The Pechenegs on the H side of Iste were nomadic herders who lived in search of water and grass, which meant that they were able to move quickly across the vast expanse, and a small Pecheneg tribe could move intact from the western Balkans to the Old Khazar border on the left bank of the Dnieper in thirty days, and it would have been a nightmare for the Roman army to chase any steppe tribe. But now it is not a scattered herdsman tribe that has fled, but a people.

Emperor Alexios was no stranger to the nomads' ability to march, and his self-confidence stemmed from the way the enemy fled, and if there was still a khan or a beg to coordinate the order, the whole retreat would have been divided into many units, and once the tribes had abandoned their women and slaves, they could have disengaged from their pursuers in three to five days, and most of the strongest of the population would have returned safely to the north, except for a few herdsmen who were too slow to move.

However, the Scythians were now leaderless, and in fear of the changes in the sky, the nobles and their silver-masked guards were the first to flee on horseback, leaving behind countless herdsmen, who instinctively gathered together to compete for the most convenient Roman road nearby. Alexios took the stage from the vast military camp that once belonged to Tergu, and saw the fleeing crowd in the distance constantly falling into panic, the super spears of the Roman cavalry broke one by one on the horseback warriors who had fallen behind, and people were constantly being lifted off their horses, and in the flickering of blood, the retreat quickly turned into a disorderly escape.

The larger the march, the slower the speed and the multiplication of supplies, so that the nomadic armies who abandoned the camps would soon starve, and their herds of cattle would be sacked by the Romans, along with the lavish tents of the Bergs.

The Grand Duke of Rus took these Pecheneg tribes south to the Balkans, and with the remnants of the new Khazar, he defeated Bulgaria in one fell swoop, but after encountering the counterattack of the Roman Empire and losing most of his baggage, the army of 60,000 was crushed for thousands of miles, and the Grand Duke himself was finally ambushed by the Pecheneg herdsmen - it seems that this time it was the turn of these Pecheneg wolf-eyed warriors to taste the taste of skulls made into wine bowls.

"Tetisius, have you found Tergu?"

"So far, only one canopy has been found, and there are too many corpses over there, and they are being identified."

"How far is Caesar from us?"

"Half a day away, Your Majesty." The fair-skinned Turkic general replied respectfully.

"Wait, Tiergu's body must be found before the whole army is assembled, and we intend to send a gift to Tatoosh."

Tatoosh's rebel leaders may not be worth much, but to deter his Cuman allies, Tiergu's head is a must-have weapon.

Most of Tetisius' men were Seljuk reinforcements from the Sultan of Malikshah, all of whom were fierce Turkmen light cavalry recruited from the depths of Asia, and were originally responsible for guarding the royal city of Isfahan in the Medesian province, but because he had supported the Sultan's uncle Kavot in the civil war, he was banished from the center of the empire and joined the Great Vizier Nishan Murk of the winter capital of Baghdad, and was later drawn by the Grand Vizier into the Sultan's expeditionary army of 46,000 to participate in the war from Van Lake to Antioch, and after joining the Roman army, These Turkmen warriors defeated the Sultan of Nicaea in Asia Minor, Abu Qasim, and based on this achievement, both Tetisius and the Emperor himself had high hopes for their performance in the pursuit.

After the Battle of Dilakium, the emperor was unable to replenish the elite immortal legions, so he strengthened the main force of heavy cavalry with the newly built Agontuple Legion, plus the roaring Varangian barbarian Janissary under the command of the Englishman Nabitus, and the Koma Legion of the Minor Asian garrison of Constantine Catacaron, an old subordinate, finally restored part of the strength of the central army.

For the sake of safety, the emperor decided to continue to wait for the army of the western provinces that Caesarnikiphros Melisenos had just collected, although it was ravaged in the Norman War, Macedonia and Thessaly were after all the traditional ironclad cavalry recruitment areas of the empire, and John Ducasse Jr. had just won a battle with the western garrison not long ago, Alexios still had a lot of expectations for this force.

By the time the golden Usitus arrived, there was no sign of the army on the western road, and Tetisius did not get any information from the sentinel, but waited for the emperor himself.

"Your Majesty......" Titisius, the commander of the Supreme Praetorian Guard, almost cried out when he found the Emperor's hand pressed against his shoulder armor.

"What happened?" Alexios asked casually with a slight press of his arm.

"I don't know, and it looks like it's going to rain soon."

The Emperor cursed in the Turkic language he had learned from his slaves as a child, and Tetisius was still accustomed to it, and the Seljuk commander Drosh beside him couldn't help but curl up slightly when he heard the Roman Emperor speak his own language for the first time.

"Prepare the army to camp at any time tomorrow."

Tetisius gave a military salute and responded with a bang, the iron armor on his body made a grinding sound, and the anger in the emperor's flat voice made him can't help but snort.

The next day, the bloody barracks awoke in the mist, the mud soaked in light rain that had made everything gray, and with the gold-plated armor and white cape of the royal chief saber and Iron Guard, Tetisius looked no different from a traditional Roman military governor (who and his lieutenants generally belonged to the Basilikos Protospatharios rank). Outside the tent, rows of Praetorian Guards marched by, holding cowhides and horse skins wrapped in large and small weapons, and Varangi's red pennant was tied tightly so that it would not fade when it was wet by the rain.

The loud sound of the trumpet suddenly came, and Tetisius listened attentively, and then climbed up the camp wall with some excitement, and through the light smoke of the mist, the figure of the first western reinforcement soldier was finally revealed.

A ghostly red cloak shrouded a nobleman covered in steel, and the hideous griffin carved on the helmet was covered with raindrops, all the more brilliant and dazzling, but the owner of the helmet was humbly saluting a middle-aged man dressed in simple clothes.

"You're late, my brother."

"It's all Ducasse's fault, Your Majesty ......," Caesar muttered and complained, but was stopped by a look from the Emperor.

"Why don't you see General Nikolai?" Alexios stared at Caesar's wet face, and did not mean to ask the eunuch to fetch him new robes.

"Left behind by the Ducasse kids." Caesar finally found an opportunity, and immediately replied loudly, "Only General George and I are together, that guy has given us less than half of our men, and half of the Central Praetorian Guard has also been detained!" ”

Alexios was shocked, and his first thought was that little John was going to rebel? On the surface, the emperor remained silent.

The capital is now firmly under the control of his brother Isaac, although with the help of the empress, the former Caesar John the Elder Ducasse may suddenly take control of the palace and take Anna and John in his hands, but without the support of Isaac and the Church, the Ducasses can only be besieged in the Brachna Palace, waiting for their return to the army to quell the rebellion.

I have the last essence of the empire in my hands, and Baghdad is also my ally, so what chance does John Ducasse have but to collude with the Normans? Would he be so stupid?

Ruling out the possibility of Ducasse's rebellion, Alexios judged that little John must have something else to hide from him, so why did he only let George come back? By the way, George Paleoleg's wife is also a Ducasse, and Nikephoros, a reckless man, obviously doesn't know anything, so the truth falls on Nikolai.

Alexios glanced at Gregory Mavlokatakaron, Nikolai's brother, in the crowd, and seemed to say something, but then his eyes swept to Tetisius at his side, who seemed to be shaking his head at him.

Now is not the time to pursue the matter, first complete the immediate matter, as long as the Pechenegs are eliminated, the remaining enemies will naturally fall one by one.

Looking at the group of hungry wolf-like military aristocrats in front of him, Alexios suddenly remembered a young Celtic, what was his name? Remembering the same fiery heat that shot out of those dark eyes, perhaps these ambitious young men were more worthy of wooing, they had no illustrious family to rely on, and they could hardly covet the supreme crown of the empire - the sweetest and most terrible crown, the foolish ones who only learned to indulge in good food and enjoy love, and in the end they all fell into hell like the Assyrian kings of Nineveh, and the empire also decayed and decayed because of them, only I, only I know how to restrain my desires, endure suffering, and do not forget to decorate the glory and whitewash the peace, My title may not be in the spirit of Christ, but only I can save the empire!