Thirty-four Awakening

A subtle and progressive atmosphere pervades the tents. None of them spoke, and their eyes flashed with bewilderment, surprise, incomprehension, and something else.

"Ashrufat, come here. Leo took Ashrufat to a no-man's land at the door of the tent.

"You can't do that, the soldiers are tired. There is no special reason for them to continue to fight like this, which will make the entire army dissatisfied. ”

"I can't help it. Leo, Thomas is dying. I can't think of any other place to get 'myrrh' than the Wolf's Mouth Castle! ”

"But do you know how many people will turn against you like this? I know that you love Thomas, and so do I! I would love to get a flying horse and fly directly to the Wolf's Mouth Castle! "If the soldiers have a grudge, if the knights are dissatisfied with you, what are you going to do to attack the city? We have held out in Drake for so long, you should know very well how much strength it takes to siege the city! If the soldiers don't have the courage, if the soldiers refuse to charge, if the soldiers avoid the battle, then how many troops are in vain! At this time, we really can't rush it. ”

"But ......"

"If we get to the Wolf's Mouth Castle and can't take it, then Thomas is really hopeless!" Leo clenched his fists. "If we want to conquer the Wolf's Mouth Castle, we can only rely on those detachable siege towers. You know very well that these things can only be used once! The second time the enemy is on guard, and the siege can only be fought in one go! There is no second chance!"

The cold wind of the early spring night blew and blew on the faces of the two, which was extremely cold.

"Leo, you're right. Ashrufat finally spoke. "We rest for the day, carefully clean the battlefield, deal with the wounded and prisoners, and then set off for ......"

"I'm going to tell them not to go in. Leo said. "I'll tell them you're just excited. ”

Leo stepped into the tent, leaving Ashrufat alone in the night's cold wind. He looked up at the sky, and at this time the sky was full of brilliant stars, but a meteor streaked across the sky and fell in the unknown distance. According to legend, the fall of a meteor represents the death of a mortal hero. At this moment, I don't know who lost their lives in the Dao.

He heard strange footsteps, and when he turned his head to look, he was surprised to see the prophetess Fei'er. Fei'er smiled and looked at him with an indescribable expression.

"Miss Phil ......," he was a little surprised. Phil is here, so Thomas......

"General Thomas wants to see you, Count. ”

A few minutes later, Ashrufat arrived in Thomas's tent. The stench of the wound's suppuration was still there, but Thomas was leaning there half-lying, with a smile on his pale face.

"Master Thomas!" Exhuluphat cried out in surprise. "Are you awake?"

"I've heard about your victory today from Phil. Thomas smiled. The smile touched at his injury, giving him an instant look of pain on his face. "Amazing victory. How did you come up with the idea of bringing the militia together? You are not afraid that they will be defeated as soon as they fight? You must know that the knights of the Dao, even the probationary knights, look down on the militia and think that the militia has no combat effectiveness. ”

"It was Duncan who inspired me. Ashrufat replied truthfully.

"Duncan?"

"You may have forgotten that you were the knights you canonized after we defeated the greyhounds in the mountains. He was just a militia captain. Later, during the defense of the city by Drake, he and I went on a night raid against the Paro, and died heroically in front of my eyes. When talking about Duncan, Ashrufat couldn't help but feel a pang of gloom. And William Daley, and a lot of others.

"Now that he has become a knight, he must strictly follow the way of knighthood, and it is his glory to die bravely on the battlefield. The god of nature will accept his noble soul. Thomas said. "What inspiration did he give you?"

"A militiaman, after being made a knight, becomes extraordinarily heroic. And his martial arts are not lost to other knights in the slightest. It was only later that I found out that many of the 'militias' were not really randomly selected from among ordinary peasants. The militia is also mostly hereditary...... Many militiamen were born into militia families and served as soldiers from generation to generation, supporting themselves and their families on their lord's salaries, booty, and rewards. Some have accompanied the lord's son to training since childhood. However, on the battlefield, they were far less good than the cadet knights. So, I think, it's all about the equipment and the morale. The militiamen were poorly equipped, and their morale was far inferior to that of the knights. Especially when it comes to morale. The knights pursued honor, and there was oversight behind the court of honor. If a knight escapes on the battlefield, he faces a trial in the Court of Honor, and if found guilty, his domain is confiscated and his title is stripped of his title...... For the knights, it was a fate worse than death. And no one has the leisure to care about the rout of the militia on the battlefield. There was little impunity for their rout. ”

"You're right......" Thomas thought for a moment. "But it's very difficult to boost the morale of the militia in a short period of time. Everyone, including themselves, considered the militia to be far inferior to the knights, and they did not consider it a shameful thing for them to flee. Only when the situation prevails, or under the stern gaze of the knights, will they be better able to fight...... How did you solve this problem?"

"But if they fight seriously, their combat effectiveness is actually quite good. That's why I let some of the knights mix with them and fight together on foot, so that I can better supervise them. I was also with them and tried to improve their courage. The fact proves my judgment. In fact, among the militia, there is still a lot of combat potential to be tapped. I remember when you made two militia captains knights. At that time, I remember that all the militia were eager to try their hand at it, eager to show themselves in battle. They must be very eager to become knights. ”

Thomas smiled again.

"Clever decision...... Ashrufat, doing a great job. But you have to know that this kind of behavior will bring you trouble. You force them to dismount and fight with the militia, and they will feel humiliated. Others will think that you are sacrificing other people's self-esteem to improve your own prestige, which will cause a lot of harm to you personally. ”

"I don't care. Ashrufat replied.

Thomas suddenly stared at Ashrufat's face with a penetrating gaze, and if there was even the slightest trace of a lie in his expression, it would be discovered.

Thomas quickly staggered his gaze. It is rude to stare at a person's face like this.

"The usual ideal of the militia is to be a militia captain or a horseback servant. In this way, if they could no longer serve in the army, they could also get a decent job - many knights' widows or merchants needed such people as their escorts or assistants. If they are injured or disabled, then the state is responsible for giving them a job as a handyman. Becoming a knight was the dream of the militiamen – an unattainable dream. Aerufat, if you can make your dreams come true, or even just make them less unattainable, you will find out what an amazing amount of courage and strength can erupt from ordinary people. ”

Thomas seemed to struggle with all his might to finish the sentence, and then he waved his hand. "Ashrufat, let your 'lieutenants' and Leo come to me. ”

"Mistress Thomas, your body ...... Need to take a lot of rest. ”

"I know my physical condition. Call them over and you're good to go. Thomas ordered in an indisputable tone.

It was already getting late, and the temperature at night in early spring was not much better than in winter. The militiamen in charge of the guards in several camps had just come down and were warming themselves by a campfire that had not yet been extinguished, rubbing their hands and stomping their feet.

Ashruphat stood alone in the clearing. Recently, his physique has become stronger and stronger, and he can be called cold and heat. His skin could feel the temperature shift, but it wasn't cold at all—even though he wasn't wearing a few clothes. He suddenly remembered something, it seemed that after each bloody battle, his body would change rapidly. It seemed that his strength was getting stronger with the killing.

The thought sent him a chill through his heart.

Behind him was the sound of footsteps, and Ashrufat didn't have to look back to recognize it as the footsteps of the prophetess Fei'er.

"Count, aren't you resting?" Phil's voice sounded soft. I don't know who said that the prophetesses were indifferent, arrogant, and unapproachable. As it turned out, that was at best for strangers. After a long period of contact, it will be found that the prophetesses are not so exaggerated. After all, they are human beings.

"I'm not tired...... Maybe it's because I've just won the battle and I'm too excited. Ashruphat replied with self-deprecation.

"Actually, Master Thomas didn't summon those men for anything, he just met with them once, and made small talk for a while, explaining incidentally that the knights were dismounted and fought on foot this time by his instructions. In addition, he stressed that he was not feeling well, and that the specific affairs of the future operation would be entrusted to you. ”

"What did you say?"

"He's just taking responsibility for you. Rest assured, Master Thomas has great prestige in Casillos and is admired by all Cassilos knights. Letting the knights dismount and fight with the militia did not have a negative effect on him at all. Everyone can only praise him for his skillful, creative and forward-looking use of troops. And there will be absolutely no one who accuses him of harming the honor of knights in pursuit of personal prestige. That's politics. ”

"That's what politics can Thomas do...... But I can't do ......it," Ashrufat remembered in his mind that Thomas was in pain, pretending to be in good spirits, and taking responsibility for him. The thought of Thomas touching the wound with a slight smile made him feel a pang of heartache.

"How's Thomas's injury?" he asked.

"I don't want to hide it, Count. But General Thomas ...... I'm afraid it won't last more than twenty days. 'Myrrh', you have to get 'myrrh', otherwise there is no hope. Even the blessings of the gods of nature could not protect General Thomas. ”

Ashrufat suddenly stepped forward and hugged Fei'er. This sudden move made Fei'er panic all of a sudden. But although she panicked, she did not resist.

"Thank you, Miss Fei'er. Ashrufat whispered. "Thank you, thank you for helping me take care of Thomas all the time. ”