Ch.171Crusader (4)

I’m participating in this Crusade expedition with Temujin.

The reason only the two of us are participating is naturally to prepare for any unforeseen situations.

For that reason, we left Bekhter in Western Xia and stationed Khasar in the Great Capital to prepare for any emergencies.

“I’m happy to be heading to the western regions with you, Father.”

Temujin was delighted like a child.

Seeing my son like this, I nodded.

“I’m happy too.”

In truth, among my reasons for going on this expedition was the influence of my wives’ physical onslaughts.

I was exhausted from my wives’ requests for mandatory defense battles.

So I wasn’t entirely without motivation to go on this expedition as a way to overcome this.

While thinking about this, Temujin and I made eye contact.

That’s when I noticed something dark around Temujin’s eyes.

Dark circles.

Could it be… he too…

“Haha… haha…”

Judging by his awkward laughter, I was right.

Indeed, my son Temujin also had two wives.

So it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was in a similar situation to me, who had three wives.

Sharing such thoughts with my son might disqualify me as a father.

But this was an important relationship that transcended the father-son dynamic.

It was a man-to-man relationship.

So I simply respected Temujin as a man.

“That’s why I told you to have just one wife, brother.”

Munglig teased me playfully.

In response to Munglig’s words, I sighed and shook my head.

“Do you really have to expose my inner thoughts to feel better?”

“Of course, brother. That’s the joy of my life.”

At this, I clenched my fist.

Seeing this, Munglig quickly ran away.

“Anyway, let’s put him aside and prepare for the expedition.”

“Yes, Father.”

Temujin began organizing the troops as he said this.

To be precise, he was receiving reports from the commanders.

“We’ve drafted 100,000 troops from Western Liao, with 90,000 cavalry and 10,000 infantry.”

Temujin nodded at Yelu Chucai’s report.

The Ulus’s military strength had always been its cavalry.

This remained true even after conquering Western Xia, Western Liao, and the North China region.

The simple reason was that the territories we conquered were suitable for raising cavalry.

So we could produce cavalry without much difficulty.

To compare it to a game, our basic barracks produced light cavalry as the basic unit instead of infantry.

Of course, drafting infantry became easier as we conquered settled areas.

Still, considering the Mongolian steppes, the steppe regions of Western Liao, and the vast plains of North China, cavalry was easier to produce than infantry.

Additionally, we had drafted 300,000 troops from across the Ulus.

Since most of these were also cavalry, our cavalry forces exceeded 250,000.

“Additionally, we’ve separately requisitioned 50,000 supply wagons.”

The supply wagons mentioned here were for transporting military provisions and siege weapons.

This is why there were so many wagons.

For a settled nation, operating this many wagons would require an enormous number of horses.

But since the Ulus was a country where horses outnumbered people, operating such a large supply unit wasn’t a problem.

If Europeans saw this, they would call it cheating.

Anyway, Temujin nodded after receiving Yelu Chucai’s report.

Then he looked at Jebe, who was standing right beside him.

“Well-trained mounted archers will be used as the vanguard.”

“Will Jebe be in charge of them?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Jebe was one of the finest archers in the Ulus.

So it was natural for him to lead the vanguard composed of mounted archers.

“Bo’orchu will manage the supply units.”

Bo’orchu nodded at this.

While Temujin, Jebe, and Bo’orchu participated in the expedition, Yelu Chucai would manage Western Liao.

Despite his young age, he was originally the crown prince destined to become the emperor of Western Liao, so he could run state affairs without hesitation.

“You’ve prepared well.”

“Thank you, Father. Through this expedition, I want to secure land in advance for my children.”

According to nomadic tradition, the eldest son would become independent first and cultivate his own land.

But this was almost impossible because most good pastures or lands already had owners.

For this reason, Mongolian men with children would mount their horses to conquer or cultivate land for their children.

And they would pass that land down, prioritizing the eldest son.

Of course, if they couldn’t secure land, they would substitute it with livestock.

For this reason, the youngest children in the Ulus were the last to become independent, often inheriting what little property remained from their parents.

This was misunderstood in our country as ultimogeniture—the misconception that the youngest takes everything.

In reality, the youngest children’s lives involved picking up what was left.

“A good choice. I’ll follow your wishes.”

“Thank you, Father.”

“I have someone to introduce to you.”

Then, a young general about Temujin’s age appeared beside me.

“You.”

“Do you remember me, young master?”

“Jelme. Of course I remember you. I’m still making good use of the sword your father made.”

“I’m grateful that you remember me, young master.”

Jelme bowed with a moved expression.

Temujin welcomed Jelme with open arms, as if greeting an old friend.

“But you’ve grown much bigger than when I last saw you.”

“Well…”

Jelme told him about the training he received from Munglig.

Temujin then looked at Munglig as if he couldn’t be helped.

“A healthy body makes a true Ulus warrior, you fool.”

“I didn’t say anything, uncle.”

“Ahem… ahem.”

Munglig cleared his throat and pretended not to hear.

Anyway, under Munglig’s loving guidance(?), Jelme had developed enormous upper body muscles.

As a result, despite being about the same age as Temujin, Jelme seemed slightly larger.

“Anyway, Jelme will serve you from now on.”

My son bowed to express his gratitude at my words.

Then Temujin introduced the man on his right.

“This is my anda, Jamukha. He’s the son of Lord Elunka, one of the darughachi serving my father.”

Jamukha nodded at this.

Then he stepped forward and greeted Jelme.

“Let’s get along well.”

“Thank you for welcoming me. How should I address you?”

As Jamukha was about to say something, Temujin spoke first.

“He’s my anda, but he hasn’t achieved any notable military accomplishments yet, so just address him like a friend.”

“Temujin!”

“How can I address your friend so…”

“I permit it. Under my command, the Western Liao army will be respected solely based on military achievements. This includes my anda.”

At Temujin’s firm words, Jamukha frowned.

But since Temujin was both Jamukha’s anda and his lord, he had no choice but to follow the order.

“Call me Jamukha.”

“O-okay… I mean, understood, Jamukha.”

“…”

“…”

Silence fell between the two.

Seeing this, I made an awkward expression.

This was understandable because in the original history, Jamukha had an enormous influence as Temujin’s rival.

But in this world, Jamukha had less significance than air.

He hadn’t achieved any military accomplishments, and Temujin kept assigning him to internal affairs.

In other words, before Bo’orchu and Yelu Chucai joined, he had been working as an administrative supply officer every day, with no opportunity to achieve military merit.

So in terms of military achievements, Jelme and Jamukha could be considered equals.

“Your Highness is a strict person.”

“I think so too.”

Muqali and Chilaun beside me made this assessment of my son.

I nodded and looked at the two.

For this expedition, I didn’t include veteran generals who had achieved military accomplishments, such as Chalukhab, Bulqa, and Hulitu.

The reason was simple—as mentioned earlier, these three had become old.

It was natural since they had fought alongside me on battlefields.

So for the future, I intended to give opportunities to the younger generation.

Specifically, to the Four Dogs who had proven their abilities in the original history.

The Four Dogs participating in this expedition were as follows:

Jebe, Jelme, and Bo’orchu joined the Western Liao army to assist Temujin.

And Muqali and Chilaun joined to assist me.

So among the eight great generals of the Ulus, five were participating in this western expedition.

The three not participating were Subutai, Kublai, and Boroq.

In Subutai’s case, he was Jelme’s younger brother and still too young to walk properly.

I hadn’t yet met the other two.

Still, five out of the total eight generals were participating in this Crusade.

With such an impressive lineup of generals, defeating Richard the Lionheart or Frederick Barbarossa, who participated in the Third Crusade, wouldn’t be difficult.

“Of course, that’s for later.”

Temujin tilted his head and looked at me.

“What did you say, Father?”

“I was talking to myself. I’m sorry.”

I said this and looked at my son.

My son was Genghis Khan, growing up to be the ruler of the four corners of the world.

And Jamukha, who had been his rival, was now set to assist Genghis Khan.

So there was no way this expedition could fail.

If it failed, it would be as if God had abandoned the Ulus.

“By the grace of God (Dei gratia).”

I made the sign of the cross while reciting the Latin phrase.

Everyone around me followed, making the sign of the cross.

“May God protect the Ulus.”

“Tengri, lend strength to the swords of Ulus warriors as they cut down the infidels.”

“Ancestors, pray for the safety of those going to war.”

Everyone clasped their hands, praying for God’s protection over the Ulus.

I drew my sword and raised it high toward the sky.

And shouted loudly.

“God wills it (DEUS VULT)”

The infidels will meet their death by the blades of the Ulus cavalry.

God guides us.

The holy war has begun.