
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At the news of the great victory near Tahkreng Castle, the monotheist feudal lords all rejoiced. That was until the messenger spoke.
“His Highness the Duke has requested that you send men to the southern cities for a smooth pursuit.”
“Men. . .? What for?”
Count Tragalon was quick-tempered and greedy. It was not uncommon for him to lead a group of rogues as a count and loot the merchant ships of pagans.
“If we lead our army there, won’t those b*stards dare to touch us?”
“He said he wanted to receive cooperation from the cities.”
“. . . . . .”
The count’s joyful face darkened. The southern cities were full of greedy and arrogant people. In order to receive their cooperation, they would have to pay a steep price.
People usually bowed their heads and asked for help when they were in dire straits, but they tended to start acting haughty once things got better. The count briefly considered refusing outright.
‘𝘈𝘣𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵.’
The aide desperately looked at the count. The other subordinates present were the same.
No matter how good the money was, there was no way it would be good to incur the Duke’s wrath now. In the worst case, the Duke’s army could advance into the count’s fiefdom.
The idea that they were brothers of the same faith and would not attack each other had been shattered centuries ago. The brothers that had crossed the sea could kill their own brothers without hesitation for the sake of land and power.
“. . .Of course I have to cooperate. The Duke is fighting so fiercely against the pagans!”
“Thank you very much!”
Not noticing the silent conversation that had just occurred, the messenger’s face brightened at the quick acceptance. It had ended much sooner than he had expected.
‘𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘰!’
And similar conversations took place in the fiefdoms of the feudal lords. Contrary to what Johan had expected, no one prepared for a rebellion or caused a commotion. There were not even any minor complaints.
“If I knew this would happen, I should have collected a bit more tax?”
“It’s not too late even now, so let’s send another messenger. We have to make them understand the situation.”
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The people of Aniza City received the eunuchs and escorts. There was no need to tell them not to enter with an army. Except for a handful of escorts, there was nothing left.
Even so, there was a reason why the people of Aniza City received them. Even though they had suffered a shocking defeat, the Sultan’s land was still large and his wealth was abundant, so they thought they could receive a large share by helping them.
“Have you definitely sent a message to Viceroy Manansir?”
“I sent three messengers, but I haven’t received a reply. . .”
The eunuchs were quick to catch on. They immediately realized that Manansir was intentionally delaying things.
‘𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘥.’
Of course, it was not something they could not understand. Their large army had been defeated in one blow, and the neighboring monotheist feudal lords had unexpectedly turned to the Duke’s side as if they had eaten something wrong.
Facing the Duke’s army, which was now in high spirits, was like charging head-on into a storm.
Nevertheless, it did not mean that their annoyance disappeared. After all, Viceroy Manansir was the one who had started all of this. If he had not schemed to form a marriage alliance with the Sultan and coaxed him, the Sultan would not have done anything reckless.
Going further back, it was all because that man had greedily captured the Duke’s ship.
“We can’t do anything if there’s no contact. Let’s escape by ship. The captains of Aniza City will prepare ships for us.”
“Hmm. . .”
Although it was shameful to escape after abandoning their large army, the eunuchs did not care much about such shame. There was something more important than that.
The oldest eunuch opened his closed eyes and spoke.
“We need someone to take responsibility.”
The other eunuchs nodded in unison. If they lost such a large army, even the most lenient monarch would swing his sword. Considering the Sultan’s fiery temper, it was possible that the eunuchs would also be killed.
They needed a scapegoat to avoid responsibility.
“It’s unfortunate, but we have no choice but to offer up Yeheyman-gong.”
“But, Yeheyman-gong will not sit still. Aren’t there many people in the court who are on Yeheyman-gong’s side?”
“That’s right. That’s why we have to shut his mouth.”
“. . .?!”
The other eunuchs made shocked expressions as they realized what the oldest eunuch meant. A dead body could not speak. Even if the Sultan pressed them.
The old eunuch looked at the young eunuch and spoke.
“You’ll be able to do it properly this time, right?”
“. . .Of course. I’ll show you right away.”
“Calm down. We can’t shut his mouth right now. Yeheyman’s men are not fools. Let’s take care of it on the ship.”
They could drug Yeheyman to make him sleep soundly, let his subordinates confirm that he was alive, and then stab him on the ship. They could come up with any excuse they wanted. They could simply say that he was trying to escape or that he was trying to kill the eunuchs.
“Those b*stards are saying that the Republic’s fleet is roaming around, but this. . .”
“It can’t be helped. We have no choice but to tell them to prepare ships as quickly as possible and give them a large sum of money.”
The moment the sea route became safe, they planned to escape on a fast ship and head north.
However, no one expected that the Duke’s army would reach this far in the meantime.
With the holy Holy Land in sight, there was no way a noble would come this far after leaving it alone to chase after a few insignificant eunuchs.
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“It reminds me of Jekyllid.”
The appearance of Aniza City reminded him of the pagan hundred kingdoms that he had conquered in the past.
The lord of Jekyllid, an island not far from his original fiefdom, had made the mistake of underestimating and insulting Johan. He had to pay the price for it himself.
“It seems like a good city. It’s bustling.”
The group of messengers from the feudal lords who had arrived first quickly escaped after waiting. They prostrated themselves and waited for Johan to approach.
“Your Highness the Duke! This victory is. . .”
15 minutes later.
“. . .that Your Highness has given us.”
“Right. Thank you. What did the people of the city say?”
The people of the city had declared that they would not mind the fearsome Duke leading his army around. To be exact, they did not have the ability to mind it.
However, it was a different story if they were to enter the city.
First. Only 100 people could enter the city.
Second. They should not cause any fights inside the city.
“Is the commander taking refuge inside the city?”
“He said no, but it looks very suspicious to me. The city b*stards are not denying it strongly either.”
Suetlg asked curiously. He was curious about how the Duke would resolve the current situation.
“Are you thinking of entering?”
“Hmm. . . let’s do that.”
“Are you thinking of causing a fight inside?”
“No.”
“?”
“If we take him aboard a ship, it’s outside the city, right?”
Johan said as he looked at the harbor.
Originally, the laws of this era were extremely complicated, being a mixture of customary law, city law, and noble law. It was not for nothing that lawyers appeared in court even in this era.
Fortunately, Johan had authority and an army. The people of the city would not be able to say anything if he had a proper justification.
“Let’s go in!”
“. . .A-Are you really going in??”
The city noble who was waiting anxiously on the city gate was shocked and hesitated at the words that they were going in. He had never expected that they would actually enter.
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