We passed through the sleepy island of Reichenau in the morning mist, which was shrouded in black cover, wary of strangers crossing the middle of the lake, and the bell tower of St. George's Church, the only commanding point of the town, was like a deer hiding to peek into its head, and was too frightened to show its eyes.

"Ah, that's St. George's Chapel, do you see that faint light?" The boatman stretched his neck while holding the oars, "This is the light of the bell tower's lantern, and it is also the guiding light of those who make a living by fishing by the lake, and when the weather is bad, you can find a sheltered pier by rowing towards the light." ”

I stood up on the side of the boat, staring intently at the town that slowly retreated to the back, it was so quiet that there was no sound of a dog barking when someone passed by, and the pavilions of the water pavilion in the mist looked like beautiful ink paintings, giving people the feeling of witnessing the town of Long Lake destroyed by the evil dragon Smaug in the hobbit movie.

"Next...... It's time for Konstanz. "When the boatman saw that I could see it, he raised his voice inexplicably proudly, and a pair of oars were stretched fast, and the boat turned into an arrow from Xuan, and flew as if it were running to some corner of the boundless dark world," and in a few moments, on the left, you should be able to see the smoke of the breakfast prepared by the castle of the Count of Thurgau. ”

The clear water splashed on me, instantly seeping into the fibers lining the chain mail, giving my skin a cold touch and stimulating my sleepy nerves. The wind was blowing, and I involuntarily pulled my scarf upwards to cover half of my face below the tip of my nose, and my eyes narrowed into thin slits, narrowing my vision to a narrow field of vision.

The swaying ships drift with the waves, ushering in the sunrise to send away the morning mist, and the red sun dyes the sparkling Lake Constance into a 10,000-point burning fire, and the ships in front and behind are gradually clear. Nijmegen's mighty fleet stretches from the edge of the lake to the corner of Reichenau Island, and the lineup is quite spectacular.

"It's ...... My fleet, ......" muttered to myself, and I had a strange resonance with Admiral Nimitz, who had led countless ships in the battle at the Battle of Midway—though his fleet was a real beast of steel, and my fleet ...... Forget it, take the boat with peace of mind.

Constance is a "peninsula" surrounded by water on three sides. Connected to the land on the north bank by a stone bridge, the nearest road through the Rhine and the narrowest part of the waterway of Lake Constance, otherwise it would have been necessary to walk around the shore to find a crossing point, so the bishops of the dioceses took advantage of their privileged location to amass a lot of wealth and become a significant force in the vicinity.

When we look at the iconic church spire of Constance. The sun is slowly walking to the center of the sky, shining warmly on the earth. "Did you know that Constance got its name from the Roman Emperor Constantius I, who built a fortress here to resist the Alemannis?" The boatman revealed the nature of the chatter and began to babble with me about the local customs. "Emperor Constantius I, you don't know? Tsk, he was a devout Christian, a great saint, the father of Emperor Constantine, who was said to have married the daughter of the barbarian king of Britain, and then became the new king of the country on the other side, as for him...... "I pressed my temples in anguish, and I couldn't understand how these country people, who had never been far away in their lives, knew everything about the history of the emperor hundreds of years ago."

Constance...... I clenched my fists and stared at the island that was getting closer and closer. The crowded buildings are like hunched beasts ready to pounce at any moment, eyeing mysterious visitors from afar. Its current owner is still the same beer-bellied Father Uriah—oh no. It's "Lord Bishop", right?

Arthur, Jerome, Timothy, Adrian...... The long-forgotten past came back to his mind, "Jerome must be lamented that the bishop that was promised to him was never fulfilled. I whispered to myself, "Anyway, I'm going to see a lot of old people when I come to Constance this time." ”

I think about distraction. A hurried bell pulled back my distant thoughts, "It's the guards who have discovered us." I'm warning the city. "The boatman stops paddling and observes the reaction of the other boats left and right." Do you want to move on, sir? It's time to get into the range of the bow and arrows just a short time ahead. ”

I was silent, but looked carefully at the hurried crowd on the shore, and many soldiers were pouring in from all directions, filling the docks to the brim, and among them there were clearly a large number of archers, "Blow the horn and raise the flag of Nijmegen!" With a simple and clear order, a wyvern battle flag with teeth and claws fluttered in the wind.

"Ah...... Terrible flags......" The boatman opened his mouth wide in surprise, he had never seen a nobleman with the legendary dragon as his coat of arms.

Our fleet approached the dock and was almost completely within range of the archers, but the enemy did not attack, but the team was still in sharp position with their guns and halberds, "Friend or foe?" "I was in a cold sweat on my palms, and it was difficult to determine the intentions of the defenders on the shore.

"Your Excellen......cy," asked the boatman, trembling as he paddled his oars, "Do you want to get closer?" If it's closer, it's time to face each other, and there will be a fight......"

I swallowed and foamed unconsciously, and made a difficult decision: "Raise your shield, get ready for battle, and tell everyone to be vigilant!" ”

I could already see each other's faces clearly, the eyes that were hiding under the helmets and peeping out were full of the same nervousness as ours, the archers looked at each other hesitantly, the bows and arrows in their hands were not loose or loose, this was a man who looked like a commander shouted: "Good day, hospitable friend from Lake Constance, may God's favor be with you and me, I wonder if I can ask your honor's name?" ”

I whispered a hint to Rollo, who got up and replied in understanding: "Good day, friend of Constance, may God bless you, we are the Duke of Nijmegen, please inform us of your identity, or go and ask a noble man of a worthy position in the city to come and answer." ”

"Duke of Nijmegen? How could it be ......" The Konstanz man muttered quietly, and from his expression, the companion next to him clearly had the same idea.

"Why don't you see it, Konstanz? Do you want the noble Duke to stay on the ship like a fisherman? Rollo scolded in a preemptive voice.

"This ......" the man of Constance who answered on the shore couldn't say why, and had to introduce his identity awkwardly, "I am the city guard of the Bishop of Constance, responsible for the security of the city, everyone calls me Modovar of Constance, please forgive me for my rudeness, honorable Duke." ”

"The little city guard?" Rollo's eyelids were disdainful, and he looked like a charter woman with a cigarette in her mouth and a hair perm stick, urging poor tenants who couldn't afford to pay for the house, "Constance is the residence of the Bishop, it stands to reason that the people here should know the rules of advance and retreat, the city defense officer Modova, the merciful lord will forgive your rudeness, but you are not qualified to talk to him, please inform the current Bishop of the news of our arrival." "At least, out of courtesy and respect for a duke, we must remove our soldiers and invite us ashore?" ”

The self-proclaimed Modovar city guard scratched the back of his head in a panic, then waved his hand like a deflated ball, and ordered the soldiers to get out of the way of the dock, "Welcome to Constance, Lord Duke, I will order to inform the Bishop of Uriah and the Count of Basel." ”

Rollo urged the stunned boatman to row the boat to the pier and hold firm, and the attendant who had landed early helped me to stand still, leaving the rickety wooden boat, and stepping on land again felt quite kind. Lukka was in the same boat as my mount, and he brought in a few Nijmegen warriors, who had to make great efforts to "carry" the stubborn horse onto the dock, and Rollo tore off the black cloth that obscured the horse's eyes, and stroked his neck in an attempt to calm it down.

"I'll come." Patting the squire on the shoulder, I took the reins and approached the mount, this guy stared at the master in front of him with his beautiful eyes with long eyelashes, and stared at the master in front of him in shock. I pressed my warm palm against the bridge of the mount's raised nose, the most sensitive area of the mount, and I could feel the mood of my master.

Strange to say, the restless horse was so much calmer that I brushed its mane, leaped up, and said to the dumbfounded, "Take me to the Bishop, Mr. City Guard." ”

"Oh, please...... Come with me, your noble Duke......" replied Modovar of Constance for a moment, unable to relent.

(This period of time has been empty for many days, sorry everyone!) Because it is approaching the end of the year, I have been busy with the two sessions, and I am tired by heavy work, and I have no mood and inspiration at night...... But even so, Europa is still on the potential recommendation list this week, and when I opened it today, I saw that there were so many recommendations without updating myself, which was really ...... Shameful! (To be continued)