Drawing Cards in the Middle Ages to Rise in Ranks

Upon hearing Losa’s almost "accusatory" questioning, the two kings’ expressions turned slightly cold, and neither spoke.

Raymond, seeing Leopold about to speak, hurriedly said:

"Your Majesty, the number of troops besieging Holmes is increasing daily. The surrounding fortresses and villages have been completely eradicated, and the prospects for the crusade are unprecedentedly good. But you also know, the northern territories of the Kingdom are narrow and barren, unable to sustain the supplies needed for so many troops, which is why we have yet to breach Holmes."

This isn’t exactly a lie, just a case of sidestepping the truth.

After all, they had seized considerable supplies from the towns and villages around Holmes, and the failure to breach Holmes City wasn’t due to a lack of supplies.

"Your Majesty, there are other reasons."

Leopold gave Raymond a sidelong glance and snorted coldly: "The Military Council is unjust in its dealings, seeking personal gain for their factions, and prioritizing the distribution of spoils and materials to their own troops. My subordinates, along with those Germanic Crusaders fighting in the Holy Land, can’t even fill their stomachs. They even forcibly requisitioned many Germanic knights’ steeds, humiliating them by saying they deserved to march with the infantry. It is this unfair treatment that kills my soldiers’ fighting spirit."

Raymond was inwardly furious, thinking he had already explained much, yet this bumpkin from Austria still dared to accuse him?

Does he find glory in harboring thugs and watching internal strife unfold?

Losa’s brows furrowed slightly, as he had, of course, long heard of these matters.

In the Holy Land, Gaul nobles and knights were the absolute mainstay, and the vast majority of the Kingdom of Jerusalem’s nobility were Gauls.

This also caused Germanic nobility, knights, and even ordinary pilgrims to consistently receive inferior treatment compared to the Gauls.

For example, the Hospital Knight Order and the Templar Order, founded by Gauls, would preferentially treat Gaul compatriots when caring for the sick, which led to the formation of the Teutonic Order by disgruntled Germanic knights.

This doesn’t exactly count as ethnic conflict, as national consciousness had not yet formed in this era.

At its root, it’s essentially a regional factional conflict.

Gaul nobles, having long established a system of primogeniture, had stable inheritances and formed strong family ties. Being interconnected by blood, they formed noble alliances that even gave the King of Gaul, Philip, a headache.

Germanic nobles faced frequent internal strife due to the multitude of states and complex inheritance laws, making familial unity difficult. Though their numbers rivaled the Gaul Crusaders, they lacked quality and cohesion, naturally causing them to be oppressed.

Raymond coldly glanced at Leopold and spoke, pleading his case:

"Your Majesty, such situations arise due to the difficulty in supplying the army. After all, servants are not saints like you; personal interests may cause favoritism towards close vassals and nobles, but it isn’t to the extent that they can’t even fill their bellies. By contrast, last night, Lord Leopold committed an unforgivable crime!"

"What happened?"

"My men witnessed Lord Leopold turning a blind eye as a Germanic soldier incited a horrifying internal conflict, causing the loss of over a dozen knights and noble lords. Camp items, arms, and supplies were completely plundered. And those criminals, guilty of such an unforgivable crime, were sheltered by Lord Leopold, who not only didn’t apprehend them but also shut the camp gates, forbidding our military judges from entering."

"Your Majesty, here’s what actually happened."

Leopold hurriedly explained: "A few days ago, three commanders were negligent during their nightly patrols, allowing several hundred of Saladin’s cavalry into Holmes City."

This matter could be considered either major or minor. After all, with such a large Crusader siege camp, the Saracens had never launched a night raid before. Some complacency after such a long time is not surprising.

However, if pursued strictly, it wouldn’t be an excessive punishment to bind these three commanders to the gallows.

"Following that, these three were bound to the stocks, which wouldn’t have been an issue, but then some knights from neighboring camps appeared..."

Leopold faithfully recounted the trigger and specific events leading to the conflict.

"In reality, this is a conspiracy by Saracen spies. That Bohemian Germanic man, sold into Saladin’s court in his early teens, disguises himself so perfectly."

"Who knows if what you say is true?"

"The witness is still imprisoned."

"A witness who has taken your magic potion—wouldn’t getting him to say anything be a simple matter for you?"

Losa’s expression turned slightly cold. This was what monarchs of this era had to face daily—mediating disputes among squabbling vassals, hearing their mutual accusations.

Others might delight in the discord among vassals, but he had no interest in such things.

"Lord Raymond, I understand if you distrust Leopold, but do you also distrust me?"

Losa’s tone deepened: "Everyone knows that the Saracens call us Franks, and the Greeks call us Latins. Whether we are Franks or Latins, overseas, we are one whole entity. The Saracens won’t spare anyone just because you’re from Gaul or Germania."

"We come from different families and regions, but now we all stand under the Crusade banner, casting aside all titles and fighting overseas as Christians. I will investigate the reason for this internal strife thoroughly and give each side a fair account, but I absolutely do not wish for such things to happen again!"

"The Military Council is a good institution, allowing every side to express their voice, but only having three members is too few."

Losa extended five fingers.

"To expand to five members?"

Raymond breathed a slight sigh of relief, his greatest fear being Losa directly abolishing the Military Council.

Losa shook his head and said: "At the very least, it needs to expand to five hundred members. In Alexandria, I founded the institution of a three-tier parliament, with craftsmen, hired workers, and peasants constituting the third tier, workshop owners and affluent merchants as the second, and nobles and clergy as the first tier. Each tier has the right to voice their own concerns, minimizing internal friction."

In reality, the three-tier parliament was still in preparation, but that didn’t stop Losa from discussing it here.

Philip’s expression shifted slightly; the so-called three-tier parliament did sound intriguing.

Taking the monarch out of the equation, placing them above nobles and clergy as an arbiter.

However, the problem lies in the fact that Gaul is still largely rural, and even with efforts to support a civic class, it couldn’t compete with the large land-owning feudal lords.

He reconsidered and found the idea to be broadly applicable.

While he was contemplating how to learn, Richard, on the other hand, was already angry: "Your Majesty Losa, do you intend to turn the Military Council into a marketplace? With five hundred people gathered together, we wouldn’t have time for anything but arguing every day."

Losa shook his head: "Your Majesty Richard, I didn’t intend for the Military Council to become a decision-making body."

He pointed to his own head: "In the Holy Land, there is only one Commander-in-Chief for all the Crusaders—the sacred King of Jerusalem."

He raised his voice and continued: "The Military Council need only provide me with advice, nothing more. All orders must come from my mouth, and disobedience will not be lightly tolerated."

As soon as his words fell, a melodious dragon roar echoed through the sky.

The Three-headed Demon Dragon, hidden among the clouds, slowly revealed its form, its slender body like a whale swimming in the ocean.

"Are you trying to intimidate me?"

Richard’s eyes narrowed slightly, glinting with a dangerous light.

"Your Majesty, this is not a threat; considering we’ve already had a rather successful cooperation, using a single success to guide the future, what’s wrong with that?"

Losa chuckled lightly.

Richard was an arrogant and self-important man, but even at his most arrogant and self-important, he had once taken orders under Losa when he was the Grand Marshal of the Crusade. Once is often followed by another, Losa didn’t believe Richard would really break ties over this matter.

Of course, if he does, even better.