Drawing Cards in the Middle Ages to Rise in Ranks-Chapter 660 - 431: Philip

"Your Majesty, you have arrived."

Urding was still dressed in that simple bishop's robe, followed by his deputy, a leper wrapped tightly in clothes. This person also came from a noble family and, after contracting the disease, was sent to a monastery outside Jerusalem City that specifically took in lepers.

Upon hearing of Urding's deeds, he made his way to the Crusader front and became Urding's follower.

There were quite a few lepers in the Saint Lazarus Order. Though leprosy was seen by the world as God's curse, in reality, the disease was not easily contracted. It primarily affected young children, the elderly, and others with weakened immunity.

Baldwin IV nodded slightly, "Lord Urding, how is Losa doing now? Are even you at a loss?"

"The lord's injury is not on his body but on his soul."

Urding sighed softly, "A ghostly dragon with divinity is struggling for control of the lord's body. Their souls are like two people wrestling on the ground, indistinguishable from one another, and this matter is beyond my ability."

It's not only he who feels powerless; even Prajna, once the Gatekeeper of Hell and an expert on the soul level, would only be able to ensure that only the ghost dragon's soul is scorched without harming Losa by turning herself into hellfire.

Baldwin asked in return, "Divinity?"

"Indeed, the enemy's caster possesses a powerful divine artifact that enhances the rank of this ghostly being. Simply put, the lord is currently fighting a ghost god on the soul level."

Godfrey felt dizzy listening to this, as if hearing a mythological story.

That younger generation, whom he watched come to the Holy Land and make a great career, is now fighting a ghost god?

The little witch had some understanding and asked, "How long can Duke Losa hold on? My teacher is held up by Tancred's mistress and cannot come for a while. If we have another month, my teacher will surely be able to help."

Anna is the Guardian of the Eastern Empire. She inherently comes from the Eastern Empire's imperial family and is more deeply entwined with her affiliated power than other casters. She cannot leave the empire's forces fighting against the "false king" Tancred in Sicily to heal Losa.

Urding shook his head, "We have already communicated with Lady Anna. She has instructed her apprentices and other association's casters to consult materials in the Empire Library, but for now, distant water cannot quench immediate thirst. A dispute on the soul level, which seems like a day to us, may have already lasted for years inside, and it's unlikely to be of any use."

Nishaya sighed, "The mysteries of Soul Science are truly too profound, often driving people crazy if mishandled. Even my teacher's research on it is superficial."

Baldwin IV frowned and asked, "Do none of the ladies have a solution?"

Urding shook his head, "Of course there is, Lady Prajna assured that the lord will be safe, Your Majesty can rest at ease. But... such an outcome may not be what the lord desires. God gives and God takes away, everything is God's will."

Baldwin IV breathed a sigh of relief. He nodded, "Losa has made such contributions for the cause of the Heavenly Father, and surely the Heavenly Father will bless such a devout warrior."

"Your Majesty, you're traveling wearily. Please rest in the bedroom. Have you been taking your medicine on time during this period?"

The medicine concocted before departure was done with his knowledge of herbalism in collaboration with the little witch. Though it still couldn't completely cure leprosy, maintaining the status quo was achievable.

Leprosy, after all, is a bacterial disease. Enhancing the body's immunity may not eradicate it, but controlling the disease is not an issue.

Baldwin IV frowned, "What exactly is Losa's situation now? Can he be visited?"

Urding shook his head, "Visiting is useless, it would only add to worries. You have to trust the ladies' affection for our lord, they will undoubtedly spare no effort, holding nothing back."

Baldwin's frown loosened, "Very well."

...

Lord Saman was in a foul mood lately.

With hands behind his back, he paced the room incessantly, muttering, "Those Franks are simply a bunch of uncivilized savages, and the two kings among them are the worst scoundrels. Richard demands I supply horses, and Philip has forcibly taken my estate, demanding military provisions. Each one is like this, do they truly think I'm a weak and easily bullied servant?"

"When Governor Adil enters the city, I'll have them hanged personally. I'll show them the consequences of offending the descendants of Bahram."

Since the two kings arrived at Semanude, the humiliation Lord Saman suffered exceeded even that given by Losa.

He now greatly missed the time under Governor Mahri's rule, when he was almost like half the City Lord of Semanude, the Hidden Monarch behind Mahri.

"Now that the demon duke remains behind closed doors, likely not fully recovered, while the various Crusaders openly and covertly contend with each other without unity, as long as Adil sends people to attack the city and our men capture a gate, the Crusaders are sure to be defeated!"

He muttered to himself.

"Master, there's a secret letter from outside."

A personal servant cautiously handed over a roll of paper wrapped in a wooden tube.

"Quickly, let me see!"

He took the secret letter and gave it a rough glance, his expression immediately turning gloomy.

His fingers trembled continuously as they clutched the secret letter, murmuring to himself, "I knew it, I knew it!"

"Master, what's wrong?"

Master Saman sighed deeply, coldly laughing, "Previously, I only thought that the Demon Duke, the King of Gaul, and the King of Albion were all just a group of robbers who seized by force, but I never imagined that these Kurdish savages could be so abhorrent!"

In the letter, Adil demanded that he no longer just use rumors to sow discord among the three factions of the Crusaders, but to truly deploy assassins to kill the Crusader Princes and frame their enemies.

The danger of such a task was self-evident.

Even if he did it cleanly and left no trace, the Crusaders would still never let him go.

Master Saman had good reason to believe that even if he didn't do it, and the Crusader Lords were really at odds internally, Philip or Richard would very much want to pin this blame on him.

"Damn Kurdish savages!"

Saman muttered lowly and cursed, the Franks are like evil wolves, and Adil is a hyena, all are cannibals that leave no bones!

Master Saman tried hard to calm his inner fury, and in a low voice said, "Pass on my command, after nightfall tonight, take all portable valuables, we retreat to Tunis!"

Under his command were two pirate fleets, their sailors were once his serfs and confidants, loyal and trustworthy, and now they were Master Saman's only way out.

As for assassinating the Crusader nobles and inciting their infighting, he never planned to do that!

...

But some things will happen even if he doesn't do them. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Reynard of Satinon violently plunged the sword into the chest of the last assassin before him, splattering blood across his face. As payment for serving Philip, he received a bottle of the Storm Rider's magic potion, as the name suggests, it enabled his sword to be as swift as the gale.

That's why he was able to survive this long-planned assassination.

He drew the dagger from his waist and severed the head of the assassin, evidently a European, holding it high, allowing the flowing blood to rain upon his own face.

"I'm right here, who wants to kill me? Who wants to kill the king of the Dead Sea, the greatest Crusader Knight?"

"Come on!"

He roared thunderously, like a furious deity drenched in blood.

"Who wants to kill me! Step out!"

The Crusaders who were gathering around looked at each other in surprise, seeing Reynard standing amidst dozens of corpses, among them his guards and attacking assassins, everyone was acutely aware—a major incident had occurred!

As a former leading figure of the Empress Faction, the Crusader Prince second to Raymond of Tripoli in Jerusalem, though he'd become more dormant since the meteoric rise of Duke Losa.

But a thin but still large camel losing a piece of its direct territory, just one place like Hebron.

As far as the eye could see in the entire Crusade, with thousands of troops, he was a significant figure.

An assassination attempt of such a person, with the assassins all as Franks, was exceedingly delicate amid the two opposing Crusader factions.

"Reynard!"

The crowd parted, and a young king clothed in blue with golden fleur-de-lis, the greatest Augustus, Philip II, lightly grasped the hilt of his sword, walked slowly towards him.

Ignoring the guards' obstruction, he went straight to Reynard, extending his hand.

"Your Majesty!"

Frenzied Reynard was stunned for a moment and quickly knelt, performing the kiss-hand ceremony.

He was fully aware of the kind of power and finesse the King of Gaul possessed; Reynard, despite his madness, was not a fool. He knew precisely whose coattails to cling to regain his lands and even further himself to gain a substantial fiefdom in Egypt.

"Lord Reynard, please trust me, I will not let a vile assassin roam free, but currently, it is the critical junction with the Heretics, under the Heavenly Father's watch, we must downplay the issue."

Philip helped Reynard up, whispering softly.

He indeed did not believe Richard would do such a thing; he was a proud madman who wouldn't resort to such underhanded tricks to eliminate his most reliable arm in the Holy Land, but it didn't mean he wouldn't use this incident to accuse Richard.

He pondered how to exploit Reynard's assassination for his greatest gain.

Philip suddenly leapt onto a nearby table, extremely agile despite being fully armed, lacking in commanding skills but not at all short in personal martial prowess.