"Is there Rügen ahead?" Robert put down his monoculars and asked with his right hand pointing forward.

"Ahead of us are a number of small islands around Rügen, the largest of which is Hidenset, which can serve as cover for our landing." Otto lowered his binoculars as well and replied, pointing to the largest island ahead.

"Robert, I have a plan I need your help with." Otto spoke.

"Brother, no matter what you command, I am naturally duty-bound!" Robert said excitedly with his chest on his face.

"That's right, Robert, I need you to take a fleet and some of your soldiers to the west to harass Rostock, Visma, and Mecklenburg, and make it look like our army is going to land in Rostock and attract the attention of the enemy.

I will lead the remaining main force along the island of Rügen and land at the port of Garz behind it.

When I have landed on Rügen with the main force, you will immediately land in the city of Stralsund with your partial division, occupy and hold on to this wrong city, and serve as a bridgehead for our army's advance to land. Otto nodded slightly, ordered the two attendants to spread out the map in the captain's room, and pointed his horsewhip in his right hand at Rostock and Rügen.

Stralsund is a city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, bordering the East China Sea, not far from the Polish border and by the Baltic Sea.

Stralsund was a bustling trading city with a glorious era of trading centers dating back to the Middle Ages, and after gaining the right to become a city, it formed a powerful Hanseatic alliance with other Baltic cities, including Lübeck, Wisma and Rostock.

Stralsund's sailing voyages to Russia, Scandinavia and Western Europe, bringing with them French wine, Norwegian cod and Russian furs, are a true reflection of the city.

Although Stralsund did not usher in its most glorious era, its role as a center of Baltic trade was already beginning to emerge, and it was valued by William and Otto for its role as the gateway to Rügen.

"Yes, my brother, I will lead 3,000 troops and 100 warships to attack!" Robert said in a sonorous voice.

"Wait, your mission is heavy, you can't afford to lose, it's not safe to rely on only 3,000 troops. I will take a thousand men from the Nordic Guards, and send you the eighteen hundred men of Albert, Duke of Gwynness, so that you have nearly six thousand soldiers and more than three hundred ships, and I can rest assured. Otto stretched out his hand to stop Robert, who was about to leave, and said solemnly.

"Brother, don't you believe in my abilities?" Robert was a little puzzled and couldn't help but feel a little dissatisfied in his heart.

"I'm doing this for your own good, Robert, the more soldiers you have, the more likely you can accomplish great things, don't you want your reputation to be sung in the Norman kingdom?" Otto said earnestly.

"Brother, then just send me a thousand Nordic Guards, and the Germanic boy (Albert, Duke of Gwynness) will be spared." Robotake nodded his head to show that he understood Otto's painstaking efforts, and took a step back.

The Norse Guards were a mercenary force formed by William with captured Norse Vikings after he defeated King Swain II of Denmark and the Norwegians at the Battle of Stamford Bridge.

Known for their toughness and strategy, this mercenary fought with William against the armies of Holy Rome in the early days of its establishment, and later fought in England, Spain, and Scotland.

After several expansions, the Nordic Guard has expanded from about 2,000 people to more than 6,000 now, a whole small army.

The 3,000-strong Nordic Guard, led by Otto and Robert, is a Norse Guard Thor's Brigade deployed in England, and is known for its heavy axes and large shields.

"Albert, Duke of Gwynness, is indigenous to this place after all, and can facilitate you in terms of terrain and language." Otto explained, and then said in a combination of different refusals: "This is the order, Robert!" ”

"Yes, brother." Robert didn't disobey his brother's thoughts, and readily agreed.

This unprecedentedly large fleet of more than 23,000 soldiers and nearly 1,000 ships hid between the Öresund Strait between the islands of Zealand and Rügen, using the islands to hide their tracks.

Soon after, a detachment of 6,000 men and 300 ships sailed mightily to Rostock in the guise of a main fleet, while another main fleet led by Odo emerged from between the islands after Robert's detachment and advanced slowly against the coast of Rügen.

Rügen is surrounded by shelters where you can hide the traces of the fleet, there are countless bays of all sizes, either cliffs or flat sandy beaches, and Steubenkalmer in the northeast corner of the island is a densely wooded uninhabited area, so as long as you sail along the strait near Stralsund, you don't have to worry about being spotted.

The large main fleet, guided by local guides familiar with the terrain, made its way around the Shabé Spit and the Vito Peninsula in the north of Rügen, and turned south against the narrow Hyde Spit and the Jasmond Peninsula in the northeast, passing through the Chudal Peninsula and the Menchgut Peninsula in the south, and not far away was the port of Garz, the destination of Odo.

The port of Garz, one of the ports of call on the Baltic Sea trade route, is not as well-developed as Stralsund, but it is far better than the deserted fishing villages, with at least a few trestle bridges built at the mouth of the river for boats.

In the port of Gartz, neither the inhabitants nor the trading ships that docked here were aware of the approach of the Norman fleet, and by the time they realized it was too late.

The Norman main fleet consisted of three large new gunboats to provide fire cover for the landing, and twelve mosquito ships with small boats and cannons to provide fire support, while the rest of the old Kirk ships, Viking longships and other ships rushed to the port of Gartz like tigers descending from the mountains.

Knock knock... Knock knock...

With a loud thunderous sound, polished stone projectiles flew out of the muzzle of the cannon and shot at the target with a sharp whistling sound.

Before they could enter the port fortress, the local soldiers who were about to hold on looked at the cannonballs from far and near, looking at its seemingly slow approach, as if they wanted to raise their hands to help it, but before they could react, stone bullets were like thunder and lightning from God, quickly and forcefully destroying the only small port fortress superstructure.

After only two rounds of shelling, the defenses of Galz Port were in disarray, and the defenders of the fortress had long since been crushed into pulp by the collapsed towers, and the rest fled in fear.

The Normans landed and occupied the port of Gartz without the slightest resistance, and began to load and unload the ships of the fleet, the soldiers and war materiel, and of course, the precious horses, which the Norman knights relied on for their galloping fields.