Although they did not go all the way north, many people felt a noticeable chill when they left Romagna.

The snow was still very strong, but unlike at Montina, for a few days after entering the Balkans, the whole army thought as if the heavens and the earth were frozen.

The mountains became more numerous, and the gradually unfamiliar environment also made many soldiers realize that they had left home.

The Balkans were full of mountains, and to the surprise of even the Agri, who came from the mountains of southern Italy, felt as if they would never be able to walk out of this stretch of mountains, and whenever they climbed over a mountain beam, they saw higher peaks and wider and deeper canyons behind.

The mountain dwellers here also surprised the Italians, who often found themselves confronted by silent groups of locals, whose swarthy faces could only be seen with deep suspicion and a faint hostility, and it was clear that these locals were not welcoming to outsiders.

In addition to this rather strong xenophobia, these locals seem to have a rare patience and stubbornness, and they will not easily accept help from others, especially if someone shows them sympathy and pity, and it is likely that they will receive not gratitude, but anger that they think they have been humiliated.

The people here seem to be very poor, but the people of Montina are surprised to find that many of the houses here have bronze objects that are almost luxurious for ordinary Italian families, these bronze objects may be a wine jug, or a basin, and some of the homes of people who have passed by a little bit, and there may even be a bronze icon shrine that, although crudely made, but the weight of the head is absolutely astonishing.

This kind of shrine seems to be a popular thing in the local area, perhaps because it has gradually entered the territory of the Orthodox Church, and the shrines with a clear Orthodox and Eastern Roman style make Montina's army both strange and unbelievably "extravagant".

Alexander was also surprised, although he knew that the current Hungarian copper mine was the largest copper mining area in Sweden after the emergence of the Swedish Iskai copper mine, but the local copper ownership rate had reached this point, which still made Alexander feel that it was really an eye-opener.

Although he did not know until much later that the reason why the locals owned bronze so frequently was more due to the importance of the place during the early Roman Empire, when the copper mines belonged to the Roman Empire rather than to individuals.

Years of mining have gradually brought the underground mines to the fore, and precious copper and silver have been shipped to Constantinople to support the staggering consumption and expense of the largest city in the West for thousands of years, and the Romans who have been stationed in the Balkans for generations have established cities and villages here.

The Roman army thrived here, and their descendants gradually took root in the land, and one of the benefits of being a copper mining area directly owned by the Roman army and the empire was the accumulation of copper artifacts from generation to generation, which made many ordinary families more abundant than the families of some small nobles and wealthy merchants in Europe.

I heard this news after walking for a long time and having entered the mountains of the northwest Balkans, although some of these words are not true, such as the fact that many of those bronze artifacts should have been gradually lost from the influence of the empire as the Roman Empire gradually lost control of the Balkans, so that the Hungarian copper mines later became the private property of those warlord oligarchs and this army, but even so, with the Hungarian Owang copper vein as the center, Alexander was still amazed by the abundance of underground deposits that stretched out into the mountains of the Balkans.

Copper and silver, as well as rare gem mines, this is what Alexander knew was a fascinating place in Hungary.

In fact, just think of the abundance of jewels that Bohemians always wore on their bodies, even though most of them were not worth much.

Far away and unfamiliar, and with locals who spoke many unfamiliar languages, Montina's army entered a place they had never been before.

At the beginning of January 1499, Alexander, who had set out from Montina, led his army across the Po River and passed through Venice, where passage permits were granted.

Looking at the city of Venice from afar, Alexander was somewhat melancholy.

In his previous life, he had planned to go to Venice to visit the world-famous water city, but the result was that he plunged into the water, and when he came out again, he was already reincarnated as a human being, jumping for hundreds of years, and in this life he still passed by Venice, which made Alexander a little melancholy.

As a sign of agreement with Alexander, the Venetians sent representatives to wait on the road through which Montina's army had to pass, and in addition to expressing their blessings to the Count for this long journey, the envoy also quietly completed the formalities of paying a large sum of money by presenting a carriage to him.

The whole process was egalitarian, friendly and frank, and no one would have thought that just two years ago there had been a war between the two sides in Romagna, and even less that not long ago, Venice had sent someone to try to kidnap one of Alexander's opponents.

From Venice through the Po River Delta to the east, after crossing the rather narrow Adriatic Primoral Plain, it enters the Balkans.

According to Alexander's original plan, his destination was undoubtedly Owan, Hungary's famous copper mine, but rumors about Sophia completely shattered his plans.

Especially when he heard that the Ottoman Sultan had actually gone on a personal expedition this time, Alexander felt that even if he could not bring Sophia back smoothly, he should find a way to find out her whereabouts, and then send someone to send her a letter to tell her to leave the right and wrong place of Bucharest as soon as possible.

As for the desire to prevent or even defeat the Sultan, Alexander did not think of this.

Nearly 100,000 Ottoman troops, a number that gave Alexander a headache just thinking about it.

If he had encountered such an Ottoman army a few hundred years later, perhaps Alexander would have had some confidence and courage, after all, the heyday of the Ottomans ended at the Siege of Vienna a century and a half later.

After the Great Siege of the late 17th century, the Ottoman Empire finally exhausted all the wealth and resources accumulated by its ancestors for centuries, and then the entire Ottoman Empire rapidly declined until it finally became a meal in the eyes of Europeans.

But now it is 1499, when the Ottoman crescent moon has just risen over the European continent, and the prestige of the Ten Wise Monarchs has not yet been praised by the world, and the most terrifying of the Ten Wise Monarchs and the most feared by Europeans, Suleiman the Magnificent, is now just a neat little kid.

Suleiman the Magnificent's father was Selim, the favorite son of Basa Date II.

The prince, who is said to have the same prowess as his grandfather, Mehammed II, is now on a campaign in the East, and the future sultan, who will be known as the conqueror, will not have the opportunity to make an expedition to Europe, but what he has done is enough to change the hearts of Europeans.

In the face of such a large family of enemies possessed by the god of war, Alexander did not have the slightest intention of confrontation, the only thing he wanted to do was to find a way to find Sophia, and then see if he could take advantage of the Hungarian copper mines, and then withdraw if the situation was not good.

This was Alexander's whole idea, simple and practical, and as for what he had said to the Venetians to ward off the infidels, he did not believe it, but he also knew that the Venetians did not believe it either.

The Venetians were willing to bear such a large military expenditure for him only because of the equally large sugar tax he had promised.

The Venetians apparently inquired about his Cretan affairs as well, and the fact that he had been gathering workers everywhere and transporting them to Crete at all costs made the Venetians realize that Alexander was indeed a necessity for the Cretan plantations.

That being the case, spending a sum of money to get a lucrative agreement in the future is still willing to do this deal.

As for fighting the Ottomans, the Venetians did not think that Alexander's army, of less than 4,000 men, could play a role in the upcoming war.

According to the information received by the Venetians, Baseyet's army of nearly 100,000 men had crossed the Neretva River and advanced along the great hilly terrain of the southern foothills of the Balkan Mountains, and that they would bypass Belgrade and then turn northeast towards Bucharest.

The news unnerved the Venetians, as Mehmed II, the conqueror of Constantinople nearly half a century earlier, was unexpectedly killed in Belgrade, and the Sultan's 150,000-strong army was finally forced to withdraw from the city after a protracted siege and heavy costs.

This was a rare defeat in the life of Mehmed II, because of this crushing defeat, the expansion of the Ottomans in the Balkans had to be stopped, and Belgrade became a barrier for Hungary against the Ottoman invasion.

But in recent years, as Wallachia and Moravia had to submit to the Sultan, the situation in the Balkans had become worse and worse, especially when they heard that the Sultan's emissaries had received from the Grand Duke of Wallachia with the tacit approval of Belgrade.

Once the Ottomans were no longer a threat from behind, they could attack Bucharest without any fears, and if they had established a stable supply line, perhaps the kind of urban artillery that had captured Constantinople in the first place could be transported to Bucharest.

At that time, the gates to Hungary and Bohemia, and even to Vienna and Venice would be opened to the Ottomans.

This thought frightened the Venetians, so much so that before Alexander's departure, the Venetian envoy solemnly sent a letter to Alexander, asking him to find a way to persuade the nobles and knights he could meet along the way in the name of Venice that they would join the war against the infidels.

As for the remuneration, it is "negotiable".

Alexander felt that he could not refuse this favor, and he readily agreed, and at the same time comforted the messenger that everything was on him.

It is clear that Alexander did not feel any guilt at all about using Venetian money for his own errands.

The rolling hills were one after the other, and many soldiers began to complain, and even the Agri were surprised by the complexity of the mountainous terrain.

Because of the fear that the terrain would be complicated and not be able to get the news in time, the number of scouts sent out has increased by 2 groups, and it can be said that the only people in the entire team who can still hear laughter are those Bohemian cavalry.

For the Bohemian cavalry, it was not their territory, but at least it was closer to home, especially when they heard the voices of the Montinas complain, and the Bohemians felt more excited than they had drunk.

In addition to the soldiers, Gompati's appearance along the way was not very good.

There was a lot of interest and hope for this trip, and he had heard about the Belgrade defense that had been praised by the Europeans for a long time.

Earlier, Gompati had only admired the great warriors and their stories, but during the time he stayed at Montina, he had time to get to know some of the details of the battle.

So when he heard that Alexander wanted him to go with him to Hungary, Gompati was extremely excited.

It's just that along the way, Gompati gradually lost patience.

"Such a road is not at all suitable for transporting artillery," Gompati said, looking at the pavement that could hardly be called a road, "but if you want to defend against the Ottomans, you can't do without powerful artillery, and it is said that the Ottoman army is much more numerous than the king's army." ”

Alexander nodded silently, knowing that the king Gompati was talking about was Vladislas II, the current King of Bohemia and Hungary, the husband of the Bohemian Queen who was close to Nashan.

Speaking of Nashan, Alexander's face also fell.

Ullius eventually reported to him about Lady George Anne and Nathan, much to Alexander's anger at first.

He wanted to write a letter to his merry mother, asking her not to hit his father-in-law even if she was looking for a lover, but then he could only write a letter to his sister.

Thinking about it, Alexander really had no other way to deal with it than to dissuade their mother, who was too ridiculous.

"It is impossible to destroy the Ottomans in large numbers without artillery," said Gompati, worried about the bitter battle that might ensue, "unless we have forces equal to the enemy, it is said that a king can muster a maximum of 50,000 men against almost twice as many enemies, and I cannot believe how we can win." ”

"Don't forget that the Battle of Belgrade was also won, when Muhammad had an army of 150,000 men."

Alexander smiled, he was not worried, whether it was Bucharest or Belgrade, these places could not impress him.

His purpose was only two, Sofia and the Great Copper Mine of Hungary.

"But it was different, at that time, in addition to the setbacks suffered by Muhammad under Belgrade, more importantly, there was a crisis in his rear, when the Sultan ruled the places he occupied was unstable, and many of the places he conquered were rioting, but now it is different, Moravia is said to have submitted to him, so that at least there is no threat behind him, if he can pass through Begelled, then Bucharest will really be very dangerous."

Listening to Gompati's analysis, Alexander also nodded silently, he knew that what Gompati said was still very reasonable.

Muhammad's defeat at Belgrade may not be repeated in Bucharest today, even if this time the Sultan of Basaiyet brought fewer troops than Muhammad at the beginning, but as Gompati said, the situation in the Balkans is not the same as it was then.

Alexander thought to himself, he hoped that this trip would go smoothly, after all, if it weren't for Sophia, he wouldn't have thought of taking this path at all.

According to his plan, after crossing the Po River, he was supposed to lead his army north into the Grand Duchy of Vienna, then cross the Danube and then turn due east and advance directly to the Owan copper mines in Hungary.

But now he had arrived in the Balkans with his army, and if he remembered correctly, if he continued his journey, he would have entered the territory of the Duchy of Caniola.

Alexander was in a state of mind, and he knew that he had to find Sophia and save her from that chaotic and dangerous situation, or as he had heard, perhaps the Balkan natives really regarded her as a symbol of Joan of Arc, but when he thought about the end of Joan of Arc, Alexander felt that it was really not a good analogy.

There was a whistle from the front, and Busako, who was following him, immediately urged his horse forward, knowing that it was the return of the scout he had sent out earlier.

The scouts were bohemians, perhaps because they were on their way home, and they were unusually excited.

"There's a traveling party ahead of us," shouted the scout excitedly, a greedy look in his eyes that made Alexander wonder if he would say next, "Shall we do it?" ”

"Who is it?" Seeing that the bohemians all around him seemed to be really ready to move, he had to ask, thinking that if it was a little more later, maybe they would really pounce on the fat sheep.

"It's like a team of nobles," the scout licked his tongue as if he were a little greedy, but they didn't have many guards. ”

"Well, go and say hello to their leader, and ask what's going on nearby, and it would be nice if they could provide us with a guide." Alexander said, but looking at the look on the scout's face, he thought about it and shook his head, "Forget it, you lead the way." ”

Busako immediately blew a whistle, which was the signal of the huntsmen's command in the middle of the march, and with the sharp whistle, the huntsmen around them quickly approached Alexander's vicinity.

"Remember that you are the Montina army, the glorious hunters," Alexander shouted, before he said to the scouts, "Take me to see the men." ”

The scout whistled, and Alexander led the hunters to the top of a raised hill in front of him.

Upon reaching the slope, Alexander immediately saw the scout's team, but the other party had apparently spotted the Montina as well, and now the team was gathering in a panic, some of the vehicles were being pushed forward as obstacles, and the men and women in the group seemed to be hurrying to prepare for battle.

"Behold, there are deep traces of those carriages, and the boxes on them," the scout muttered, licking his lips, and after glancing at Alexander, he said the words anyway, "Master, shall we do a vote?" ”