Medieval Knight System: Building the Strongest Empire Ever!-Chapter 74: The Meriant Plain Strategy

When Michael said Burgundy had mobilized roughly fifteen hundred troops, I doubted my ears at first. Had I mistaken a full-scale war for a local conflict? The numbers were far too large for a local conflict. If the Besançon reinforcements had successfully joined them, the total would have been close to two thousand.

"At a point when civil war has broken out with the French royal family, mobilizing that many troops means they hired mercenaries. If you hadn’t interrogated that eccentric knight and extracted the information, we’d have been stuck on the defensive."

"Isn’t facing mercenaries more dangerous than facing levies?"

"It would have been if the civil war hadn’t broken out."

What Michael meant was that for Burgundy, the French civil war took priority over this local conflict, so they had likely funneled most of their quality mercenary companies into that front. He guessed the caliber of mercenaries deployed in this direction was relatively poor. Not all mercenaries were equal, after all.

"If reinforcements arrive, I’m planning to fight a pitched battle with the Burgundian army on the Meriant Plain."

"...Even if you want a pitched battle, will the Burgundians agree to one?"

"If it were another country’s army, not a chance. But the enemy is French."

Right—the opponent was France. French nobles were the type to insist on formality and etiquette even on the battlefield. Count Euz planned to send a courteous letter to Count Épinay proposing they meet each other honorably at a specific time and place. The probability of acceptance was high. But there were variables.

Through the Hundred Years’ War with England, France had been beaten repeatedly using conventional methods, prompting various tactical reforms. Most importantly, the development of artillery that ultimately drove out the English proved that France remained Europe’s greatest power. Wouldn’t their approach differ from the France of old?

"Aren’t you being too optimistic? Even if they agree, there’s no guarantee they’ll use conventional tactics."

"I’m not being optimistic. What matters is drawing the enemy into a pitched battle. Count Euz has requested support from the Beren Lance Cavalry. With lance cavalry backing us, we can break their line first."

I had witnessed the Beren Lance Cavalry’s power firsthand in the last battle. Though they had charged without waiting for orders, they fought bravely against twenty Burgundian cavalrymen. Half of them died, but they took down a full fifteen, demonstrating that the duchy’s elite cavalry operated at an extraordinarily high level.

"It would be reassuring if the cavalry commander came with the lancers."

"I’m not acquainted with the cavalry commander, so I don’t know much about him. What kind of person is he?"

"A brave knight who doesn’t fear death, I’d say. On the battlefield, he’s as reliable as they come."

A brave cavalry commander who didn’t fear death.

The cavalry commander’s name was Lucas von Pensler.

But Michael added a caveat. Pensler was reliable on the battlefield, but the problem was his temperament—far too rough. With a personality as wild as an unbridled horse, he was so disliked by the high nobility that, apart from my father-in-law, none of them could tolerate him.

Originally, Pensler had been a mercenary captain. Because he had distinguished himself considerably in the war five years ago, when the previous Beren Lance Cavalry commander died and the position became vacant, the Grand Duke appointed the mercenary captain as his replacement. Naturally, there was considerable opposition. But my father-in-law and the previous Grand Duke pushed the appointment through, making Pensler the cavalry commander.

After the Hundred Years’ War, mercenaries’ value had risen, and most mercenary captains came from the lower nobility. Lucas von Pensler hailed from the Duchy of Saxony. He had been hired as a mercenary by England during the Hundred Years’ War, then came to the Duchy of Beren after the conflict ended. His subordinates also settled in Beren, where frequent local conflicts meant steady work.

From there, he built his reputation leading the Beren Lance Cavalry in large and small engagements. So when people said "the cavalry commander," they meant Lucas von Pensler—the title had become practically a proper noun. Despite his rough temperament, Pensler apparently followed my father-in-law’s orders with relative obedience.

"By the way, you handled the soldiers well while I was gone. There weren’t many problems."

"I had a good example to follow, so I tried to imitate it."

"That’s what I like about you, brother-in-law. I explain until I’m blue in the face to other knights, but they can’t grasp a thing."

Not all knights were like that, but there were quite a few who trusted in valor and brute strength and lived for the charge, which left Michael extremely stressed. One theory for why cavalry-heavy tactics became entrenched in Europe was that knights simply didn’t know how to do anything besides charge.

So commander-type knights like me, who independently managed soldiers and secured supplies, were rare. Since I had extensive experience working as a manager in my previous life, administrative work was actually easier for me than fighting. Without the Commander Scouter, I might have ended up as a knight who only knew how to charge as well.

While Michael worked out the plans going forward, I stepped outside the tent to rest for a bit. I had been too busy looking after the soldiers to properly take in Count Euz’s fortress city, so I planned to have a look around while stretching my legs. August, Ted, and Oscar naturally fell in behind me.

Euz Castle had developed into a fortress city because it had weathered many Burgundian invasions over the years. Built on a hill that jutted out between two roads, the castle was optimally positioned to block enemy incursions, with two layers of double walls and solid defenses. The hill’s elevation made the walls even more imposing.

Count Euz had poured enormous money and manpower into these defenses because of the constant Burgundian threat. On the small plain in front of the castle stood farmhouses, and in the fields, cattle and sheep grazed. Apart from the farmers, most of the population lived within the walls.

How many laborers had been ground down to build walls like these? It must have taken many years, and the expense must have been astronomical. The problem was that the era of relying on walls would eventually pass, making such heavy investment in fortifications wasteful. As cannons developed, the defensive value of walls would steadily decline.

Not that walls weren’t needed now, but depending on them too heavily was dangerous. After news arrived that Burgundian forces had encamped at Meriant, troops and refugees from the surrounding villages streamed endlessly toward Euz Castle. It was likely a routine repeated with every invasion.

Euz had three border villages. Of these, Meriant had been occupied by the enemy, and the other two were under evacuation orders. As the day gradually darkened, Count Euz’s soldiers continued moving with efficiency. Why were soldiers still active after nightfall?

Because refugees were still making their way to Euz Castle, the soldiers were patrolling the highway to protect them. August remarked that the fleeing villagers had probably burned more food than they carried in their baggage. It was a scorched-earth strategy meant to ensure the enemy gained nothing, even if they plundered.

Mercenary plunder was especially notorious.

Places that mercenaries swept through became so devastated that no one could live there afterward. Using mercenaries to ravage enemy villages was itself a strategy to sap the opposition’s strength. Fortunately, since Burgundy coveted the Main River territory, they wouldn’t allow their mercenaries to plunder beyond a certain extent.

Returning to the tent, I had Ted and Oscar remove my armor. Plate armor was excellent protection but impossible to take off alone. I was drenched in sweat and reeking from wearing it all day. Since I had no squire, Ted and Oscar maintained the armor themselves.

Meanwhile, I checked on Schatten and the five horses. Schatten was the warhorse Hilda had raised with such care, and he had performed wonderfully. Despite carrying a knight in full plate armor, he had charged as fiercely as light cavalry and responded exactly as I directed. He was my finest partner.

"A truly excellent horse. I’ve never seen one so beautiful or so well maintained."

"He’s my fiancée’s pride and joy."

"Your fiancée?"

August seemed taken aback and asked again whether a horse like this had really been raised by my fiancée. I suddenly felt proud. So I explained that Hilda was known as the Valkyrie of the royal ranch. August could hardly believe it. While there were young ladies who enjoyed riding, young ladies who rode warhorses were exceedingly rare.

As far as I knew, Fiel’s wife Elisabeth was also a formidable woman who rode warhorses much like Hilda. By coincidence, I, known as the Gale Knight, had ended up marrying Hilda, and Fiel, the Steinhof family’s rising star, had become Elisabeth’s husband. So Fiel and I sometimes joked about this—

That we were men chosen by noble Valkyries.

Fiel’s tone sounded half-resigned, but in my eyes, Hilda was endlessly endearing. So when I returned home, I intended to marry her as soon as possible. It sounded like a death flag, but so be it—I would overcome it with the power of love. And I had my scouter.

"But your horse seems quite old?"

"He’s over fifteen years old. I feel guilty making him suffer through combat under a master as unworthy as me."

"His stamina will be a problem in battle, so I’ll lend you one of mine."

"It’s presumptuous of me, but if you’re willing to lend one, I’ll treat it with the utmost care."

August knew full well that his aging horse wasn’t suited for combat, so he gratefully accepted. Since he was still a guest knight, we were both being careful with our words and actions around each other. Once he officially became a vassal knight, things would be more natural between us.