Riding and Slashing

Chapter 147 The King's Kindness

The Lion Knights came with Malbert this time with a very large number of people, about 800 people, including more than 100 lion knights, and the rest are lion followers.

This is more than the total strength of White Hart Castle plus Mai Xiangling.

Moreover, the lion knights are still fully armed with one man and two horses, and it seems that they are completely performing combat missions that require long-distance travel.

Obviously, this is to prevent Li Ang from jumping over the wall and leading troops to rebel.

King Ulrik obviously attached great importance to this matter.

But Malbert himself was not a lion knight, and he didn't have much communication with these lion knights. He probably led the team only because of his father's relationship.

This second-generation senior official didn't even wear knight armor. He was wearing a set of gorgeous noble half-sleeved leather armor-this thing is a summer dress, not for going to the battlefield, but for hunting. It is short-sleeved and relatively cool.

Even the horses are all black unarmored thoroughbred hunting horses. This is a very expensive racehorse, and generally it will not go to the battlefield, let alone travel long distances.

Whether looking at his attire or the state he displayed, it didn't seem like he was leading people to capture traitors, but more like he was traveling or hunting.

This made the lord feel very strange - Malbert was dressed in such a way that he did not support him to go to Sarleon City, and he didn't even bring his belongings.

A son of a Duke's family, it is unlikely that he will share a tent with the Lion Knights at night, right?

Unless he has some special hobbies...

But even so, you will always bring some followers, right?

Malbert didn't bring a single entourage...

So what is his intention?
Could it be that he wants to solve himself before dark?
Lord Malbert led the Knights of the Lions and escorted—or escorted Leon—to the vicinity of Trubron.

This is the temporary residence of the Owl Knights.

After the last battle, Li Ang gave this place to the night owls. Anyway, no lord will come to claim this empty village for a while-this is the property of Mrs. Bella, and Mrs. Bella is now imprisoned in the prison of Sarleon City , probably will never be released in this life.

Malbert suddenly came to Li Ang's side at this moment, and whispered, "You should know that owl, right? They probably have the ability to take you away..."

The lord's heart suddenly turned cold.

Malbert knew that the Owl Knights were here!
He also knew that he knew the head of the group, Ors...

Also hinted that he could use the ability of the Owl Knights to escape?
But is Malbert out of kindness?

No... out of good intentions, I will not read that letter from the beginning, but will return it to the original owner.

This should be deceiving myself...

The Owl Knights might indeed be able to take themselves away, but if they really escaped, it would be absconding in fear of crime, and basically they would be charged with treason!
With the way that guy Als thought, he definitely wouldn't protect himself.

Moreover, in order to ensure the survival of the Owl Knights, if Ors is sure that he will be considered a traitor, he will probably report himself instead...

Malbert...does he want to kill himself here?
But why?
The Duke of Brennus has no hatred or grudge against him, so it is impossible!
Just thinking about it, a few 'hoooohoooo' owl hoots sounded.

No, Li Ang realized that Malbert didn't want to kill himself.

This was the whistle of the Owl Knights. With the abilities of the night owls, they should have discovered the team of the Lion Knights long ago, and Malbert must have known this.

He didn't want to kill, but had other intentions.

But what is he going to do?

Li Ang glanced at Malbert, and felt that Malbert was obviously a film king—he actually had a worried look on his face, as if he was really worried about Li Ang.

"Lord Malbert, what are you talking about? What has the power to escape?"

The lord decided to play dumb.

"Oh, it's nothing, I seem to have seen a night owl flying past, it's better to have wings, it can escape the pursuit of most enemies..."

Malbert also started to show off his acting skills, pretending to be more stupid than the lord.

"But it's daytime now... well, Lord Malbert is probably tired, why don't we go to that village to rest for a while?"

Li Ang was a little unsure of Malbert's intentions, so he simply went into the village to try it out.

"Well, well, well, I'm really a little tired."

Malbert smiled shyly, and rode to the village.

Li Ang frowned behind him.

What the hell is this guy trying to do?
But no matter what, with the Owl Knights in the village, he would definitely not kill people.

Moreover, since the Owl Knights knew Lehman, they would naturally also know some of the Lion Knights, and there should be no conflict between the two knights.

"Master Li Ang, Your Excellency Malbert! I saw you coming from a distance, where are you going... have business?"

As soon as he entered the village, Ols greeted him. He really knew that this team was coming.

"Your Excellency Aurs, you actually know me..."

Malbert also looked a little surprised.

"No way, you can save your life by getting to know more people... Do you and Lord Li Ang want to take a rest? Why don't you sit in the room..."

Aurs is also obviously a smart guy, and he noticed at a glance that this was not normal - Li Ang usually never went out alone.

So he politely led Malbert and Leon into a stone house, then turned his head to greet the lion knight, and ran fast.

Probably because I was afraid that if I stayed for a second longer, I would know some shit that I shouldn't know...

Li Ang looked back, but the lion knights did not follow.

Lord Malbert smiled at Li Ang: "Baron Leon, I actually didn't expect you to leave White Hart Castle by yourself."

"I don't want to leave either, isn't this your request?"

Li Ang also smiled at Malbert.

"King Ulrik sent this team of lion knights to capture you to Sarleon City. I just helped them lead the way. I will return to Longhe Town in a while-I didn't ask you to go alone Go directly with them, I actually hope that you will bring more people to Sarleon City..."

Malbert pouted.

"Why? Is there any problem with too many people?"

The lord felt that there was something in these words.

"If you are alone, if something happens, I'm afraid you won't even be able to get the news out..."

Malbert smiled a little weirdly.

"Hey, it's a lot of effort to talk like that, and I don't think anyone is eavesdropping, why don't we all be direct?"

The lord looked back, sighed and decided to ask for clarification.

"Okay, let me just say it straight. I did pick up a carriage, that is, the letter and the box of money. I also know that it is probably a divorce scheme of the Bacchus Empire. But it is my duty, I must tell the fierce lion Return to the city, Lord Li Ang, you should be able to understand, right?"

Malbert was quite happy, too.

Li Ang nodded. This is indeed the duty of the Changhe Township's administrative officer. There is nothing wrong with Malbert's approach.

"Only three days after I reported back to Sarleon, this team of lion riders came, and brought the king's order--I got the order to arrest you with the lion riders. I can't disobey the king's order, So I led a way, and I didn't let your subordinates in Maixiangling know, so as not to conflict with you or Lord Godric. Then I gave you enough time to arrange in White Hart Castle, I thought you would run away, Or at least bring more people..."

Malbert pouted.

"I didn't treason, why did I run away..."

Li Ang also pouted.

"Yeah, you didn't run away, you came out alone... But since you didn't run away, I have to run away. I don't want to follow this team of lion knights to Sarleon City-I don't know that King Ulrik captured What are your real thoughts! You should also know that it is usually Lehman who leads them to carry out missions... But Lehman is not here! Can you understand what I mean?"

Malbert shook his head and sighed.

"Leiman...he's going to garrison Qicha Fortress, so it's normal if he can't come?"

Li Ang actually understood a little bit, Lehman probably didn't want to do this job, and Malbert probably didn't want to do it either.

"Hey, Your Excellency Leon, let me put it this way... For a long time, the only job the king gave Lehman and these lion knights was to kill rebels. I have never seen anyone who these lion knights sent out to catch came back alive - Lehman has been to this village before, you should know how it turned out..."

I see……

Li Ang thought of how Lehman hesitated to speak to him several times.

Given the nature of Lehman's work, it is true that many things cannot be said to others. Only the king and the head of the Lion Knights will know his actual mission...

However, Li Ang knew that someone should be able to return home alive—the Three Prophets.Of course, they may not be considered human beings.

Malbert pointed to the outside of the stone house: "I don't care if you have treason or not, I just want to go back to Changhe Town and enjoy life. But you didn't take anyone with you, if something happened, no one would be able to prove my innocence... …I was the one who reported the letter, and I was the one who led the team to arrest you—if you die in Sarleon City, then your friends will definitely think that I killed you! I know your relationship with Lord Godric, I don’t know. I don't want to take the blame..."

"But if I run away...then I will really become a traitor who fled in fear of crime..."

Li Ang let out a long sigh.

Malbert nodded: "You're right, but if you don't run away, you're probably going to die...Anyway, while the Owl Knights are here, they can prove that I didn't harm you. I'll be 'sick' in a while, and then Go back to Changhe Town. After all, the order given to me is only to lead a team to arrest you, I don't want to escort you to Sarleon City...it's up to you later, I don't want to get involved in this matter anymore."

"Thank you for your frankness, Sir Malbert, how do you plan to get sick?"

Li Ang nodded his thanks.

"Hey! Hiss... oh... Your Excellency Aurs! Help me! My stomach hurts!"

Lord Malbert re-entered actor mode in a second, clutching his stomach with a sad expression on his face, and even Li Ang felt as if he was really about to pull up his trousers.

Lord Malbert was able to say this to himself out of good intentions—although this kindness was only because he didn't want to be retaliated by Godric and Amy, after all, he still had to serve in Long River Town.

But what should I do now?

Is it really like what Lord Malbert said, run away?
……

Fletcher Village.

As a place directly facing the Jatu Grassland and the Noldor Forest, Fletcher can be regarded as a place in dire straits...

But in the past six months, this place has been surprisingly peaceful.

Since the last time they dealt with the Three Prophets together, Godric, Ralph, Charles and others have been in close contact.

Godric is actually a very responsible person. He was reluctant to settle in Changhe Town at first because of his temperament. Since he ceased to be the captain of the Royal Guard, he has not been too keen on power.

But now that he has become the chief of military affairs in the eastern region, he will still be quite responsible.

It's just that his strategy is different from Earl Auden's.

Earl Oden is good at using cavalry and mounted infantry, and his strategy against the Jatu people is also based on frontal confrontation, and he will pay more attention to the use of cavalry or mounted infantry.

Therefore, the defensive tactics that Auden used to deploy were often based on offense instead of defense, or chain defense, and even defense and belt attack to form an outflanking and siege.

Therefore, at that time, most of the funds and energy of the entire eastern army would be spent on horses and riding and shooting, and there were very few defensive bunkers on the border.

While Godric is good at organizing defenses with a large number of archers, he is more willing to build fortifications and use infantry to cooperate with archers for area defense.

While this would put you at a disadvantage due to mobility, infantry is cheaper to build and quicker to train, resulting in smaller overall defense holes.

It's just that this relatively passive defense method is difficult to achieve particularly large results.

There is no difference between these two strategies, but the character of the leader is different-the former is pioneering and aggressive, and the latter is cautious and defensive.

The pioneering approach is easier to destroy the enemy's vital forces, while the cautious defense is easier to preserve the civilians under the rule, each has its own advantages.

Of course, this also has a certain relationship with the current actual situation.

Earl Oden has done 30 years of military exploits on the Jatu people... When he was alive, the Jatu people did not dare to invade Longhe Town from the direction of Fort Valor.

But now that he has passed away, the Jatu people have no scruples, and they will probably become more arrogant.

Therefore, it is indeed necessary to switch from offense to defense and build more fortifications.

During the recent period, Godric has vigorously built various defensive facilities in Union Fletcher Village and Fort Yongshield.

Such as arrow towers, repelling horses, and ditches and low walls.

As a new member of the Sentinels in Changhe Town, Charles is of course very happy to cooperate with Lord Godric's strategy - this is the most suitable defense method for the Sentinels in Changhe Town to use their strengths.

Therefore, Fletcher Village now has many more watchtowers and arrow rests, and there are ditches everywhere.

Ralph, who has also been in real estate lately, has turned the camp by the river into a wooden fort and is currently building another small fort a few miles across the river.

In this way, three garrison points can be formed together with Fletcher Village, and this horn shape can make this area easier to defend.

However, Fletcher Village is different from Fort Yongshield - there is no high wall here, and it is likely to become a breakthrough for the Jatu people.

In order to enhance the defense capabilities of Fletcher Village and prevent the village from becoming a passage for the Jatus to enter in the future, Godric decided to provide some support here.

Of course, this aspect is due to the responsibility of the chief of military affairs in the eastern region, in order to ensure the defense of the border.

On the other hand...Fletcher's place is Leon's territory after all, Godric will still take extra care of it.

He allocated a batch of equipment to Fletcher Village, mainly some inlaid armor and sword shields, which were actually infantry equipment.

——Actually, this can be regarded as false public benefit. Originally, this was the inventory of the Inner Fort in Changhe Town, which belonged to the late Duke Alvwan. Now it should be regarded as the property of King Ulrik.

Of course, as the chief of military affairs, he does have the right to dispatch these military supplies.

Ralph and Charles, on the other hand, found a batch of extended step bows from the inventory of the Horn Call Rangers.

This kind of longbow is a single-piece bow with low cost and short production cycle, and it is not afraid of moisture. The back of the bow is a complete piece of yew wood. The whole bow is more than 1.8 meters long. It used to be the weapon of the sentinels in Changhe Town.

The reason why I say 'once' is because the sentries in Changhe Town have now switched to compound bows.

In Longhe Town, where there is no shortage of bow strings and yew trees, this single-piece longbow is very cheap.

But it was no longer the main weapon of the sentinels in Changhe Town.

The longer the bow body of the single bow, the greater the strength it can bring, but the extended bow will cause too much tension and it is difficult to control.

Moreover, the longer the bow body, the greater the vibration when shooting an arrow. In actual combat, it is not as stable as a small compound bow, and the requirements for the shooter are very high.

Moreover, since this kind of longbow is longer than a person's height, it is not very convenient in actual combat and marching, and it cannot be used for riding and shooting, so they have become stock...

However, as a weapon for training recruits, this super long single-piece bow is very suitable. It can not only practice strength, but also practice control.

Such a longbow just fit Godric's idea of ​​training infantry.

Therefore, Godric personally led the team to train the peasants and soldiers recruited by Charles into a combination of infantry and archers-mainly to make up for their courage to face the enemy directly and how to organize defense without city walls.

Charles recruited almost a hundred soldiers in Fletcher, which was quite a large proportion, and the entire village actually only had 700 people.

However, these conscripts are not professional soldiers, they are just farmers and soldiers in their spare time, and they are considered militiamen to defend the countryside.

In order to inspire the courage of these recruits, their mosaic armors were all painted red-red can make people more courageous, and it can also make recruits adapt to the color of blood.

During the slack season in late May, they also organized an archery competition to motivate recruits to train better.

Godric and Charles originally planned to let Leon come and participate together, but at that time Leon and Amy went to the territory of Bacchus, and no one was found.

But what I didn't expect was that the final champion of that archery competition was snatched away by a traveler who came from Ravencrow Realm...

This really stimulated this group of recruits severely, so they immersed themselves in training for two months like a regular army, and now this special archer unit already looks like a decent one.

Because of their red armor and their longbows, Godric called this force the 'Red Arrow Longbowmen'.

In order to gain some actual combat experience for this army, Godric and Charles took the army to the prairie hills northwest of Fletcher Village.

That was the place where Ralph led the rangers to raise horses, and a small group of Jatus often haunted that area.

Along with them was Ralph's son, Raphael—the young man who exchanged the face helmet with Leon with the eagle bow.

Raphael brought a small group of rangers along the way, as a way to embolden these newly minted longbowmen.

Godric and Charles did encounter enemies near the hills, but the problem was that they were not Jatus...

But a large group of bandits.

The number of people exceeds a thousand.

(End of this chapter)