When Turiados returned to the mansion, he sent his men and began to prepare with great fanfare.

"This Count of Lothar is a man who knows how to advance and retreat, otherwise if he insists that I send an army to fight with him, I really don't know how to refuse."

Turiados opened his hands and let the maids come forward and take off his heavy robe and replace it with a short robe.

He advised:

"The grain, grass, and baggage he asked for should be prepared as soon as possible, and it is best to send a batch over tomorrow morning to show my sincerity."

"By the way, remember to remind the defenders everywhere to be vigilant, that Count of Lothar is not leading the army of the Empire, but a group of savage Franks.

You should all have heard of the brutality of the Crusaders, don't stop them from marching.

But remember, you must not open the gates and invite them in. ”

After taking care of the matter at hand, Turiados fell asleep.

The sky was just dawning.

An urgent secret letter was sent by messenger to the hands of Turiados, who was still asleep.

He opened the fire paint seal on it, and after only a cursory reading, his eyes widened in disbelief.

The original drowsiness has long been thrown out of the clouds.

"The fleets of the Empire and the Crusaders have been defeated!"

"Defeat to a fleet leased from two Apennine city-states? How is this possible! ”

Turiados felt as if he had been fooled, even if the Imperial fleet was dying, but this time there was also a Crusader fleet to help?

Together, even the fleets of the Venetians or Genoese can be put together, right?

He continued to look down.

His face was blue and white.

A layer of cold sweat broke out on his back.

"Isaac rode a black dragon and spit out fiery dragon flames, which defeated the combined fleet and could only flee far away, and the sea was full of floating corpses"

His heart chuckled.

I just jumped back, and I received this kind of news.

"Father Almighty, is it true that this tyrant Isaac has a destiny, and the empire should continue to be led by the Komnenos royal family?"

His heart was cold.

Isaac was no such thing as a servant monarch, having only ruled Cyprus for a long time before gaining a reputation as a "tyrant".

If the news of his secret agreement with Lothar leaks out... Damn, last night I made such a big fanfare to prepare supplies for the Crusaders, and it was almost inevitable that the news would leak out.

No, I have to remedy it!

A cold glint flashed in Turiados' eyes.

…

The time when Lothar received the message was almost at the same time as Turiados.

He woke up from his sleep and broke out in a cold sweat by the news: "This Isaac actually has a black dragon, Anna, you don't know such important news?" ”

Anna said apologetically, "Isaac is indeed an ordinary person, and I don't know how he managed to tame a sleeping black dragon. ”

"Maybe there are wizards who have taken refuge in him."

"This black dragon is also a fire dragon?"

Lothar asked.

"Well, it's a pterodactyl, and its strength shouldn't be as good as the tyrannosaurus you killed before, but it's not too bad, and when I arrived, I only saw shipwrecks and dead bodies floating on the sea."

Lothar quickly calmed down and asked, "How big is the loss of your fleet?" When will reinforcements arrive? ”

Anna said bitterly: "The Imperial fleet suffered heavy losses, especially a few large ships loaded with Greek fire oil - but the Crusader fleet obviously did not suffer any losses, but they did not want to attack again. ”

"So we're now completely alone?"

Lothar tightened her eyebrows.

"For the time being, that's the case."

Anna's tone was full of apologies, she knew that this would be the outcome, and she should not have advised Lothar to take advantage of the enemy's concentration of ships in northern Cyprus to land.

If we had taken a more secure approach, the most we would have done now would be to withdraw our troops.

Anna was silent for a moment, and then said with some difficulty: "It's really not good, you just let your subordinates surrender, I will compensate for your losses and do my best." ”

Lothar's heart warmed slightly.

He couldn't help but laugh and said, "It's not your fault, you don't need to worry about it, you just made a suggestion, isn't it still me who adopts it?"

Besides, if you persuade me to surrender before you fight, I am still Belisarius? ”

"Huh? You heard me? ”

Lothar chuckled, "What are you kidding, I'm not deaf. All right. That's it, keep me informed when there is news. ”

Hang up the communication.

The smile on Lothar's face faded.

The reason why the Crusader fleet retreated without suffering much damage was simple, on the one hand, the Crusader fleet could not withstand such large losses.

The survival of the Kingdom of Jerusalem to this day is due in large part to the superiority of the Crusader fleet over Saladin's fleet and its dominance of the sea.

Otherwise, the port cities of Jaffa, Acre and other ports will definitely be looted frequently, and the support from the European continent will be even more difficult to reach.

On the other hand.

The chips given by Empress Lagaia were obviously not enough for the two knights to assist.

It's just a fiefdom, if there is not a common enemy, where can the two knights be eye-catching?

In addition, Lothar's relationship with the two major knights is also quite average.

First of all, he poached the younger brother cultivated by the Knights Hospitaller, the Teutonic Knights.

In Jerusalem, there were also falling out with radical knights, including the Templar Order.

But this is also a helpless move, those new to the Holy Land, ambitious knights, both a help and a burden.

He couldn't provoke Saladin endlessly, so what was the difference between him and Renard?

Moreover, even if Raouf's territory is actually captured in the future, at least half of it must be included in its own direct domain, rather than being divided among the knights who have just arrived in the Holy Land in order to meet the interests of all parties.

Otherwise, he would have almost no room for expansion, and going south to deal with the Holy Heir family would be equivalent to slapping the entire Zoroastrian world in the face.

To the east, there is a desert wasteland.

With the strength at hand, when will you be able to take on Egypt's Adil?

Jeanne reminded: "My lord, in this way, Turiados, who originally planned to jump back to our side, is likely to jump back to Isaac's side. ”

"It's not possible, it's certain."

Lothar said in a firm tone, "We only have fourteen hundred, and now the enemy is strong and I am weak—at least, on the surface. ”

Jeanne sighed lightly: "It seems that the logistics supply in the original plan is also gone. ”

"No, it won't. If he doesn't give it, I'll take it myself. ”

Lothar's voice was slightly cold: "Turiados's meeting with me is not a secret matter, Isaac is a tyrant, where can he tolerate a second or fifth boy like him."

To remedy it, he has to do it to us. As long as he does not rely on the fortified fortress and destroys his main forces in the field, Limassol will be in our own hands. ”

Jeanne's eyes lit up.

"After the war, will the territory we have won still be returned to the Eastern Empire?"

"Of course, I'm a man of credibility, but at that point, it's certainly not enough to give me a small town and a few attached castles, I'll want at least half of Cyprus."

Lothar said in a relaxed tone.

Although the Eastern Empire will definitely not give it, it is still necessary to say so.

Only when the offer is made, there is room for bargaining.

It's really not good, we don't want the territory, you can exchange it for gold coins for me.

…

Early morning.

Escorted by the servants of Turiados, the wagons drove into the camp of the crusaders, and the fresh food was immediately cheered on.

Who wants to eat old bread that is dry and hard, and jerky that has no taste at all?

Standing on the hillside waiting, Turiados repeatedly asked, "Are you sure they ate the bread and meat we offered?" ”

"I can't be sure, my lord, because they hadn't eaten when I left."

"But I warned them that the bread and meat that were delivered this time could cause spoilage if not eaten as soon as possible."

"Those miserly Franks will eat them up as soon as possible."

Turiados breathed a sigh of relief: "Act according to the original plan, call up troops from all over the country, and wipe out this lone crusader army as soon as possible." ”

I saw that my master looked gloomy.

The soldier was relieved: "Your Excellency, rest assured, even only a few of us know about the defeat of the enemy's fleet, and they definitely did not expect that His Majesty the Emperor would actually surrender a black dragon." ”

"Yes, that's right!"

Turiados was perked: "They are alone, and it is impossible to get information from the outside world. At this point, you must think that we sincerely want to help. ”

After all, in anyone's opinion, Isaac is a wrecked ship about to sink.

It makes sense that he jumped back to Lothar's side, and it was all right.