Crusade against the Pope

Chapter 226 Bread for Everyone
Gellis will not stay in Antioch for too long. His coming to this land does not mean that he will transform it immediately.

His energy is limited, and so are the Paladins and priests under his command.

As for the theology crash course at Al-Hadi School in Transjordan, the talents currently trained are not even enough for Transjordan itself.

If Garys had not taken the initiative to transfer troops, the transformation around Tyre would have been difficult to start.

As for Tripoli and Antioch, they are even more out of reach.

In fact, if Transjordan was influencing the former Kingdom of Jerusalem, then Antioch and Tripoli needed to rely heavily on the systematic church in Cyprus.

At present, the Church of Cyprus is a truly sound church with a complete system under Gairis, and Archos, who is the core of Gairis' theological writers, is currently transforming the church system in Cyprus.

I believe it will shine brightly in the future.

Of course, Gellis would not completely shift such responsibility to others. He still had to race against time and make good use of his time in Antioch to lay a solid foundation for subsequent missionary work.

Try to avoid taking detours.

Garys looked at the many Antiochians on the field, and he actually knew why these people came to participate in his sermon.

Not only because his soldiers conquered Antioch, but also because Gelis provided a free meal through the Eucharist.

I came late, when you had already begun distributing Holy Communion. For three days I had had nothing to eat except water; I was dying of hunger. When I saw you distributing Holy Communion, those little pieces of white bread, I went to receive Holy Communion just to eat the little pieces of bread.

Why can bread become the Eucharist?

This may be different for everyone's reasons.

For Garys, he didn't care about the various rituals at all. The reason he used those rituals was simply because it made others feel more comfortable.

For Gérice, who is now distributing Holy Communion in the sunset, bread is sacred.

Fish cannot live without water, people cannot live without air, and all living things need food.

For those who live on "bread", "bread" as the source of life must also be sacred.

In the faces of these poor people of Antioch, Gellis could see all the suffering that this world, this collection of people called "humanity," had endured.

"I can't stay out of it, and I can't be detached on my own..." Gaillis muttered.

As long as a person is healthy and social, he will not live in a vacuum but will inevitably live in a dual world.

The first level is material: water, soil, the sun in the sky, and all living beings on the ground are material.

The other level is the consciousness: church, country, money, human rights, law, justice...

These only exist in human consciousness and are born out of cognition through stories compiled between people.

Today, Gillis no longer discusses the question of whether God really exists.

But he clearly knew that he was weaving a new story, and in this new story, everyone should have their own place.

This story is called "The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom".

Altaïr, among the paupers receiving Holy Communion.

He followed closely, witnessing these people receiving the "Holy Host" from Garys, and saw those people smile because of the food.

Just as Gellis was weaving a story called "Heaven", Altaïr was also living a story.

For example, two Muslims who have never met can participate in the pilgrimage together, go to Mecca or raise funds for charity.

Altaïr believed that he was here to create "paradise".

Because of what he had seen and heard in these days, Altaïr had a lot of hesitations, but his worship of "Heaven", "Imam" and "Mentor" made him unwilling to think more.

The doctrines of their sect emphasize a strict hierarchical system. The entire organization has a pyramid structure and ordinary members must absolutely obey orders from above.

At the top is the Imam (who of course has gone into seclusion), followed by agents responsible for carrying out the Imam's orders, such as Hassan, and then lower-level believers and assassins who carry out missions.

They are often willing to sacrifice themselves to complete their mission. Therefore, their assassination operations usually do not consider escape routes, but rather complete the mission with a "die-hard determination".

He looked at Garys' smiling face and touched the cold dagger in his arms.

Now it was his turn to step to the front and receive Holy Communion.

“Does the Eucharist really exist?”

When Altaïr walked to the front of the team, he couldn't help but ask this question.

In front of him was a very young man, with golden hair that was particularly dazzling in the sunset, full of life.

This young man, not much younger than Altaïr, is now the master of Antioch.

"I just said the right words at the right time, and yet many people were nourished by it, and since many people live by it, it is the Eucharist."

As Garys gave his answer, Altaïr leaned forward and in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Garys. He took out the dagger in his arms and stabbed the young man in front of him.

In the material world, there is no heaven, no country, no money, no human rights, no law, and no justice.

But in the world of human consciousness, these things do exist, and countless people are willing to sacrifice for them, or kill each other.

In Altaïr's opinion, Gellis was much easier to deal with than Reynald, as Reynald would keep himself safe in the castle and only trust the Franks who came from afar.

And what about Garys...he held religious ceremonies in Antioch again and again.

The young man was so defenseless that he mingled with the believers that even the guards had difficulty following him.

Such a scene would help to promote the reputation of the Assassins, but it would also easily create chaos, giving Altaïr the opportunity to escape.

However, unlike other assassinations in the past, this time Altaïr did not know what he was facing.

……

An eagle landed on the eaves near the square, tilting its head to survey the human world.

If Antioch were placed in later generations at that time, it would be just a county town or a larger town.

Outside the city walls there is wilderness everywhere, and the boundary between bipeds and other animals is not clear.

In the eagle's pupils, it saw a biped distributing food and other bipeds lining up to claim it.

When it was the turn of a bipedal animal that had a similar temperament to it to get the food, the bipedal animal stretched out its claws to the bipedal animal that was sharing the food.

All kinds of screams suddenly exploded, and the two-legged animals that were receiving the food suddenly exploded like a rabbit that had gathered together when it found itself, and no one stepped forward to stop this scene.

The eagle let out a shrill cry, echoing the actions of the scattered people on the ground.

But, after all, Garys is not Jesus, nor is he the priests of later generations. His blood has not yet reached the point where it can stain the Eucharist red.

As the eagle let out a shrill cry, Altaïr, who had stabbed Gellis with his dagger, found himself grabbed by the wrist.

It was too fast. When Altaïr pulled out the dagger and stabbed him, the opponent realized it when the dagger was about to pierce his body.

Then, at a speed that was beyond the visual limit of Altaïr, he moved sideways.

Altaïr then attempted a sweeping blow, attempting to stab Gellis again.

But it was still too fast. This speed was not about how fast a person's reaction was, but that Altaïr clearly sensed that at this moment, there seemed to be a little bit of distortion in Gellis' body.

Then he flashed to his side and grabbed his right hand holding the dagger.

"who are you?"

Gellis asked quietly.

Altaïr tried to struggle, but he felt his hands trapped by the granite.

Of course, as members of the cult, their assassinations were for political purposes, so they naturally didn't mind exposing their identities.

Therefore, in this situation, he answered Garys frankly.

"Altaïr from Masyaf, who are you?"

“The Holy One of Jerusalem, of all the tribes of the earth…”

“…Imam.”

The eagle that landed on the eaves flew into the sky and circled around the square for a long time.

[Hassan comes down from the castle, wearing a white robe and a white turban, approaches the pulpit from the right, and walks up to the pulpit slowly.]

He sat for a while, then stood up again, holding his sword, and speaking loudly to the inhabitants of the three worlds, he announced that he had received news of the missing Imam.

[He said: Jinns, angels, and humans! The Imam of our time sends you greetings and peace, and he has freed you from the burden of the Islamic law!]

After Hassan announced his resurrection, he distributed letters in which he said that although he was called the grandson of Bozr Jamid on the surface, he was the Imam of this era and the son of the previous Imam, and a descendant of Imam Nizar who was killed in Alexandria.

"Another fellow claiming to be an Imam..."

"How come even the Franks say this..."

……

Exciting rumors were spreading in the streets and alleys of Antioch.

Their new lord fought with the Assassin's assassins for hundreds of rounds in the square. The battle between the two sides was so exciting!
"I only remember that Altaïr, who was disguised to perfection, pulled out a dagger from his bosom and stabbed Lord Garys."

"Lord Garys is also very skilled. He dodged the attack in the blink of an eye and knocked away Altaïr's dagger with his knife."

"Who would have thought that Altaïr had hidden a weapon in his boots. When he saw Lord Garys approaching, he kicked him, and a poisoned blade was exposed on the toe of his boots."

"But, Garys is not in a hurry..."

In the tavern of Antioch, Lance invited a guest. At their table, the rumors about Gellis's battle with the assassins were the trend in Antioch today. After all, there were many witnesses at the time, and a noble lord, facing the assassins from the Assassins, was not only not afraid, but defeated the opponent with his bare hands.

This is too legendary.

So much so that even the guests invited by Lance were listening with particular rapt attention.

As one of the original twelve apostles and a knight by birth, Lance has a noticeably fuller figure and speaks in a gentle manner, without any of the sharpness that a knight should have.

This kind of temperament makes him not have a particularly famous name in the sect.

But that doesn't mean he is just like everyone else and has no advantages. At least Lance can always easily get along with people from all walks of life.

After arriving in Antioch, Lance began to get to know every aspect of the city down to earth.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that after Gellis left Antioch, the person who took over the situation in Antioch on Gellis' behalf was none other than Lance.

"Lance, this Saint, is he really that powerful?!"

Sitting opposite Lance was a guy with typical Central Asian features.

He has high cheekbones, deep eye sockets and thick eyebrows, a medium skin tone, dark eyes and hair, facial features between Central Asian and Mediterranean, and a large cross hanging on his head.

"Uh, Saint, he is more powerful than what these say..."

"At that time, I saw with my own eyes that Villeroy directly captured the assassin. There was no back-and-forth fighting at all..."

Lance patiently spread the story of Gellis to this Turkic man who had mixed Frankish blood.

After Altaïr was captured by Gellis, the situation in Antioch became somewhat strange.

Two letters found on Altaïr clearly indicated that the assassination came from Saladin and Bohemond.

Saladin is out of reach and cannot do anything about it for the time being, but Bohemond has something to say.

For Lance, because of what Bohemond had done, some of his original plans had become more intense.

After all, if Bohemond cannot be trusted, then can the other nobles of Antioch be trusted?
As Gillis once said:
The needs of the people are often simple, but the greed of the bigwigs is endless.

Most people just want to be free from oppression and live in a fair and just society; but the bigwigs often try to infringe on the interests of others through various improper means.

Generally speaking, the monarch is the spokesperson for the ruling class, and therefore he or she often needs to consider the needs of the nobles.

But the nobles of Antioch, especially some guys represented by Bohemond, seemed to really think that Gellis was a good man and would not kill people...

Indeed, Gailis is a prophet, a king, and a priest, and he would not easily go on a killing spree.

But Lance is not like that. This smiling, voluptuous guy realized what a fool Bohemond was.

He then realized what he should do with Antiochus.

However, even though he had made the decision, and even had Garys' tacit approval, Lance still had to wait for an opportunity.

One of the opportunities was the man in front of him.

This guy's name is Arslan. Although he seems to have clear Turkic ancestry, he is a Christian.

Arslan was a man of reputation, a well-known mercenary captain in the land.

People said that Arsalan was the result of a hybridization between a Turk and a Frankish slave girl. His people regarded him as a shameful traitor, and the Franks also had deep doubts about him.

As for why he appeared here.

That's because of his last employer, a man called Renard de Chatillon.

Now, Reynald has been imprisoned in the dungeon and Arslan has become a prisoner of war, but Lance realized that this man could be useful.

Others’ faith is mixed with water, but this guy’s faith is mixed with water.

This guy didn't care about his defeat. Compared with other guys who were in a constant state of anxiety, he just ate when there was food, drank when there was water, and lay down in the sun and slept all day.

Such a person is naturally not an ordinary person, and naturally would not care about changing employers.

After talking a lot about Garys' deeds, he drank a few sips of wine.

Lance said bluntly: "I need a team of Tukobo."

When it comes to serious matters, Arsalan becomes much more serious.

"Tukobo." Arslan repeated the word, and then he asked: "My lord, why do you want Tukobo?"

"I lack a troop of light cavalry who can handle all kinds of affairs for me."

"Dirty work?"

"almost."

"Of course, Lord Garys, he also needs skirmishers, scouts and horse archers, as well as the second line of cavalry during the charge, and wolf packs that can pursue the enemy after the battle is won."

Transjordan's system can provide a large number of quickly trained infantry in batches, but in today's era, the importance of cavalry cannot be ignored in just a few words.

Lance has his own needs for Tukopo, and so does Garris.

If you want to get mercenaries these days, especially certain special types of mercenaries, you often have to rely on middlemen, or mercenary captains.

Indeed, trusting mercenaries may lead to bad things, but if Lance wants to effectively deal with the current nobles of Antioch, he needs a group of light cavalry who can help do the dirty work and kill them all.

"What's the price? How many people will be hired?"

"At least three hundred people. If you can gather them within a month, I can offer 50 gold dinars per year for each Tukobo."

This is a very high price. The soldiers in Transjordan only received 6 gold dinars as an annual allowance during their training period.

Of course, the soldiers in Transjordan do not rely on allowances to survive, and they have a large number of benefits that other armies do not have.

Such a price was indeed tempting to Arsalan, but he wanted more than just money, so he shook his head.

"I have heard that the Holy One of Jerusalem treats all peoples and all faiths alike."

"I heard he pardoned the poll tax for everyone in his territory, and I also heard he hanged soldiers who violated Muslim women."

"Can you tell me this is all true?"

Looking into Arsalan's eyes, Lance gave a clear and concise answer.

"It's true. In fact, you and the soldiers you recruit have to accept such strict military laws while receiving a salary of several dozen gold dinars each year."

"Those who commit crimes will be hanged."

The plump Lance spoke these words coldly.

The two of them and the noisy bar environment around them seemed to be separated into two worlds.

"So, when my people come to this land, can they also receive the same blessings as those Muslims?"

Turkopos, it is unclear whether they are a group of Turks, Greeks, or Armenians.

They are not even necessarily mixed-race in the traditional sense, because many Turks would choose to convert superficially for simple financial reasons, so as to make a living under the command of the Crusader lords.

But many of them often come from Turkic tribes, with Muslim fathers and Christian mothers.

Because they accepted the Christian faith, they were not accepted by their original tribe and thus wandered in Asia Minor.

It has been 1071 years since the Middle East Empire was defeated in the Battle of Manzikert in 117, when a large number of Turkic tribes poured into Asia Minor and moved south to occupy Jerusalem.

The original Turkopos have existed for as many as six or seven generations. They are doubly outliers in traditional Christian culture and in the Turkic community.

No matter which side they are on, they are outliers.

Even when they joined the Crusaders, they were not even qualified to sit at the table and eat together.

Christian countries treat them like this, not to mention the dangers they will face in Islamic countries.

Now, the emergence of Garys seems to have given all this a ray of hope for change.

Arsalan, of course, wanted to catch it at all costs.

"I want a fiefdom, I want to be a lord, I want to leave a future for people like me..."

Lance took another glass of wine from the waiter beside him, tapped the table and thought.

However, he couldn't help thinking: The situation in Antioch is already very chaotic, how bad can it get if there are a group of Tukopos?
Therefore, he said directly: "I can promise that all Tukopo who have integrated into the faith of the 'Order', as long as you obey the laws of the kingdom, settle in this land, and pay taxes, then you will be part of us."

"But you won't have fiefs. At most, some of you will become nobles because of your military merits."

Regarding the fiefdom, Garys had actually reached a consensus with apostles like Lance.

There may still be nobles, but the number of actual lords will only decrease. At least, this must be the case while these people are still alive...

Arsalan was already satisfied that he was not discriminated against. He high-fived Lance and gave a clear answer.

"I can give you a 20% discount. I hope everything goes well."

"Will do."

Lance and Arsalan continued to drink and eat bread together.

This world is very big, so big that it is a bit desolate, and there are birds and beasts everywhere.

This world is very small, so small that there is no room for such "evil" as theirs.

Gellis's "heaven" has become a banquet for everyone, at which everyone will be reborn and resurrected because of the "bread".

(End of this chapter)