Before they could return to the castle, news of the hunting attack had already spread, and when they were still a short way from the castle, Alexander saw Kaisel galloping towards them on horseback.

As soon as he was in peace, Keisel jumped off the horse with his hands and feet, and he rushed over and reached out to grab Josha's waist in a few steps, and pulled her off the horse directly.

"Let me see how you are," Kaisel completely ignored Josha and kept saying that he was okay, he pressed her shoulder hard, and then put his hands around her waist and turned back and forth a few times, when he was sure that she was indeed not injured, his face suddenly sank, "Where is Bolery, I want to teach him a good lesson, I actually frightened you, I heard that I almost let the bear hurt you." ”

"I'm all right, Kesel," Josha shook her head, "it's not to blame Bolery, and he was injured to save me, so you shouldn't punish him, but reward him." ”

"How is it possible for me to reward the man who almost injured you, and I have heard that it was someone else who actually saved you," Keisel flatly refused, and then looked back at Alexander behind him, "I heard that you saved my sister, and I don't know how to thank you." ”

Alexander jumped off his horse and bowed to Kaiser, who was bowing slightly to him, and saluted back: "You're welcome, and Miss Countess is not wrong, it was Beléry who really saved her, speaking of which, I have never seen such a brave man, he actually faced a bear with his bare hands." ”

"That's his own mistakes, if something happens to Jisha, I'll bury him alive." Keisel glanced angrily at Bolery, who was being carried by several people at the back of the group, and then he smiled and said to Alexander, "But now that everyone is fine, we can celebrate tonight, after all, you have returned with a full load this time." ”

Looking at Kesel, who seemed to be very excited, Jisha wanted to say something, but in the end she still didn't speak.

After casually ordering Bellery to be sent back to the castle, Keisel smiled and took Jossa by the arm, and with the other hand made an inviting gesture to Alexander: "Let us have a good evening tonight, knowing that there are not many good days I can enjoy." ”

"What Kaisel, are you leaving?" Jisha asked unexpectedly.

"It's time to be away for a while," Keisel patted Shosha on the top of her head dotingly, "but I'll be back soon, and I'll surprise you with a gift." ”

Jisha, who didn't seem to be happy because of Kaiser's promise, frowned like a golden brow, and asked with some dissatisfaction: "Do you have to go, I just came back." ”

"We must go," said Kesel, walking slowly along the way with Jossa in the direction of the castle, "knowing that we are in trouble on several boats in Taranto, and if we don't find a way to solve it, we may soon be hungry." ”

"How is this possible," asked Tsusa unexpectedly, "isn't Count Horseen of Taranto a good friend of you and your father?" ”

Hearing the name Count Hawsen, Alexander couldn't help but remember what Bellary had told him earlier that Keisel seemed to be planning to marry the Count of Taranto.

"The problem is that the Count himself is in a lot of trouble," Keisel said with a hint of helplessness on the subject, "the whole Mediterranean is not at peace now, and the Ottoman fleet may appear anywhere at any time, and even the Venetians dare not go to sea easily." ”

Saying that, Kaiser turned back to Alexander and gestured slightly: "I think you must know this very well, after all, you are from Sicily, aren't you, come and tell us what the Sicilians think of those terrible Eastern heretics?" ”

Kaiser's question reminded Alexander of the farce that had occurred when he had drifted to Calibo, and if he had not been inexplicably frightened by the misunderstanding of the Ottoman invasion, Giorgio Modillo would not have suddenly suffered a stroke.

Then he won't be standing here now.

Secretly shaking off these thoughts in his mind, Alexander nodded in response: "Yes, the Sicilians are very afraid of the Ottomans, and some people are even frightened just because they hear the news that the Ottomans are going to attack. ”

"There's nothing to be ashamed of," Keisel didn't scoff, but his voice became a lot lower, "Actually, all of us are scared, even across the Mediterranean, but all of us are still afraid. Especially now, when Rome could no longer stand up and unite the whole of Christendom as it did centuries ago, and the pagans were stronger than ever. ”

Alexander nodded, he knew that Kaisel was right, this was the time when the new moon of the Ottoman Empire was rising, and the whole of Europe was trembling under the watchful eye of the Eastern Sultan, and no one dared to arrogantly say that he wanted to take back Constantinople, which originally belonged to Europeans, let alone regain Jerusalem, which had been regarded as a holy place for centuries earlier.

Just over 200 years ago, Pope Innocent IV excommunicated the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II for his "peaceful" occupation of Jerusalem by agreement with the Saracens.

The pope at that time saw this agreement as a betrayal of the Church and the whole of Christendom, and he ruthlessly severed the Holy Roman Emperor despite many objections, and even thought that this punishment was not enough, and the pope cursed Frederick II to hell after his death, with no chance of salvation.

Only 200 years later, Innocent IV's excommunication was regarded as nitpicking, and for the current Europeans, whether it is a noble king, a cardinal or even a pope, not to mention the liberation of Jerusalem, even if it can stop the Ottomans who may appear at any time, they will be regarded as the savior of the entire Christian world.

"It's not a good thing for the Venetians to reorganize a fleet, the Ottomans are too powerful, but it's also a last resort decision for Venice, after all, if the Ottomans become the masters of the Mediterranean, then Venice will die completely." Kaiser, who had already returned to the castle, explained to Alexander, who was sitting opposite, "If you see Count Mordillo, I hope you will tell him, that the Count will convince the king not to send any force to the Mediterranean, the horror of the Ottomans may not have been really seen until now, and if you act rashly, you may be the first victim." ”

Alexander was not surprised by Kesel's cautiousness, even slightly cringing, nor did he feel that it was timid.

In fact, no one in this era knew better than him the terrible power of the Ottoman Empire that would soon be displayed, and if the Europeans' vigilance against the East was always an inexplicable fear of an unknown enemy, then Alexander, who knew better about the power of that vast empire, knew very well that the real crisis that the Europeans were about to face was yet to come.

However, these words of Kaisel made Alexander somewhat understand why he preferred Jossa to marry the Count of Horsen of Taranto, which seemed to involve Venice.

Perhaps no other country in the entire Mediterranean world is so infatuated with the sea and its own destiny is so closely linked to it, and it can be said that at the beginning of the founding of the city of Venice, its rise and fall were linked to the hegemony of the Mediterranean.

Since the First Crusade, Venice has played an important role in every one of the Mediterranean's most brilliant city-states.

Whether it was generously providing large sums of money to the armies of the First Crusade, or later becoming the financiers behind the famous crusade of three kings, to single-handedly orchestrating the most notorious siege of Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, which was also a Christian state, Venetian merchants were always present in every corner of the Mediterranean.

Because of this, for Venice, a city on the water, the loss of control of the Mediterranean Sea is not only more unbearable than any other country, but also, as Kaisel said, the loss of the Mediterranean Sea means that Venice is about to die.

Taranto, also as a coastal city, seems to have a deep relationship with Venice.

It's just that for some reason, Keisel doesn't seem to be optimistic about Naples, which is also an important city on the northern shore of the Mediterranean, which can be seen from his marriage to Josa.

When she returned to the castle, she quickly found an excuse to leave, and Alexander knew that she was supposed to take care of Bellery, which made him a little jealous.

It's all my brother, although my brother can't say it, and he's simply an impostor, but seeing that his "sister" cares more about others, he doesn't feel very happy.

However, Alexander asked Ulius to find out where Bellery lived in the castle, and then led Massimo to Bellery's hut.

"Mademoiselle Countess may marry Prince Alfred, for she may be queen," Massimo said as she walked, "but if her brother is adamantly against it, then she may marry the Count of Taranto." ”

As he spoke, the monk glanced at Alexander, and when he saw that Alexander didn't seem to feel much, his expression became serious, "Don't you think it's a terrible thing, and the Countess will marry any of them?" ”

"Why is it bad?" Alexander asked casually.

"Don't you want her to be your wife?" Mahimo seemed a little surprised and asked, "You must know that if you can marry the countess, then you can not only inherit a large amount of property, but also become the nephew and son-in-law of the count of Mordiglo, you must know that the count has no sons or daughters so far, which means that you may inherit the title of count." ”

Alexander was slightly stunned, he didn't think of this, speaking of which although Modillo is romantic, but the descendants are not prosperous, it is said that he once had two sons but they died early, speaking of which Jisha is indeed the closest heir to the Modillo family bloodline so far.

It would be a good result to marry Josa as Alexander, and if you think about it, the identity of Georgio Modillo is not only really dangerous for him, but also too slim.

After all, the queen of Castile and her husband were not fuel-efficient lamps, and if he had the opportunity to marry a countess, and to inherit the title and domain of another count, it should be enough for him not to take a risk that seemed to have no hope of success.

The thought flashed through Alexander's mind, and for a moment he even nodded in agreement.

Eventually, however, he just looked at the monk meaningfully and asked, "Tell me if you really know how to see a doctor, or are you just a liar like all your other things?" ”

Mahimo touched his nose a little disappointed, shook his head and couldn't help but defend: "You know, some things can't be decided by whether they are true or not, you must know that I have been to many places and met many famous doctors, so although I haven't seen anyone myself, but ......"

"You won't," Alexander interrupted Massimo directly, but then he said to the slightly embarrassed monk, "but that's okay, I'll tell people that you've learned a lot of medicine, and I'll take a look at the rest." ”

Massimo looked at Alexander, who was walking in front of him, with some surprise, and if he did not still believe that he was indeed a messenger from Sicily, the monk would have doubted that he might be his companion.

Bolery's hut was in a corner below the castle, and it was so small compared to his size that Alexander had to leave the monk outside.

The room was filled with the pungent smell of herbs, and looking at Belleri, who was still asleep on the bed, Alexander whispered to Jisha, who was standing beside him, "How is he doing?" ”

"Sleeping," said Josha and shook her head, "he's sweating a lot and looks miserable, maybe I should go to my father, though he doesn't even remember Bellery." ”

Seeing Alexander's somewhat surprised look, Jisha smiled a slightly sarcastic: "Why have you heard any rumors that I am half-sibling to Bolery?" ”

Alexander wanted to explain, but he didn't know where to start for a while, from the expression of Jisha he estimated that probably the monk was completely wrong, but thinking that Beleri was the illegitimate son of the Count of Cosenza, he couldn't help but feel a little strange, so where did the rumors about Berelli being the illegitimate son of the countess come from?

"Bellery is my father's son, and his mother is my mother's maid," said Shosha softly, "there are some things you don't need to know much, but I will be grateful if you can cure him, even if my father will not admit it, but I will not forget." ”

"I'm just a ......, my chaplain, and his medical skills can help a little."

Alexander beckoned Massimo, who was waiting outside, to come in, and watched the monk pretend to look at it, and Alexander simply walked up to look at Bellery's injuries.

"My lord, his wound is no longer bleeding, but it doesn't look good," Massimo whispered, "maybe I should wake him up, it's bad enough to sleep like this." ”

The monk said that he took out a sharp knife from somewhere, and when he saw that he was about to make a gesture at Bellery's arm, Alexander grabbed Massimo's wrist.

"You're going to bleed him, aren't you?"

"Yes, my lord, I think it's not a good thing that he has a fever, maybe a little more blood can make him cool down."

Seeing that Massimo looked like he was taking it for granted, Alexander had no choice but to whisper a warning to him not to act indiscriminately while taking the knife from his hand.

"Go find something cold, let his body temperature come down first, and open the window, and boil the water for him to drink and add some salt," Alexander commanded, looking down at the sleeping Bellery.

Despite a terrible wound on his face, the sleeping Belleri looked calm, perhaps in pain even in his sleep, and his mouth let out a low moan of "hum" from time to time, which was a bit naïve.

Speaking of which, he still has a good impression of this big man, not only because of his unusual ferocity, but also because of his loyalty to Josha, which Alexander admires.

Loyalty is a rare and admirable virtue, even if it is an enemy.

On the side, he slowly sat down and leaned against the wall, watching Alexander and the monk keep busy, until he stopped to wipe his hands, and then got up and walked to him.

"I was half a year older than Bellery," said Khussa suddenly, "when my mother was pregnant, once my father was drunk, he first called my mother a prostitute and beat her, and then I threw her into bed despite the fact that she was pregnant, and my mother was terrified, and she knew that if she was allowed to do so, she might have a miscarriage, so she wanted to run away, but she couldn't escape." It was Bellery's mother who saved her, and she offered herself to my father until he gave it to his heart. ”

"And what about later?" Alexander asked in a low voice.

"My father was in a bad mood and drank too much, so he didn't remember anything like that, and maybe he wouldn't care if he did," Shosha shook her head, "My mother sent Bellery's mother outside the castle, thinking it was over, but later I found out that she was pregnant. ”

Josha tilted her head to look at Alexander, "What do you think my mother should do?" ”

"I don't know," Alexander smiled wryly, "I don't think she'd be willing to let her come back, though she was grateful to that woman." ”

"Yes, she didn't want her to come back, but his mother died in childbirth when Bellery was born." Jisha looked back at Bellery, "My mother is very guilty, she knows that it is all for her, so she brought Bellery back, even if there are all kinds of rumors, she still raised him." ”

"Bolery is loyal to you." Alexander whispered, "He's the most loyal man I've ever met." ”

"And my best brother, I won't let anyone hurt, so I'll always protect him!"