Chapter 93: Frontal Charge
Chapter 93: Frontal Charge
In the evening, Ulm and the others rode their mounts and arrived at the army, which was setting up camp behind a leeward earthen mound.
The newly arrived Winged Hussars and Axe Guards, somewhat nervously, performed the ceremony of pledging fealty to Lothar one by one.
They would be incorporated into Lothar’s personal guard. Thus, Lothar’s Winged Hussars now numbered seventeen, and the Varangian Axe Guards, ten.
Early the next morning, the army set out once more.
Marching in the desert was so tedious and dull. Everywhere was a scene of dusky yellow. The broken walls and crumbling ruins of ancient buildings stood upon the ground, and one could vaguely still see the mottled traces left by past civilizations.
Ahead, black smoke billowed and churned, reaching straight to the sky. Vultures circled in mid-air, seemingly ready to descend and feast heartily at any moment.
"There’s a situation! Prepare for battle!" Lothar ordered loudly.
Two knight squires, acting as scouts, lightly equipped, rode forward to investigate.
Knights, attended by their squires, began to don their thick armor. Sergeants in a flurry gathered around the baggage wagons, fumbling to put on their helmets.
No one could march in full armor in such a climate. As long as enough scouts were sent out, the probability of being suddenly attacked in the desert without even having time to properly don armor was not high.
"The weather lately seems abnormally hot." Inspector Andrew, while armoring up, lamented, "Though it’s always hot in previous years, this year is exceptionally so. Look, those riverbeds have all cracked."