The family dinner had concluded, everyone who needed to be seen had been, and all matters had been settled. There was no longer any meaning in staying in Florence; the vacation had already been long enough.
Although Faol would write to him every now and then to report that all was well, he only reported good news and concealed bad, so Augustus was still worried about the situation in the Papal States. During his absence, had those ministers caused any trouble? Could Faol alone manage all aspects of the Papal States? How were Karl and Duke progressing with their military training? Had the bandit situation improved at all?
Countless questions urged Augustus to return. After sending someone to inform Ferdinand, Augustus eagerly prepared to depart.
When the convoy reached the city gate of Florence, Cosimo was already waiting there, looking completely different from his flustered demeanor during their first meeting.
Clearly, Ferdinand had sent him to see them off. Ferdinand did not come in person; if he didn't have more important matters to attend to, then he shared Augustus's thought: meet less, avoid suspicion. An alliance that appeared ordinary in the eyes of outsiders could maximize its effectiveness, Augustus thought to himself.
Augustus jumped off his carriage and walked forward, greeting him warmly, "Cosimo, hello. Are you here to see me off?"
"Precisely, Your Holiness. My father originally wished to see you off himself, but he is extremely busy with official duties and could not spare the time, so he sent me instead," Cosimo replied.
"Thank you for making the trip and waiting here for me for so long."
"Not at all, it is my pleasure to have the honor of seeing you off one last time before you leave Florence. My father often tells me to interact more with wise people, so as soon as he suggested someone should see you off, I volunteered."
Why does that sound a bit strange?
"Is that really necessary? I'm not saying I won't come back. I'll come again when I have time. By the way, Florence should welcome me, right?" Augustus asked, feigning ignorance.
"Of course, the gates of Florence are always open for friends! We look forward to your next visit!" Cosimo said with a forced smile, thinking to himself: as long as we are still friends when you come next time.
"We are not friends," seeing Cosimo's expression change, Augustus added the latter half of his sentence, "we are family!"
Cosimo then gave an awkward laugh.
Not very bright; far inferior to his father. Augustus silently formed this assessment of Cosimo.
After bidding farewell to Cosimo, Augustus's convoy passed through the gates of Florence and marched grandly towards Rome. Augustus's trip to Florence had come to an end; at this moment, Augustus's heart had already flown to Rome.
Time passed by second by second. The journey home was always tedious and long, and Augustus felt as if a day lasted a year. The road the convoy traveled also changed from a flat highway to a rugged mountain path, and the carriage occasionally bounced. Augustus's mood transformed from anticipation to agony.
"Dracula, if we proceed at full speed, how much longer will it take to reach Rome?" Augustus couldn't help but ask.
"At the fastest, we can arrive within two days," Dracula replied truthfully.
"Alright." Although he had already estimated the answer, he was still a bit disappointed. Augustus asked somewhat unwillingly, "Why don't you have horses? If each of you were equipped with horses, your marching speed would definitely be much faster."
Dracula did not speak. From inside the carriage, Dracula could not determine whether Augustus was simply complaining or being serious.
In fact, Augustus was indeed complaining initially, but after speaking, he realized it might not be impossible, so he continued, "How about I equip each of you with a corresponding number of horses when we get back?"
Dracula was silent for a moment, then declined, "Your Holiness, thank you for your kindness. However, the members of the Swiss Guard are all from Switzerland, and Switzerland is mostly mountainous and hilly, where cavalry has little use. Therefore, Swiss soldiers receive very little training in horsemanship and are not skilled in mounted combat.
And horsemanship training cannot be completed in a short time, and it requires some talent; the earlier one starts learning, the better. Swiss people are not naturally excellent cavalry. Even if we start training horsemanship now, we will ultimately not be able to reach a very high level.
On land, the combat power of the Swiss Guard can be said to be among the best in all of Europe; but in mounted combat, among regular professional cavalry, there are very few we can compare to.
Moreover, our primary work is defense and protection, and we are not often deployed on the battlefield. Equipping us with horses would truly be a bit of a waste. This number of cavalry can already decide the outcome in small to medium-scale battles."
"I understand." Augustus nodded, then shook his head. "But equipping you with horses doesn't necessarily mean you have to fight as cavalry. Do you know about dismounted knights? Using the mobility of cavalry to quickly deploy onto the battlefield, then fighting as infantry.
Furthermore, you said your horsemanship isn't good enough. In fact, the application of firearms can compensate for this very well, greatly reducing the role that individual valor can play on the battlefield, while tactics and formations will become increasingly important."
"What you say may be true, but the most crucial point is: the Swiss Guard is not often deployed on the battlefield. We are just a guard, and our current equipment and expenses already consume a great deal of the Papal States' resources.
The Swiss Guard going to war is an extremely low-probability event, almost once in a hundred years. Looking at the wars the Swiss Guard has participated in in the past, victory or defeat did not depend on mobility; in fact, one could say the Swiss Guard had no influence on the outcome at all," Dracula said, puzzled.
"That was the past, who can guarantee the future? If one day I have to go to the battlefield myself, will you follow? Or if the Papal States runs out of soldiers and desperately needs you, you wouldn't refuse, would you?"
Dracula's foot slipped in fright, almost causing him to fall. "You want to go to the battlefield yourself?"
"Perhaps, those are matters for the future, who knows? I'm just saying there's a possibility. My point is that we cannot predict the future, so we must prepare for a rainy day.
As for consuming resources, that is completely not something you should worry about. These resources are just the tip of the iceberg for the Papal States, and we will worry about generating more income. If you need to think about how to save money, then the Papal States is probably not far from collapse." Augustus did not even realize that he felt a hint of displeasure due to Dracula's overstepping.
Augustus's last sentence was spoken in a joking tone, but it made Dracula's heart sink.
Considering the country is a good thing, but overstepping is not. A sentence someone had said suddenly echoed in Dracula's mind. But he couldn't remember who it was; no wonder, he had seen off too many popes.
"Alright, I will obey your every command. As long as you decide, we will go all out!" Dracula promised.
"That's what I want to hear. Let's try it first when we get back. You always have to try to know; if it really doesn't work, we can talk about it then. Horses won't be useless anyway."
"Crippled Hao" Timur once said: Ten warriors who share life and death, fighting side by side, can laugh proudly at a thousand armies with differing intentions.
This statement is exaggerated, but its meaning is very true. The Swiss Guard is a force truly loyal to him. If something unexpected really happened and everyone else abandoned him, then he could only rely on them. It could be said that his life was firmly tied to theirs, so arming them was crucial to him.