Three weeks later there was not much honor and glory to be celebrated though. Neo, being lovesick and missing Josy, did nothing but write letters to her, and lie on his bed in his tent, waiting for a reply.
His most recent letter would change everything though, as he passed it to his orderly officer to hand it over personally to Josy.
When the orderly arrived in Opal, he couldn't ignore all the rumors about Josy and her new lover, Hippolyte. Both were seen at every party and were the talk of the town, which Josy eagerly used to network with men in strategic positions.
They did not hide that they lived together and when Neo's orderly visited them to hand over the letter, he could not but notice all the letters Neo had sent, lying unopened at a table for everyone to see.
In joyful anticipation of finally receiving news, Neo attended cavalry maneuvers. His joy, however, was short-lived.
His orderly had returned from Opal and told him the heartbreaking news. At first, Neo didn't want to believe him, but the officer had never lied to him before and was known for not shying away from delivering bad news.
With a heart and mind full of anger, Neo spurred his horse and left the orderly behind.
Back at the camp, Neo had quickly discovered that Josy's lover was the aide-de-camp of General Leclerc, one of Traum's men, and that for some obscure reason he wasn't on the campaign trail. But that would change now.
So he went to see Traum: "I want you to send General Leclerc back to Opal and order him to stay there. I have my reasons for this. And his aide-de-camp will now work for me in that capacity. See to it. That's all. We leave tomorrow. Pass the word. Make sure the troops are ready."