Chapter 429 7.83 Father and Son Meeting (Part 2)

The Vikings didn't know the strength of France, but that didn't mean Ecbert didn't know.

On weekdays, he had close contacts with this group of proud and sophisticated nobles, and he knew their strength and family background very well.

The French dukes already had the best land in the western continent, they just looked down on the relatively barren land of other countries. If they wanted to start a war, all the private armies of the 21 dukes plus 300 dragons would take off in unison.

Even the Byzantine Empire, which inherited the mantle of ancient Rome, might not be able to withstand such an impact.

Ecbert once questioned the conservatism of the Duchy of France, but now that he knew that the person in power behind it was the "Illuminati", everything seemed to be connected.

There was actually only one living person in the entire Grand Palace of Paris. It was the limit for such a country to control 21 provinces.

The "suzerain" did not have the capital to expand.

But they were still powerful.

When the Arab Empire repeatedly won battles against Byzantium more than a hundred years ago, they once tried to invade France, but they hit a wall and gave up the idea immediately.

Such a powerful country, when they stood in front of the Vikings, was indeed no different from an elephant facing an ant.

**

On the other hand, the situation in Wessex was not optimistic.

In the Viking invasion last summer, in the battle of Stonehelm Fortress, all the elite troops in the kingdom were lost under the joint attack of the Viking and Slavic armies.

The residents of Wessex were completely different from the Vikings who had to take up arms and fight since childhood. The English did not need to fight after they were born.

They would go to church schools from an early age, and they would also engage in farming or breeding and business activities when they returned home.

It takes at least 2 years of continuous combat training to train a farmer into a qualified soldier. To train a chosen one, more resources need to be invested and longer training needs to be experienced.

And it has only been 8 months since that bloody war. Even if Ecbert wanted to join the war, he didn't have a decent army.

He once had a total of 10 dragon knights.

But now, some died in battle, some defected. Even the "Dragon Mountains" where dragons were raised were looted by Loki, and all the dragon language scholars who could train dragons were lost.

As for the military strength, it was even pitiful.

In the 6 provinces, only a few dukes still had a small number of private armies. Unless the French army came to their doorstep, it would be completely unrealistic for them to take out the last private army at the bottom of the box.

At this time, there were only more than 10,000 professional soldiers in the whole country of Wessex.

And most of these soldiers had just put down their hoes last winter.

Alfred was Ecbert's eldest son, so he did not hide anything from his son. This was the situation of the kingdom, and it was now clearly displayed in front of him.

With such a small amount of assets, it was indeed not enough to compete with France.

Even if they send one or two dukes and their private armies, they may not be able to withstand it.

"We have lived together since childhood, you know what I think in my mind." Seeing his eldest son running around for the Vikings, Ecbert did not feel resentful, but expressed understanding.

The relationship between enemies and friends between countries changes rapidly. When a stronger enemy appears, the mortal enemy half a year ago can immediately form an alliance again.

"Now we know that the mastermind behind the rule of France is the Illuminati. As long as there is a chance, I will definitely find a way to get rid of their control. But my son, forgive me for being blunt, now is not a good time."

"What I can do now may be just to refuse to join the French army on the grounds of 'no army'. You also know that these masters will definitely let us, the allies who can be manipulated at will, act as cannon fodder and rush to the front."

Alfred also nodded. The real situation in Wessex is indeed worse than he imagined.

"But there is one possible situation."

"That is to beat the fallen dog!"

"If there is really a mysterious force that can descend from the sky and defeat the French army head-on on the battlefield, making them flee like a tide

I believe that a large number of people will spontaneously join this war!

Not just our country, but the seven countries of England, including the 74 free cities of Visigothia, Lombardy, and Bavaria, all ordinary people living under French commercial sanctions.

Although these people are not experts in wielding swords, their total number is at least 5 million! They live in the giant hand of the 'Duchy of France', which covers the sky, and almost everyone All of them are oppressed by this group of high-ranking merchants.

They are filled with fear and hatred, but they are powerless.

Once there is a sign of a change in the tide, or even a glimmer of victory, these inconspicuous vultures and hyenas will rush forward! Although they are not strong individually, the accumulation of numbers will eventually produce a qualitative change.

On the one hand, they can move down the mountains that weigh on their heads day after day and year after year.

On the other hand, they can rush into prosperous cities and plunder as much as they want.

Those are hundreds of prosperous cities built with gold bricks! No one can resist this temptation. Because in their eyes, they are just taking back what was once stolen from them. "

Turning over a map, after a brief silence, Ecbert continued: "My son, if I were you, I would not be the first to find me as an ally, because this is a meaningless thing."

Stretching out his slender fingers, his fingertips slowly moved on the map, and finally landed on the territory of the Slavic country on the east coast of the Baltic Sea.

"I will set off for Murmansk immediately!

Because the people who can really change the situation are actually these northerners!"

Ecbert's vision is extremely broad. As soon as this sentence was said, Alfred immediately understood what he meant.

At this time, Normandy and Wessex had just experienced a war, and there was indeed no one available. Looking at all the allies nearby, the only one who has maintained a strong fighting force from beginning to end is the Slavic King Bakanbusi who dominates the Murmansk Province.

In the joint invasion of Slavs and England two years ago, Bakanbusi only brought a hundred people to lurk in the Dragon's Breath Plateau. All the capital he used for the subsequent battle was the Slavic slaves liberated from the Viking provinces.

Last year, he crossed the sea to reinforce Loki. Although Ekbert didn't know why he came, Bakambusi only brought 5,000 troops.

This number is nothing to the Slavs, who are almost all soldiers.

There are still a large number of Slavic warriors in provinces such as Murmansk, Warsaw, and Kulyesh.

"But don't be happy too soon."

"Just eight months ago, Loki was able to defeat our army thanks to the sudden participation of Bakambusi. In less than a year, you are asking others to fight for you again. I think this journey may not be as smooth as you think."

"How to solve the subsequent troubles depends on you."

"Everyone is born to face their own suffering. 20 years ago, my suffering was how I survived the military coup launched by King Elberet of Kent.

Relying on the Red Queen, I succeeded."

"And everything you are facing now is also a test of you by the Holy Lord Christ."

"Only through the test can we grow."

"I hope you can become the savior of Wessex again like me."