Chapter 1: Habsburg
Chapter 1: Habsburg
The field was alive with the fluttering of black horse manes in the wind. Iron hooves trampled the soft grass, kicking up clumps of earth.
A knight, clad in a barrel helm with only a narrow slit for vision, wore chainmail beneath a black surcoat. Mounted on a sleek black warhorse, he charged toward a straw dummy serving as his target.
A heavy beechwood lance was tucked under his arm, forming a perfect right-angled triangle with his body—a standard posture that provided stability for the lance. This was the couched lance technique, a fundamental technique every knight in the world had to master.
The lance in his hand was solid, tapering toward the tip but thick at the base, cumbersome yet widely used in tournaments. However, its brittle nature made it prone to shattering.
First charge.
The lance struck true, its metal tip piercing through the straw dummy’s chest. The sheer force of the impact sent the dummy flying into the air.
The knight raised the dummy high, then flung it aside with a swing.
Without hesitation, he discarded the heavy lance and spurred his horse forward. As he passed a weapon rack, he deftly snatched two short spears from it.
Upon turning his steed for another charge, the knight reversed his grip on one spear, raising it overhead before driving it downward with precision—straight into the neck of another straw dummy.
This was often the weakest point in an enemy’s armor.