When the stone ball was blocked by the two "protectors", hundreds of Siena soldiers on the turret simultaneously let out a sigh of regret.

The trebuchet on the city wall is indeed a special product made in France, and the price is very, very special. In order to buy it, each of the 40,000 Siena residents, regardless of age or sex, had to pay more than half a silver thaler.

.

Although it was an ally, France still paid a full 28,000 thalers before selling this sharp weapon to the Republic of Siena.

The triangular city has three turrets, each with a large platform on top, and each with such a giant trebuchet on top.

In addition to the trebuchet itself, there are also installation and training costs, which are of course a rip-off. The Republic of Siena spent a total of more than 90,000 thalers, which is the fiscal revenue of the Republic of Siena for two full years. Half of this money will be paid first.

, the other half is a military loan from the Kingdom of France, with a total cycle of fifty years. The Republic of Siena just started to repay the principal last year, which means that with interest, it will take until thirty years to fully repay it.

Such a huge expense can give the experienced old Colonna and Medici Cardinal a "surprise".

Of course, such accurate shooting requires sophisticated weapons and training alone to not be enough.

You must know that even though there is a very sophisticated pressure relief device designed by Lao Tan Shure, the reaction force of throwing stones will still exert great pressure on the trebuchet. The more powerful the trebuchet, the greater the reaction force it will bear.

No matter how well-trained the soldiers are and how careful they are in operation, too many high-intensity throws will quickly cause the trebuchet to collapse. The grease required for maintenance and the rubber bands to be replaced are all high-end goods from France, even if they are wealthy.

It is impossible for Italian city-states to conduct too high-intensity training.

In fact, it's more of a work of magic.

The guards of each turret are confidant generals of the Petrucci family, the consul of Siena, and have the power to report directly to the consul.

After discovering this meeting, the guard of the turret immediately went to the Consul's Palace to report the news. The son-in-law of the Petrucci family, a thirteenth-level mage specializing in prophecy, came immediately. It was precisely because of his blessing that the seven

Only with the advanced prophecy magic "Tan Shuer Advanced Aiming Technique" can the trebuchet have such amazing miraculous effects.

This is a classic work that talks about the extraordinary genius of the Shures and their powerful combination of machinery and magic.

"Zhenguo" Lao Tan Shuer has been immersed in war machinery for more than fifty years before he can create such a masterpiece.

And the seventh-level magic itself "Tan Shuer Advanced Aiming Technique" was specially invented by Lao Tan Shuer's son and another "Zhenguo" Xiao Tan Shuer for this tactic.

Unfortunately, it was still a little short of the mark and failed to create a glorious example in the history of war.

This disappointed the soldiers on the corner tower, but they were only disappointed.

This is not the case for prophecy mages and high-ranking generals. If they miss, it can be said to be very disappointing.

They were scared. Although the other party immediately terminated the meeting and ran away in confusion, there were five people in the meeting and five people running away. No one was unable to move.

Although they could not afford the kind of high-intensity training predicted by Old Colonna, they still conducted enough test firings after buying this trebuchet. The place where Ladislaus and the others held their meeting was basically the maximum effective range.

Even with the help of magic, it would be difficult to hit at this distance. It was only because the prophecy mage had specially marked that distance with several red flash stones that he was able to deliver this incredibly accurate blow.

The prophecy mages and generals knew very well that the power of this stone ball was indeed as promised by Lao Tanshur in his promotion: "Even ordinary warriors who protect the country cannot withstand this blow, and even if they don't die, they will lose half their lives."

"

Although it is difficult to see clearly from a distance, there is no doubt that this boulder touched more than one person.

However, none of the enemies fell. This can only mean that the opponent either has a top "Guo Guo", perhaps close to a "legendary" existence, or there are at least two "Guo Guo" among those five people.

No matter what the situation is, the Republic of Siena will be in trouble.

This is the feeling of His Excellency Bishop Yeyou-Fei, or more accurately Mr. Yeyou-Fei, who technically no longer has any ecclesiastical position.

He was also expelled from the church.

Ever since he broke up with Ladislaus, Yeyou-Fei had been looking forward to his brother getting the support of the Habsburg family to ensure his position. However, his brother and his guards never returned, never to return.

information.

The news that followed was confusing and complicated, with all kinds of rumors flying all over the sky. The final conclusion was that he had killed a cardinal he had never met. The Republic of Florence and the Ecclesiastical State of Rome marched from north to south, sending tens of thousands of troops to come.

Punish the murderer severely".

Although this kind of political trick was cruel, Jeyu-Fei had nothing to complain about. He did kill a new bishop who came to replace him.

Although they lost their church position, the Fei family was still deeply rooted in Siena, and thousands of his private soldiers gathered in the city of Siena at this time, making them a quite powerful force.

What's even more ironic is that the enemies who were once enemies due to disputes over interests have become friends again, and he is now also a guest of the consul Petrucci family.

Petrucci and the Fei family, old rivals who sometimes cooperated and sometimes competed, once again united to keep warm despite the approaching foreign enemies.

This time, Yeyou-Fei came to ask for a larger site for his private soldiers. The original church could not accommodate the eight-town joint insurance team that shrunk in from the countryside. Although Yulin-Fei died, the Fei family still wanted to

The control of this armed force is quite effective, and this part of the force has not been lost. New peripheral members of the family have been inserted into it.

Although the elected Pope and Medici Cardinal claimed that this crusade was to punish Jeyu-Fei, the real target was undoubtedly the Republic of Siena, as the consul family with the greatest interests in the Republic of Siena

He and the accused Fei family are now truly the most trustworthy allies of each other, and these two families are the most threatened.

It was for this reason that Consul Petrucci asked his son-in-law to express his judgment in his presence.

After hearing his son-in-law's judgment, Consul Petrucci also frowned. The Republic of Siena did not even have a "Guardian". No matter whether the other party was an extremely powerful person or two "Guardians", they would protect it.

In urban battles, it poses a great threat to defenders.

However, he still showed the magnanimity of a leader and said to the junior Yeyou Fei who was pale with fear: "Nephew Yeyou, don't worry, the food in the city is enough to supply the entire city's residents for half a year. We will organize this time

There are more than 4,000 garrison troops, and the French army is in Milan. Once the French army starts to threaten the Republic of Florence, they will be in trouble."

Yeyou-Fei, who reluctantly nodded, responded: "When you concentrated your wealth on city defense, I had some doubts. Now it seems that thanks to your foresight. Regarding the Kingdom of France, I have some suggestions, Your Highness the Consul,

The enemy is camped in the northeast and south respectively. Should we reopen the gate to the west? The enemy has not captured the port area. We may be able to rely on the sea to ask for help from the Kingdom of France."

You are really stupid. You have to say that I made all the arrangements before sealing the door with stones. Bishop Fei was also considered a man at that time. How come the sons he gave birth to were not as good as the other? Even though he was very despicable in his heart, Petrucci

The consul still said: "My nephew and I have the same view. I have sent several envoys to ask for help from the Kingdom of France by land and sea." Looking at the younger generation who was still very worried, he decided to encourage him again.

"In addition to the trebuchets, I also ordered twelve revolving crossbows from the Kingdom of France last year. They arrived last month. The accompanying French engineers have assembled them. They can all be mounted on the city wall tonight. This kind of

The giant crossbow is lighter than the trebuchet and can be maneuvered on the city wall. No matter which direction the enemy attacks, they will be met with unexpectedly powerful firepower."

"This is great. I fully believe that under your wise leadership, we will defeat the invaders. I have to go to inspect the troops, so I'll take my leave first."

"Okay, it's very important for the soldiers on the city wall to see more nobles. Please, I will find a way to meet your request. We can't let the soldiers not even have a place to sleep."

After asking the housekeeper to send Yeyou Fei away, the consul looked at his mage son-in-law, who was not much younger than him, and said angrily: "I asked you to speak directly to show your kindness. Just say whatever you want to fool me.

Why did you tell him such bad news?"

The thirteenth-level prophecy mage, Alberto Masarani, is fifty-one years old. Of course, he is not that old for a thirteenth-level mage, but compared to the Archon’s twenty-four-year-old daughter,

He is really not young anymore, so even though he is getting married for the first time and Miss Archon is getting married for the second time, he has nothing to complain about.

The life of Alberto Masarani can be regarded as a very classic inspirational story. More than thirty years ago, Alberto, a boy from the countryside in Naples who did not even have a last name, gained the insight of a wild magician who happened to pass by.

Being introduced to the gate of the arcane world.

Alberto showed more talent than his teacher and soon became an official mage.

After his teacher realized his talent, he actively planned his life for him, hoping to find a noble family that could support Alberto to move up the ladder. It was not difficult for a young formal mage to find a noble lady as his wife.

.

But this peaceful life was eventually broken by the invasion of France.

Although this wild mage had no extraordinary talents and had never received any benefits worth mentioning from the country, he was a staunch Neapolitan patriot and participated very enthusiastically in the guerrilla war against the French occupying forces.

Relying on wit and luck, he was just a fourth-level mage, and he and his apprentice Alberto killed dozens of French soldiers in a few years.

But when luck finally ran out, this great teacher died gloriously in a battle with the French invaders.

The captured apprentice Alberto chose to surrender in disgrace.

Alberto, who did not even know the surname of the Naples royal family, successfully passed the political secret investigation of the Kingdom of France and was confirmed to have "no patriotism and was just deceived."

This cannot be entirely his fault. Before becoming a mage, the little boy Alberto, who only knew that the owner of the village was a knight, and did not even know that he was from Naples, really had no idea about his motherland.

In the next thirty years of his life, he worked for his former enemies while learning magic. Lao Tanshur would often answer some questions for mages who had no apprenticeship. Relying on this opportunity, Alberto gradually touched the magic.

The seventh layer of the network.

Although he did not inherit his teacher's patriotic spirit, Alberto Masarani was not a heartless person, and he never forgot his kindness to this teacher.

Although this teacher was not of a high level, and like all other wild mages, he only knew about a dozen magics in total, and the time he spent with him was not long, this teacher gave Alberto Masarani a chance in life.

In order to express his feelings for this teacher, Alberto Masarani inherited his surname and determined to build a new family in memory of his teacher.

Although the Kingdom of France has given him appropriate treatment over the years, he has always felt that he is an Italian outsider. He feels that he cannot integrate into the high-end social circles of Paris and cannot adapt to the climate of Paris. Although there are many French nobles who are also willing to

He married his daughter to a high-ranking mage, but he was still looking for opportunities to return to his hometown, Italy.

The experience of living in France, a nation-state, awakened a person who had no patriotism at all to his national consciousness.

In order to prevent France's investment from being wasted, and to ensure that he would not serve France's enemies, "Zhengguo" Lao Tanshur personally acted as a matchmaker for Consul Petrucci when he visited Paris two years ago and asked him to

Married a daughter of the Petrucci family.

Although it is easy for a senior mage to marry the daughter of a big noble, it is also easy to marry a young noble lady, but it is not so easy to marry the daughter of a young noble. The Petrucci family is Siye

The first family of Nas, so Alberto Masarani is still very satisfied with this marriage.

Consul Petrucci is quite satisfied with this son-in-law. A mage is always a good son-in-law, not to mention a senior mage. Although he is much older than his daughter, senior mages can generally live to be **10 years old.

, and this son-in-law has a very good temper, and his daughter is quite satisfied with it. You must know that many senior mages are surly old men with eccentric tempers, and their lives after marrying young noble ladies are often a disaster.

The only shortcoming is that although his IQ is undoubtedly high, he lacks political experience.

Consul Petrucci looked at his son-in-law who turned red and was speechless after being scolded by him, and stopped scolding him. For a mage son-in-law, being too politically astute is not necessarily a benefit.

Moreover, this son-in-law was so valued by Lao Tan Shuer that he taught him "Tan Shuer Advanced Aiming Technique" as a wedding gift. This time, we will have to rely more on him to defend the city.

Therefore, Consul Petrucci decided to encourage his son-in-law: "Okay, don't worry about this little thing. Tell me more about what you saw."

ps: I’m going to write a big chapter today to ask for comfort during the Chinese New Year. I’ll update it twice tomorrow.
Chapter completed!