In the Middle Ages, people drew cards to be promoted to nobility.

Lothar opened the door and said, Jeanna, get ready, we are going to send troops.

Jeanne, who had just come back from outside and was feeling hot, said succinctly: Who are you beating?

Isaac Komnenos.

Tsk, I seem to have heard of this name - in the history of our world, Richard the Lion-Hearted only brought a thousand elites and trampled him under his feet as the 'Emperor of the Island of Cyprus'?

This title is obviously ironic.

As Jeanne spoke, she took a big gulp of the ice-cold wine.

It is said that this His Majesty the Emperor, after occupying the island of Cyprus, ransacked the island and acted willfully.

Externally, relying on its geographical advantages, it organized a fleet to plunder surrounding merchant ships without restraint.

During the Third Crusade, Richard the Lionheart's sister Joan and his fiancée Berengaria of Navarre were also kidnapped.

This has also become a typical story of a cruel and unkind king who used his strength to challenge the courageous and wise virtuous king and was defeated.

Of course, these things have not happened yet, and there is a high probability that they will not happen.

It was indeed the emperor of the island of Cyprus. He lost the battle in Cilicia, and then ran to the island of Cyprus. With a forged official document and the identity of the Komnenos royal family, he occupied the entire island in one fell swoop and forced the locals to The Archbishop crowned himself Emperor of the Empire.

Jeanne sighed: This experience sounds quite legendary.

Oh, rather than saying that he 'experienced legends', it is better to say that although the empire is glamorous on the surface, it is actually in decay. The peasant-soldier and military district systems established by Emperor Heraclius have ceased to exist in name only due to land annexation. The leaders of those local military districts, They are not much different from the feudal lords on the European continent.

Lothar's tone was mocking, but there was a bit of regret in her expression.

Heraclius's peasant-soldier system was very similar to the peasant-soldier system implemented by Lothar in the territory. They both allocated real estate to the yeoman farmers in exchange for their military service and taxes.

Land annexation is undoubtedly a devastating blow to this system.

When the vast majority of yeoman farmers, who could originally be proud of their weapons and equipment, lost their land and became serfs.

When the Eastern Empire fights again, it will have to rely on mercenaries and those military leaders who do not obey orders.

Jeanne said something fair: Actually, it's okay now. After Constantinople was sacked by the Crusaders, the Eastern Empire truly became a 'clay-footed giant'.

Indeed, the Eastern Empire can still be saved at this time, it depends on Queen Lagaia's skills.

Lothar's voice paused slightly, and he pinched his eyebrows in distress: So, my six-star template simulation battle requires me to defeat the Ottomans at their peak in 1453, so that the 'Phoenix Nirvana, reborn from the ashes', is simply a piece of cake. An impossible task. You know, at that time, the total number of people in Constantinople was less than 50,000.

Whenever he thought of this kind of desperate mission, Lothar felt that even if he fully awakened the dragon bloodline and could manifest the body of a giant dragon, he still would not be able to change his destiny.

Maybe you can think differently.

Jeanne, who had fought side by side with Lothar, knew what simulated battles were like.

She raised her chin and gave a whimsical suggestion: For example, take the remaining wealth of Constantinople and soldiers loyal to you and travel thousands of miles to Ireland.

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Lothar wanted to make a joke.

But then he remembered that the requirement of the simulated battle was for him to defeat Osman, but it did not say when.

Turning thousands of miles away sounds outrageous, but it doesn't seem impossible - Ireland is too far away, so he can turn around to Naples and sell the crown on his head to the kings of Europe.

When the time comes, how can three thousand iron armors be swallowed up?

The worst he can do is live with the Ottomans. Anyway, he has dragon blood and has a long lifespan.

It is not too late to wait until the Ottomans are reduced to the sick men of West Asia before taking action.

Jeanne couldn't help laughing and said: My lord, I am joking, you can't be serious, right? By then, where will your fleet be relocated? You might as well defend the city.

Lothar said seriously: If we don't have a boat, we'll rob the pagans. As long as I'm strong enough, it's possible to reverse the situation.

Jeanne was slightly startled, then said seriously: Sir, are you serious?

Lothar smiled and said: It's just talk on paper. If you are not in the current situation, how can you know where the way out is? Let's arrange the dispatch of troops.

Jeanne coughed slightly and brought the rambling topic back on track: Sir, how many people do you think we should send to the island of Cyprus?

Bring 800 peasant soldiers including the Black Eagles (original 400 peasants), the Earl's Guard (Varangian Guards), the Eagles (retained veterans), ten woodland shooters, and Enter twenty hussars.

Lothar paused slightly and continued: If we gather a thousand people, Anna will give us a lot of reward, so we can't be too stingy.

Jeanna frowned and said: The combat effectiveness of the Black Eagle Flag Team is not bad, but with the 400 peasant soldiers recruited later, the combat effectiveness is a bit worrying.

These four hundred peasants and soldiers are not included in this military expansion.

After Lothar captured Alandre and Ella Port, the newly formed army was based on the 400 peasant soldiers originally recruited by Hebron. The training time was much better than that of the new recruits who couldn't even line up. .

Lothar waved his hand and said: It doesn't matter, Isaac Komnenos is not a powerful person. This trip is more about military training. If you don't go to the battlefield, how can you hone elite soldiers?

He added:

Although the island of Cyprus has gathered some opponents of Queen Lagaia, Isaac has only been in control of Cyprus for a short period of time. Most of the others are wall-riders, or they are frightened by Isaac's terror and have to become thieves potential opposition.

As long as the naval battle is successfully won, the subsequent battles will be easy to come by.

Jeanne nodded: What you said makes sense, I'll go and get ready.

Watch Jeanne leave.

The maid hurriedly approached again: Sir, the knights of the order who visited you yesterday are here again.

Teutonic Knights?

Lothar was slightly startled, nodded and said, Let them come in.

Hebland's face was obviously haggard. These knights had probably stayed up all night last night. When they saw Lothar, they all knelt down on one knee and lowered their proud heads.

Your Majesty, we are willing to recommend you as the second grand master and patron of the Teutonic Knights. We just want to get a place to stay from you.

Lothar was obviously surprised by this result.

In his view, although the Teutonic Knights were in a difficult situation, they were far from unsustainable.

And according to the historical trajectory, it won't be long before the Teutonic Knights will usher in opportunities for development and receive the participation and donations of many German nobles.

But then he realized that the Third Eastern Expedition was delayed, Emperor Henry was obviously not as good as the Red Beard in history, and Emperor Frederick paid more attention to the Crusades.

Whether this opportunity will come is still unknown.

At this moment when the prospects are bleak, it is normal for the Teutonic Knights to choose to surrender to themselves, the most powerful German lord in the Holy Land.

Moreover, these Teutonic knights may have saved a share. Since they can elect themselves to be the leader of the group, they can naturally depose them.

It's a pity that in Lothar's hands, it is definitely impossible for the Teutonic Knights to want to be a country within a country.

Lothar had accumulated ten quotas for the Knights of the Order, and he planned to use them all on people from the Teutonic Knights.

And if you think about it carefully, the Teutonic Knights may not necessarily occupy the magpie's nest and backfire on their own ambitions. Ambition changes with status.

His attitude softened as a result.

Knight of Heberland, I am honored to be unanimously recommended by you. As the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, I am happy to donate a fief to the Knights.

His tone paused slightly.

Seeing that all the Teutonic knights showed expectant looks, he continued: Now, you have two choices before you. One is to follow me to Cyprus.

Lothar told Anna about his agreement, and then continued: Or I will give you Firone as the residence of the Knights.

Hebland was silent for a moment and then said: Grand Commander, this is a matter for you to make a decision, not for us.

Lothar was a little surprised by Heberlander's knowledge, but he still said frankly: Don't worry, this is not a test. We are all Germans with an electoral tradition. The principle of the minority obeying the majority also works here.

The knights felt relieved and spoke freely.

In the end, it was as expected.

The knights unanimously chose to go to Cyprus.

A port town in Cyprus, plus three attached castles, compared with the desert town of Firone. No, there is no comparison at all.

In addition, I will organize a Grand Council of Knights. The council will be composed of ten knights among you and decide on matters of the entire Knights Order.

Lothar smiled as if she had no attachment to the authority of the grand leader.

Heberlund and other Teutonic Knights all showed expressions of surprise after hearing this.

This is no different from what they had before.

They originally thought they would live under someone else's roof, but they were treated like this, which really surprised them.

Lothar made a clanging sound and put the sword edge on Hiberland's shoulder.

Now, swear your allegiance to me, knight.