Chapter 351 - 308: Insignificance
Prince Tyrone rode atop a brown steed, clad in a close-fitting breastplate forged of fine iron. The armor was sculpted to resemble muscles and adorned with patterns on the chest, both for decoration and to protect vital areas.
A lengthy procession followed him, their hands gripping a variety of weapons. Most lacked armor, wielding short knives and short swords, along with wood staves and spears tipped with blade edges. Only a few soldiers donned exquisite armor, with finely crafted swords at their waists—they were the nobles or citizen militia of Danschel.
The army was a formidable force of three thousand strong. Though they could not face the enemy head-on, as a vanguard whose task was to sow chaos, they were more than sufficient.
Prince Tyrone turned his head to gaze at the soldiers marching in a single-file formation, his heart inevitably beating with intensity.
After all, Danschel was a minor kingdom with limited strength, unable to muster numerous cavalry units. Even after scouring the entire kingdom, they could only assemble eighty warhorses. King Phillip was well aware that eighty horses were hardly enough even to pick one’s teeth. He ordered that some sturdier pack horses be fed copious amounts of food to repurpose them as warhorses and even integrated some camels, ultimately mustering only one hundred and thirty cavalry in total.
And of these one hundred and thirty riders, a full one hundred were committed to Prince Tyrone’s vanguard.
Seated on his horse, Prince Tyrone took a deep breath. Danschel had not seen battle for many years, boasting at most some minor experience in repelling the nomadic beastmen and barbarians.
Logically, as a prince, he should not be leading the vanguard into the heart of enemy territory.
Initially, King Phillip was reluctant to send his son into jeopardy, but acceded to Tyrone’s insistence, allowing him to lead the troops and appointing a general skilled in repelling nomadic invasions as his adjutant.
Prince Tyrone’s request was not borne of a desire to lead from the front but rather... the throne.
His elder brother had been appointed heir apparent, and it seemed his succession was all but assured, but Tyrone knew that nothing was absolute.