So Alcibiades knew it very well.
What should I do next?
He needed to go to this gathering area first to confirm whether this temporary military event was still there. If it was, he could contact the Scythian nobles through the Scythians here and convey his and Hilde's intentions to the Scythian king, Idantirsus. As long as he could meet the other king and have a good talk with him at the negotiation table, this mission would officially begin.
"Lord Alcibiades."
At this time, a cavalryman rode up to Alcibiades.
"what happened?"
"Cavalry spotted in the distance!"
Hearing this, Alcibiades immediately raised his left hand, and all the troops and caravans immediately stopped advancing. In this vast grassland, since there were cavalry coming, they must be Scythians. Alcibiades knew that the other party would definitely not be friendly from the beginning, so he must not act rashly to avoid a battle. Alcibiades carefully asked the troops to show an attitude of not wanting to fight as much as possible, but at the same time everyone was in a tense state, so that if a battle broke out, they could immediately turn around and run away.
"Everyone please keep your weapons away."
Alcibiades said to those around him:
"Once the enemy attacks, run away immediately."
"We will protect your safety to the death."
The cavalry adjutant's words made Alcibiades feel a little relieved.
But Alcibiades still had to show his attitude:
"Don't worry too much. I used to be a cavalryman. I can still run away."
Soon, not far away in sight, he could see a massive wave of cavalry rushing towards him. The number of these cavalry was far beyond his imagination, and the number was estimated to be around 10,000. They probably received intelligence and thought that the Byzantine Kingdom had already led its army to attack the Scythian Kingdom, so they immediately sent out cavalry to prepare for counterattack.
Alcibiades saw this scene.
It made him feel a strong sense of uneasiness in his heart.
When fighting against the Spartans, Alcibiades, as a cavalryman of Athens, did not feel this sense of oppression. When tens of thousands of cavalrymen were approaching him in a black mass, the feeling they gave was indeed completely different from that of the infantry. Now Alcibiades finally understood why Hilde had always emphasized the cavalry construction of the army.
If any soldier saw so many cavalrymen in a war, he would definitely feel a deep fear in his heart. And these were just the cavalrymen of nomadic peoples such as the Scythians. You must know that the cavalrymen of the Byzantine Empire were already equipped with high-bridge saddles and stirrups, and some of them were even equipped with heavy armor. They were one with the horse and unstoppable.
"Everyone calm down."
Alcibiades took a deep breath.
The soldiers also held the reins tightly.
Once things change, they will immediately turn around and run away.
When the enemy cavalry had advanced to within 100 meters of Alcibiades and his men, they stopped moving, as if they had realized that Alcibiades and his men had no intention of attacking or escaping, so they stopped. At this moment, one of the cavalrymen rode out and rushed towards Alcibiades.
Alcibiades looked at the person who was coming in front of him and found that it was a beautiful girl who surprised him. She had medium-length chestnut hair, and the ends of her hair gently fell on her shoulders, which made her look fresh and capable. Her petite figure looked a bit like a child, but the slender legs and arms exposed from her clothes made it hard to look away.
Of course the most surprising thing is...
Chapter 3, Section 10, Future Potential of Grasslands
The girl actually had a pair of ears similar to those of a steppe wolf on her head, which were very standard animal ears. Alcibiades didn't know if this was a trend among the Scythians, to cut off the ears of wild animals and put them on their heads. But since the other party came alone, it meant that he was not coming to fight, but trying to communicate and negotiate.
At this time, the cavalry adjutant beside Alcibiades couldn't help but exclaimed: "This is... the princess of the Kingdom of Scythia, Tomyris."
"Princess? Why is she here?"
"Don't you know? The princess of the Kingdom of Scythia is also the highest military leader of the country, in charge of the entire army of the Kingdom of Scythia. Not only that, she is also the oracle of Lady Artemis, and possesses supreme divine power. In the past, the King of Thrace fought with her and the result was a 50-50 draw. She was able to prevent the King of Thrace from setting foot in the Kingdom of Scythia."
"Is it really that powerful?"
Alcibiades was also amazed.
Hilde didn't tell him about this matter in detail.
"Anyway, let's be careful. If we really become her enemy, we won't be able to escape."
"That's true. He is an oracle after all."
Alcibiades was in a very peaceful state of mind.
I guess if an ordinary person saw an oracle suddenly appear in front of him, he would be scared to death.
Soon, Tomyris came before Alcibiades.
"Are you Greek?"
Hear the other person speak Greek.
Alcibiades also breathed a sigh of relief.
There is nothing better than being able to communicate smoothly.
"I am an envoy from the Kingdom of Byzantium, Alcibiades. It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness, the Princess of the Kingdom of Scythia." Alcibiades dismounted and bowed slightly. "I come with the sincerity and friendship of the Kingdom of Byzantium. I hope to meet you and His Majesty the King of the Kingdom of Scythia and work hard to establish friendly relations between our two countries."
"Are you an envoy from the Byzantine Kingdom? Sent by Hilde?"
Tomyris was also a little surprised.
After all, how could Hilde send an envoy to try to reconcile with the Kingdom of Scythia when the relationship between them was so awkward? But since the other party had said so, Tomyris could only hold out a glimmer of hope, and then asked, "Since you are from the Kingdom of Byzantium, you should also know that we are at war with the Kingdom of Scythia. If you rashly lead your troops into our borders, it is a capital crime."
"Please forgive me, Princess. There will inevitably be some roaming bandits and barbarians along the way. If I don't bring some troops with me, who will protect me and the goods if I encounter danger? His Majesty Hilde personally instructed me that I must bring these goods and the gifts to the Kingdom of Scythia here intact no matter what."
Alcibiades smiled and looked at Tomyris.
"So please show some mercy, Lord Tomyris. We really don't have any hostility towards you. I think the Kingdom of Scythia will definitely welcome us. After all, we come here in peace."
"Okay."
Tomyris had no other choice.
This matter still gives her a headache.
Tomyris had been preparing for a long time to deal with the war with the Byzantine Kingdom, but in the end, the war did not come, and the current situation suddenly happened, which really surprised her. Tomyris saw the hatred and anger in Hilde's eyes with her own eyes. She knew that the stupid decision made by her father, Idantyrsus, made Hilde completely fall into anger, which was almost unforgivable. So being smart never had any illusions, she was just ready for the battle.
This battle will have to be fought sooner or later.
However, now envoys from the Byzantine Empire appeared.
He also said he wanted to restore peace.
This made Tomyris a little alert.
But since the other party had no hostility, she had no reason to attack them, so Tomyris had to say to Alcibiades in front of her: "What is your name?"
"My name is Alcibiades, I am from Athens and now a Byzantine."
"Another Athenian..."
Tomyris couldn't help but remember that Hilde was also an Athenian.
"Does your Highness dislike the Athenians?"
"That's not to say..."
Tomyris shook her head.
"Now is not the time to dwell on these issues. Since you are all here, follow me to the royal city. It will take about seven days to reach the location of our king. Don't worry. With me here, no one will attack you."
"Then thank you, Your Highness, Princess."
Alcibiades smiled and nodded.
So Tomyris led Alcibiades and his party northward to where Itantirsus was.
In fact, it is already autumn. It is not yet felt in the province of Upper Thrace, but when Alcibiades arrived at the grassland of the Kingdom of Scythia, he could still feel the coldness of this place. If he wanted to settle down and live in this place, ordinary linen clothes would not be enough to support him.
However, looking around, there are fertile grasslands everywhere. This is an excellent place for raising horses, and it can also be used for large-scale grazing, whether it is cattle or sheep. Of course, these grasslands can also be opened up into fertile farmland. The flat land is also conducive to the development of settlements and the construction of roads. It is conceivable how many people the land here can feed, and the more people it feeds, the larger the development of the city it can support.
Alcibiades knew that Hilde had been fascinated by this land for a long time. At first, Alcibiades did not quite understand it, but now he understood it very clearly. Just by seeing such a piece of land and knowing the potential behind it, he knew what such a vast and fertile land meant to the future of the Byzantine Empire.
The core of Hilde's military reform was cavalry.
Although the phalanx infantry of the Byzantine Empire was also very powerful.
But Hilde never paid too much attention to the phalanx infantry.
Alcibiades knew.
Hilde had always been a monarch who admired cavalry.
What do cavalry need? Naturally, they need strong horses. The Byzantine Empire could only maintain a certain number of cavalry, simply because the number of horses in Greece was too small, and the quality of these horses could not bear the responsibility of heavy cavalry.
The first section of the fourth tune: the tense waiting process
In the Byzantine army, those cavalrymen who wore heavy armor and even developed into armored cavalry, rode horses from the Scythian grasslands, but these horses were bought from a Greek kingdom located in the southern part of the Scythian grasslands. However, these horses were extremely expensive and could only be purchased in small quantities, so the number of heavy armored cavalry in Hild's army could only be maintained at around a thousand.
This obviously does not meet Hilde's needs.
Therefore, the strategic importance of this vast grassland of the Scythian Kingdom is highlighted.
Hilde not only regarded this place as a future population growth point and expansion of the Byzantine Kingdom, but also an important horse breeding ground, providing a large number of high-quality war horses for the Byzantine Kingdom. At the same time, the Byzantine Kingdom, which had these war horses, would have more powerful cavalry, which would have a unique advantage in future battles against other countries.
Especially the Persians.
The Persians had a huge number of soldiers.
To be able to defeat the Persians.
We must vigorously develop cavalry.
Of course, these are all later stories. Alcibiades didn't even think that he would be able to see the Byzantine Empire develop into a great empire on par with Persia in his lifetime. Of course, if this could really be achieved, then Hilde would be amazing, being able to develop a Byzantine city with a population of just 10,000 to its current level.
After a seven-day long journey, Alcibiades and others finally arrived at a gathering area. It was called a gathering area because it was not like a city. It had no city walls, no fixed buildings, only temporary tents, and shepherds grazing outside the gathering area.
"This is where the royal court is located."
Tomyris smiled and said:
"I will go and greet my father first and explain the current situation to him, and then you can come in."
"Thank you for your hard work, Princess."
Alcibiades also smiled.
During the journey, Tomyris gave Alcibiades a series of help. Not only did he share some of the army's food with Alcibiades, he also took the initiative to find him to learn about some things in the Byzantine Kingdom, especially some of Hilde's recent thoughts. After seven days of understanding, Alcibiades finally knew the whole picture. It turned out that the betrayal of the Kingdom of Scythia to the Kingdom of Byzantium was not what Tomyris wanted to see, but it was the King of the Kingdom of Siberia, Itantirsus, who acted on his own initiative, which led to this.
At that time, Tomyris strongly opposed it but was unable to stop it. She had to go to the distant battlefield alone to support Hilde and the Thracian king. Unfortunately, Tomyris was a little slow. When she arrived at her destination, Hilde had already dealt with the Thracian king personally. So it was confirmed that in this war, the Kingdom of Scythia betrayed the alliance and did not support the Byzantine Kingdom as promised.
So Tomylis has always been very concerned about this.
She felt that she shouldn't be such a betrayer.
This incident was an insult to some of the noble qualities that Tomyris had always pursued.
But the fact is the fact, the Kingdom of Scythia did break the alliance and betray the Byzantine Kingdom, which led to the Byzantine capital, Byzantium, being besieged by the Thracian King for a long time, almost destroying the city and killing people, and even destroying the entire Byzantine Kingdom. Therefore, Tomyris could understand this kind of blood feud.
She could understand Hilde's thoughts too well.
This is because it is understandable.
So Tomyris felt very guilty.
She once regarded Hilde as a friend, because she felt that Hilde was a person similar to her, a person who could make many sacrifices for her people and her country, and who loved them deeply. Because of this, when she and Hilde broke up and parted ways, Tomyris knew in her heart that the hatred between her and Hilde would inevitably end with the demise of one of them.
Tomyris was completely helpless.
Personally, she felt sorry for Hilde.
As a princess, she had to oppose Hilde. If the Byzantine Empire really attacked the Scythian Kingdom, she would fight to the death to protect the Scythians, even if it meant a life-and-death battle with Hilde.
After Alcibiades knew these things, he felt a little sorry for Tomyris.
Tomyris is a very straightforward person, which means that she never beats around the bush when dealing with things and her own heart. She is a very straightforward and upright person. She is a rare princess who is not polluted by politics, a pure person. If such a person is the monarch of the Scythian Kingdom, it would probably be a very good thing for the Scythians, but a relatively bad thing for the Byzantine Kingdom.
Fortunately, the current king of the Kingdom of Scythia is Itantirsus.
It's the one who does it for his own selfish interests.
Just a fool who betrays others casually.
So when facing such a monarch, even though the Kingdom of Scythia had great potential, Alcibiades felt that there was no need to be afraid, as such an enemy was not worth mentioning at all.
Alcibiades waited outside the settlement for a while. He and his troops were a little nervous here. After all, there were probably nearly 10,000 Scythian cavalry around the settlement. These cavalry were watching them with a covetous eye, as if they would directly destroy these guys from the Byzantine Empire if there was any movement.
"We are now deep in the enemy's lair."
Alcibiades said with emotion:
"What will happen if Idantirsus doesn't intend to cooperate with us?"
