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

The banquet did not cool down because Lothar and the king left the table. Instead, the atmosphere became more intense because of the absence of two characters with too strong aura of sacredness, as well as the priests.

Praise be to Santa Rosa, who gives us good food and wine.

Derem made a sign of the cross on his chest and whispered a prayer before picking up a roast chicken on the tray and gnawing on it.

He was wearing a half-new chainmail shirt, and a black smock that he bought at the market yesterday at noon. He only had the gold camel emblem on his chest that he designed.

The standard of this banquet was actually not high. There were not only knights present, but also many attendants enshrined by Lothar. These mud-legged people had obviously never seen the market, and they made a lot of jokes.

But no one would say anything. These aristocratic gentlemen who used to be high and mighty in the past seemed extremely approachable today.

It's just that Derem still wasn't quite used to this kind of situation. He looked around, subconsciously trying to find Ulm's figure in the crowd. Without acquaintances around him, he always felt insecure.

This was completely different from the feeling he had when herding cattle and sheep in the desert. In comparison, he would rather sit and drink and chat with those veteran gangsters with rotten teeth and stinky mouths.

Young man, who are you looking for?

Behind him, a rough voice sounded.

Derem subconsciously replied: I'm looking for the Knight of Ulm.

But then he realized that the voice was speaking Kurdish.

The man who spoke to him had a rough beard, wore a large Saracen-style robe, had several scars on his face, and had particularly sharp eyes. Derem could tell at a glance that this man was definitely He's a marksman!

Are you that Abdullah?

He reacted immediately.

Yes, I have heard of your name, Derem. The Shayo tribe was once a large tribe in Kurdistan. About thirty years ago, those who remained thought that your tribe had long since died out.

Abdullah picked up the meat and wine on the table without any scruples and started to devour it.

Have you turned your back on the Holy Fire?

Abdullah grinned: I have pledged my allegiance to the Marquis. Whatever he believes, I will believe.

He patted Derem on the shoulder: Boy, don't be so hesitant. You don't have to be afraid of anything, and you don't have to care about the opinions of those Franks. It doesn't matter whether you get along well with them or not.

Derem wanted to retort, but he swallowed the words as soon as they reached his lips.

Then what's important?

Abdullah stretched out his hand and punched Derim's chest: It's important to let the adults see your talent. You can learn the Frankish language, which shows that you have a very lively mind and can be awarded a knight—— No matter how you got here, this is your ability, don’t feel inferior to others, hold your head high, show your talent, let adults see it, let those young and beautiful noble ladies see it!

Anyway, if you have anything in the future, you can come to me.

After saying this, the rugged Kurdish cavalry commander took the wine and meat to the side to admire the Irish dancing girl.

While he was thinking, Derem suddenly heard someone shouting: My Lord Marquis, you are back!

Lothar is indeed back.

He was not so dissolute that like King Robert, he was drunk and dreaming with his ministers. He just sat with Duke Raymond in a corner that was eye-catching but not too noisy, receiving guests one after another.

Among the people waiting in line to toast Lothar, there was a nobleman wearing silk robes who stood out.

He came to Lothar and said respectfully: Honorable Marquis Lothar, Duke Raymond, and other lords, I would like to represent my masters - the Hungarians and Croatians, King Béla III of Dalmatia. Your Majesty, I extend my most respectful greetings to both of you.

Your honor, please take a seat.

Lothar smiled and nodded, and asked the attendant to bring him a chair.

The Crusader nobles looked at the envoy of the King of Hungary with some curiosity and confusion, but most of them were disapproving.

The territory of the Kingdom of Hungary now encompasses the entire Carpathian Basin, including Transylvania, Croatia, and Dalmatia.

Bela III, who wears three crowns, can be regarded as one of the most prominent monarchs in Central Europe, but his status in the eyes of the Crusaders is not very lofty.

After all, Hungary, that is, the Magyars, converted to Christianity relatively late. Previously, the nomadic armies of the Magyars had plundered the Germanic hinterland, and many people still regarded it as a barbaric and ignorant land.

Margrave Leopold of Austria, the main opponent guarding the eastern frontier of the empire, was the unruly nomadic cavalry under King Béla III.

Speaking of which, Bella III is also quite a legendary figure.

His experience is similar to that of Conrad of Monferrato. Both were regarded as important heirs by the emperor of the Eastern Empire and married off their daughters. However, because of their status as foreigners, they were unable to take the throne of the emperor and left the empire lonely. But in the end They all got the title of king again.

The difference is that in history, after Conrad was elected king, he was assassinated before he was officially crowned.

Duke Raymond's tone was a bit sinister: At this special moment, the messenger suddenly arrived. Is it possible that your Majesty the King finally plans to contribute to the Crusade cause?

There are more sinister words that have not been said. In Raymond's view, it has only been less than two hundred years since St. Stephen converted to Christianity and was crowned king. That land was already filled with all kinds of heresies. .

Not only that, although the Kingdom of Hungary has converted to the Catholic Church on the surface, there are still a large number of Hungarian nobles who believe in the Orthodox Church privately, and regard the Patriarch of Constantinople or the Emperor as their religious leader, completely different from the Frankish Crusaders like them. Just not the same person.

Within the Frankish Crusaders, there were some Gauls who looked down on the Germans. The Germans were hostile to the Germans because the Gauls looked down on them. Neither of them looked down upon the Apennines, let alone the Magyars.

The envoy glanced at Raymond III with a sneer: Indeed, my Majesty has this intention.

Lothar knew in his heart that he would not act sooner or later. This envoy came here to pick peaches for the king.

Saladin suffered a disastrous defeat and lost 30,000 troops, of whom a quarter were elites. For any big country in Europe today, it would definitely be considered a loss of strength and heartache.

In the past, the Roman Empire, which regarded the entire Mediterranean as its inland sea, was so angry that Varus, the first emperor of the empire, Augustus, Octavian, banged his head against the wall every day because he lost 20,000 legion infantry in the Teutonic Forest. Varus gave me back his legions.

So, whoever sees it, Saladin, the former hero, is like a dying old lion. If he doesn't step on him now, how long will it take?

However, King Bela III received the news too quickly. It only took a few days after the Battle of Galilee ended?

Lothar thought to himself that there was a high probability that the envoy was already on a pilgrimage in the Holy Land, and he just happened to encounter this incident, so he planned to seek benefits for his master. Of course, this did not exclude the possibility that he had become loyal to the king through magical means. Contacted.

Lothar smiled and said: Please sit down, distinguished guest. I am happy to hear your intention. At the same time, please extend my sincere greetings to the Hungarian kings who have selflessly assisted the Crusaders.

This does not include Bella III.

The messenger's expression remained normal, as if he had not heard the hidden sarcasm in Lothar's tone at all, and still said respectfully: My Lord decided long ago to receive the Holy Cross from His Majesty the Pope and participate in the new round of the Crusade. But the chaotic situation in the Balkans, the conflict between the Bulgarians and the Greeks, and the conflict between our country and the Serbs really worried our Lord and he did not dare to leave easily.

Seeing that Lothar didn't reply, he raised his eyes, glanced at his expression, and asked tentatively: As the general of the Limassol Military District in Cyprus, you must have heard of this, right?

Your honor is not a Magyar, isn't it?

“I was born in a small city-state in Croatia.”

Lothar smiled and thought that this man's speaking style was completely different from that of the Hungarian chiefs and chiefs. Instead, it had a touch of the Apennine trading city-state merchants (the Kingdom of Dalmatia refers to Adriatic). It is not surprising that the alliance of several trading city-states on the east coast of the sea, across the sea from the Apennine Peninsula, and a branch of the Latins, is Croatian.

If you have something to say, please say it directly.

Can you please postpone the march of the Crusade? You know, the Saracens still have a large army in Egypt. Saladin's brother Savoddin is also an outstanding general. The Marquis only has Even if this exhausted army is lucky enough to defeat him, how many fortresses and fortresses can it capture after losing troops and generals? At that time, the offensive and defensive positions will change, how will you handle yourself?

Sure enough, I came to pick peaches.

Lothar sneered in his heart. The benefits brought by recovering the Alexandria diocese were too great. Even if we did not mention the huge amount of money and soldiers represented by the rich Egypt itself, just talking about the prestige and honor brought by recovering Egypt was enough to make the country proud. Every monarch's heart beats.

Just like what Saladin said when he recaptured Jerusalem in the movie Kingdom of Heaven - what does Jerusalem represent?

Worthless!

But it is of great value!

Moreover, Egypt is much more affordable than Jerusalem!

Previously, the kings of the European continent were not interested in the Eastern Crusade. They only shouted but did not set off. Most of the reason was because the last Crusade returned in vain. Each monarch paid a lot for the Eastern Crusade, but hardly any legitimate efforts were made. To gain, this is why the kings are unwilling to contribute.

But now, after Lothar led the Crusaders to win the Battle of Galilee, it seems to be the best opportunity to regain Egypt after it fell into the hands of the pagans for hundreds of years.

How could these European monarchs be willing to give up this heavy honor to themselves, who were previously penniless?

They should be the ones that Baldwin IV had just warned him about, and they were the ones most likely to seize the fruits of his victory.

Lothar said calmly: Keep talking.

The messenger coughed slightly: My Majesty's advice is to ask the Marquis to be calm. He has contacted the kings and will soon set a date for the expedition. By then, the kings will arrive, and a hundred thousand knights will sweep across Egypt and regain it steadily. Here, wouldn’t it be logical to even go north again to take back the Principality of Antioch and the County of Edessa, which fell to the hands of the infidels?”

Lothar sneered in his heart, but there was no trace of it on his face: May I ask how many troops your lord has assembled? When can they set off? Will they take a boat from Croatia or go overland via the Eastern Empire? Have you communicated with other European monarchs or Is it an agreed time? Should we crusaders disband on the spot and wait for your lord to arrive before regrouping, or should we waste money and food here? If it's the latter, please come up with your money and food first.

The messenger was speechless.

The news was only passed back through the spell casters in the Kingdom of Hungary. How could they respond so quickly?

His face turned red, but he still hesitated: No, 30,000 elite Hungarian cavalry are ready. They will set off immediately as soon as they negotiate the price of renting the transport ship with the Venetians!

Lothar sneered. He looked around and looked at the joking faces: Honorable guest, do you dare to swear on the True Cross that everything you said is the truth and there is no lie?

Of course the messenger didn't dare. There were big drops of sweat on his forehead and he didn't dare to speak.

In response, Lothar just sneered and left.

Marquis Lothar, aren't you afraid that losing this battle will ruin Christendom's best hope of regaining the Diocese of Alexandria for hundreds of years?

The messenger boldly shouted: Can you really afford the price of failure? Your achievements are all due to the gift of God. Aren't you afraid that God will withdraw His favor from you because of your foolishness? A gift?”

Lothar suddenly turned around. He was not angry, but his current status no longer relied on roaring or putting on a ferocious and angry face to show his majesty.

Watch your words, messenger. The 'hope' in your mouth was gained through bloody battles between me and countless Crusaders. When we were fighting for our lives against the pagan warriors in the yellow sand, ; When Saladin's minions invaded Jerusalem again and again, and his falcons and dragons were hovering in the sky; when the unarmed pilgrims were sold into slavery by the pagans and thrown into the dark mines to work when.

Where are you and your king?

Lothar's voice was sonorous and powerful, and he did not show any mercy to this man: And now, when we have defeated Saladin, we are about to march towards victory and complete the greatest mission of the Crusades after the first Eastern Expedition to recapture Jerusalem. At the moment of success, you and your king jumped out?

The messenger's eyes widened in shock at the power of the young marquis in front of him: You are insulting a noble king who wears the crown of St. Stephen!

If he is dissatisfied, he will come to the Holy Land to find me!

Lothar sneered: I will slap my iron gloves on his face in front of him. I really want to see with my own eyes whether the king with longer hands than the Greeks still has his ancestors in his bones. of bravery.”

As he finished speaking, countless Crusader nobles and knights rushed forward, shouting with passion and anger.

Your Majesty the Marquis is right, if your king is dissatisfied, let him come over!

Watch your words. Is a lackey of the Magyars qualified to bark at the great guardian of the holy spear? Didn't your master learn any etiquette from the bed of a Greek woman?

I think it's just the opposite. Didn't his master learn to tinker with those conspiracies in the bed of a Greek woman?

The crowd was furious, but the envoy still insisted on saying: You don't want to accept His Majesty's kindness. It doesn't matter. As a devout Christian, I still want to bless you. You can successfully retake Egypt in this battle, although I think there is little hope. .”

Hit that son of a bitch!

Suddenly someone shouted.

With this shout, it was out of control.

As if they had received a signal, the knights who were gearing up swarmed forward, punching and kicking. Some people couldn't squeeze in at all, so they gathered around outside and tried their best to put their feet in and kick them. They didn't know who they kicked. There were bursts of angry roars.

Lothar turned back in a hurry and was careful not to kill someone directly and cause a diplomatic scandal. Otherwise, the envoy's life would definitely be in danger.