I Became The King Of Crusaders [EN]: Chapter 72

The Blood on the Sand (2)

* * *

“It seems that signal tower is more useful than I thought.”

Renaud said as he mounted his horse.

He accepted the helmet handed to him by his attendant.

“To come down from Jerusalem this quickly.”

A wide plain and an iron barrier unfolded before him.

Knights advanced, displaying their armor and banners.

They had already been marching for more than half a day.

No one was unaware that battle was imminent.

“By the way, is it Balian coming down instead of the King?”

“Yes, and Lord Baldwin is accompanying him. They say they are consolidating the southern forces in one place.”

“The King must be afraid of Saladin and stayed in Jerusalem. He’s been nothing but fearful since Montgisard… Balian and Baldwin, huh? Is that bastard Guy coming too?”

“He hasn’t set out from Ascalon yet. He says he’s not feeling well, so this time…”

“Not feeling well, my ass. He’s probably still cleaning up the mess he made last time. He screwed things up so badly.”

Renaud burst into laughter.

“The day Sibylla kicks him out isn’t far off. In the end, the mother bird always takes her chick’s side.”

At that moment, black dots appeared before them.

Saracen merchants.

Camels loaded with goods and Muslim merchants were visible.

Upon spotting Renaud’s army, they hurriedly changed direction.

A reaction to avoid them at all costs.

“It’s a shame to miss out on such big catches. They look so appetizing.”

Renaud licked his lips as he looked at the merchants.

How much loot could he get if he attacked them?

A flood of gold coins filled his mind.

“But if we attack them now…”

“We won’t arrive in Eilat on time. Alright, I get it. Let’s hunt those guys on the way back. Hey!”

He waved his hand, and a knight approached.

“Go and tell those Saracens that we welcome them to Kerak. If they have many guards, just scare them a bit and come back.”

“As you command, Lord.”

The knights turned their horses and approached the merchants.

Renaud smiled as he looked at his men.

“Last time, we didn’t achieve anything. This time, we’ll be the first to arrive in Eilat.”

He continued.

“We’ve been given another chance after those stupid bastards on the sea screwed up last time.”

“If you save Eilat, the King will have no choice but to acknowledge you.”

“That’s why we need to act before the others arrive. A hawk doesn’t share its prey with other hawks.”

“But isn’t ignoring the assembly order from Jerusalem…”

A lieutenant in chainmail said.

Renaud burst into laughter.

“Baldwin and Balian will only try to hold me back, just like they did with Guy. I can’t miss this opportunity given to us by the Lord.”

He urged them to march faster.

The knights at the front cheered for their lord.

“So let’s hurry!”

A cloud of dust scattered.

The walls of Eilat came into view in the distance.

* * *

One day.

We finished preparing to march and left Jerusalem in less than a day.

In reality, we only took our bodies.

There were no infantry.

Everyone was cavalry.

Knights and Turcopole [lightly armed, mounted archers of mixed Turkish and local descent] horse archers.

After breaking through the mountain range, we quickly moved south across the plains.

The area from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea was an open plain.

If we ran at full speed, we could arrive in a day or two.

‘Is this how the Mongols felt when they roamed the steppes?’

Mongolian horses were said to have more stamina than European horses.

Plus, they don’t need oil.

There’s a reason why they’re called mechanized infantry before mechanized infantry.

Anyway, my butt is numb.

The armor Zernal newly fitted for me hasn’t broken in yet.

The spurs I received at the knighting ceremony are also strangely uncomfortable.

I’ll have to ask them to adjust it again when I return to Jerusalem.

“Do you need some water?”

Aig approached.

Chainmail and a black coat.

The Knights Hospitaller combat uniform.

He handed me a leather pouch and asked.

“They said we should rest for a few minutes to change horses. Should we change your horse too, Lord Baldwin? Bulte must be tired too…”

“I’m fine. Bulte is still going strong.”

Bulte neighed and shook his head.

He’s really a unique guy.

I looked around.

Other knights were leading three or four horses and often switched to different horses.

They also had warhorses that they only rode during battle.

But Bulte didn’t get tired.

Rather, he kept trying to charge forward, so I had to stop him.

I smiled and stroked his mane.

I could feel the soft texture of his fur.

Aig looked at Bulte and said.

“If you weren’t so picky about what you eat, you wouldn’t be a bad horse.”

Bulte reached out to Aig.

Aig ducked his head to avoid the attack.

“That’s not enough to get me.”

Bulte snorted as if he was upset.

Aig and I burst into laughter.

Tension was felt around us.

The tension just before pulling and releasing a bowstring.

But there weren’t many people who were scared.

Some were even laughing and talking, acting as usual.

The Guardians of the Holy Sepulchre were the same.

Holding axes, they didn’t look much different from usual.

Wig and Garnier were seen leading the knights at the front.

“I see a signal tower over there.”

Aig pointed to one side.

When I turned my head, I saw a moving signal tower in the distance.

I could see the telescope reflecting in the sunlight.

They must be reporting our location to Jerusalem and nearby towers by now.

At that moment, someone approached from the front.

Balian.

“We have news from the signal tower just ahead.”

Balian stopped in front and said.

“Lord Renaud is leading the forces of Kerak to Eilat.”

“Is he openly ignoring the assembly order?”

I frowned without realizing it.

He only does the most foolish things.

“Yes, he will arrive faster than us.”

“I can guess the reason roughly.”

I said.

He must be trying to make up for not participating in the pressure on Damascus last time.

After the plot using the Bedouin tribes failed, he had been in stealth mode.

“The operation could be disrupted.”

The plan we had set up was simple.

Quickly gather the knights of the south and conduct a siege with more numbers than the enemy.

For this operation to succeed, we had to hide our speed and location until the end.

If Renaud attacked recklessly, the enemy would escape before the siege was completed.

“Even if we send a messenger right now…”

“It will be too late even if we do that. Renaud may deliberately ignore the order.”

I said.

I unfolded the map in my arms.

Renaud doing this might actually be a good situation.

If he drives the Egyptian army to one side….

The Egyptians will think only Renaud has come.

They wouldn’t have expected such a large army to have already gathered.

After finishing my thoughts, I opened my mouth.

“Let’s leave Renaud to do as he wants for now.”

“Yes?”

Balian asked back.

He raised his eyebrows.

“Exactly as I said.”

Saladin hasn’t moved from Damascus yet.

Then this attack is just a feint.

“The enemy will try to escape as soon as they encounter Renaud. They will try to return to their base in Cairo. We’ll do it like a fox hunt.”

I continued.

“Let Renaud play the role of the hunting dog driving them…”

I pointed to one side of the map.

The desert and mountains connecting Cairo and Eilat.

To return to Egypt, they have no choice but to go through here.

“We’ll go to this side and wait for them.”

If we leave right now, we can arrive first.

“Send new orders to the forces that have departed from each fortress. Change the assembly point.”

The signal tower had another advantage that I hadn’t thought of.

That is, being able to issue orders to deployed units in real time.

If the unit moved along the signal tower, it could receive not only status reports but also new orders.

If I issued an order, Jerusalem would transmit it to the signal towers on the local unit’s side.

The signal towers were located on major roads.

Real-time communication could be exchanged at regular intervals.

Without this, messengers would have had to go back and forth dozens of times.

“If you give the order, Lord Baldwin, we can change the assembly point, but…”

Balian muttered with a thoughtful expression.

“We’ll have to run without rest to get there before them.”

“It doesn’t matter if we leave the tired horses in the middle.”

I said.

Saladin’s younger brother, Al-Adil.

He must be directing this attack himself.

Al-Adil’s ransom wouldn’t be small.

It would be about the annual budget of Egypt.

Compared to that, losing a few dozen horses was affordable enough.

It’s even better.

Renaud will bear all the risks.

“There’s one more problem. Even if we arrive on time, how can we find them in this vast area…”

“It would be difficult to find them under normal circumstances. Because we don’t know which path they will take.”

But I’m different.

If I use my sixth sense, I can feel things far away.

It’s hard to miss such a large army.

In addition, the mountain area here has a limited number of passable routes.

Rather, it’s a favorable terrain for me.

“Let’s do the same thing we did when we caught the Knights Templar. First, let’s send the new orders.”

* * *

Damascus

Six horses moved, raising dust.

The man at the front raised a wooden stick high.

A leather ball was placed right in front.

At that moment, a small horse cut in and took the ball.

The leather ball bounced and went into a small iron ring.

The men watching cheered.

“Your skills have improved a lot!”

Saladin said with a smile as he got off his horse.

He patted his son’s shoulder.

“Soon you’ll be able to beat your father easily.”

“I’m still far from enough, Father.”

“As always, you are humble. Now, go and call your brothers and sisters. Let’s have dinner together as a family today.”

Saladin burst into laughter.

“You don’t look very welcoming. I know you don’t like eating with me. It’s because you only eat tasteless bread every day.”

He wiped the sweat with a cloth handed to him by his attendant.

“But it’s good to eat simple food. My uncle Shirkuh loved alcohol and food too much when he was alive. Then, in the end, a piece of bone got stuck in his throat and he passed away. If he were alive, the Sultan would be him, not me, by now.”

He said with a smile.

“I’ve been boring again with old stories. Go quickly. The sun will set like this.”

“Yes, Father.”

Ali ran out, and another man approached Saladin.

He bowed to Saladin.

“What’s wrong, Kamil?”

“It has been confirmed that the main force of the Franks is still in Al-Quds (Jerusalem). The Frankish king is the same.”

“I thought contact with the existing spies had been cut off. How did you find out?”

“It’s information we learned through merchants who were in Jerusalem until yesterday. We cross-checked through several mouths.”

“They must have been our merchants, right?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Give them a generous reward. They are even more important now that we lack spies. Anyway, they are still in Al-Quds.”

Saladin stroked his beard.

“He’s a cunning fox after all. He suspects that if he leaves his seat, I will go to Hama and Homs. So does that mean the south can be abandoned?”

“He may be thinking of repelling them with only the forces near Eilat.”

“Maybe so. Anyway, he didn’t take the bait.”

He said.

“But it’s enough to attack Eilat. It will restore Al-Adil’s honor and authority and be enough to make people forget Damietta from their memories.”

“The Sultan is right.”

“Anyway, keep checking the information. Those towers that the Franks have newly built this time.”

Saladin muttered.

“It’s somehow bothering me. There were many insufficient parts in Al-Adil’s report as well.”

He stroked his beard.

“Prepare an envoy to send to Al-Quds once. I need to find out about their situation directly.”