As it grew late, the setting sun cast its last rays on the Tirenian Sea, and the sky over the city had by this time turned from evening splendor to a crimson like a long-aged wine, and Alexander sat on the roof of the highest point of the "lookout post" tavern, beside him, Oflei's eyes fixed on the sea in the distance.

In fact, there is nothing to be seen from here, but the port of Santa Lucia is surrounded by a natural barrier from the reefs deep into the sea on both sides, bringing peace and security to the harbor.

"It's a little late, sir." Offrey turned his head and whispered to Alexander, he could see that the Count seemed to have something on his mind, and although he had not spoken from the moment he sat here, it could be seen from the fact that the Count had been unconsciously fiddling with the hilt of the sword at his waist, and Alexander's mind did not seem to be on what was going to happen.

But what could be more important than what's in front of you?

Ofrey was a little puzzled.

Many people already know what is going to happen tonight, but of course many more people don't know, they only have received orders to wait to do it, and it is not really clear what exactly is going to do.

Only a handful of people really knew about the whole plan, including Ofleyi and the boss of the Lookout, Barr.

"Don't be in a hurry," Alexander knew what Ofleiyi was talking about, but what he really cared about was not the immediate situation, but what was happening in the palace. ”

The shore was already brightly lit, and from the heights you could see the swaying lights on the sea, which were countless fishing boats returning home.

Alexander suddenly felt a faint dazedness, he felt that he had never found a home after all these years of wandering, although Montina could be said to be his home, but sometimes it was somewhat strange, and now looking at the fishing boats that were returning to the shore, an inexplicable homesickness could not help but come to his heart.

"Offrey, do you miss home?" Alexander looked at the marching captain and saw that Ofleiyi seemed to be a little surprised, Alexander nodded, "You can go home for a few days when this is over, but I don't think we have much time left, the French are coming." ”

In Alexander's mind, Louis XII was a very contradictory man, who used all kinds of repression against the aristocracy to seize power from them, but actively encouraged the lower classes to speak freely, and it was during his reign that the University of Paris became the first institution of higher learning in the world to formalize the idea of university autonomy, and this idea will continue until Alexander's familiar era.

In military affairs, Louis XII was also a very special man, he sometimes seemed extremely reckless and bold, and sometimes he was cautious and steady.

Alexander will not forget that when he was still the Duke of Orleans, he personally went to Sicily to incite a local rebellion, but he also does not forget that in order to ensure the smooth invasion of Italy, the king had to endure the loss of a large amount of supplies every day after making all preparations, until the artillery he relied on to defeat the enemy arrived, and then officially set out from the Nice barracks in mid-July 1499 and marched towards Lombardy.

The navy, which the French had assembled at the port of Marseille, would not depart until much later.

So, with less than a month to go, Alexander guessed so.

Offrey looked at the sea that had completely darkened, and then at Alexander, who felt that the Count's mood was a little strange, as if he was trying to calm himself.

"We're all ready, don't worry, my lord." Oflaiyi reminded in a low voice.

Alexander looked at the marching captain who had hinted with his eyes not to show an uneasy look, and could only smile wryly and nod.

Of course, Ofleiyi did not know what he was worried about, in fact, all the steps were deliberated repeatedly, and Alexander was not worried about whether he would succeed or not, but what was happening in the palace did not calm him down.

Alexander looked up in the distance, where the hooked crescent moon had risen, bright and cold.

At this time, Jisha was also looking up at the moon outside the window, and beside her, Alfred was sleeping deeply, and a trace of saliva hung down from the corner of his mouth and hung on his face, looking a little funny.

Josha turned her head and supported her side with one arm, and held her chin with her clenched fist to look carefully at Alfred's face sleeping as quiet as a baby, and she fiddled with a small transparent bottle in her other hand, and the half bottle of green juice that remained in it swayed slightly with her movements.

This face has been familiar to her since she was a child, but it is the first time that she has been lying quietly beside her like a child like this now, and let her observe it closely.

Josha stretched out her finger and tapped it lightly on Alfred's face, then moved her finger upwards before finally stopping on the prince's forehead.

Josha's gaze slowly turned cold, her thumb raised, her three fingers closed, and then the index finger on Alfred's forehead suddenly tilted upward, and her mouth let out a soft "thud".

"Bang! Bang bang! Bang bang bang! ”

There was a sudden sound of slamming the door, accompanied by panicked shouts and scrambled footsteps outside the room.

She put the bottle aside and chased after her, staring at the door for a while, but did not move.

The slamming of the door grew more and more intense, accompanied by a panicked urging shout.

"For God's sake, open the door, Alfred~"

It was the Queen's voice, and there were others shouting incessantly.

The prince, who was sleeping soundly, seemed to let out a grunt of displeasure from being knocked to his throat, but he did not wake up.

Shosha picked up the cup from the table next to her, which contained water, and she looked at Alfred, and then the glass in her hand flipped over, and the water was all splashed on the prince's face.

"Ah~"

Alfred was awakened, and he jumped and then looked blankly at Shosha, who was still holding an empty cup.

"What's going on?"

"I don't know, but it seems to be your mother outside, but you can't wake me up, so that's all I can do." She raised her hand in motion.

"What's the matter, you know, I'm getting married today."

Alfred, somewhat annoyed, walked barefoot to the door and pulled the door open.

Before he could open the door, the door had been slammed open from the outside, and the queen rushed into the new house with a frightened face and even almost a frenzy!

"Alfred, your father! Go see your father! Something happened to him! The queen clung to Alfred's chest and cried out, her eyes glazed off, and she ran out desperately pulling her son.

"What's wrong?!" Alfred also panicked at once, and saw a large group of people running around in the corridor in a panic, and he only had time to turn around before his new wife could take a look at it when the queen dragged him out of the room.

Jossa walked slowly to the door, and she watched calmly as the group of people ran in the direction of Frederick's room, then turned back to the bed, and picked up from the floor, though ornate, a robe that was a little too fat because of the sheer number of jewels and the intricacies of the style.

"Your Highness."

A maid appeared at the door, and was surprised to see that she seemed to be packing up her clothes, and she hurried into the room to take the robe from Jisha, but was unexpectedly refused.

"What do you call me?" Zhisa looked at the maid.

"Your Highness, you are Prince Alfred's princess, of course I have to call you Your Highness." The maid said a little nervously that many people had not only heard of this princess, but also deeply understood her eternal power, and even in private, some people called her the queen of Naples.

"I like that title." Jisha laughed, she stretched out her hand and handed it to the maid, seeing the maid flattered and half-crouched down to hold her hand and kiss it, Jisha smiled again, "Now you can help get dressed, I'm going to see the king, I hope nothing big happens to him." ”

"Yes, Your Highness." The maid was a little nervous and began to help Jisha put it on, because she was in a hurry, so she didn't notice that Jisha took the opportunity to pull out a sharp short knife from the sandwich under the cumbersome fluffy skirt when she handed her the dress.

When she arrived at the king's chambers, she saw a crowd of people anxiously gathered around the bed, the queen and Alfred leaning over and calling the king's name, and the two doctors on the other side of the bed were busy with their work.

"What's wrong?" As soon as she approached, she let out a low cry.

Frederick, who was lying down, was gasping rapidly, his throat whirring like a bellows with full strength, and a foul stench came out of his mouth with each gasp.

The king's eyelids were shaking, but his pupils were no longer visible when he opened and closed, his face had turned black and purple from the shortness of breath, and his nostrils were fanning violently with his breathing.

"For God's sake, tell me what the hell is going on!" Alfred yelled angrily at the two doctors, grabbing his hair with both hands, "Wasn't the king okay during the banquet, what's wrong?" Was someone poisoned? ”

Alfred's words surprised everyone, and they hurriedly looked at each other with a look of horror and suspicion in their eyes.

"I beg your pardon, but we really don't know what happened," a doctor replied alarmedly, "we don't see what the king thinks, it does look like poisoning but more like hysteria." ”

"What do you say! Are you accusing the king of evil? The queen cried out angrily, and she rushed around the bed to the two doctors, almost as if she were about to pounce on them, and cried out to them, "I command you to bring the king back at once, or I will make you pay for your stupidity!" ”

The doctors looked in horror at the queen, who was already completely hysterical, although there had never been such a thing in Naples before that she had been punished for not being cured, but now that she had completely lost her mind, they were not sure what terrible fate would befall her.

Jossa leaned over Alfred, took his hand and whispered reassurance, and at this time she looked exactly like a wife who cared about her husband, only when she occasionally looked back at Frederick, who was lying there struggling, and a strange look flashed in her eyes.

"It is impossible for a king to have hysteria." A voice of affirmation was heard, and Leoford, the palm sealer, appeared at the door, followed by the Archbishop of Naples.

Seeing the archbishop, the queen's eyes became a little flustered, and she looked at Leoford, as if hoping that he would say that he was not what she had imagined, but when she saw the same vaguely flustered looks on the faces of the people around her, the queen became even more panicked.

"Why is the archbishop here?" Alfred also looked at the archbishop with some surprise, and he looked at Josha, hoping that his new wife would tell him what had happened.

"You have to calm Alfred, you may soon have a heavy responsibility," Josha whispered to him, and seeing Alfred's panicked face, Josha reminded him in a lower tone, "Pay attention to the words of the Palm Sealer." ”

"Your Majesty is ill, and not hysterical," said Leoford, looking at the archbishop, who, after receiving an approving approval, continued to proclaim in a loud voice, "It is ill-intentioned to proclaim that the king is hysterical, and this is an attempt to slander our king that he has been seduced by the devil, and that it is to slander the royal family and the royal family, and to be a shameful frame against the enemies of Sicily and Naples." ”

The face of the doctor who raised the hysteria changed instantly, and he wanted to defend himself, but he had already been tightly stuck in his throat by the guards guarding him from behind with his arms, so that he could not make a sound, and at the same time, the palm seal officer continued as if he had a verdict: "The king is only suffering from an emergency, which has been verified by the archbishop himself, and any attempt to confuse the public will not be tolerated and must be punished. ”

Saying that, O'Fred looked at everyone sternly: "The king needs healing and cultivation, and the kingdom needs someone to govern, as the royal seal, I have the responsibility to stand up for this at this time,"

"It is God's will that God has chosen and bestowed upon the king the crown," said the archbishop slowly, his eyes pausing from Frederick who was lying down, and then looking at Alfred who was standing aside, "My child, you should be ready to shoulder your responsibilities at this time." ”

Alfred stared blankly at the archbishop, although he longed to wear the crown as soon as possible, but he never expected it to be in such a situation.

got married first, and then ascended the throne, Alfred was stunned and overwhelmed by this sudden "happiness" for a while.

"Wait a minute, what are you talking about, the king is just seriously ill! Do you think that he is no longer dead, and that it is time for the king to be treated as soon as possible? Ever since the archbishop appeared, the queen had been a little ignorant because of panic and fear, and it was only when she saw the archbishop hinting in public that her son was ready that she suddenly came to her senses, and the queen suddenly became frightened, and she explained loudly to the people next to her in a panic, but suddenly found that people were only paying attention to Alfred's expression.

"No, I don't want to be king, I mean I'm not ready......"

Alfred, who was a little weak under his mother's gaze, wanted to say a few words, but before he could continue, Josha had already raised his hand to stop him.

"The King's situation is already dangerous, and you should take responsibility at such times, Alfred, and don't forget that you are the rightful heir of the Kingdom of Sicily." Her voice was not loud but unusually firm, and at the same time her eyes swept to the people in the room, and everyone who met her eyes could not help but bow their heads and salute, and for a moment even the archbishop seemed to care more about her attitude than the prince.

The queen looked around uneasily, but received no sympathy, let alone support, glances, and the people avoided the queen's gaze, and then pursued the attention of the queen.

In a short moment, in a rather strange way, in front of the king's bedroom and Frederick, who looked dying on his bed, the kingdom of Naples completed its transfer of power.

"Your Majesty, please take good care of His Majesty the King here," said Tsuisa as she walked up to the queen and bowed, and when she raised her head, her eyes sparkled with the stunned queen, "Believe me, Alfred will be a good king." ”

The queen looked at Tsusha in a daze, for some reason, the newlywed daughter-in-law in front of her, who had always made her feel faintly uneasy before, now made her feel nervous, especially when she said Alfred, the queen even had an urge to call out.

The king suddenly fell seriously ill on the prince's wedding night!

The news from the royal palace spread through the city of Naples with almost unimaginable speed.

Soon after, new rumors followed, Prince Alfred was temporarily regent!

Naples, which had been immersed in the joy of the wedding, instantly fell into a panic, at this time the king's critical illness made people feel inexplicably nervous, watching the soldiers who had already appeared in the streets, and the people who were still in the party began to scatter and run home, people knew that all kinds of things could easily happen at this time.

A rapid bell struck the hearts of the people, and it was from there that there was a prayer shrine for the Virgin Mary and a small bronze bell by the well.

A group of soldiers immediately heard the noise and ran away, but when they arrived, they saw a shop with a smashed door and a mess of contents.

It is clear that the looters have already escaped, and this is just the beginning.

For some reason, the city of Naples suddenly became chaotic.

The sound of alarm bells rang everywhere, and from time to time there were people of unknown origin in the streets.

These men seemed to be familiar with Naples, and they often appeared in the homes of some nobles, and before the city guards arrived, they had already sacked the dwellings with shrewd sculptures and precious gems, leaving a mess for the city guards, and then moving on to the next target.

The nobles who were gathering in the palace soon heard the terrible news, and the already chaotic palace became even more chaotic, the nobles were at first at a loss, and then angrily proposed to Prince Alfred to immediately search the whole city, and some people even proposed martial law to the whole city, but Alfred seemed a little hesitant at this time.

"Let the mercenaries take over the entire city?" Alfred walked around the room uncertainly, those passionate nobles were ordered by him to block out and not to enter, but even then he could still faintly hear their shouting and complaining, he knew very well what the virtues of those mercenaries his father had paid for, maybe they could be more honest in normal times, but at this time, at the thought of handing over the management of the entire city to those people, Alfred couldn't help but make up his mind.

"Your Highness, if you don't control the whole city as soon as possible, things may get worse," the Palm Seal Officer reminded him, "Please hurry up and give the order." ”

As if he didn't notice the slightly coercive tone of the Palm Seal Officer, Alfred still walked around a little dazedly, and when he heard the sound of the closed door opening, he scolded impatiently: "Who is it, I have ordered that you are not allowed to come in without permission!" ”

"Alfred." Tsusha stood in the doorway, and not far behind her, some nobles were standing in the hallway and staring into the room.

Khosha has changed out of her gorgeous wedding dress and put on a dress that is certainly finely made, but the style is more peculiar.

Unlike many of today's cumbersome and varied clothing, the black dress of the Tsusha reveals more of a majesty, the skirt that drags the floor is slightly bulging, the collar that was originally used as a decoration is replaced by a thin cotton hard shawl, and a wide belt that hugs the waist makes her figure appear straighter and more upright than any woman.

A majesty unlike any noblewoman made her look like a goddess of war who had suddenly stepped into the court from the battlefield, rather than a newlywed wife who had just left the marital room.

Alfred was in a trance a little bit as he looked at Josha's dress, and then he rubbed his hands vigorously on his face, which had been a little stiff from the previous long period of tension.

"I'm sorry, I thought it was someone else," Alfred wiped the sweat from his face, watched the door behind Jisha slowly close, cut off the eyes of those watching outside, he walked over and said apologetically, "Today is our wedding day, but I fell asleep inexplicably, and then so many things happened, and I don't know what will happen next." ”

"Alfred," Josha put her hands on Alfred's head and made him look at herself, "Listen, you're not just a prince now, but a regent of Naples, so what you need to do now is calm down and understand, the doctors are doing their best to treat the king, and your mother is already being taken care of, you don't have to worry about this, but Alfred, if God's will is to make you king, then you must understand your responsibility." ”

Alfred nodded his head and looked at his wife gratefully, for at this moment he felt that his mother was no more trustworthy than Josa, after all, when the archbishop offered him to be regent, the queen showed strong opposition.

"But Your Highness, now we need someone to support us, we need the help of a strong army," the palm seal officer standing aside suddenly interjected, "If the mercenaries can't be trusted, then who can help us control the situation in the city?" ”

Alfred looked at Josha blankly, but instinctively.

"My Cosenza grenadier can help, but I'm afraid it might cause a lot of criticism," Josa said casually, seeing Alfred's hesitation, Jossa looked at Leoford on the side, "What do you think of the palm sealer?" ”

"I beg your pardon, it is not in accordance with the rules for the Kosenza army to enter the city of Naples directly, it will make people mistakenly think that this is a coup d'état."

The Palm Seal Officer unexpectedly objected, and he even stared at Ji Sha with some angry eyes, as if trying to see what the new princess was up to.

"Sure enough, it will be opposed." Seeming unsurprised, she slowly sat down and looked at Alfred.

The prince's face showed a hint of annoyance, and he stared at the Palm Seal Officer with some dissatisfaction, he knew that there was a lot of conflict between his father's cronies and the Count of Mordillo, but now he was targeting his own wife, which made Alfred feel a little unbearable.

The untrustworthy mercenaries of Naples and the questioning of his wife's offer of help made Alfred, who had first risen to power, feel that his authority was being questioned and challenged at the same time.

"I need my wife's army to help me restore order in Naples, so I have decided to allow the Kosenza army to enter the city, and as for the nobles, I will explain everything to them."

Alfred said to Leoford in a stiff tone that he had seen this as a contest, a contest to establish his regency authority.

The Seal Officer didn't say anything, just bowed, but his eyes looked at him again.

Leoford couldn't help but admit that this countess was indeed a beauty who could make a man's heart move, but what really made him admire was Count Mordiglo's plan.

Now, everything is going according to the Count's plan, but the next step is the most important and crucial step.

The boats rowed through the deep waters towards the lighthouse reef outside the harbor, and from time to time the waves hit the bow and splashed on the people on board.

Under the moonlight, the weapons hidden under the sackcloth cloak were slightly reflective, and sometimes the faces of people were trance, reflecting a cold and indifferent expression.

The people on the lighthouse reef were also partying, and although they had the task of guarding the sea, this did not prevent them from having a drink on the good day of the prince's wedding.

In particular, the tavern owner at the lookout post, perhaps a little carried away by the acquaintance of the nobleman, actually sent someone to bring a whole barrel of fine wine.

A guard sat on a fort and looked at the city in the distance, and they were reluctant to come here on an errand, but the king's promise of a reward was not only tempting, but more importantly, these were local prisoners of the Neapolitan quarries.

These people all had their own families in the city, which made them afraid to run away easily, and Frederick's promise of a pardon gave them some illusions and hopes.

"Maybe the king can talk," the man took a sip of wine and muttered, and just as he stood up to unbutton his pants to pee, a shadow on the sea caught his attention, "What's that?" ”

The guard muttered as he leaned over to get a better look, but suddenly he felt a chill in his chest, and then the groans that came out of his tightly held mouth with sharp pain turned into a dull muffled moan.

Several figures quickly burst out of the shadows under the lighthouse, led by a man who was obviously familiar with the terrain, and these people quickly occupied the artillery battery, and then quietly sneaked towards the brightly lit lighthouse.

Bursts of unbridled shouts wafted out of the strong smell of wine, figures swayed, and every now and then someone could be heard making a joke about the prince and the Countess of Cosenza's wedding night.

Schell pressed the spine of the saber against his forehead to calm himself down a little, and he remembered the master's order.

"Kill the people inside, but don't cause too much trouble." Schell said and nodded to the man sent by the lookout post to lead the way, watched him clean up and pushed the door in, Schell waved slightly to the person behind him.

There was a slightly unexpected sound from the lighthouse, followed by a few exclamations accompanied by a violent crash.

But the chaos was quickly suppressed almost before it could begin, and with a few brief and rapid screams, the lighthouse fell silent.

When Scheer came outside, the smell of wine and blood on his body was diluted by the fishy sea breeze, and after taking a deep breath of the still somewhat unfamiliar air, he said to the Neapolitan who led the way: "The rest is your business, you must know that I was on the verge of vomiting when I came by boat just now." ”

The Neapolitan smiled a little smugly, these Balkans made them feel terrified, especially at the sight of the massacre, but now he felt that these people did not seem so terrible.

"Are your companions on an island in the open sea?" The Neapolitan who led the way didn't know exactly what he was doing, but many of them were doing shady work under the boss of the lookout, Barr, so they didn't think it was a big deal even if they slaughtered the guards guarding the reef.

"Bring our ship into the harbor and try not to cause alarm." Schell commanded.

"Okay, whatever you do, but I'll get a share of whatever you earn." The Neapolitan said a little unwillingly.

"Don't worry, you'll soon know that you've really earned it." Scheer spoke in the tone of the locals, and looked at the Neapolitan who had disappeared into the shadows of the reef with a few of his men with the Count's own secret letter, and Scheer spat on the ground in disgust.

He didn't like these slick Romans, even if they seemed to be the old man's countrymen, but these people just didn't like him, and he didn't like the old man's sister, and for some reason, Schell always felt that the countess looked at the old man the same way the Archduchess Alexandra looked at the old man.

"I don't know what the master wants those nightmare grasses for."

Schell sat in the place where the guard had sat before, looking at the city on the shore in the distance, thinking in his heart, speaking of which, he has not been with the master for a long time, although he has already been selected to serve as the Balkan guard next to the master, but the real guard of Alexander was after the captain of the hunting guard, Busako, became the commander of the second Balkan regiment, so he is still a little unfamiliar with many of Alexander's habits, or his predecessor is obviously not a person with enough brains, At least he wasn't taught how to mix better before the count's women who were more difficult to deal with.

Scheer remembered that he was intrigued when he knew that he knew that there was a bunch of purple flowers that bloomed like trumpets, and that before leaving the Balkans, he had him pick a bunch of the kind of nightmare grass that the locals called nightmare grass, and when they came to Naples, the lord asked Sher to take away those strange flowers.

"What can that thing do for nightmares other than making people talk nonsense." Schell thought about it a little strangely, and then decided to give up thinking about these useless things, his task was to pick up the Montina army that was stuck in the open sea, and once that fleet entered the port, quickly land and occupy Santa Lucia.

According to Alexander's order, the first group of Montina troops who had previously landed with him had already advanced not far outside Naples with the Cosenza army, which was waiting for orders.

The palace was still in disarray, and the nobles were talking about it and vaguely planning something, and shortly after Alfred ordered the Cosenza army to enter Naples, Leoford brought him news that surprised him.

"The Queen is in secret contact with some ministers whose purpose is to announce the abolition of your regency." The Palm Seal Officer looked at the pale Alfred and shook his head slightly sympathetically, speaking of which, this was not their plan, although even without this plan could not prevent them from taking Naples, but now it seemed that even God was helping them.

"Why, why should my mother oppose me?" Alfred first felt incredible, and then nodded as if he understood something, "Of course, she doesn't want her husband to abdicate, let alone give up the queen's throne, but she wants to abolish my regency for this reason?" ”

"Or maybe the queen wants to be queen herself."

Alfred's words were immediately irritated by the sealer, for he knew that his mother, who was also from the royal family of Aragon, was indeed entitled to claim the throne.

"What should I do, tell me what to do?" Alfred took a few steps and stopped to look at the Palm Seal Officer, "Tell me who can help me at this time." ”

"Your Highness, you already know it yourself." The palm seal officer said in a somewhat helpless tone, "Although I don't want to admit it, but at this time, whether it is prestige or ability, there is only one person who is the most suitable candidate. ”

Alfred nodded slowly, he took a heavy breath, and then made up his mind to give the order: "Declare, appoint Modillo, Count of Naples, as the chief minister of the kingdom, with the right to command all the kingdom's troops. Speaking of this, Alfred burst out of his mouth with a final order a little viciously, "Send a letter and ask the princess's brother, the Count of Montina, to lead troops into Naples and quell the rebellion!" ”

In the early hours of July 6, 1499, the armies of Cosenza and Montina were ordered to enter Naples!

On the roof of the Lookout Tavern, Alexander smiled as he looked at the string of torches flickering in the city below, holding a small flower in his hand, if Schell must have known it here, it was what he called Nightmare Grass.

But what Schell didn't know was that there was another name for this thing, called Tieltoros, also known as digitalis, and one of its effects was to cause heart disease.