midnight
Lord Malvei covertly sent one of his men to the Valley of Espinosa to tell the captain that the emperor had come with his daughter and with the barons of Sicily . Tirant kept it secret until the following day so that no one would leave with the excuse of going to see the emperor or their relatives . He told only Diafebus in great secrecy . When it was midnight , or very near it , everyone mounted their horses . He had the foot soldiers go first , with Diafebus as their captain , and with 400 lancers , their horses completely decorated . Tirant earnestly charged Diafebus to stay behind some rocks about a league from the enemy camp , and for him and his men not to show themselves even if they saw that the battle was lost . Even if he saw that they were killing him , they were not to come out to help .