The Youngest Prince Of The English Royalty House [EN]: Chapter 181

181. Wolves of the Desert (3)

Charles, the Supreme Commander of the Royal Fleet and Minister of the Navy, silently gazed at the sea.

The waves of the Mediterranean Sea surged. Watching the turbulent sea, he felt certain that the times ahead would not be smooth.

And there, on the sea, floated the Black Dragon, displaying its majestic form.

[I need a new type of warship that will instill fear in the enemy. That’s why I’m going to create a new concept of fleet.]

[Your Majesty, England already has the elite warships Matilda and William.]

[This will be different. This is the Turtle… no, the Black Dragon!]

At the time, Charles couldn’t understand why they needed to build a new warship when they already had the strongest warships like Matilda and William.

But seeing this warship commanding the sea, he understood.

“Large and beautiful. It doesn’t just scare the enemy, it has an ominousness that seems like it will drive them to their deaths. My great liege, King John I, was not wrong.”

The black dragon’s head, armor, and iron spikes.

A warship perfect in every aspect, never allowing enemy boarding, with ramming and shelling capabilities.

Undoubtedly, the Black Dragon was the ultimate weapon that could be utilized on the sea.

-Boom.

The new warship Black Dragon, emitting a roar like a dragon, sank an enemy ship with a single shot.

“The cannon fire is good too.”

“Ugh!”

A Mongolian sailor, using the death of his comrade to approach the ship, was stabbed to death by the iron spikes.

“It made it impossible to get on the deck.”

“Boom!”

The sight of the ram destroying the Mongolian warship.

“The ramming is also innovative.”

Charles, who shed tears when he saw the warships Queen Matilda and King William equipped with cannons in the past, was now drooling instead of crying.

The reason Charles admired the warship Black Dragon, with the dragon’s head, was because he saw a blueprint beyond that warship.

“Admiral, give the order.”

“Same as last time. We must help the special supply arrive safely. Join the reinforced fleet and finish off the enemies!”

“Yes, sir!”

Why does such a formidable warship, like a fortress on the sea, exist? It is to protect the sea.

‘As always, we must deal with the Mongols on the sea.’

Attacking countless Mongolian fleets is certainly difficult, but what can he do? A seal must protect the sea.

Of course, his friends on land might complain that he’s talking nonsense if they heard him. Because the real strength of the Mongols comes from their cavalry.

But Charles was confident. The seasoned admiral, who had survived many crises on the raging waves.

“Lord Godfrey, I am doing my best. So, deliver me an even more plausible victory.”

He cheered for his comrades who were fighting hard on land.

* * *

-Jerusalem Battlefield-

There are invincible forces in this world, but no army is truly ‘invincible’. Currently, the Mongol army was surrounded from several directions, and the siege warfare was now out of the question.

So, the soldiers of the Holy Mongol Empire, which had the strongest army in the world.

“We retreat.”

Were bravely retreating through the encirclement.

-Dududududu.

It was a quick retreat possible because most of them were ‘cavalry’.

“Why are they… ?”

While the Western forces, still believing that the Mongols had more fight left in them, were frozen in suspicion.

Jebe began to retreat in earnest.

“Warriors of the Great Khan, retreat quickly.”

The Western forces would soon realize that they were genuinely retreating.

But Jebe had to have already achieved his original goal by using all means.

It would have been nice to occupy the holy land, but the Mongols’ faith was not that devout. There was no intention to sacrifice soldiers to obtain ‘that holy city of Zion (Jerusalem)’.

But both the Western Allied forces and the Mongol army knew well. That stopping the retreat and succeeding in the retreat were not easy.

In particular, the Western forces, who had suffered so much from the Mongols, had no intention of letting the Mongol bastards go easily.

Godfrey, who had already experienced actual combat by defeating Jebe’s ‘Tumens’ [Mongol military units of 10,000 soldiers] before the arrival of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, ordered.

“We must not let them go alive like this.”

“Attack the rear!”

The English army led by Godfrey began to pursue the enemies fiercely.

-Tadang, tadang.

-Uaaaaaa!

-Boom.

-Charge!

Musketeers, cavalry, longbowmen, pikemen, artillery.

The five forces of England began to attack the rear of the Mongols.

“Let’s go too!”

The Masud army and the Spanish army also helped the English army to destroy the Mongols as much as possible.

But there was a reason why the Mongol’s national title was the Holy Mongol Empire. Their ‘retreat’ was in many ways ‘sacred’.

‘If you don’t let us go easily, there will be no good for you Catholic heretics either.’

Jebe was never a foolish general. He knew that there was no 100 percent safe retreat, and he also knew how to counterattack the enemies during the retreat.

Watching the Mongol army reverse and launch a fierce counterattack while retreating.

“Ha… I knew it.”

Godfrey once again realized the Mongols’ cunning.

Fortunately for the Western forces, Godfrey was a rare commander who had adapted to the Mongols.

Considering the commander of the Polish kingdom, who was ignorant of the Mongols and perished in the original history, it was a great blessing for the Western forces.

Godfrey, who had already learned the elementary course of Mongol Studies through experience, was one of the few people who could ‘formula’ and ‘solve’ the strongest heresy, the Mongols.

He held the baton given by King John I and evaded Jebe’s schemes here and there.

“Left flank evasive maneuver!”

“This place is a trap!”

“Now! Charge!”

“Beware of poison.”

Jebe admired Godfrey’s command.

‘To think there would be such a Westerner.’

Godfrey saw through the Mongols’ despicable tactics and said to his soldiers.

“Sending as many Mongols as possible into the arms of the Lord, that is the mission of us Englishmen.”

-That is right!

Godfrey had a sacred goal. To crush the Mongols in the territories of other countries, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Eastern Roman Empire, and the Kingdom of Poland.

“General, the enemies are surrounding us.”

“The counterattack ends here, we go to the target point as quickly as possible.”

No matter how great Jebe was, and even if the army of the Holy Mongol Empire was a living war machine that had experienced countless battles, they couldn’t help it if there was such a difference in numbers.

Even the army of the Red Dragon Temujin [Genghis Khan] was still ‘people’. There was no Mongol or anything in a gang beating.

Jebe, who had lost more troops than expected, thought.

“Godfrey, England… the problem must have been underestimating you.”

Godfrey, who had been grinding down the Mongols from behind for a while, raised his hand and signaled to end the pursuit as the Mongol cavalry increased their speed.

“Let’s retreat now.”

“Are we not going to defeat them all?”

When the Spanish commander Rodrigo expressed his doubts.

“Any more than that is dangerous.”

“I understand. Let’s do that.”

Since it was a battle led by the English army anyway, Rodrigo readily agreed. The Western forces returned to the royal castle of Jerusalem and greeted Jeffrey I.

“Your Majesty, I am glad you are safe.”

“Godfrey, I didn’t expect to see you again like this.”

‘Am I being saved by this guy?’

Privately, Godfrey was Jeffrey’s half-brother. He was the bastard that Jeffrey despised the most when he was in England.

But now, those old feelings are not important.

Now was a moment of crisis when the strongest heresy, the Mongols, had invaded, and Jeffrey I, the monarch of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, had the common sense to treat the commander who had saved them with care.

“Godfrey, I hope you will forgive the many atrocities I committed in England in the name of the Lord.”

“… There is no need for that. When I decided to support the Kingdom of Jerusalem, I had already forgiven Your Majesty.”

“That’s a relief.”

The sunset was shining red.

* * *

-Papal States, Rome-

‘Ha… Lord.’

Lothaire, a high-ranking clergyman with tremendous power for his age, no, Innocent III [Pope Innocent III], sighed now. The variable of the Mongols was bothering him.

Innocent III, who should have made the famous saying [The Pope is the sun, the Emperor is the moon] according to the original history, was now worried about the protection of Europe, not the power of the Pope.

Of course, the great powers that did not cooperate properly even angered the Pope.

“Ha… do you have any sense?”

“Our Emperor is saddened by that part.”

“Your stubbornness is beyond words.”

“Sigh, then I will call you again later.”

There was nothing to negotiate. The Eastern Roman Empire had become arrogant again, as before, and did not listen. With that, today’s negotiations were over.

A new guest came to the Pope.

“Amiar, the chief administrator of King John I, has requested an audience.”

“That friend…?”

The Pope, who was angry because of the envoy from the Eastern Roman Empire, met a welcome former colleague.

“Your Holiness, it has been a while. I am Amiar, a loyal vassal following King John I.”

“So, what does King John I want to request from me?”

Of course, the Pope, who had experienced all kinds of hardships, did not have the naive idea that King John I would come to see him with pure intentions. He was just curious about what kind of negotiation proposal he had brought.

Then Amiar, the loyal vassal of King John I, said.

“I would like you to clarify the position of the Papal States.”

The Pope, who knew well what the position of the Papal States meant, said with a bitter smile.

“I have already announced that. That they are terrible heretics.”

In the official position of the Church, the expression of being a terrible heresy actually meant that they were worse than pagans.

But Amiar shook his head and said.

“That’s not it. I mean the fact that the small countries of Italy must properly support the Crusades. Except for Venice, there is no country that is properly supporting them, is there?”

“I understand. I will make sure to say that.”

The Pope admitted it. He had to sink the uncooperative countries along with Venice, using the attitude of the small Italian countries as an excuse.

“And there is one more thing.”

“There is one more thing?”

At the Pope’s question, Amiar said politely.

“I would like you to arrange a meeting between the Eastern Roman Empire and England.”

At Amiar’s words, the Pope.

“Huh….”

Pretended to sigh and began to think.

Right now, the envoy from the Eastern Roman Empire is staying in the Papal States.

‘He sent Amiar at a very opportune time.’

Innocent III felt subtle now. Because he had come to a conclusion about what King John I was thinking.

“Since the envoy from the Eastern Roman Empire is in the Vatican, Amiar, you should talk to the Eastern Roman envoy Zeno.”

Some time later, the conversation between Amiar and Zeno continued.

Letters were sent to Rouen and Constantinople.

* * *

-Poland Battlefield-

‘I will protect the Holy Roman Empire. You know the reason why, right?’

Otto IV did not lead the army himself. He only sent a trustworthy commander to the battlefield instead.

However, the Germans did not think of their emperor as a ‘coward’. They understood politically why he did this.

The Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV was different from Emperor Frederick I, who could participate in the Crusades without any worries about domestic politics.

He still did not fully trust the prince-electors and his subordinate nobles, so he prioritized domestic affairs like King John I of England.

Thanks to this, the actual commanders of the army going to defend the Kingdom of Poland were Philip II and Richard I.

The two people who would have foamed at the mouth and interfered with each other in the original history.

“Richard, it’s starting now.”

“I know.”

Because they knew well that the true target of the Holy Mongol Empire’s main force was the Kingdom of Poland.

As in the original history, the main force of the Holy Mongol Empire set Poland as the first target to launch a large-scale invasion. The Western forces marched towards that place.

-Puuuuuuuu.

With a loud trumpet sound.

Far away.

The ‘real’ Mongol army, holding flags with golden crosses and wolves drawn on them, appeared.

‘Damn Mongols, their majesty is amazing.’

Philip II admired the vanguard of countless ‘Antichrists’.

“Ha… interesting. It’s worth leaving John in England and coming out to lead the army myself.”

Richard I, feeling both immense responsibility and thrill, raised the corners of his mouth and said.

Richard, who was staring at the battlefield like that.

Said, holding a large halberd in one hand.

“All troops, charge!”

-Swish.