Chapter 237: Rout

The annihilation of the King's Landing vanguard was only the bloody beginning of this encounter.

In the King's Landing main force, Ser Kevan Lannister received the news, and any remaining hope of a favorable outcome vanished.

The Stormlanders had failed to stall the Reach forces in the Kingswood.

Cursing the Stormlands nobles for their incompetence, Kevan focused on making one last stand.

Although he knew that this hastily raised "army" was doomed against the Reach cavalry, he intended at least to cause them some trouble and inflict casualties—perhaps enough to create an opening for him and the other nobles to escape back to King's Landing.

Kevan ordered his troops to close ranks and arranged the supply mules around the perimeter, creating a makeshift defensive line.

But the Reach forces were moving too quickly.

Or rather, the King's Landing vanguard had fallen so swiftly that they barely bought any time for the main force to regroup.

Samwell's strategy relied on speed, giving the enemy no chance to prepare.

As the dark tide of cavalry surged toward them, the ground itself trembled.

This terrifying sight sent panic through the hastily assembled and poorly trained new recruits, who had never experienced the brutality of a real battlefield.

Some simply turned and began running, their panic spreading rapidly. Soldiers shoved and trampled one another, carts and mules toppled over, and screams filled the air. Even when Kevan ordered military officers to execute deserters, it did little to halt the chaos.

At this point, the situation was already close to a full rout.

Untrained and unprepared, this makeshift army was no match for elite cavalry on an open field, even with their superior numbers.

After all, no number of sheep could stand against a lion.

For Samwell, however, this swift advance posed some difficulties.

To maintain speed, he'd ordered the Reach cavalry to press on without any pause after the vanguard's defeat.

The cavalry formation was somewhat disrupted, and slight disorder had set in.

But Samwell remained calm; he knew that large-scale cavalry movements inevitably came with complications. Attempting to reorganize mid-charge would likely only cause further confusion.

Instead, he ordered the heavy cavalry to hold the center and advance slowly, while the light cavalry swept in from both flanks.

These adjustments were made without halting the advance. Samwell's strategy remained the same: use the speed of the cavalry to attack the enemy before they could regroup.

Within minutes, the Reach cavalry's right flank reached the enemy line.

The commander of the right flank was Ser Garth Hightower, second son of the Lord of Oldtown, known as "GreyS." Calm and steady, he held back, despite seeing the enemy's disorder, and instead raised his bow, shouting:

"Archers! Skirmish and harass!"

Leading his troops, Ser Garth directed the cavalry to veer off from the King's Landing main force and circle around to their right side, passing through the fields alongside the Kingsroad.

As they galloped, arrows rained down in a deadly barrage. Darkening the sky, the arrows cast a shadow over the King's Landing army.

The impact was devastating.

These new recruits had little in the way of equipment; many lacked even basic armor, and their ranks were scattered. Unprepared for a classic cavalry archery attack, they suffered heavy casualties.

The relentless hail of arrows pierced through the crowded infantry ranks, giving them no place to hide.

The sickening sound of arrows striking flesh became a relentless rhythm, breaking what little resolve the new soldiers had.

Wave after wave of soldiers fell, leaving empty patches of bloody ground where life had been snuffed out in moments.

On the Reach's left flank, Ser Armand Peake led a similar skirmish attack, testing the King's Landing army's defenses.

He quickly confirmed that, as Samwell had anticipated, the army was largely composed of untrained recruits with poor combat skills.

Satisfied, Ser Armand drew his longsword, raised it high, and shouted, "Charge! Forward!"

He spurred his horse forward, letting it race to the front of the charge.

The thunderous war cries rose, mingling with the pounding of hooves.

Following his lead, the Reach cavalry drew their blades, and the fluttering banners plunged into the ranks of the King's Landing forces as more cavalry surged forward.

The King's Landing left flank, already disorganized, crumbled under the assault. Even the light cavalry's charge proved overwhelming.

With each impact, more soldiers were trampled, and the sweep of curved swords left blood spraying, severed limbs flying, and heads rolling.

Screams of agony filled the air, but they were swallowed up by the chaos of the battlefield.

By then, Samwell and the heavy cavalry had reached the main formation.

Seeing the King's Landing army's flanks in disarray, Samwell didn't hesitate. He led his troops in a frontal charge, straight into the heart of the enemy's line.

The armored cavalry crashed forward like steel juggernauts, tearing through the King's Landing defenses and crushing anything in their path.

In mere moments, the entire King's Landing army was in complete disarray.

From the first encounter to the point when soldiers abandoned their formations and began fleeing en masse, barely half an hour had passed.

After just two charges, the King's Landing army was routed.

Once panic set in, it sparked a chain reaction, an unstoppable avalanche of fear and flight.

In fact, the Reach cavalry had inflicted only a few thousand casualties. For an army of over fifty thousand, this was not a crippling blow. Had the troops held their ground and fought back, they might have forced the cavalry to withdraw.

But that was simply impossible.

These newly conscripted soldiers lacked both the courage and the discipline to resist. They didn't realize that fleeing would only worsen their fate.

After breaking through the front lines, the Reach cavalry pursued the scattering soldiers like shepherds driving a panicked flock of sheep.

The fleeing soldiers crashed into the rear lines, spreading disorder and triggering a mass rout. Men scattered like headless flies, leaving trails of bodies, broken weapons, and spilled blood.

The entire Kingsroad was soon awash in red.

Samwell slowed his horse and ordered the cavalry to divide into squads of a hundred, dispersing to pursue and eliminate the remnants. The goal was clear: to completely destroy this King's Landing force within Stormlands territory.

He set up camp nearby.

Throughout the day, surrendering soldiers were herded into the camp.

By sunset, over twenty thousand had surrendered, along with nearly a hundred knights from King's Landing houses, including members of House Rykker, Stokeworth, Hayford, and Staunton. The numbers continued to grow.

It was clear that the King's Landing army was surrendering in droves.

After two days, Lord Randyll Tarly arrived with the main force of the Reach's northern army. By then, the prisoner count had grown to over thirty thousand.

"It's a pity we couldn't capture Kevan Lannister," Samwell remarked with a hint of regret.

Kevan was Tywin's brother and a prominent figure in House Lannister. Though not widely known, he was highly competent. If they had captured him, Tywin would have surely offered a generous ransom.

But Lord Randyll didn't seem concerned. "We've captured plenty of other nobles. Send word to King's Landing; we can still fetch a good price for them."

Since Samwell had commanded the victory, the prisoners technically belonged to him, and he would take the lion's share of any ransom.

"Agreed. But what about the ordinary soldiers? Especially those new recruits from King's Landing. The Lannisters likely won't pay a single copper for them."

"Then release them," Lord Randyll replied. "But first, formally inform House Lannister that they've refused to pay ransom for these soldiers. Then share that news with the prisoners, and let them go."

Samwell nodded thoughtfully. "So you want the people of King's Landing to resent House Lannister?"

"Yes." Lord Randyll didn't hide his intentions. "The Lannisters already have a poor reputation in King's Landing. Tywin sacked the city and let his men loot and kill. The people haven't forgotten."

"Understood. I'll handle it." Samwell smiled.

He realized this was an effective way to fuel resentment toward House Lannister. He recalled that, in the original history, King's Landing had erupted in riots, and nobles in the Red Keep had barely escaped being torn apart by angry mobs.

Perhaps, this time, the people of King's Landing would not disappoint him.

(End of Chapter)