"If this continues, we will be eaten by this monster before we have recovered the Holy Land!"

Ivan crouched down and looked at the Mamluk warrior in front of him—his chest seemed to have been torn open by the monster, and his dead eyes were filled with fear and horror.

One can imagine what he experienced before he died.

He placed his palm in front of the eyes of the deceased.

There was suppressed anger in Ivan's voice: "I can't go on like this, I have to go see Lord Takiddin." ”

Fulk grabbed Ivan's arm and whispered, "Ivan, don't be impulsive, your current state is not suitable for meeting Lord Takiddin." ”

"Let go, Fulk!"

The anger in Ivan's eyes was almost vigorous: "Senmut is the most loyal warrior under my command, he has saved my life, and more than once, I swear to repay him." ”

"But now, in his own territory, he was killed by a so-called own person."

"But you can't just go to Lord Takiddin, Ivan, you have to understand what is the most important thing as a Mamluk, is loyalty! Instead of questioning, think about how much effort you've put into gaining the trust of adults. ”

Fulk lowered his voice and persuaded, "Don't let these efforts go to waste, I don't think Senmut wants you to be carried away by anger." ”

Ivan was silent.

He rubbed his face, looked around, and scolded a little irritably: "Get back to your respective posts for me, keep your mouths shut, I'll give you an explanation for this matter anyway, but before that, I don't want any strange legends to spread in the camp." ”

"Yes!"

Retire your subordinates.

Ivan sat on the ground a little weakly: "Fulk, I have to admit that you are right, I can't just go to the adults. ”

Fulke said tentatively, "I've heard that the man-eating beast ate more than one person. ”

"Yes, more than one, even more than a dozen."

Ivan stood up: "Brother, help me carry Senmut to the camp, we need to prepare a less shabby funeral for him." ”

Fulk nodded.

None of them suspected that the legend was fake, because monsters like Veneto couldn't eat people more than normal.

This is in line with their perception.

Like a corpse gnawed to death in a circus, the murderer is either a lion or a tiger.

Saladin's Great Camp.

The elderly Saracen monarch raised his calm eyes and asked his most trusted nephew, "Have you found the source of the rumors?" ”

"It's a trader, and when I went to look for him this morning, I found that he had disappeared."

Takidin was a little grumpy.

What's the most vicious thing about the rumors?

It was Saladin who raised a man-eating beast for victory!

This is nothing to Saracen lords like Rauf the Impaler.

But it was definitely a huge blow to Saladin, who had been presenting himself as a moral perfection for many years.

The knights of the Catholic Church paid attention to "chivalry", and the Saracens also emphasized "honesty, self-denial, forgiveness, and kindness".

It is true that Saladin could never be morally perfect.

If a foreigner can quickly enter Egypt and usurp his suzerain, Nur al-Din's Zangi Dynasty, he will become the second ruler of the Zoroastrian world after the Sassanid king.

If such a person were a moral model, Saleh, who was imprisoned in Aleppo, would have been to death.

Saladin was undoubtedly a man.

But after so many years, even if it is a disguise, the value of this pretended image is immeasurable.

As an outsider without a "legal system", Saladin really had to be like the Sassanid king of kings, raising a large number of pagan children and eunuchs in the court, and the dynasty he established by himself may have been in flames by now.

"Oh, merchant."

Saladin couldn't help laughing: "A merchant with such a clever eloquence has fermented rumors to such an extent in just one morning, it seems that my military camp has long been infiltrated into a sieve by the enemy." ”

Tajidin hurriedly said: "My king can rest assured, there will be no problems with the Chinese army camp guarded by the Kasaji Guard. ”

"I never doubted that."

Saladin shook his head, he had been assassinated by Assasin many times, and his personal safety was still very important, and after receiving the help of Master Shermel and other spellcasters, the Chinese army camp where he lived was even more fortified than before.

"Counting the time, Adil should have already started to march, right?"

"Yes, land and water, in a day or two, the Crusaders should have received the news."

Saladin nodded, "Keep an eye on the enemy's movements, and notify me immediately if there is any change." ”

"My king, rumors... Do you want to shut up the people below? ”

"No, you don't."

Saladin shook his head: "The more forbidden things are, the more curious they become, and even if they don't say it, their hearts will be filled with reverie - just like wine, many people are not interested in it, but when it is forbidden to drink alcohol, it becomes the privilege of the upper class to drink the so-called 'fermented grape juice'. ”

There was no sarcasm in Saladin's eyes.

Although he was a devout Zoroastrian in every way.

But for any competent ruler, religion is only a tool.

Tajidin was silent for a while, then nodded: "I have to admit that you are right, in Egypt, many princes and nobles are secretly using pagan customs, they are fond of astrology, alchemy, and some even secretly convert to Copticism. ”

Coptic Christianity is an offshoot of the Eastern Orthodox Church (including the Armenian Apostolic Church), which broke with the Orthodox Church in Constantinople 600 years ago and is still widely present in Egypt and Abyssinian in the south.

The Saracens, or Arabs, did not force the conversion of the pagans, which was the consistent practice of Zoroastrianism, and in fact many Saracen lords were not happy with the pagan converts.

This means that they can no longer levy the Unbeliever Tax (an additional tax on infidels).

But this does not include the ruling class.

"So, don't care about some gossip, all conspiracies and tricks always seem so insignificant in the face of the grand trend."

Saladin was calm.

As long as he can win this battle and recapture the Holy Land, he is the uncrowned king of the entire Zoroastrian world, more qualified to rule the entire Zoroastrian world than the empty Sassanid king.

If you lose.

No.

"This time, I'm not going to lose."

Saladin silently walked out of the tent, and the Nubian slaves behind him immediately held up their large umbrellas and followed him respectfully.

"Takiddin, prepare a detachment of men, and I'll personally patrol the camp."

He rolled over and jumped onto his horse, his expression grim.

All the while, he didn't intend to ask Master Shermel if this was Torle's doing.

Eighty percent not.

The remaining two percent, even if they are, can't be.

Torre didn't know what had happened last night, he was living in a tent outside the dragon circle.

It was an open space with an extremely large area, and Coors was afraid that he would be smelled by the Karelian dragon, so he didn't approach it at all.

At this time.

With a flattering smile on his face, Turle placed a whole sheep in front of the Karelian fire dragon.

The dragon from the far north lazily opened its eyelids, then quickly closed them again, spewing out two sulfur-scented smoldering smoke from its nostrils.

Toller immediately understood, and opened his mouth to spew out orange dragon flames.

It's just that the temperature of Long Yan is probably not high, and after a few minutes, the whole sheep was roasted half-baked.

The dragon opened its mouth, and its python-like tongue swept the sheep into its mouth, swallowing it into its stomach in a single bite - the Karelian dragon's appetite was so great that it had to be asleep for most of the year.

In fact, although this kind of dragon has a short temper, it has a rather homely personality, and will not leave its territory easily, if it does not have this habit, it is afraid that even the stones in its territory will be gnawed clean by it.

This is to experience the cleverness of Anna raising a sea dragon.

Although it has been difficult for fishermen near the Sea of Marmara to catch big fish since Anna raised the sea dragon Niko, at least Niko can hunt on its own and not become a gold-swallowing monster like the fire dragon in front of her.

There is also far more food to feed the stomach on the seabed than on land.

Even fire dragons often dive into the sea to eat, and have good swimming skills.

Torle stretched out his hand and tentatively touched the scale armor of the fire dragon, and when he saw that it was not angry, he couldn't help but feel a little joy in his heart.

The blood of the Karelian dragon was the source of his strength, so he had developed a special bond with the dragon from that time on.

To be more precise, it's more like a one-sided licking dog, and the little the dragon treats him, he will feel heartily happy.

This is one of the reasons why Master Shermel is willing to entrust his companion to Torle.

It's only Tuerle, who will change his ways to find a way to make it happy.

"That's him!"

"Hurry up and run when you put things down!"

In the distance, there was a whisper.

Toller looked back with some confusion.

But they found that it was the servants who were transporting the livestock, and when they saw that Tolle had seen him, they did not care about any etiquette, and pushed the cart forward, and then quickly turned and ran away as if they had seen a ghost.

"A bunch of cowards."

Torle snorted coldly: "How can a lowly human appreciate the beauty of a dragon. ”

He looked at the half-asleep fire dragon again, his eyes were full of reverence, and he began to busily transport the cattle and sheep in the truckload, and roasted them one by one with dragon fire, and piled them up in front of the dragon—this took a lot of effort on his part, his dragon flame was not only low in temperature, close in distance, but also limited in endurance.

But perhaps because of the unique sulfur smell of the Karelian fire dragon, the fire dragon still has a good mouthful.

What could he do?

Of course, it's petting (licking) it!

…

In the barracks of Lothar.

"Saladin's back hand is coming."

Lothar held the coat of arms in his hand, opposite Andreas, and could vaguely hear Muller's impassioned pre-war speech.

The attack on the port of Al Ella was expected to happen.

Saladin's fleet in Egypt, although mainly concentrated in the north, the lords of Yemen, Hashem and other places were all Saladin's vassals.

It was not difficult for Saladin to assemble a fleet to attack the port of Ella.

Besides, Renard can sail on dry land, and there is no reason why Adil can't do it.

It's just that he can't help much now, and can only hope that the firepower of the Siegfried Towers is strong enough, the town guard and militia are brave enough, and the enemy is weak enough after being weakened by Captain Hogg.

As soon as Andreas finished cheering him up, a new newsletter arrived.

Opposite was Cellinina's voice.

"My lord, Adil has attacked."

"Where are you now?"

"I've left Gaza and I'm ready to infiltrate the enemy camp."

Lothar frowned, "Have you confirmed the target?" ”

"Not yet, that's what I'm going to do next."

"Be careful, Nina. The Shadow of Darkness is weak in Egypt and cannot help you, and you are at the forefront of your own safety. ”

Lothar told him that Cellynina was undoubtedly stronger than Cools's almost perfect stealth ability, but when it came to stealth, he really didn't have much confidence.

And the spellcasters of this world have a variety of strange methods, even if they have the weakness of blocking magic gold, they are still not so easy to deal with.

"I know."

The voice on the other side was calm, and no emotion could be heard.

"Flynn misses you so much."

"Me too."

The other side was silent for a moment, and then said: "I miss you too, please rest assured, I will go back safely." ”

Hang up the communication.

"I miss you too, tsk, it's so sweet."

Anna's teasing voice followed.

If you want to get through the communication, you have to relay it from her, and you can't hide any important news from her.

Lothar said helplessly: "Okay, I'm not in the mood to joke with you, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to help." ”

"You're welcome, I can't help you fight, but it's okay to transfer a communication. If you lose the battle, remember to come to me, and I will arrange a powerful official title for you. ”

Lothar couldn't help but laugh and said, "Don't worry, I will definitely do it." ”

"Then look up to Her Highness Anna, and your Majesty the Empress."

"Uh-huh."

"If it's okay..."

Anna suddenly remembered something, and said angrily: "Wait, remember to take care of Nishaya for me, I told this stupid girl not to go to war with you." ”

Lothar nodded, "Don't worry, I'll keep her safe." ”

This time, the communication was completely cut off.

Lothar sat down in her chair, let out a sigh of relief, gathered her thoughts, and walked out of the camp.

There's a second duel today.

It's just that compared to the upcoming war in Gaza and Port Eyra, it's a joke.

"Presumably Saladin is also waiting for news."

Lothar's expression was solemn, and the confrontation on the frontal battlefield was a process in which the two sides continued to release their weights on a scale.

If Gaza or the port of Ayla were breached, the crusaders' morale would be shaken.

The vassals of Transjordan and the soldiers would urge him to lead his troops back and rescue the territory.

But it is absolutely impossible for Raymond and the others to sit idly by and watch him leave.

The result could only be a compromise between the two sides, and a decisive battle with the Saracen army on the opposite side as soon as possible, and then the whole army returned to support after victory.

But when the two sides confronted each other, which side was in a hurry first, and which side lost the first move.

Even if Lothar is not in a hurry, he is willing to give up his territory.

The soldiers' morale will also be shaken.

People worry about whether the Holy Land or their hometown will be attacked.

Don't forget, the gateway to Gaza is only a two-day march from Jerusalem.