A Sudden Turn

Viscount Hawke stared at the enemy formation, bristling like a hedgehog, and felt a headache coming on.

When news first came that a Duchy Army unit was attacking their outpost, he had fought hard for the chance to command the troops sent against it.

To stop that unit, he had even borrowed a large cavalry force from Alex.

But the moment he rode out to meet them, the enemy abandoned its advance and formed a defensive line on the spot, leaving Hawk and his cavalry with no easy way to attack.

Ricardo rode up beside Hawk. "My lord, what should we do?

The enemy only just changed formation and hasn't found its footing. Shall I lead the family cavalry in a charge?"

Viscount Hawke knew what Ricardo had in mind. To move quickly, he had brought only light cavalry. Sending them against that formation would merely throw their lives away.

Heavy losses would also be hard to explain to Alex, since most of the cavalry belonged to him.

But Hawk had gone to considerable trouble to secure this command, and giving up now would be a shame. Ricardo therefore wanted to try a charge with the cavalry from Pumpkin Territory.

After thinking it over, Hawk refused. It wasn't just that he hated risking his own cavalry; he was even more worried about Ricardo's safety.

"Forget it, Ricardo. Let's wait for the troops behind us. Then we'll pit our infantry formation against theirs. I won't let you charge in with the family cavalry alone."

Ricardo did not insist. Instead, he led part of the cavalry around the Fifth Legion's formation, searching for a weak point.

But Kimberley was a seasoned commander, and every soldier under him was one of his own. His orders were carried out at once, the formation shifted