Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War

During the march, Orville rode at the front of the army, accompanied by Rollo and Cu Chulainn, two of the most powerful guards.

He was listening to Rollo and Cu Chulainn chatting about cultural concepts.

"We Norse people worship ravens very much, because our great god Odin uses ravens as his messengers. He keeps two ravens named Fugin and Muni. Ravens are the incarnation and eyes and ears of our gods. Having ravens means the great god's attention. Warriors who feel that they are being paid attention to by the gods will naturally fight bravely.

In addition, we also use ravens to explore the land. There is a sailor in our tribe named Floki who has the ability to tame ravens. He will release ravens in different directions at regular intervals on the sea. If the ravens in a certain direction do not come back, it means that there is land in that direction. Land represents wealth and food. I don't need to say more about the rest."

Rollo was happy to share his experience and knowledge. He was not worried that the Celts or Romans would learn from him. Just a few words of chat were fine, but it was very difficult to do it in reality. Orville and Cu Chulainn just listened for fun.

Cu Chulainn did not get furious when he heard about the looting. If he was so narrow-minded, he would not deserve to be called a hero. Instead, he chatted with Rollo with great interest. In ancient times, it was difficult to meet even a foreigner, let alone a foreigner from thousands of kilometers away. Even if Cu Chulainn met him, the only way for the two sides to communicate was through axes and long swords. Now, the opportunity to have a calm conversation is actually rare.

"We Celts think that ravens are a very bad symbol, because they will entrench around the soldiers who died on the battlefield and peck at their bodies. In addition, their color is too gloomy. We regard ravens as the incarnation of ominousness, the incarnation and messenger of the goddess of death Morrigan. It seems that there is a big difference in our thoughts between the two places."

Rollo laughed heartily in response: "Haha, maybe it's because the gods who bless us are different."

The two of them were just chatting and didn't care. But Orville felt subtle when listening to them - he knew that the image of Irish ravens in later generations was not good. To some extent, the Vikings' raven flag exerted some influence. Plunderers and robbers prefer this flag. It would be strange if the corresponding raven's image in the folk could be improved.

Just as he was complaining, a small group of cavalry galloped up to him and presented a letter respectfully. The wax seal should be something from Gaul.

Orville took the letter and opened it immediately. Sure enough, it was something written by Tia.

She first praised Orville for doing a good job in the letter and successfully solved the problem of the Kingdom of Wessex, but at the same time, she also conveyed very bad information.

After the news of the Roman invasion of the British Isles reached the Frankish Kingdom, it naturally caused strong dissatisfaction among the Franks, and they did have good reasons to be so dissatisfied.

After all, the princess of the Carolingian royal family married to Wessex and gave birth to Astolfo, the nominal prince of Wessex. The alliance between the two sides has never been dissolved. Now the Romans are attacking their allies without any reason and openly, which is a slap in their face.

Now it is June, and it will be harvested soon. The war is difficult, and it is not convenient for the Franks to organize an army to confront the Romans again, so they can only use diplomatic protests and verbal insults.

Although the Franks' army mainly recruited light infantry, they also had many elite warriors who could leave their jobs. These warriors were mainly cavalry. Although they were not as good as the knights in the Middle Ages, they were excellent cavalry in various ways. The Romans gave them many praises when they hired them. They were brave in combat, of high quality, and in large numbers. It can be said that this was the most powerful cavalry force in the world north of the Mediterranean.

On the one hand, it was to contain Orwell, and on the other hand, it was to make a gesture. Tiya had received relevant news that the Franks had gathered a cavalry to cross the English Channel to support the local Anglo-Saxons.

It was obvious that Orwell had to deal with many more enemies now, but he was not worried. In his original plan, he was going to fight with the Franks. The only accident was that he did not have a decent sailor. There was nothing he could do about it. It was acceptable for the Romans to have an accident on the sea. After all, it was not the first time.

He hooked his hands at his servants, and they skillfully lifted a large military map from the carriage and slowly unfolded it in front of Orwell.

His eyes swept across England, and finally stopped at a familiar place: "Send a message to the captains of each legion, inform them that the Franks have now joined the war, and let them be cautious. At the same time, the marching plan will proceed as usual, and we will arrive at the gates of London within five days."

The guards nodded and immediately dispersed to report the situation.

Orville still felt uneasy, so he immediately recruited a team of signal soldiers and asked them to pass the message to the cavalry commander, increasing the patrol intensity while being alert to the German cavalry that might appear at any time.

According to his idea, the enemy army supported by the Franks should become more confident and radical. Not to mention actively seeking a decisive battle with him, but it is certain that they will be more relaxed in their fighting style. In this case, they can only capture the enemy's resistance center first to avoid more trouble.

——

With the Franks joining the war, the level of the entire war was once again magnified. The original definition should be a small-scale conquest war of Britain by the Romans, but now it has become a game and struggle between the Roman Empire and the emerging Frankish Kingdom.

While preparing to send troops across the sea to support their German cousins, the Franks were not idle on the European continent, constantly provoking the Romans on the border. Obviously, the Carolingian royal family wanted to prove that they were not afraid of the current conquerors, the Romans. This was a prerequisite for the Frankish royal family to settle down. They must be strong enough to represent the fundamental interests of many Franks.

Faced with this blatant contempt for the authority of the empire, the Romans could not remain silent and quickly responded.

Now the Danube Legion has been replaced and reorganized into a new German Legion with some new recruits. Their military chief is not a mediocre person, but a full-fledged violent military talent. Under his leadership, the garrisoned Romans and the Franks had a high-intensity military friction. Both sides had wins and losses. If you have to say it, the Romans are slightly better, after all, the size and military advantages are there.