475: Chapter 73: The Rapidly Deteriorating Situation_1 475: Chapter 73: The Rapidly Deteriorating Situation_1 The piercing cold wind swept across, causing the soldiers, whose faces were red and quivering, to shiver.
Count Fidelis furrowed his brow.
The cold winter morning was undoubtedly a considerable challenge for the thinly clad soldiers.
There was no way around it, time was simply too tight.
This army was cobbled together by the private armies of various nobles, mobilized in an emergency.
There simply wasn’t enough time to prepare enough winter clothes.
Theoretically, the nobles should have provided clothing for their private armies.
However, a few provinces in the southern part of the duchy have a tropical climate, and there is no need for winter clothes.
Things that weren’t needed wouldn’t have been stocked.
Even after the mobilization order was issued, everyone’s efforts to gather as much as they could still proved to be too little.
Given the shortage of supplies, priority had to be given to the main force, leaving ordinary soldiers to keep warm by shivering.
Being unable to conjure up warm clothes, Count Fidelis could only sigh in frustration.
Just as he was about to mount his horse, his gaze shifted, and he suddenly looked up at the sky.
Between the blue sky and white clouds, a grey shadow was circling with its wings spread, appearing to be a hawk.
However, judging by sight, the figure seemed slightly larger than an ordinary hawk, and its circling movements seemed somewhat peculiar.
After circling above the army for several rounds, it performed a few twists and turns.
Count Fidelis’s already grim face became even gloomier, and the young military officer beside him said in a panic, “Father, it’s a Hawkman…”
Before the young man could finish his sentence, Count Fidelis slapped the back of his head and snapped, “Shut up!
I saw it, too.
It’s just a Hawkman Scout, there’s no need to make a fuss about it!”
Even though his words downplayed the situation, he was anything but relaxed inside.
A moment of hesitation later, Count Fidelis immediately ordered:
“Send orders for the gryphon cavalry to ascend for reconnaissance, but they must not engage with the enemy.”
The gryphon cavalry was seriously understaffed, and had to be used sparingly only when absolutely necessary.
If they were to engage in aerial combat with the Hawkmen, they might risk losing all their numbers one day.
Since the orc scouts had appeared, the distance between the two forces was presumably closing.
He turned to the officer next to him and asked, “How long has it been since we’ve heard from our scouts?”
“The last message was received late last night.”
The officer responded.
“Bring the map!”
No sooner had the words left Count Fidelis’s mouth than his adjutant immediately opened the map he had taken from behind him and passed it to him.
Finding the army’s location on the map, Count Fidelis’s face changed suddenly, and he grimly said, “Damn it…”
Before he could finish his sentence, the gryphon cavalry that had just ascended ran into trouble.
The previous performance of the Hawkman in the sky was a signal to call his comrades.
The unexpected encounter laid the groundwork for an engagement.
Outnumbered, the gryphon cavalry dared not engage with the enemy in the air and eagerly shook off the hunting Hawkmen.
However, this subsequently botched the reconnaissance mission.
Faced with numerous Hawkmen, they could only retreat.
Witnessing this scene, Count Fidelis, whose heart was in a panic, feigned calmness and ordered, “Tell the scouts to triple their reconnaissance efforts outside.”
…
A group of Bimon cavalry was galloping like mad over the distant field, and even from far away, an overwhelming aura of doom could be felt.
Jorge was a seasoned scout who had followed his Commander in Chief through many battles over the years and could be considered experienced.
But he was stunned by the scene before his eyes.
Seeing the enemy fast approaching, Jorge, who had snapped back to reality, slapped his forehead, instantly lit the smoke signal and threw it to the ground, then turned around and fled.
This was an experienced soldier’s method of emergency.
There was no time to go back and report.
With the Bimon cavalry’s speed, it would be no time at all before they caught up.
Since he couldn’t deliver an accurate report, he could only light the special smoke signal in his hand to warn his head commander to be careful.
Even though Jorge reacted quickly, the brief delay allowed the Bimon cavalry to spot him.
He had barely escaped a mile when a Bimon strongman caught up and silenced him.
Jorge’s sacrifice was not in vain.
Although the Bimon cavalry quickly extinguished the signal smoke, the instantaneous rising smoke had attracted the attention of his colleagues miles away.
One smoke signal after another spread out like a net, finally reaching the army.
The realization of the impending danger caused Count Fidelis to secretly groan.
The only defensible structure in the vicinity was a small baron’s castle a mile away across an open plain.
It wasn’t just a matter of how defensible the castle was.
The small baron’s castle wouldn’t hold so many troops.
Without the slightest hesitation, Count Fidelis immediately ordered, “Send orders to head for the Alentejo.”
Having defensive structures was always an advantage.
Making camp next to a castle, at the very least, they could store supplies inside the castle to ensure they wouldn’t be destroyed by the enemy.
Deep down, Count Fidelis was praying earnestly: hoping that they hadn’t encountered the Bimon Cavalry Regiment.
Encountering Bimon cavalry in the open field is every general’s nightmare.
Even though his force outnumbered them, Count Fidelis had no confidence in victory.
The best-case scenario was to use the formation to repel the Bimon Cavalry.
A head-on battle was out of the question, as he could not afford to lose the knight corps his clan had worked hard to establish.