บท 74: Pondering what's next

A formal declaration of victory was unnecessary because the soldiers had already spread the word of their victory across the city, eliminating the necessity for one. The news had reached everyone, from merchants and tavern owners to the most ordinary of commoners, who were ecstatic to have learned of their victory and were praising the troops for their daring and valor.

Conradin was nonetheless pleased to hear that their win had been positively received, and it fueled his determination to keep fighting for the cause. The troops had done a fantastic job even though they had not been ordered to, and as was customary, they went about the city bragging about their accomplishments, either to earn free food or to impress some local girls.

Conradin was ready to continue the campaign with the other coalition generals and provide them with an official report on the battle. The first thing that would be necessary in this case would be for them to meet up and discuss their next move. They would need to figure out how to handle the situation, as they would surely make a move against the coalition after hearing of the ambush; after all, it would not look good on him to not do anything after learning of the defeat. It was important that they did not waste any more time and that they started setting up the meeting right away to ensure that they could discuss the situation as quickly and effectively as possible.

Conradin and his retainers, Frederick, Maletta, Galvano, Enrico, and Pietro, entered the war hall, where they noticed that the other generals were also present. Guglielmo Tiepoli was striking up a conversation with Alberto della Scala and Nino Visconti, but he soon stopped announcing the arrival of the victorious king. "Your highness, we have received news of your victory, which will not only inspire our troops to fight harder but would also strike confusion in the minds of our enemies. Please sit down and share the details of the battle with us."

Conradin was proud of the victory and was ready to boast himself for it; therefore, he sat down and began to share with the other generals the details of the recent battle and his plans for the future. He talked about how he hid his crossbowman in the trees to shoot behind the front line. He also talked about how he charged alongside his knights, leading to the total route of the enemy army, which was decimated in the pursuit. And finally, he also shared the number of loot taken after the battle, for the last Conradin did not even attempt to hide it since he was sure that they were already informed by their own men, which they sent to fight alongside them.

After Conradin proudly shared with the rest of the generals of the coalition the tactics he employed alongside the loot taken, he sat down and started drinking some wine to quench his thirst. The discussion was then taken up by Nino Visconti, who made a general request to discuss the next steps they would be taking as a group. Nino's suggestion to discuss the next steps in the war room prompted agreement from every man in the room. This was something that Conradin approved of, as he believed it was important to lay out their plan and plan of action for the future. He knew that they would need to continue their advances and take more battles to secure their position as the ruling power, so he was ready to work this out with the other generals and get going as soon as possible.

''So does anyone have any suggestions on how to proceed?'' Guglielmo Tiepoli asked while eyeing everyone in the hall; the first to talk was Alberto della Scala. ''I propose to go ahead and advance; after all, nothing will come from staying here, so I suggest meeting the enemy in battle, choosing the terrain ourselves.'' The tactic suggested by him was an active one, which was met with a partial agreement from Nino. ''I too agree on the fact that we cannot stay here forever; however, I instead suggest going east instead of south, for we may intercept other military contingents sent from other communes. '' The two men agreed on the fact that they had to go on the offensive, but the nature of the direction was different. Conradin noticed that unlike the two, Guglielmo stayed silent during the discussion, so understanding that it was now time to share with the other the information he was holding in, Conradin with his hand claimed the interest of the group. ''Noble generals, if I may, ''Conradin said.

''Of course your goodness, please continue.'' Guglielmo said,'' With whom do you agree? '' asked Nino, interested in what the young king had to say.

''Well, I am of the opinion that we should stay here until further news''. Conradin dropped the bombshell, which created not so little confusion among the group of the coalition, apart from that of his own that was already in the knowledge of what Conradin wanted to do. Either way, Conradind was clearly serious about his idea and was ready to present it in front of everyone. His plan was to stay put and use the time to recover his strength before the next battle. he also said that he would only move out if there was an emergency that required further attention. Apart from that, he also explained the task he had given to one of his retainers, Corrado:'' Before coming here and departing from Genoa'', Conradin started, ''I had given to one of my retainers, Corrado, the mission to embark on ships provided by Genoa and depart to Sicily, where he was to then incite the island to revolt and cause damage to the backyard of Charles. From my informations it seems that Charles had left Sicily totally undefended, so I would be surprised if he were to fail in his task. When Charles knows that his newly acquired kingdom will be ready to revolt, he will surely abandon everything here and return to the South, leaving only a few communes that hate each other guts to fend off our army. Do you think that they will keep their army united when they know that they were deserted by their most numerous ally along with the sole reason for this war? Do you think that they will not search for a reason to drop the campaign? Why would they keep fighting upon knowing of Charles' return to Sicily, after all, do they have something to gain? ''

Conrading's plan was a sensible one, as it would allow them to recover their strength and also strike a blow at their enemy by stirring up some internal turmoil in his realm. As Corrado had already been dispatched, this was now out of their hands, and they could only wait to hear the news about the successful mission that Conradin had given to his retainer. If everything went as planned, they would soon see that Charles would no longer have the luxury of having his forces unified, and it would be easy to pick off his allies one by one.

It was clear that the allied generals were not only impressed by Conradin's clever plan, but they were also a bit wary of his intelligence. Even though he was still just a teenager, he had shown himself to be a very good leader and an exceptional talent. It was clear that he was a king who would continue to bring success to his people, and he was already starting to prove it in such a short amount of time. He may have been young, but he was certainly wise beyond his years, and he was quickly turning into a capable ruler and a seasoned general when it came to warfare and tactical thinking (Conradin's birthday was March 25, and now it is April 26). The other allied generals had previously thought that Conradin would be a reckless ruler who would be manipulated by his retainers, but they now saw that the young king was becoming more and more like the legendary grandfather that he was so proud of. They admired how well he was doing to lead his army and his people, and it was clear to many of them that he was truly turning into a great leader who would bring great glory to his realm if he was allowed to do so. The allies generals were starting to respect him as a king, and they realized that they would be fighting alongside a capable commander.

''From your description, your Highness, it is a truly fantastic proposal, and if the others agree, I see no reason not to do as you proposed. '' Guglielmo was the first to announce his support , however not everyone was sure of Conradin's idea.

''Are you certain Corrado will be successful?'' Nino appeared to be afraid that Corrado would fail in his goal, which was natural for nobody liked to put the outcome of an entire war upon only one man.

Conradin , on the other hand, had complete faith in his retainer and his abilities, and he was certain that he would be able to complete his duty. "I would bet my entrance to heaven on his success," he stated, demonstrating his confidence and belief in his retainer. Conradin was clearly going to put his entire trust in his scheme, for he felt that he made the right choice in sending Corrado for the task, but he however also hoped to receive news from him soon.

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