The arrow wound was still healed, Robert of Normandy had made up his mind to fight against his father, when he told the king of Edgar about this decision, the latter naturally showed a surprised look, the person who dared to oppose the Duke of Normandy was a few times in the world, even the princes of Brittany and Anjou were inevitably suspicious in the face of such a challenge, Edgar looked at Robert's resolute expression, and had to admit the extraordinary courage of this Norman who was as young as himself.

Amazed at all, Edgar asked cautiously, "How many lords do you think will join your army now?" ”

Robert glanced at Queen Emma on the other side of the hall, and then slowly explained: "King Philip sent me a message before, and he said that he would give me the castle of Montreuil for me to send troops to Normandy. As for the lords of Normandy, though they do not like my father now, I do not think they have the courage to rebel against him, except that Roger of Montgomery has made a pact with me that he may join me in due time. ”

The King of England was silent, his treaty with the Duke of Normandy had not yet expired, and he could not openly send troops to support Robert's rebellion, so he could only agree to the other party's request to leave with a slight apology, and gave Robert and his men many gifts, including robes covered with purple leather, mink and gray fur, mink and other noble robes, various gold and silver utensils, a reliquary made of ivory, with the runic inscription "Eadgar-mec-heht-Gewyrcan" carved on it, Finally, there were fifty saddles and a hundred of the strongest sets of chain mail.

All these treasures were loaded by a magnificent ship, the ship called the "Sea Wolf", which was also a gift from King Edgar to Robert, and had been used to escort the arrival of "Peter King" dedicated to the Pope in Flanders. Robert's men rode the storm to reach the Count of Flanders' territory first, and then from Bruges to the court of the French king.

This is close to the feast of San Petronella, a date that seems to be associated with some kind of murder, in the original history, it was on this day that the Count of Walcioff was beheaded by the Normans in Winchester, and on this plane, Robert the Sock, on the day of St. Petronella, officially rebelled against his father, the Duke of Normandy, in the castle given by the King of France.

In fact, no one could have predicted the extent and consequences of this rebellion at this time, after all, Robert was too alone, he had never proven himself on the battlefield, and those limited combat experience could not arouse the respect of any battlefield general, let alone take a great risk to raise troops in response to his rebellion. Thus, after Robert's first invasion of eastern Normandy, none of the Norman lords joined his army, except for a few mercenaries attracted by gold and silver, and there was no news from Roger of Montgomery. Although the recent fate of Bishop Otto angered many Norman lords, it also made them more and more afraid of the Duke's power, and the subsequent news that William himself led his army eastward made everyone think that Robert's adventure was likely to be bloody and short-lived.

Robert's Guards are an elite force of ornate equipment, with the finest iron armor and sword and battle axes from the Royal Greenwich Armory, as well as hardcore sworn allegiance by Robert's fireplace, who accompanied him around the realm during his regency and enjoyed the highest level of trust. However, their numbers were too small, just over thirty men, far from being a match for a Norman army, and Robert could not even defend his castle without the aid of the French king. His army numbered in the hundreds, and according to the information of the King of France, the army that had arrived from Caen was 3,000 people, this was a battle-hardened Norman elite, and the best generals in Europe commanded this strong army, at this moment, Robert's fate was extremely bleak.

In the far north, on the highlands where the frost has not yet receded, another conflict is brewing. To outsiders, the cause of the incident is unclear, and many believe that it is just another regular friction between the Gaelic and Morlay people of Scotland, after all, the two regions have been competing for generations, and the lords of Morlay often refer to themselves as kings and compete with the Scottish royal family. However, there are certain indications that the year's fighting was associated with the reclusive Madame de Glaooch.

The army of King Malcolm of Scotland marched from Perth into the land of Molay, where they joined up with another army under Prince Donald.

"Lord Uisdin, I thought you wouldn't show up." Prince Donald greeted lazily.

The commander on the opposite side was a balding middle-aged man with an unusually burly build, which reminded Donald of the other party's father, the dead "bull" Lord Edda. Edda, once a powerful nobleman in the Morai region, grew old and gradually died from the bottom up, until her legs were completely destroyed, and she was carried around all day long.

Ouestin McEda was also the brother-in-law of the Count of Morai, and his wife was the elegant Madame de Grooch. As if he didn't see the hint of mockery in Donald's eyes, Uisdin replied nonchalantly, "I just went to the South, and if it weren't for the great things here, I would have drunk all the ale there." ”

"We can go to the halls of Molay and taste his wine." Donald's handsome face showed a bit of hideousness, "Your Excellency, you must be interested in destroying that entire cellar. ”

"Everything in Morai belongs to the Grand Chieftain of all the clans - His Majesty King Malcolm." Uisdin reminded the other party neither softly nor hard, only to draw a sneer from Donald.

In this way, two armies from Scotland mainland and the Morley Highlands meandered northward, with enough force to alarm the birds and beasts of the Far North and the sleeping giants.

The land of the north was cruel and unforgiving, and the Scots, though hard-bold, grew to hate marching in such an environment, so they plundered the cattle of the Morai along the way, and the warriors of Ouisdin ransacked and slaughtered their own people with the same attitude as they treated the Gentiles. If Donald was a cruel madman, Ouisdin was a demon who did not spare even a baby in his infancy, and once he had taken refuge with the King of Scotland, he invaded his homeland with redoubled enthusiasm, and his soldiers often said that the lord's cauldron was boiling the heads of the Morai people.

The royal army was raging all over Marsnekta's territory, and he himself was in the Elgin Church in the north, surrounded only by a group of black-robed friars. When the Earl of Marsnekta heard the news from the south, he immediately set out for the strongest nearby fortress, Inverness, where his most elite guards were stationed.

The fortress of Inverness was rebuilt after Macbeth's death with many new designs, notably the Norman style of architecture that King Malcolm had seen in the lands of King Edward in England, and Marsnekta, who occupied the royal fort and increased the number of garrisons here to control the entire Ness Valley. This strategic location was his best support at the moment, because the intelligence of the enemy numbered more than 5,000 people, and Molay's army was still scattered and powerless to resist this royal army.

"That bastard of Uistin, who thought Malcolm was going to reward Molay for his betrayal?" In the shadow of the walls of Inverness, the Count of Marsnekta, the great leader of the Morais, cursed with hatred as he handed the whip to his attendants.