The long-awaited Portuguese finally arrived, led by Prince Fernando, another brother of Leonor, and thus another brother-in-law of Laszlo.
The naval commander leading the Portuguese fleet in this Crusade was even more significant; though Laszlo had not met him, he had long heard of him.
This naval commander was Prince Henrique, Queen Leonor's youngest uncle, the founder of Portugal's navigation school, and the explorer of Africa.
He was a great pioneer of the Age of Discovery and also a pioneer of the black slave trade in world history, the first navigation expert to discover the immense commercial value of this 'commodity'.
Although Henrique was a staunch Atlanticist, if an eastern sea route could be opened, it would certainly be much better than aimlessly exploring the dangerous Atlantic.
With the main Crusade forces assembled, Laszlo pointed his sword eastward, and the army marched towards the lands occupied by the Ottomans.
In the name of God, Crusade!
In Belgrade, Marshal Adolf was meticulously planning the main army's route with his staff.
Laszlo Hunyadi pushed the door open.
"Marshal, Emperor has called me to report to you!"
Adolf was a bit surprised. He had only requested a scout unit from Laszlo, intending to get a team of Hungarian cavalry. Why had Laszlo sent his personal guards?
"You've arrived in Belgrade, where is Emperor?"
"Emperor is inspecting the city. The army's advance is too slow, and Emperor said he couldn't wait."
Adolf was somewhat exasperated. Indeed, if Emperor wasn't such a free-thinking and vibrant person, why would he be appointed commander of the Imperial Army?
Putting aside the jumbled thoughts in his mind, he sobered his expression and said to Laszlo Hunyadi, "Since Emperor has sent you to assist me, please follow my orders carefully."
"Yes, Marshal!" Laszlo Hunyadi replied meticulously. He knew that if he wanted to surpass his father, Janos, he still had so much to learn, and now was a great opportunity to learn.
"Very good. I have several cartography staff here. The intelligence they've collected contains many inaccuracies in the descriptions of geographical conditions in various places, so a field investigation is needed. Since some areas are under the control of the Ottomans, reconnaissance needs to be conducted quickly and covertly. Your light cavalry should be very good at this work."
"Yes, Marshal! As long as we don't encounter the elite cavalry of the Ottomans, then the enemy will have no chance of catching us."
"Very good. I need you to dispatch twenty scout teams to assist me in scouting the path for the main army and reconnoitering enemy positions. Staff will also accompany the scouts. Go back and select one hundred agile and skilled scouts to report to the staff headquarters, understand?"
"Yes, Marshal!"
After receiving the order, Laszlo Hunyadi immediately left to select scouts.
Adolf, meanwhile, continued to plan the march routes with his staff. Not only for the main army, but also the route for the Bohemia's southward advance into Bulgaria was planned and advised by them.
When Laszlo initially authorized Adolf to establish the staff headquarters, he clearly told him what tasks the staff should be responsible for: marching and fighting, reducing losses, increasing march speed and combat efficiency; deploying troops, analyzing battlefield terrain, predicting enemy formations, and providing reasonable troop allocation plans.
Although Adolf's staff headquarters was only responsible for the Imperial Army established by Laszlo, Laszlo had actually dumped all the planning and staff work for the entire Crusade onto this marshal.
Adolf initially held some skepticism about the staff headquarters as an institution, in addition to his curiosity. He felt that too many people involved in decision-making might lead to the legion itself into chaos.
But later he discovered that there was so much more to marching and fighting. When he used to fight alongside great figures like Jan Žižka and Janos Hunyadi, he was always the one following orders. The commander's powerful ability could handle all problems almost perfectly.
But now he had become the supreme commander of an army, and it was then that he realized how much a commander had to deal with, especially with Emperor giving him many requirements he had never encountered before.
So now, Adolf had recruited many noble officers skilled in military research to assist him in his work.
Laszlo had actually wanted to establish an institution specifically for military staff long ago.
Historically, the Imperial Military Council, initiated by Maximilian, was Austria's earliest war department, but it was not permanent; it was only temporarily convened for discussions when there was a war.
Instead of that, it would be better to set up a dedicated staff department within the army, with such a department responsible for tactical and operational level planning.
Of course, an Imperial Military Council was necessary. This department would be responsible for what is called 'temple calculation', or strategic planning, but at this stage, Laszlo had not yet found the time to establish institutions like the Royal Military Council.
In the early Renaissance, Austria's government modernization process was completely nonexistent. Governance originated from the court, and everything was decided autonomously by Emperor. But if you thought this was centralization, this was autocracy, then you would be greatly mistaken.
Under this medieval feudal noble system framework, the power of the nobility was simply too great. Austria was a special case; the Habsburg Family had strong control over Austria, so the nobles were loyal supporters of Emperor.
In another country, Hungary, Bohemia, if the King dared to touch their interests, a major rebellion would break out in minutes, and a new king would be installed.
Everything still had to be taken slowly.
After inspecting Belgrade, Laszlo excitedly ran to Adolf's command post, startling Adolf again.
"Emperor, you..."
Adolf hesitated, noticing that Laszlo was very excited, with a look of surprise.
"Adolf, guess what I found in the city!"
Adolf couldn't understand Laszlo's excitement and asked helplessly, "Emperor, please just say it. There are many things in Belgrade."
"It's War Wagons! They actually have many Hussite War Wagons here!"
Laszlo, as if he had discovered a new world, described to Adolf what he saw in the Belgrade armory.
Adolf sighed softly. He could understand why Emperor was excited; young people experiencing war for the first time all went through such a process. He slowly said, "Emperor, this is very normal. General Janos, many years ago, reformed the Hungarian Border Guard, greatly increasing the proportion of firearms and introducing the Hussite War Wagon tactics. He even consulted me on such matters before."
"Huh?" Only now did Laszlo realize that he was not the first to recognize the military value of the Hussite Wars. It turned out Janos had already completed the Hussite military reform many years ago.
Adolf added, "Moreover, during the Hussite Wars, we once sent an expeditionary force to Hungary, which was later defeated by the Hungarian army. Many warriors who became prisoners remained in the Hungarian army. Now, there are still thousands of Bohemia soldiers in the Hungarian Border Guard."
Laszlo was completely petrified. Yes, he should have thought of it sooner. In the original timeline, Matthias I's so-called 'Black Army' was based on the Hungarian Border Guard, which his father, Janos, had single-handedly built. No wonder this army's combat power was so formidable. After fighting the Ottomans for decades, it would be abnormal if their combat power didn't sweep across the minor European forces.
"Hiss, so our Wagenburg and the Hungarian Border Guard's Wagenburg are the same... Does that mean we can form a super large Wagenburg?"
"Emperor, your thinking... is somewhat rigid. The main force of the Hungarian Border Guard is large-scale, swift light cavalry. War wagons are merely a means for them to march quickly. They only use the Wagenburg for defense and rearguard actions when at a disadvantage. This is fundamentally different from our standing army."
Playing too much with wheelchairs makes one like this, only needing passive defense and waiting for the enemy to charge to their deaths. This was Laszlo's truest thought.
But how could the enemy be so stupid as to charge head-on when they knew you had set up a tortoise shell formation?
They would definitely look for opportunities to break through from the flanks.
The purpose of the Wagenburg is to block key points, forcing the enemy to attack.
Laszlo was not a professional after all; he couldn't think of so many problems, but he understood Adolf's sharp criticism.
What truly made the Hungarian powerful was the Hungarian light cavalry, created in imitation of Muslim cavalry. Now, in the Serbia region, some people were already calling this unit 'husar', meaning 'free raiders', because in Serbia, the Hungarian light cavalry always swiftly plundered entire regions like Ottoman cavalry, being genuine bandits.
In the original timeline, this word entered Hungary, giving rise to the Hungarian word 'huszar', and then spread to Austria, where it became 'husar' in German. What modern people know is its English equivalent, 'hussar', meaning light cavalry or hussar.
Transylvania, as a prime horse-breeding region in Europe, had a far higher number and proportion of cavalry than other regions, which contributed to the rise of the Hungarian light cavalry.
"Alright, Adolf, I thought the problem was too simple, but next time, could you speak a bit more pleasantly?"
"My sincerest apologies, Emperor," Adolf said earnestly.
"I forgive you. But I firmly believe that the Wagenburg is not useless; as long as it's used properly..."
"That's the problem we need to study, Emperor."
Laszlo left the command post contentedly, planning to find a place to rest well. Once the main army arrived, they would split into two forces from here, marching south and east, initiating a full-scale war against the Ottomans.