The protagonist, Lu Chengyu, is a history graduate student familiar with the mechanics of the Crusader Kings games. While staying up late working through a strategy guide, he unexpectedly transmigrates into the body of Hugo von Rhein, a bona fide “landless knight” in the Holy Roman Empire at the end of the eleventh century. Europe is in an age where religious fervor and secular power struggles are intertwined: the call to the Crusades has sounded, the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope are locked in a bitter struggle, and kingdoms such as France and England are expanding. The protagonist, now “Hugo,” has no land or wealth, only three elderly, frail retainers and an expired letter of noble recommendation. But he unexpectedly discovers that he can see a “domain panel” like a game interface, and uses it as a foothold to rise step by step amid the real political intrigue and warfare of the Middle Ages.
Those who read historical novels on Tomato (a Chinese online literature platform) are probably familiar with *The Misfit of Langya*. I think this book is similar to that one. That book is a masterpiece among ancient Chinese novels. This book is a masterpiece among Western medieval novels.
It's written in great detail, and it's a slow burner.