Early morning.

In the garden of the Hebron House.

The spring water is murmuring.

Dressed in baggy linen and armed with a glittering crosssword, Lothar was opposite Cellina with twin blades in her hands.

His steps moved slightly, as swift as thunder.

The flickering silver light seemed to cut through the air, and it slashed down at Cellynina.

Swords collide.

There is a crisp sound of metal colliding.

Celinina defended but did not retreat, allowing Lothar's offensive to be as swift as a storm, and not to overtake her defenses.

Long.

Lothar gasped, took two steps back, and returned the shining cross sword into a necklace and tied it up.

He reached out and wiped his sweat and gasped, "Don't fight, Chelinina, are you sure you've suppressed your speed to the same level as me?" ”

Cellina said respectfully, "Yes, my lord. ”

"That's frustrating."

Lothar said helplessly.

Although the swordsmanship expertise that comes with the Shining Cross Sword is quite extraordinary, enough for Lothar to rely on it to make a name for a sword master, it is still a cut short compared to Cellinina's swordsmanship.

At this time, the maid with wheat-colored skin handed over the towel and said very respectfully:

"My lord, there is a group of knights who claim to be the 'Knights of St. Mary's Hospitaller of Germany in Jerusalem' who want to be summoned by you."

Lothar was stunned for a moment before she realized that this should be the Teutonic Knights, which had just been officially established.

Until now, they had been part of a loose hospital organization and were not considered formal congregations.

"What are the Teutonic Knights coming to me for?"

Lothar was a little surprised, because he had not had much contact with these Germanic knights before, and in fact, he had hardly met them in Jerusalem.

Compared to the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller, the Teutonic Knights had a very short start, and their power was much weaker, concentrated in the northern part of the kingdom.

"You can't be looking for me, are you?"

Lothar was a little wary.

The Germanic people were poor, and compared to Gaul, which seemed to be the chosen land, thousands of miles of fertile land, Germania was definitely a rotten land - of course, rotten was also relative.

If only the area of arable land is discussed, what is under the hands of him, the "tsar", is the real rotten land.

But if trade is included, Lothar's territory is far superior to the former.

This is why Emperor Henry attached so much importance to this era, because of the prosperity of Mediterranean trade, and the prosperous city-states of North Apennine.

He needs money bags on the Apennines.

Otherwise, he, as an emperor, would not be as wealthy as the kings of Albion and Gaul.

Lothar simply wiped her sweat and commanded:

"Let them in."

Previously, when the Teutonic Knights did not have a Grand Master, he also had the idea of supporting Hans to be the Grand Master of the Order.

Not anymore.

He had the Order of St. Lazarus, and his own people, whom he had cultivated, must have been more obedient and better managed than the Teutonic Knights.

The Order of St. Lazarus is now fully integrated into the administrative system of Lothar, and every territory of Lothar has physicians from the Order of St. Lazarus.

Lothar changed her clothes and went to the parlour.

As a result of the raid on the castle, the dragon's head stored there was also moved here and placed above his seat, flanked by the Jerusalem cross and the double-headed eagle.

The Teutonic knights, dressed in black cross robes on a white background, looked with awe at Lothar, the lord of the Holy Land, who had recently become famous in the Holy Land.

"Lord Count."

Seeing Lothar appear, they saluted and greeted each other.

Lothar waved her hand and frowned, "Hello, who should I talk to?" ”

A knight saluted Lothar respectfully: "Good day, honorable Earl, I am Heberland from Bremen, and I am temporarily elected Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights. ”

At this time, there were no winged helmets or horned helmets worn by Hans, and barrel helmets belonged to the mainstream.

So outwardly, the Grand Master of Heberland, that is, he wore a white cloak more than his companions.

"Good day, Grand Master Heberland, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Heberland's face was bitter: "Your Excellency, you must also know that our Germanic knights did not have a good time in the Holy Land, not only the territory was barren, but also the Gallic and Albion knights were ostracized. ”

"Haven't His Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Pope reconciled?"

Lothar doesn't have a good match.

In the Holy Land, it is clear that the Gallic family is stronger, with Raynald of Chatillon, Baldwin IV of Anjou, and Count Raymond of Toulouse.

These were all nobles of Gallic or Albion origin.

Albion also belonged to the Gallic family in the strict sense of the word.

Richard the Lionheart of the House of Anjou, though based in London, had always considered Gaul to be his most important domain, and French was the dominant language in his court.

The Teutonic Knights, who were latecomers, were ostracized, in part because they still openly declared their allegiance to Emperor Henry and were given several fiefdoms in North Apennine.

Partly because, as latecomers, their rise to prominence was bound to touch the status of the Knights Hospitaller and the Knights Templar.

Although the former supported the Teutonic Knights, a young brother, and wanted them to help fight against the increasingly powerful Templar Order, he had no intention of being on their footing.

Heberland's face was gloomy: "Your Excellency, you should know very well that although Your Majesty was originally reconciled with His Majesty the Pope, after he punished the rebellious Apennine city-states, the relationship between them became tense again. There are even rumors that His Majesty the Pope is going to excommunicate His Majesty. ”

Lothar frowned: "Grand Master Heberland, I don't care about the current situation in the continent, so let's tell me what you mean." ”

Heberland did not hesitate any longer, and said bluntly: "Lord Earl, we hope to be able to fight for you, as long as you are willing to promise us a place to live after the war. ”

Lothar felt a headache.

Before he could make a move on Rauf's territory, he had already booked several territories.

The second son of those great nobles said that he was canonized as an edict knight, and if he sealed it, he would seal it out, and the meat would rot in the pot, and he would not lose it.

But the Teutonic Knights, as the lord of one faction, Lothar certainly couldn't canonize its Grand Master as his own Imperial Knight.

Seeing Lothar frowning, she was silent.

Heberland hurriedly said: "Your Excellency, you must believe that our Germanic brothers, although they are not as equipped as those Gauls, are definitely the bravest and most devout Christian warriors, and we will be the sharpest spear and sword in your hands to use for you, to open up the territory and punish the infidels." ”

Lothar said casually: "When it comes to bravery, my hussars are the bravest and most fearless knights in the Holy Land, and the two knights of the Temple and the Hospital are not as good as the two knights. ”

At this time, the Germanic people were not known for their bravery and good fighting.

It is widely believed that the Gallic knights were far more virtuous than the ignorant and poor Germans, and the jokes of later generations were worthy of the name during World War II.

Heberland opened his mouth to argue, but he couldn't.

Because before, they also participated in the Northern Expedition led by Raymond, but they didn't have any good records at all.

Compared with the two major knight orders in the same industry, there is no advantage at all.

There was a hint of pleading on Heberland's face: "Our territory in Acre is barren and small, and it is simply not able to accommodate more and more of our Germanic brothers. ”

"For the sake of our fellow Germanic brothers, Lord Count, we are fed up with the days when we are ostracized in battle, and even the banners are thrown to the ground and trampled on by the Gauls, and the wounds of our wounds are infested with maggots, and we will not be treated."

Lothar was silent for a long time, and finally spoke: "Admittedly, I don't mind accepting you, but Grand Master Heberland, you have to tell me, in what capacity did you stay in my domain?" ”

"If it's just a mercenary, I will pay for a fief."

"I'm sorry, I can't accept it."

Heberland was slightly stunned, and then realized that Lothar's problem was to the heart of everything.

The Teutonic Knights were still nominally loyal to Emperor Henry.

Moreover, they sought to obtain the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller, which belonged directly to His Majesty the Pope and were granted tax exemptions, which could be called a state within a state.

That is, once they gain a territory, they do not become vassals of Lothar and do not have to fulfill any feudal obligations.

"That's the crux of the matter, Grand Master Heberland, I don't need a mercenary group for the time being, because my enemies have been weakened to the point where I can easily destroy them whenever I want."

"Unless, if you are willing to join me in the future to attack Egypt, then it will be a very difficult war, and the enemy will be very different."

Lothar's tone was slight: "Can you wait?" ”

Heberland was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, my lord, if I had waited until then, I am afraid that the order would have been forced to dissolve due to poverty. ”

"So, neither of us can accept such conditions, Grand Master Heberland."

The Teutonic knights who gathered around Heberland were a little angry.

"Lord Earl, this is for the sacred cause of the Heavenly Father, and you were also a vassal of Your Majesty, shouldn't you contribute your own strength for Your Majesty and for the Germanic brothers?"

Lothar sneered, "I have fought a lot more heretics than you, and besides, I am now a vassal of His Majesty Baldwin. ”

Someone couldn't hold back the anger in his heart, and said: "Count Lothar, I also heard that you have a reputation for being generous, but I didn't expect to be so stingy, could it be that you have been in this city for a long time, and you have the miserliness of Jews in your blood?" ”

When Heberland heard this, his face changed greatly: "Shut up, bastard." ”

Lothar chuckled, "Knight, before you speak, I want you to think carefully about the consequences and what the price of offending a Frontier Count will be. ”

He put away his smile, and the majesty in his eyes made the knight take several steps back as if he had seen a dragon, and sat down on the ground.

"Otherwise, I wouldn't mind ordering my guard officer to throw her gloves at you."

Behind the curtain.

Cellynina's figure appeared like a ghost, her twin swords snapping out of their sheaths and striking at the throats of the disobedient.

Heberland glanced at the outrageous fool and said respectfully, "I beg your pardon for our offense. ”

Lothar waved her hand, not interested.

"Grand Master Heberland, my bottom line is that I will be the supreme commander of the Teutonic Knights, that is, the post of Grand Master, and you will be reappointed commander and swear allegiance to me, otherwise, I will not be able to accept your request."

Grand Master Heberland was silent for a moment, then replied, "We need time to think about it. ”

Lothar stretched out an arm and said in a deep voice, "Please, I'm waiting for your arrival at any time." ”

"May Heavenly Father bless you, great protector of the Holy Land."

"May Heavenly Father bless you, holy knights."

Lothar looked at Hyberland's back with a sneer on her face.

The Hungarians brought in the help of the Teutonic Knights to fight the Cumans, and the cooperation between the two sides soon broke down when the Teutonic Knights wanted to establish a state within a state in Hungary.

The Poles introduced the Teutonic Knights, wanting to deal with the infidels, but they also lured the wolves into the house, which gave rise to the "Teutonic Knights State" and even the later Kingdom of Prussia.

The stalk of "no waves" originated from the three countries of Prussia, Austria and Russia, which carved up Poland.

Although the Teutonic Order is now larger and more powerful than the Order of St. Lazarus, it is because the latter was established late.

In time.

Lothar believed that the Order of the Redemption of St. Lazarus would be no worse than the Teutonic Knights.

(End of chapter)