Hyper-Dimensional Player

Go.

In just one round of combat, the ten-plus riders who had caught up were all slain. Of the elite Kulin brought, one died and another was injured. The injured one was beyond saving, as light cavalry clashes easily led to severe injuries, his intestines already spilling out. He could only swiftly and decisively deliver a final blow to give his brother a quick relief.

There were a few people at the gate to receive them, and before the gate closed, Kulin escorted the carriage out of Ravenna.

At this moment, Quintus felt a bit cold in his extremities. Though his riding skill was decent, right now he was struggling to stay seated on the horse. He had seen some killing and death before, but such a bloody battlefield impact was a first. Light cavalry charges resulted in severed limbs, much like the final cavalry charge in the movie "Bright Sword," with human force combined with horse power leading to very tragic deaths, limbs and flesh flying, internal organs and intestines spilled everywhere.

A group was escorting the Empress and the princess towards the Gaul Province. After reaching a manor nearby, another ten riders arrived, along with Quintus's trusted attendants. The entire group numbered about fifty to sixty people.

The one responsible for receiving Kulin and the others was a masked woman. As soon as they met, the witch from Asia asked, "Can they ride horses?"

Quintus had calmed down considerably by now, hurried to the carriage to inquire, and after receiving a positive response said, "They can."

The middle-aged witch immediately said, "Abandon the horses up ahead, leave a team to escort the carriage northward."

"Let them change clothes and ride horses to travel."

This was to confuse the enemy, to delay being caught by the enemy as much as possible.

Meanwhile.

After successfully assassinating Emperor Valentinian III, Maximus rushed to the palace to seize control. He had long since bribed many members of the Forbidden Army, and with the support of the Senate, the difficulty of usurping and ascending the throne was not high.

However, the imperial army's attitude now was very ambiguous, with a stance of waiting to see a dogfight, and Maximus did not immediately receive full support from the army.

The imperial legions had fallen into complete disarray after Aetius's death.

But there were exceptions, notably the palace's Forbidden Army, known for its notorious reputation, even after later being disbanded and reorganized, they are still fence-sitters. Maximus only needed to spend money to win over many of their members.

However, the Forbidden Army now had much less power, at least they couldn't auction off the emperor's identity publicly anymore.

"What?"

"The Empress and two princesses have escaped?"

Upon hearing the news, Maximus almost went mad with rage. He furiously lifted his whip and struck down, angrily shouting, "How could three women escape the palace?"

"You bunch of good-for-nothings!"

The leader of the Forbidden Army, covered in blood, dared not express his anger. A personal attendant quietly said, "It was Quintus who secretly took away the Empress and the two princesses."

"He arranged people in secret and forcibly seized the palace gate."

"We also lost quite a number of men."

"The leader just sent out a team of cavalry to pursue them, but they were all killed. Those people are something else, not like ordinary guards, possibly seasoned battlefield veterans."

The Forbidden Army in the palace had little chance to go to war, but they counted as elite troops, dying so cleanly seemed very unusual.

Battlefield veterans?

Upon hearing the attendant's words, Maximus calmed down significantly and asked in a serious tone, "What traits do they have?"

Where could battlefield veterans be found in Ravenna at this time?

One member of the Imperial Guard recalled, "They seemed a bit like the Gauls, yes, definitely Gauls. Some among them had tattoos."

Gauls?

Could it be Duncan, the Governor of Britain?

At the thought of that man, even Maximus couldn't help feeling a tinge of fear. After all, that man's military record was too impressive, never having suffered a defeat to date. Although he's far off in Frank territory in Europe confronting the Western Goth Kingdom, the appearance of his subordinates on the Italian peninsula still made Maximus uneasy.

Maximus was certain that he heard of the massive army confrontation between the Governor of Britain and the Western Goth King in the Orléans area, seemingly on the brink of a major battle, which drove him to make a move.

Both forces were vying for supremacy in Western Europe.

"Pursue!"

"Immediately pursue!"

Thinking of the beautiful Empress Lysiniya-Eudoxia, Maximus hurriedly commanded, "At all costs, immediately mobilize Forbidden Army cavalry for pursuit!"

"You must recover the Empress and the two princesses."

"Inform the stationed troops along the way, they must be intercepted, never let them enter Frank territory."

The Empress Lysiniya carries dual imperial validity; she is not only the Empress of the Western Empire but also Princess of the Eastern Empire. For Maximus to successfully usurp, one crucial condition is to forcibly marry and possess Empress Lysiniya.

In the worst-case scenario, he would have to take one of the two princesses, but Lysiniya is undoubtedly more suitable.

After all, Maximus hopes for recognition from the Eastern Empire, even if some price must be paid.

Not long after.

A cavalry unit of several hundred rushed out of the city in pursuit. Upon realizing the Empress and two princesses had fled, the Imperial Senate also panicked somewhat. Many sent private legions to assist Maximus in the pursuit, quickly increasing the cavalry unit's numbers to near a thousand, dispersing into several teams to intercept along the way.