The expedition at Castow Castle in Orpul did not yet know about the situation that had unfolded at Barad Castle. Anchin had ordered that the news from Barad Castle be sent to the expedition in Orpul by carrier pigeon, so it would arrive in a few days.
At Castow Castle's training ground, Rafin was teaching swordsmanship, horsemanship, and spear work in turn to the combined soldiers, organized in groups of some 200 each.
There was no time to train them at leisure, so Rafin decided to teach only the essentials, quickly.
Rafin stepped up onto the platform. Holding a sword, he explained in a loud voice.
"What you must never forget in swordsmanship is balance. I'll give a demonstration, so watch the position of my feet and the movement of my waist closely."
Rafin demonstrated attacking and defensive stances.
"Whether you're attacking or defending, the most important thing is not to lose your center. That's how you can attack fast and powerfully, and defend steadily as well."
After the demonstration, Rafin came down from the platform, told the soldiers to try the attacking and defending moves, and corrected each man's stance one by one.
Simas, Knight Commander of House Tiregel, who was beside Rafin, helped him by checking the soldiers' stances too.
When he had corrected most of the soldiers, Rafin took up a spear and went up onto the platform.
He demonstrated attacking and defensive moves with the spear as he spoke.
"The spear is a powerful weapon that can attack and defend at the same time. When you thrust, you must practice over and over so you can strike exactly the point you intend."
Rafin spoke to Simas.
"Is there anything like a target we can use for thrusts?"
"For targets, we do have straw scarecrows."
"Good. Please get those ready."
Simas told the soldiers to bring the straw scarecrows quickly.
They brought many straw scarecrows from the storehouse. The soldiers formed groups of three or four, surrounded the straw scarecrows, and began thrusting drills.
While the soldiers did their thrusting drills, Rafin asked Simas to have horses made ready.
Simas asked Rafin.
"There's no need to teach horsemanship to the ordinary soldiers too, is there?"
"No, there isn't. It's only for the knights and the cavalry."
"Then I'll have only the knights and cavalry assemble."
Soon the knights and cavalry gathered at the training ground on horseback. Rafin mounted a horse too.
House Tiregel's knights and cavalry knew Rafin was the winner of the jousting tournament, but they were confident that in horsemanship they were second to no one.
Some were privately itching to see how well Rafin would teach. Before Rafin were gathered the expedition's knights, House Tiregel's knights, and the cavalrymen.
Rafin shouted in a loud voice.
"Horsemanship isn't simply riding a horse. It's the art of becoming one with your horse and sweeping across the battlefield. Our ancestors rode across countless plains, hunting and fighting on horseback. And...... back then there were no stirrups. Everyone, dismount and take off your stirrups."
At the sudden order to take off their stirrups, complaints leaked out here and there.
"If we have to keep sitting on a horse without stirrups, our legs are going to be killing us."
"Without stirrups you can't even keep your body steady."
Rafin dismounted first, took off his stirrups, and climbed back on. Then he rode at a gallop and demonstrated changing direction at will.
"What, how can he ride so naturally without stirrups?"
"Looks like he's practiced horsemanship without stirrups from the start."
Rafin rode up close to Simas and spoke.
"Please tell them all to take off their stirrups right now, without hesitating."
Simas nodded. Then he shouted.
"What are you dawdling for? I said take off your stirrups. I'll go first."
Simas dismounted and took off his stirrups.
Everyone else dismounted too, took off their stirrups, and climbed back on their horses. Of those who mounted, half soon fell off.
Rafin had expected this. It was only natural. For someone who had only ever ridden horses with stirrups, riding a horse without them was far too uncomfortable and hard.
Rafin shouted.
"You must practice until you have no trouble galloping even without stirrups. If you can gallop well without stirrups, how would it be once you have stirrups again? You can handle your horse more closely than before. Only then can you become one body with your horse. It may be hard, but you have to overcome it."
Rafin had the knights and cavalry keep training to ride without stirrups and went to train the next group of some 200 combined soldiers.
In that way, all day long, Rafin trained everyone in the expedition and among Tiregel's soldiers in swordsmanship and spear work.
There wasn't a moment to rest. They had to finish the training in a hurry and prepare for a barbarian invasion.
Simas was practicing riding without stirrups over and over. After keeping at it until dusk, he could at least avoid falling off his horse.
Seen from a distance, Rafin was training the soldiers without rest. Riding a horse without stirrups was something Simas had never even imagined.
With horsemanship like that, he thought, it was no wonder he had beaten the famous Sir Folke in the tournament final.
He wondered how House Valone, a frontier house, had trained its son from childhood to give him such skill.
The first day of training was over. Even those who had looked askance when Rafin said he would teach horsemanship to House Tiregel's knights and cavalry could feel in their own bodies, after trying to ride without stirrups, just how outstanding Rafin's horsemanship was.
"To gallop fast and turn at will without stirrups, I don't think you could ever do it in a short time."
"I know. You'd have to practice steadily for at least a year."
"It's a wonder how that squire named Rafin learned horsemanship like that at his age."
Rafin's body was tired from training others all day without rest. A tired body recovered after a night's sleep. More than that, his mind was in a tangle.
He was worried and curious about what had happened at Barad Castle. And now that the follow-up force had gone back to Barad Castle, it would take time for it to come all the way to Orpul again.
In the meantime, there was every chance they would run into the barbarians and a battle would break out. He even thought the follow-up force might not make it to Orpul at all.
In that case, he thought, he wished at least Lord Stormmond would come to Castow Castle. One way or another, he wanted to hear the news from Barad Castle soon.
After the grueling training, everyone went to eat dinner.
When the lord, Iras, heard that Rafin was giving the soldiers excellent training, he ordered that a good meal be prepared so they could recover their strength.
The expedition's knights and squires and House Tiregel's knights gathered in the hall of the main keep and ate.
For the meal there was a whole roast lamb glazed with honey and a stew made of reindeer meat. The drink, of course, was whiskey.
Gerhardt already knew that Rafin was good with a sword, not to mention his horsemanship, but seeing Tiregel's soldiers working hard to follow Rafin's training, he felt proud as the representative of House Rosrad's expedition.
Gerhardt sat down beside Rafin.
"Rafin, you worked hard today. You did the expedition proud. Have a drink."
Gerhardt poured Rafin some whiskey.
When Rafin went to pour whiskey for Gerhardt in turn, Gerhardt hesitated for a moment.
"Knight Commander, what's wrong? Can't you drink it?"
"...It's from my squire Rafin, so I have to drink it. Pour me a full cup."
Rafin filled Gerhardt's pewter cup to the brim with whiskey.
"Don't push yourself."
Rafin looked at Gerhardt and grinned.
Everyone was happily eating the well-spread northern fare.
Gerhardt took a sip of whiskey. He felt something hot go down from his throat into his stomach. He thought that if he drank the whole cup, he would soon be drunk, so he took only two small sips and put the cup down.
Gerhardt suddenly wondered how things were at Barad Castle. He was waiting to see when the news would come. He hoped the matter would be settled quickly so the follow-up force could set out soon.
Simas finished eating quickly and rose from his seat. He had to tell them about the plans ahead.
"We'll train one more day tomorrow, and the day after, we'll set out for the Grimhall Mountains. I hope everyone trains well again tomorrow, without injury, like today. There's plenty of food, so eat as much as you like."
Rafin would have to train the soldiers again tomorrow. Two days of training wouldn't make a big difference, but he thought it would be much better than none.
It was the first time since his past life that he had eaten reindeer. When he chewed the meat, he could taste a subtle sweetness, and it was less gamy than mutton. It was a delicacy.
Since coming to Castow Castle, Rewad had been so busy that he had hardly had a chance to talk with Rafin. He brought the bowl he was eating from over beside Rafin.
"Rafin. Eaten plenty?"
"Isn't the reindeer meat delicious?"
"I only tried it for the first time after coming to Orpul, and I like that it's not gamy. But the meat seems a little underdone."
"Reindeer has less fat than other meat, so if you cook it through it gets tough. That's why they leave it underdone on purpose."
"You talk like someone who's eaten a lot of it. But riding without stirrups, did you learn that from when you were little?"
Rewad had never heard of anyone riding without stirrups these days. Seeing Rafin ride without stirrups during this training had amazed him.
"I have a teacher called Ivan who's taught me since I was little. I trained to ride without stirrups under him from when I was small."
What Rafin said was, of course, a lie.
"You had an unusual teacher. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean it in a bad way."
Nichiye Noriton, House Tiregel's experienced scholar, came to where the knights were eating. He was a distant uncle of Sabel Noriton, the expedition's woman knight.
When Nichiye appeared, House Tiregel's knights looked around, wondering what was going on.
Nichiye went to Sabel.
"Sabel. You've grown into a fine knight."
"Uncle. How have you been?"
"Well enough. My back isn't bent yet, after all, haha. Last I saw you, you were this small. Now you're taller than me."
Sabel was a full head taller than Nichiye.
"I remember you reading me 'The Tale of the Magic Forest of Eldwood' when I was little, Uncle."
"Haha. You remember that! I knew you were a knight of House Rosrad, but to think you'd come all the way to Orpul on an expedition and we'd meet here at Castow Castle.
As a vassal of House Tiregel, I'm grateful that Lord Anchin sent an expedition all this way."
The people around them realized that Nichiye and Sabel were uncle and niece. Then they went on with their meal.
Making sure the people around them had looked away, Nichiye whispered quickly and quietly to Sabel. It was so quiet that it couldn't be heard even right beside them.
—Before you go back to Barad Castle after your mission, stop by and see me.
Sabel neither nodded nor answered. Sabel's body remembered the tradition of House Noriton, a house skilled at gathering information.
Sabel could barely hear what Nichiye said, but she read the meaning from the shape of his lips. Then Nichiye quietly went back.
The next day, too, Castow Castle trained under Rafin's guidance. With repeated training, everyone looked more at ease than on the first day.
House Tiregel's vassals held a meeting to decide which gorge of the Grimhall Mountains to go to tomorrow. It was decided they would go to Nordmar Gorge in the Grimhall Mountains first.
The next day, in the middle of the bustle of getting ready to leave for the Grimhall Mountains, a carrier pigeon arrived at Castow Castle. It was a letter from Barad Castle.