Klose did bring back an ironclad ship.

In the face of the invasion of the Serpents, Klose gathered some of his fellow villagers to form a force of more than 300 people, and Count Guderian, who followed Metenheim, participated in the battle to defend his hometown, and it did not take much effort to kill the invading Serpents.

And that ironclad ship was the ship that Klose boarded when he participated in this battle.

In late September, Klose returned to Pander with his troops—he was returning to the port of Terrin, because he was going to return the grain ships to Governor Keros.

Ironclads are indeed not suitable for long-distance voyages, mainly because the draft is relatively deep, the hull is relatively heavy, and the acceleration and steering are relatively slow.

It's fine to sail normally, but when you encounter relatively large winds and waves, you don't seem to be flexible enough, and you can basically only resist hard.

Since the sails are erected higher and more often than ordinary boats, the sails will be slower to close, and it is easy to lose power due to broken masts in high winds.

At the same time, the ship's side is relatively high, and there are no holes in the ironclad hull, so it can't use oars - if something really happens, it's just a large floating object.

But if you act with a couple of ocean-going sailing ships, it's not a big problem - you can't really tow it.

It's just that Klose's luck has never been very good, and as soon as he arrived at the Imperial Harbor, his troops were trapped inside.

Because the Snake Worship Sect happened to besiege the Emperor Lingang at this time.

Originally, they could still get out through the port, but the problem was that the Serpent Cult also seemed to have a fleet coming to find food......

As a result, the huge ironclad ship was blocked inside.

But fortunately, it was the ironclad ships that blocked the harbor, and if it weren't for the help of the Metenheim men to defend the city, maybe the port would have been captured......

The fleet was a bit strange, they had been wandering the coast, but they hadn't attacked the port, and it seemed a bit like waiting for the Serpentarians on land to fight and the defenders of the port of Dilingang were defeated.

In order to keep the ironclad ship and to be able to see the lord alive, the Mertenheim men naturally did not force a breakthrough, but helped the Emperor Lingang to block the attack of the snake worshippers.

In fact, this ironclad ship was a souvenir given to Leon by the people of Mertenheim, and even the coat of arms on the bow and sails were griffins - a gift from Count Guderian to Leon to express his gratitude.

Moreover, this is a national gift.

Frederic's position as a diplomatic envoy was echoed by Count Guderian, who now sees Leon as an equal monarch on behalf of Metenheim.

After all, Leon helped the people of Mettenheim get the most suitable grain seeds, and also sent them the experts who are most needed at the moment who are proficient in agriculture and water conservancy.

Of course, revenge is also necessary.

After the Serpent Cult army abandoned the siege and headed north, the Mertenheim Men set out to take revenge by killing the fleet that had kept them in Dilin for months.

With no enemy attacking from land, the entire Imperial Harbor forces were free, and they joined forces with the Mettenheims to rush to the harbor.

And the group of guys who were fishing saw that the situation was not right and immediately ran away.

The Mettenheim climbed aboard the ironclad and rushed out of the harbor in pursuit, but the strange group of fellows had already run west, and the ironclad was too slow to catch up.

Klose then pursued the fleet westward, but the ship was halfway through when they encountered a strong wind and lost track of the enemy.

In order to avoid any problems with the ironclad ship, they retreated in time before the wind and waves became stronger, stopped the ship at the port of Dilin, and then chased after it by land—because the people of the port told them that there was only one abandoned and uninhabited fishing port in the west, Serindil, which could stop the ship, and the people of the snake cult must have run this way.

"But I don't think those guys are these undead...... They were still fishing, so these undead don't eat fish. ”

Klose looked at the soldiers who were searching for the stranded ships and shook his head, "We didn't expect you to be here. ”

"Wait...... That fleet was fishing in the port of Dilin? ”

Leon frowned and beckoned to the former serpent priestess not far away: "Alyssa! Come here...... Can you eat fish in snake worship? ”

"Shh......h The teachings of the Serpent Worship Sect do not allow the eating of meat, and fish is also meat, and we do not eat it, otherwise the goddess will condemn it...... Hiss...... However, there are relatively few types of vegetables in Pande Continent. ”

Alyssa confirms that the Serpent Cult is indeed vegetarian, and complains about Pande's food.

"That's when you've never really been hungry, and you'll eat anything when you're hungry...... However, since the Snake Worship Sect has not fished much for more than a hundred years, it means that there should be more fish around the Amara Continent, how could this group of people come to Dilin Harbor to fish? And...... Now that they have broken their abstinence from eating fish, what famine are they afraid of? They have boats and people, so it shouldn't be difficult to get some catch on the continent of Amara! ”

The lord spread out his hand.

Yes, there are many inhabitants of the port of Dilin, and the offshore waters have been fished for a long time, and the catch is certainly not as good as the port under the control of the snake worship sect on the Amara continent, which has never fished.

Since I came here specifically to get food, even if I had to fish for a living because I didn't get food, I shouldn't be fishing in Dilingang, wouldn't it be better to come directly to Serindil?

There is no one in this place, and it used to be the most abundant place in the whole of Pande, and since those 'snake worshippers' will flee here, they should also know this place.

"Your Excellency, do you mean that they are not Serpent worshippers?"

Wendy understood everything on the side, and there must be something wrong with this group of people.

"It's not certain whether those people are snake worshippers, but they certainly aren't from the Amara continent......"

The lord turned to Klose, "Have you seen the faces of those people?" ”

"No, we didn't actually have any head-to-head combat with them. They seem to have been avoiding the fight...... I don't feel like they're snake worshippers either. ”

Klose thought for a moment and added, "But their ships do look similar to those broken ships over there." ”

The ships that ran aground in the sea were the ships of the Dreadcorps, and they were indeed quite broken, and even the sails were much broken.

But this is a composite ship with oars, and the undead who will not be tired are estimated to be quite powerful when they row their oars, and probably having sails without sails will have little effect on the Dreadcorps.

"My lord, what about these boats and those horses? The ships were quite broken, and in many places they were rotten wood, and they were basically scrapped. And those horses...... Not listening, and it looks scary. ”

Jocelyn came over and interrupted the lord's conversation with his old men.

Some of the horses in the underworld are still 'alive', but all of them have been wandering around the beach since they lost their owners, and their bodies can be seen through their dark horse armor.

It's just that they may have been well-trained war horses before they died, but they didn't attack people at will.

Jocelyn tried to ride it, but then it turned out that it was pointless—the horses couldn't be driven because they didn't react to anything.

They can't be controlled, they can't be taken away, and they don't react even if they are slashed with a knife - they obviously can't be used as mounts.

"Let the wounded stay here, dismantle their horse armor, and send them where they belong...... Don't worry about the broken boats, we don't have much time, we have to rush to Fidenne and assemble in three hours! ”

Lord Lord waved for Jocelyn to hurry up.

Justes looked at Klose and walked over.

Klose...... I have to thank you for helping to keep the Imperial Harbor ......."

Justes was indeed grateful quite sincerely, and he had to thank this friendly force on behalf of Bacchus.

"You're welcome, Governor, in fact, even without us, the general who raised pigs in Emperor Lingang would probably be able to hold it...... Besides, we have received help from Dilingang, so it is appropriate to help Dilingang. ”

Klose did not take credit for it, and they used the ocean-going ships that Governor Kairos had found from the port of Dilin to bring back the grain seeds, although this was the result of Leon's manufacture, but the people of Mettenheim, who had a clear grudge, were also willing to help the port.

However, Justes did care about Klose's other words: "The general who raises pigs? Who's that? ”

With what Justus knew about the nobles in the Imperial Harbor, no one could be called a general.

With Carlos and his troops out of the Ringing Harbor all the time, Justes wondered who was holding the city - a general who could hold on to the city despite the siege of tens of thousands of Serpent Cult troops, unless it was Agaton or Creon, Justes couldn't think of anyone else who had the ability and guts.

"His name is Ivaylo, and he seems to have been a serf...... Pig breeding. ”

Klose scratched his scalp: "Well, of course, I think he should be a general by now." ”

When an empire encounters a life-and-death crisis, it will always produce some unpredictable heroes.

There is such a one in Dilingang.

This is a man who lives in an unnamed village next to the port of Dilin, and in the past years he was nothing more than a serf who no one paid attention to, living in a pigsty every day.

Before the Serpent Cult's army attacked the Emperor's Haven, Ivaylo had been quietly raising and killing pigs, supplying meat to his master's family.

Speaking of which, his master was probably the kinder among the slave owners - even though Ivaylo had frequent access to valuable meat, he still didn't let him wear a collar.

Of course, this is mainly due to the fact that Ivaylo has proven his character and loyalty with years of loyalty and honesty - well, in other words, it's actually because everyone thinks Ivaylo is a fool.

In fact, this pig boy has been the object of constant teasing since he was a child.

Commoners and others who were also serfs would have fun with him - he seemed to be born with thick flesh and was not afraid of pain, so he was usually slow to react, and he was not very angry.

This kind of serf, who has strength and temper, naturally does not need to be locked up.

If life had continued like this, perhaps Ivaylo would have kept pigs until he died.

However, after the arrival of the Serpent army, everything changed.

His master, the local tribune, fled as soon as he heard the news.

As he ran, he also shoved the shoulder strap and a short sword that represented the status of the tribun into Ivaylo's hand......

To be honest, Ivaylo certainly wanted to run for his life, but his master gave him a golden opportunity.

"Iva is recruiting militia troops in Dilingang, if you take a few militiamen to Dilingang as a tribune, you will be free from now on and you can become a nobleman!"

These were the words of his master, the true tribune, as he was leaving.

It is clear that his master was neither willing to participate in the battle, nor to be considered a deserter by the Empire......

Protectors have an obligation to protect the local people, and desertion without a fight is a typical act of desertion. Desertion is one of the largest crimes in the Bacchus Empire, and if discovered by the consuls, they are usually reduced to slavery - and the consul of the Empire is the Governor of Kairos, who despises deserters the most.

So the tribune threw Ivaylo there to fill the number, and he slipped away......

I don't know if it's because Ivaylo is unresponsive or because he longs for freedom, but anyway, he did take a few serfs into the port of Dilin, became a member of the hastily formed defenders of the port of Dilin, and became a squad leader as a tribune.

Then, it all got a little magical......

No one expected that Emperor Lingang would face an army of tens of thousands of worshippers.

After a week of siege by the Serpent Cult army, the city's acting consul disappeared for no apparent reason.

Subsequently, the administrative officer and his successor were killed in battle, and several lieutenants who led the troops were also killed in battle.

And most of the nobles in the city had already run away long before the siege...... And the other small lords around the Emperor's Harbor basically all took refuge in the Snake Worship Sect.

At the end of September, Ivaylo was surprised to find that his squad leader had become the only person who had the status of a civil protector among the people guarding the Emperor's Harbor!

In normal times, the tribune of a small village is just a small official the size of a sesame mung bean.

But now, all the militia units defending the city have even expressed their willingness to obey his command at present!

In the entire Emperor Lingang, there are no more nobles!

It's really not clear how to say talent, but Ivaylo has adapted to the days of guarding the city with the militia every day in a short period of time.

Maybe it was the effect of killing pigs every day in the past, Ivaylo was quite calm when he killed people, plus he wasn't very angry in the first place, and he was a little wooden - all this can only be called stupid and stupid on a serf who raises pigs; But if it is placed on a general who leads the troops, it will look extremely calm and majestic!

So this serf quickly became the backbone of all the militia, and as long as Ivaylo did not show fear, the militia seemed to be undaunted.

Fortunately, the nobles were in a hurry, and Emperor Lingang left a huge amount of food and materials, basically lacking nothing, as long as the will to fight was enough, it could indeed hold out for a long time.

Moreover, Ivaylo was lucky enough to meet the troops brought by Klose.

The ironclad held off attacks from the harbor, and the fierce Mettenheim helped him hold out in the toughest defensive battles.

Two months later, the offensive of the Snake Cult slowed down, and Ivaylo, in the past few months of actual combat, has really become a general who can lead troops.

"A serf who raised pigs...... actually guarded the most important gateway for the empire, and all the nobles turned out to be ...... Alas......"

Justes let out a long sigh.

"Lord Governor, you should know more about it in Bozhi City...... Most of the time, the aristocracy is just a matter of trouble. ”

Leon shook his head: "The Bacchus Empire is actually quite good, at least the tribune who ran away still knows how to find a serf to make up the numbers...... At least he was still afraid of the decree. ”

Justes sighed again: "Perhaps, the reform will have to be deepened a little more. ”

……

While the Lord was confronted by the Python Knights of the Dreaded Legion, and the village of Ziza, just across a bay from Serindil, Emperor Marius was also in the midst of a bitter battle.

The situation he faced was even more difficult than that of the lords—Emperor Marius was facing Maltius and two hundred horned vipers.

Although the number is indeed small, the elite level of the enemy is far from being comparable to that of the Monty Python Knight.

Moreover, the number of troops brought by Emperor Marius was also small.

Unlike the decaying and decaying undead like the Monty Python Knight, the Horned Viper Vanguard doesn't look like an undead army at all.

All of them have skin like congealed cream, and the red lips and chins exposed under the half-covered helmets are very attractive, and they all seem to look like fairies.

Yes, they.

These are two hundred women......

Or rather, these are two hundred female elves.

Aside from the sinister hint of evil in their scarlet eyes, these Horned Viper Pioneers looked no different from the living.

The same goes for Maltis.

They still possess nimble and powerful martial arts, and their agile skills seem to be completely unaffected.

If it weren't for the fact that they were indeed undead, Emperor Marius would have thought that he was fighting against a particularly powerful group of living elves.

Perhaps only the mighty Noldor Twilight Knight has the fighting power of the Horned Viper Vanguard...... However, the entire Noldor group alone could not make up a hundred Twilight Knights.

But here, there are 200 horned viper pioneers......

The Imperial knights under Emperor Marius were nearly dead and wounded after a few faces.

Fortunately, Agathon saw the opportunity quickly, and dragged Emperor Marius to run, and finally ran away.

The Imperial knights desperately held off the enemy for a while, and the Emperor's immediate guards were indeed all loyal.

Perhaps Emperor Marius was lucky, and after killing the soldiers who had stayed behind to stop the enemy, Maltis did not pursue, but turned his head to look at the sea.

Emperor Marius and Agathon, who had already run away, did not see that several broken warships on the sea were blown by the wind and waves to the village of Ziza.

And those who disembarked from the battleship were not snake worshippers, but some burly men with different equipment.

It looks like a bunch of Mettenheim, but they all look unkempt.

After seeing Maltis, the big man with messy hair and beard in the lead was obviously stunned: "Priest of the Serpent Sect? There aren't many of them! Kill them! ”