Fortune strikes again (1)

The prosperous plains of Elbistan burned and the wealth accumulated over a long time was plundered.

Maraş, fleeing from Bozkurt Bey, the lord of Dulqadir.

These two regions were close enough that one could arrive on horseback in a day or two.

Based on the marching speed of the cavalry, one could get there in a day if they really put in the effort.

With such close distances, one could practically see the enemy’s movements as if reading a palm.

As the hot and dry weather eased, and the cool autumn weather arrived, Ismail, who had been coiled up in Elbistan, moved his army.

Leaving two thousand Qizilbash for the defense of Elbistan, Ismail slowly marched while pillaging the surroundings, openly showing that he had no intention of rushing to conquer Maraş.

Confirming this, Maraş also set out, and as scheduled, the army departing from Maraş split into three.

“Mahmud.”

“What do you need, sir?”

Centered around Bozkurt’s army of thirteen thousand, on the right, five thousand led by Ahmed and Korkut, and on the left, five thousand led by Selim and Mahmud, the forces moved separately.

Since Ahmed and Korkut were allies, Selim and Mahmud naturally had to move together.

“Isn’t it frustrating to waste time like this for several days already?”

“Hasn’t it been progressing well according to plan until now?”

With the enemy having split into three, Ismail, leading eighteen thousand Qizilbash, also divided his forces.

Sending four thousand soldiers to either side, he confronted Bozkurt directly with ten thousand soldiers.

What followed was a kind of psychological battle.

“How long do you think this situation can last?”

The princes, who could flee to a walled city if needed, faced a dilemma between siege warfare and the Qizilbash, who were the burden, and moved their troops dozens of times a day.

It wasn’t strange for mistakes to occur, and the incremental casualties from the minor skirmishes during this psychological warfare were also problematic.

“And aren’t we both in a position to achieve merits?”

At Selim’s words, Mahmud scoffed.

“Since when did we become so closely tied together?”

“True, it’s not a time for us to laugh together. But wouldn’t it be better for you to compete with me rather than with brother Ahmed?”

With a grimace, Mahmud nodded.

With his alliance with Korkut gaining him more recognition, Ahmed was the most threatening enemy.

Moreover, since his territory of Saruhan was closest to the capital, it made sense to temporarily join forces with Selim.

“So what do you propose?”

Selim glanced at the setting sun and said.

“We’ll conduct a night raid tonight.”

“Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds? What kind of night raid can we conduct when the enemy is wide awake?”

No matter the night, as soon as they began moving to prepare for a night raid, the enemy would inevitably catch on, risking the very battles they had been avoiding.

Despite Mahmud’s protests, Selim calmly replied.

“Who said we’re opposing them? The enemy I’m talking about is the one your brothers are facing.”

Although the troops moved in the opposite direction, it wasn’t that far away.

In two to three hours of diligent riding, they could arrive, so it was a sufficiently feasible plan.

“Alright then, we’ll need to spread out a bit more to set up our camp.”

So even if the enemy realized the plan and tried to follow, it wouldn’t be a problem.

The princes, supported by knowledgeable guides of this terrain from Bozkurt, could move at night without issue, but the enemy lacking proper guides would struggle to follow.

Once the plan was confirmed, the two princes deliberately spread out their camps.

As the sun set, both sides set up their camps at a greater distance than usual, but the scouts who served as eyes and ears were watching the enemy camp.

Preparing for a night raid was the most basic tactic.

However, this time, such precautions were in vain.

Thud!

As usual, soldiers patrolling the camp moved stealthily along the tents, and from inside, sounds of rustling could be heard.

A moment later, the ringing of bells echoed through the camp, and soldiers emerged from the tents in droves.

“Alert! Night raid!”

At the cry of the scout leader, the waiting scouts hurriedly mounted their horses and raced back to their camp.

Seeing his subordinate leave, the leader felt a sigh of relief but noticed something odd about the enemy soldiers.

The direction the enemy’s horses were headed was strange.

“Damn it! We’ve been fooled!”

Recognition often comes late, and the enemy was already ready to march.

As if wasting no time, the five thousand cavalry began advancing with the sound of colossal hooves.

Marching on the dark ground where the floor was barely visible was extremely dangerous.

A guide had led through the shortest distance rather than the safest path, and this led to soldiers falling behind.

Some fell off their horses and were trampled to death by their comrades, while others stumbled and fell, causing six or seven cavalry riders following behind to crash to the ground.

Soldiers who lost their companions in vain gritted their teeth and advanced, spotting a bright camp visible from afar.

“Allah!”

“Retreat!”

With the ground vibrating quicker than anything else to announce the enemy’s assault, they saw the enemy soldiers hastily leaving their tents, but it was already too late.

Mahmud, whose face had glowed with joy as they approached the enemy camp, soon widened his eyes in shock.

Unlike his soldiers charging into the enemy camp, those following Selim veered off and passed by the camp.

“SELIM!!!”

Realizing they had been deceived, but with too little time to change direction now.

Mahmud’s soldiers, who gritted their teeth, swept through the disoriented enemy troops who were flailing in confusion.

However, with only two thousand cavalry, their ability to break through was lacking.

Being elite Qizilbash, they quickly attempted to respond and thus got caught in the enemy camp.

Amidst the sounds of clashing swords, screams, and shouts echoing in the enemy camp, Selim sneered.

“What a bunch of idiots.”

Do they think they have our trust just because of some kind of relationship?

Having passed through the enemy camp, Selim, with his sword drawn, aimed towards the chaotic enemy.

“Sweep them all away.”

At Selim’s command, the soldiers steadied their panting horses and picked up speed.

Selim’s soldiers, ambushing the enemy’s rear, swept through indiscriminately, penetrating the enemy camp.

Though the battle began with a night raid, the Qizilbash fought fiercely as expected.

Killing three thousand Qizilbash came at the cost of the same number of cavalry.

Out of that, two thousand were Mahmud’s soldiers who had been betrayed, but Selim’s losses were also significant.

However, Selim didn’t care. He had achieved his goal.

“Not a single corpse left intact; what a futile end, brother.”

Grabbing the shredded remnants of Mahmud’s clothing, Selim wore a thick smile.

Though Selim had fought a battle that could justly be called a victory, Ismail wasn’t easy to deal with either.

Bozkurt suffered a disastrous defeat, losing nearly nine thousand soldiers due to Ismail’s plot.

Both sides, having suffered unexpected casualties, fell into a lull in the war.

*

For those in power in this era, sacrificing others’ lives for their own goals was a given.

For that matter, even wars entangled many unwilling victims for the agendas of a few in power.

Yusuf held no fear for sacrifice if it was for his purpose.

“To be frank, a power that fears sacrifice cannot survive.”

Would a prince of the Ottomans get applause for declaring he wouldn’t kill his brothers?

On the contrary, one who declared such weakness would likely be killed without anyone noticing.

However, he also didn’t relish unnecessary sacrifices unrelated to his goals.

“In a way, that might be hypocrisy.”

While moving forward, many villages were devastated, and looting was carried out.

Since mobility was crucial for this operation, supplies had to be sourced locally, and this operation aimed to strike the Safavid.

He wouldn’t claim mercy for not committing slaughter against the sorrowful people who lost their homes.

This was merely self-satisfaction, the remaining threads of humanity he held onto.

“Arda, we’re dividing into two from here.”

They had already entered the territory of Diyarbakır, and from here on, it was a real race against time.

They had to deal as much damage as possible and retreat quickly.

“Is it alright if I don’t go with you?”

“It’s fine. Even without you, those reliable guys will be with me.”

While he trusted Arda, the subashi from Trabzon the most, it didn’t mean that the other subashi were lacking.

There were plenty of others to fill in for Arda’s absence.

“Don’t worry about me; once the enemy movement is detected, return to Erzinjan without hesitation.”

Diyarbakır was deep into the enemy’s territory. If caught, it could pose significant danger.

‘As long as I don’t stay too long, at most two days.’

Having passed so impressively, it was only a matter of time before news reached nearby towns like Bingöl and Elazi.

If armies began to depart from those two places, their retreat route could be blocked.

Putting aside his concerns, Arda politely expressed his farewell.

“Return safely. I’ll see you in Erzinjan.”

“Right, make sure to come back with your pockets full.”

Jokingly responded Yusuf led his two thousand Sipahi towards the west of Diyarbakır.

*

It was exceedingly easy to loot the nearby villages of Diyarbakır without getting proper news.

The locals never imagined that the enemy had infiltrated so deeply.

Yusuf, leading two thousand cavalry, was mistaken for Qizilbash rather than Sipahi.

Without putting in much effort, Yusuf plundered for two days and intended to return.

Having had enough fun, and this was not a mission of critical importance, he would have returned if not for the strange group he noticed.

“Suspicious.”

There were over a hundred people moving with a large wagon.

As the two thousand cavalry made an appearance, the other party seemed flustered and halted.

Yusuf shouted, “Kill all those who resist!”

“Ha!”

While it seemed those guarding weren’t just ordinary, they were vastly outnumbered by Yusuf’s two thousand Sipahi.

Watching the enemy guards getting slaughtered, Yusuf’s eyes caught sight of a woman emerging from the wagon, pulling out a firearm secured to her horse.

-Bang!

“Ahhh!”

The sound, like thunder, scared the woman and her maid, causing them to collapse onto the ground.

The woman, fearing she’d miss her chance to escape, scanned the bloody surroundings with fierce eyes, and Yusuf stepped before her.

“You may not know who I am, but Allah won’t forgive you!”

“I’ve heard that curse enough times already.”

Responding nonchalantly, Yusuf firmly grasped the woman’s wrist and pulled down the hijab covering her face.

As her cat-like features emerged, a trembling maid screamed.

“Ka, Khanum!”

“Shut up!”

The woman called Khanum shouted angrily, but it was already too late.

Khanum was a title given to women of high status, such as royalty.

Yusuf raised her chin with his hand and asked, “What’s your name?”

“… The Shah won’t forgive you.”

Seeing the woman threatening him by mentioning Ismail, a name crossed Yusuf’s mind.

“Are you Tazlu Khanum?”

The woman heaved a gasp of shock at his question, and Yusuf was hit with a headache.

Tazlu Khanum was the most beloved woman in Ismail’s harem.

‘Meeting her like this feels like pure luck.’

But he felt a strong anxiety about whether it was alright to kidnap her.