There were many lakes and swamps near Stralsund, and even in the entire Mecklenburg area, and the Normans were unfamiliar with the local terrain and climate, and were easily trapped in the swamps, and were more likely to be ambushed by the well-known chieftain Conyito and his Slavic army.

After occupying the isolated island of Rügen as a logistical military base, Odo could lead his army step by step and gradually occupy the Duchy of Mecklenburg.

Of course, it's not that Otto doesn't know how many hungry wolves covet the land of Mecklenburg and Pomerania, but he thinks that the most important thing is to preserve troops and reduce casualties, which is also what William repeatedly explained before leaving, as for how many territories can be occupied, William Dao really doesn't care.

After defeating Norway and Denmark, the Norman navy had completely controlled the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, and the trade and military interests here were all occupied by the Normans.

Even though the lands of Mecklenburg and Pomerania were occupied by Denmark, Saxony, Brandenburg, and Poland, the Normans could only surrender their previously occupied territories when they were free to attack each other with naval superiority.

"Lord Mephistopheles, Lord Randolph, can you come with me on a tour of the castle?" Otto was inspecting the walls when he met the Duke of Mephistopheles and the Earl of Randolph, and invited them.

"I'm glad to go." The two nodded yes and spoke.

The three of them, guarded by the knight Hugh and ten guards, patrolled the city walls, and at a section of the female wall, Otto stopped and said to Mephistopheles and Albert, who were beside them, "The walls of this city have not dug a moat, and if the other party comes to attack, they can attack the walls directly and set up siege equipment underneath." ”

"Lord Odo, the outside of the city wall is flat and there is no shelter, and we can detect whether there is an enemy attack at the first time when we stand on the wall, and when they arrive under the wall, we are already ready." Albert stretched out his right hand and gestured outside the city walls, explaining to Otto.

"I have patrolled the surroundings with my cavalry before, and in fact the walls are not unprotected, and there are two small lakes, one large and one small, one from here, and some small forests beyond the lakes, and if a light army can be placed here, it should be able to detect the enemy's traces in time, and can stop their marching speed." Admiral Count Randolph also spoke.

"The advice of the two of you is very useful, and I will go down and prepare it later." Otto nodded in satisfaction and said, "Let's go down first to inspect the castle, which is our stronghold in Stralsund." ”

The two nodded yes and followed Otto down the wall.

The three of them went to the well and asked the guards guarding the place, "Is there enough water here?" ”

"My lord, there are six wells in the city, and there are also water sources outside the city that flow through the city, which is enough to meet the water needs of our army." The guard carried the bucket and said with some excitement, stumbling from time to time.

Odo smiled and nodded slightly, stretched out his hand and scooped out a scoop of water from the bucket, sniffed it closely, tasted it, and said with a smile: "Yes, there is no peculiar smell, it is living water." ”

"It is extremely important to strictly guard the water source and not let the precious water source be polluted, which is the key to our defense of Stralsund City." Before leaving, Otto instructed the petty officer in charge of the place.

The three of them went up to the city gate tower under the escort of the guards, and this will be the place where the attack will be most fierce, so whether the defense here is complete or not is the key to the defense of the city.

"Your Excellency." The officer in charge of the gate tower bowed to Otto and his party.

"Day and night, put away the gates." As he walked, Otto said, "Open the gates for me!" ”

"It's my lord!" The officer immediately took the order, and led his soldiers to turn the roulette wheel that connected the rope of the iron gate, and another group of people were responsible for opening another gate.

Stralsund's gates were sturdy, with two gates, one being a liftable iron gate controlled by the guards on the gatehouse, which could not be easily broken once lowered, and the other was a wooden gate behind the iron gate, which was also the last barrier.

"My lord, once these two gates are closed, the enemy will not be able to attack them."

"Well, you must strictly guard your post and not slack off!"

"Yes, sir."

It took the three of them more than an hour to inspect the front and rear gates, the surrounding walls, and the towering towers, and to make sure that the walls that had been damaged during the siege had been repaired.

Immediately afterwards, Odoyou convened a temporary military council and was responsible for assigning the next combat mission.

"My lords, next we will face the Slavs from Mecklenburg, who are savage and brave, and are not to be taken lightly."

Otto made a start, reminding everyone not to be careless, but before he could finish speaking, the people below shouted.

"Lord Odo, am my Normans inferior in prowess than the Slavic barbarians? I don't think it's better to defend any city, just go out of the city and fight to the death, we will definitely be able to defeat the enemy. ”

Speaking at the table was a Norman baron whose territory was in poor Ireland and who had been fighting against unruly Viking immigrants for many years, and who had been blessed with contempt for these Slavs.

"Since the baron has asked to fight, I promise you." Otto was not angry, but agreed to his request, and immediately began to assign combat tasks: "Ladies and gentlemen, Stralsund is only a core stronghold of our defense system, and we will also set up positions on both sides and in front of the city, with the city as the core.

The left flank will be given to Mephistopheles and Albert, and you will have five thousand troops to garrison the place. ”

"Yes, Lord Odo." The two stood up and bowed.

"Admiral Randolph, you are in charge of the right flank position outside Stralsund, which is close to the coast and is conveniently supported by fleet fire." Otto looked at Randolph. Morality. Earl Gael, gave his order to fight.

"Yes."

"Robert, you are responsible for the defense of the perimeter of Stralsund, as the vanguard of the enemy's army, with two thousand men to slow down the enemy's advance."

"Got it, brother." Otto responded excitedly.

"Bourchad, Cumberland. Feng. Count Hohenloren, you are the commander of my main Norman army, and I have ordered you to garrison the city of Stralsund. Otto looked at another Hohenzollern, the new Germanic nobleman who was somehow valued by William and was canonized as Count of Cumberland in the north of the Duchy of Northumberland, which was truly enviable.

"Yes, Lord Odo." Bourchard was very humble, because William's value made him cautious, and although he had the title of earl before, he was honestly only a city lord, and his territory was not as big as a baron, and now he had obtained the whole of Cumberland, which was really flattering.