Conradin awoke in the morning with his head aching and his mind feeling groggy. He had had far too much to drink at the party the night before, and it was clear that he was still feeling the effects of all that wine. His eyes were heavy, and he was still quite dehydrated as he fumbled around for some water, trying to quench his thirst and sober up a bit after all the drinking. As for his headache, there was not much he could do about it except drink plenty of water and rest his head for a while. It was going to be a long morning for him. He was definitely not in a good state, and it would take quite some time for him to recover from this massive hangover.
Conradin opened his eyes carefully, trying not to wince from the sunlight streaming in through the tent's walls, ad he was doing so he found Frederick collapsed on the ground. This did not surprise him; after a night of drinking and partying, this seemed to be the norm for Frederick. The more Conradin tried to avoid looking at Frederick, the worse his headache became, so he decided to get up and start getting ready for another day of war. He couldn't afford to waste time on Frederick's games, no matter how much he admired him as a friend. He was also irritated because he knew this was simply another example of Frederick's recklessness when it came to drinking, and he could not help but wonder how many times he would witness his friend in this state by the end of the campaign.
Conradin came to a halt as he was ready to exit the tent and cast another glance at Frederick. He'd seen him in this condition many times before, and he knew he'd be there for a long time. Conradin couldn't help but be amused, so he let out a full-drawn smile, knowing full well how much fun he'd had messing with him in this state. "This is going to be a lot of fun," Conradin thought as he took a pail of water and poured it on Frederick's face.
Conradin immediately went to Frederick and, after putting on a worried expression and appearing urgent, said, "Wake up, Frederick, it is an ambush; they are onto us; come on, take your fucking sword; they are about to come." This startled Frederick and led him to feel he was being attacked, so he swiftly sought to wake up and defend himself.
He was clearly still drowsy from the night before, as he attempted to stand on one foot and instead fell flat on his face from intoxication. Conradin laughed and shook his head, as he couldn't help but feel terrible for his friend , as Frederick was clearly in no condition to march out of the camp yet.
Seeing Conradin laughing, Frederick understood he was making a fool out of him, but he could not help but smile too since he had fallen there with all his shoes.
''Come on, Frederick seriously , prepare yourself; we are to break camp and return to Pavia.'' Conradin said, understanding that they have already wasted enough time there. All he had to do now was wait for the second part of his plan to take shape.
However, Frederick seemed still quite drunk, as he could not even stand up properly, let alone prepare himself to get ready for the move. But Conradin could not wait for Frederick, and as such, he started to prepare himself as Frederick will have to deal with the hangover that he had brought on himself.
Everything was eventually ready after a few hours. The carts were loaded with the last of the supplies they possessed, as well as the loot they had stolen from the enemy. They were now completely prepared to leave the camp and return to Pavia. The travel back to their base of operations would be long, but it had to be done. With everyone ready, it was time for Conradin to give the command to march. Everyone would have to get prepared to endure another long march, as it was now time to leave this place and return to Pavia.
"Everyone forward," Conradin said on his horse, following which the soldiers started moving their feet ahead. They had their weapons in hand, and their horses were stepping carefully as they began to move forward through the camp. The ravens were floating overhead in the sky. Their flying above their heads in the sky seemed like a way to the army for the banquet they generously gave them. Conradin looked at them,and strangely, he did not see them as an omen of bad luck this time, but instead as their symbol of victory, since after the battle they had the possibility to watch them, unlike their foes, who had become their food.
And so, after a moment of silence from Conradin, the whole party began to travel forth from the camp. After all, it was time to travel back to their base city, Pavia.
The distance to travel was quite short and could be covered in just one day. Starting in the morning, they would have marched for 14 hours and then arrived outside their city of Pavia. Once they had reached their destination, they would be ready to settle down for the night and get some much-needed rest before the celebration the following morning.
The soldiers were happy that they had finally reached their destination after a long day of marching. They could not wait to spend the night indulging in some well-deserved fun and celebrating the victory they had just accomplished. Many of them wanted to spend the night at a tavern or in a brothel, while others would no doubt be eager to return to their families and loved ones back at home and, as such, wanted to bring them a hefty sum. Most soldiers decided to sell the equipment they had looted and stash away the profits, as they knew that this would come in handy when everything began to settle back down to normal once again.
Since it was not uncommon for one to wake up without his bag of coins, many soldiers tried to hide them in many ways. Some hid them underground for when they will wake up the next day , always if, while others instead preferred to tie them to their legs so that they would be hidden by their private parts. After all, when a man searches for gold, he does not go and look at the other man-part.
Conradin was happy with their recent win because he believed it would not only boost coalition morale but also persuade more nations to join forces with them against Charles and his allies. He was now anxious to proclaim their victory because he knew it would be welcomed with hoopla and festivities, which added more to the already huge merriment, as he was also proud of what they had accomplished in such a short period of time. Conradin began to prepare himself for the official announcement of their win after everything was set to be announced and shared with the world.
Once they had entered the hall, Conradin was met with all the other generals smiling and laughing, as they had all heard about the victory that the soldiers had achieved. Apparently, one of the allied military contingents in the army sent an envoy to announce their victory in Pavia. It was clear that everyone was in high spirits and ready to celebrate, and Conradin felt his heart warm as he looked around the room. The joy on the faces of the generals and the people around him made him know that he had made the right calls and that his cause was in good hands. The news, however, remained mostly in the private Circle, as Conradin did not see the citizens praising their soldiers, as they would have if they knew they had won. However, he knew that it was only a matter of time before his soldiers spread the news in the taverns and brothels they went to, offering information about the battle in exchange for free drinks.
The public's reaction would soon spread like wildfire and would become known around the city as the soldiers returned to their families and friends, as they would proudly share their tales of victory in the taverns and brothels that they came across. This would be the first step in spreading the news to the entire city, and it would no doubt be met with much celebration, as the citizens would be thrilled to hear about their victory since everyone always took pride in the victory of their cities.
Conradin was elated by the events of the past few days since he saw more action in this month than in the rest of his life. He had now understood why so many kings seemed to be so dependent on war, as it was not only a way to become more powerful and gain territory, but it was also a way to feel a sense of victory. The feeling of having an entire city associate his name with victory shook Conradin from the inside and filled his heart with pride at what he and his soldiers had accomplished.
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Author's thoughts:
Hey guys , I will soon have my exam on thursday after which I will finally have finished highschool, so in these days I will not be active, as I think I will only publish one chapter till' wednesday .
Anyway wish me luck and review the damn novel