Major Marlow watched the soldiers collapse inside Doro Valley ahead of him, unmoved.
Behind him, out of sight from inside the valley, stood a large infantry square composed of Halberdiers and Musketeers. On its flank, twenty light cavalrymen armed with lances waited, ready to charge toward the valley at any moment.
Unfortunately, no matter how long Major Marlow waited, the enemy inside never pursued the routed soldiers out. All he got was several dozen cavalrymen emerging from the small grove beside him to the sound of a horn.
Marlow was not surprised by these uninvited guests. His scouts had discovered traces left by these cavalrymen a day earlier.
Nor was Marlow afraid of them. After fighting them several times, he had discovered that although these mounted elite infantrymen did not fear death and were willing to sacrifice themselves, they were extraordinarily protective of their horses.
Often, they would rather lose a few men than let a single horse get hurt.
Marlow could not understand their affection for their horses, but that did not stop him from exploiting it.
When these enemies tried to approach, Marlow ordered the Musketeers forward to fire at them from a distance.
After a crackling volley of gunfire, the mounted enemies fled... And so the player cavalry's frenzied slaughter of routed troops that Knife-in-the-Butt had imagined never happened.
Instead, Home Alone and the others were sent scrambling by the Republic's Musketeers. Though no one died and no horses were hurt, they had made the trip for nothing.
Yet Major Marlow, who had repelled the enemy light cavalry's raid at little cost, felt little pleasure as he faced the valley ahead. Expressionless, he watched the defeated remnants retreat.
The battle to take Doro Valley had lasted all day, from early morning until that afternoon. The first three