Todd asked, puzzled, "What does this have to do with us?"

"Last autumn, the Knights of Twilight fought alongside the Holy Guard, defeating the Church's coalition forces and completely annihilating the Church of Heaven's direct forces. The outcome of this battle surprised everyone, but it was enough to attract the attention of those who cared. I suspect Saladin was one of them. If Saladin was still hesitating about whether to gamble everything on the Holy City in early winter last year, the news of the Church's coalition's defeat solidified his determination to go to war."

Cumberland stroked his beard and smiled as he said, "By the way, Pope Alexander of the Church of the Father was also thrown into turmoil by the defeat of the Church's coalition forces and contracted a severe cold. He barely made it through the winter, only to be utterly devastated by the news of the fall of the Holy City."

Emerson waited for Cumberland to finish speaking before continuing, "Besides these two reasons, I suspect there was a third reason for Saladin's invasion of the Holy City: internal strife."

"Internal strife?"

“The Ayyubid Empire was historically a vassal state of the Abbasid Empire, and for a considerable period, Saladin referred to himself as a subject before the Abbasid emperor,” Emerson remarked with a sigh. “Saladin had always been extremely subservient to the emperor, and when he turned against the Abbasids, almost no one dared to believe his decision. Therefore, after he ascended to power, the complex political environment and papal factions within the country put immense pressure on him. The Hashimites, Umarites, Flashfire factions, Nestorians… numerous divided domestic forces were ready to launch a wave of rebellion against this man who had overstepped his authority to become emperor.”

Todd nodded and said, "So, Saladin used the war in the Holy City to divert attention from domestic conflicts in order to stabilize the domestic political situation... This is a high-stakes gamble, a gamble with everything at stake. If the Holy City holds out for another half month, if the landing is thwarted, if..."

Cumberland slowly shook his head: "There are no 'ifs' in war. Even if this is a gamble, just look at his tactical arrangements—intelligence, weather, hydrology, terrain, commanders, and the situation. It's not hard to see that before the gamble even started, Saladin had already calculated all the possible outcomes. That's why he ultimately won."

Emerson said regretfully, "If the guns and cannons of the Ayyubid Empire are the claws of a beast, then Emperor Saladin has endowed this beast with human wisdom... The most chaotic era in the south has passed, and the days to come may be the beginning of a calamity for the parishes."

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