kingdom of nations

Chapter 19 The Invisible Gap

Among the flowers, gems shine brightly.

Every time he saw Princess Sibylle, Cesar could not help but recite this poem from a Saracen poet in his heart.

Princess Sibylle was always surrounded by maids and page boys. All of these maids were of noble birth. Their fathers were either ministers of the king or vassals with fiefs. This meant that they were pampered and lived a carefree life from the moment they were born. They had delicate skin and slender fingers. And we all know that a young girl in her teens would hardly be ugly as long as she had adequate nutrition.

Besides, there are indeed some particularly beautiful and lovely children among them.

But no matter how beautiful or gentle they are, as long as Princess Sibylle is here, no one will cast any extra glances at them.

As the poem goes, flowers are beautiful, but how can they compare to the brilliance of gems? Princess Sibylle's beauty is extraordinary. Beneath her sharp and rich colors lies a correspondingly strong inner strength—Amalric I even said that his daughter's temperament was as stubborn and tenacious as a man—and she made no secret of her desire for knowledge and power, just like her aunts.

Most men will feel fear and disgust towards such women, but some men will have the urge to admire and submit to her, or the opposite - they will be aroused by the urge similar to hunting wild beasts. Abigail is the leader of the former, and David is the most prominent example of the latter.

These two chaotic and intense emotions would frighten many ladies, but from what Cesar saw, Sibylle was not frightened, but rather enjoyed it. She treated the two boys and the forces they represented with caution, and from time to time made the situation even more confusing.

Sibylle saw Cesar earlier than Damara or the other maids. Her tall figure meant that her vision would not be blocked even when surrounded by them. She cast a glance at the young black-haired servant. This glance was like the cold light reflected by an icy blade, with a beauty that could make people forget the danger.

After just a glance, she lowered her head again. The maid also noticed Cesar's arrival and pushed Damara out with a smile.

Damara and Cesar's age means they are in a period of rapid growth and change. Cesar changes almost every day, and Damara is also very different from a few months ago. You can tell at a glance that she is ready to transform from a child into a woman - her body is softer, her eyes are brighter, and she walks more lightly. The only thing that has not changed is her round little face and the little dimples that appear when she sees Cesar.

If Princess Sibylle is a sparkling gem, the other maids are beautiful flowers, and Damara is a bird jumping among the flowers.

Soft and plump, when you hold it in your hand you can feel its fluffy body trembling with your heartbeat.

With Princess Sibylle's permission, Damara could talk to Cesar alone not far away, but to avoid possible rumors, Cesar stayed within the sight of the maids and stopped with Damara in front of several clumps of myrtle that were still lush.

As a candidate knight who should be attentive, Cesar spread out his long cloak and spread it on the fallen myrtle leaves. Damara stretched out her feet modestly and waited for Cesar to take off her small shoes before stepping into the cloak. As soon as she sat down, she breathed a sigh of relief - serving the princess was certainly a dream, but no one would think that serving others would be easy. Although her mistress, Princess Sibylle, was not the kind of harsh and sarcastic hostess, she would not tolerate others being too lazy, not to mention that the maids would constantly intrigue and compete for the favor of the superiors like their fathers and brothers.

"Play the flute for me," Damara said. She could feel someone watching them, from the maid to the princess.

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"Look, what a perfect couple they are." A maid said as she looked at them from afar.

At these words, the princess's maids chuckled softly, like ripples on a lake caused by a breeze. Some of the laughter was kind, some was malicious. Another maid then said, "Although the child is beautiful, she is not brave enough."

Sibyl took a look at her and recognized that she was the daughter of a small family that was a vassal of Count Raymond of Tripoli. Given this relationship and her undisguised love for the Count's eldest son David, it was not surprising that she was rude to Cesar, who had once defeated her beloved.

Someone immediately refuted her, but the maid quickly argued that she was not talking about the prince's new squire's ability on horseback, but his ability in bed.

In an era when life expectancy was perhaps only forty years, children always matured prematurely. In order to protect themselves from the cold, poor farmers would squeeze their entire families and livestock together on a low wooden bed in winter, and parents did not avoid their children when doing things. In the earliest castles, it was not uncommon for masters, children, guests and servants to sleep together in the hall with a hearth. Boys and girls had already learned all kinds of skills from their first teachers.

This ethos persists to this day. While noble ladies may still maintain a degree of reserve under religious rules, men, from childhood onward, embrace no taboos, especially in their teens. Their souls and bodies are tightly controlled by desire, making it impossible for them not to be reckless, impulsive, and eager for battle and the bed. Everyone knows that no matter if it's a noblewoman's fiancé or a knight who adores her, even if each is willing to defend her reputation with blood and life, they will always be surrounded by women of all kinds.

They acted recklessly and happily to the fullest. When facing noble ladies, even if they could not go to the last step, they would often hurt and injure them. Some maids accepted it with pleasure and regarded it as a compliment, but others were deeply disgusted by it.

The daughter of that small family happened to be the former type. Cesar always kept a distance from Damara. When they sat together, he did not step on her feet, kiss her lips, hold her hand, or look for opportunities to pick her up when dancing. These behaviors made her think that Cesar was ashamed of his own background and did not dare to pursue a noble lady.

"Shut up," Sibyl said calmly, "Cesar is the prince's attendant and will be a knight of my father, Amalric I, in the future. There is no such rift between him and Damara as you think."

The princess' words were like a cold current sweeping across the lake. For a moment, both the laughter and the sarcasm froze.

"It could also be that he'll become a monk in the future," a noblewoman quickly said, trying to ease the deadlock. "After all, he's so kind and pious."

Some maids nodded in agreement, but some remained noncommittal - as we said before, there were indeed many people in the Holy City who were moved by Cesar's asceticism, although they also knew that the reason this asceticism caused such a sensation was mostly due to the promotion of King Amalric I and the monk Heraclius beside him, for the sake of Prince Baldwin - otherwise, if a stranger with no background ran to ask to clean the Holy Sepulchre, do you think those monks would kick him out?
But if you think that Cesar can really become a "saint" respected everywhere just because of his asceticism and good deeds, as those naive believers think, you are wrong. The favor and gifts he received are more like a reward, slightly higher than those clowns who somersaulted on the long table.

The truth is cruel. When those in power discover that their piety has no impact on worldly safety and inheritance, faith becomes a tool they use to intimidate ministers, pacify the people, and constrain the Church. If they were truly that devout, Alazarus would now be the holy city of the Patriarch or the Pope, not Amalric I. "Monks aren't such a bad thing," a maid chuckled. "Sometimes monks are more 'convenient'."

Sibylle felt annoyed. Most of the people around her were short-sighted. There might be one or two noble ladies who had received more education with the tolerance of their fathers and brothers, but the tentacles of their thoughts could only extend to their own families and the families of their future husbands. They could not see the undercurrents and could not hear the whistling winds.

Amalric I was in love with her brother Baldwin, Heraclius was in love with talent, and Baldwin was too weak to give up such a little tenderness. However, Sibylle saw it clearly, because this black-haired, blue-eyed boy——

She's the same type of person.

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Damara pulled out a large handkerchief from her large sleeves that almost reached her knees and tied it around the black-haired boy's wrist: "This is given to you by your uncle." After that, she closed her mouth and stopped talking.

In the relationship between Cesar and Damara, exchanging gifts was not uncommon. Cesar carried the gold and silver silk handkerchief through most of the castle, earning him a few teasing comments from everyone he met. Damara was not the most attractive of the princess's maids, and she was young and inexperienced in the subtleties of love. However, her name, wealth, and the influence of her father and brother ensured that she would be a worthy target for the knights.

As soon as Cesar returned to the room, the first thing Baldwin saw was the handkerchief. After all, Cesar rarely dressed so flamboyantly.

"Damara gave it to you?"

Cesar was not a knight yet, but he had knelt and sworn an oath. Damara could accept the courtesy and loyalty of other knights, but he could not kneel to another noble lady. This was the invisible rule at the time. Of course, knights and squires could find prostitutes or maids to have fun at will, but the latter two could not produce such a high-quality handkerchief.

The base of the handkerchief was bleached muslin, probably from Egypt, and it was trimmed with lace. The embroidery was done with dyed wool and gold and silver threads. Baldwin took a look at it. Damara was young and couldn't control the pressure with her fingers, so her embroidery was not very good. But she could embroider the handkerchief with flowers with such sincerity that it was almost dizzying to unfold it and look at it...

"This is a sincere gift," Baldwin said, except that he couldn't look at it any more. "Put it away."

He didn't notice Cesar's momentary hesitation.

Ladies and gentlemen, sometimes we wonder how a majestic and magnificent building can collapse overnight - but at the beginning, who would pay attention to a tiny hole made by termites? This is the case with all things in the world.

Only by standing at the end of the lifeline and tracing back to the source can you discover that the root of all disasters may be just a little extra or missing gravel, but by then it will be too late, and you will have no choice but to regret and lament.

Amalric I was dissatisfied with the slave he had personally chosen for his only son because of the white wool cloak, and even had the intention to kill him; Heraclius mediated out of sympathy for Prince Baldwin and pity for Cesar; Baldwin cherished this rare true friendship between his peers too much and guaranteed and pleaded for Cesar... But none of the three men ever reminded Cesar of this.

There is no need to explain why Amalric I and Heraclius acted like this. Baldwin's reason was much simpler. He just didn't want his only friend to turn back into a timid slave - no, it should be said that he never regarded Cesar as a slave. He regarded him as the son of a knight of the same class as himself. Helping each other has always been the duty of a knight.

After Baldwin fell asleep, Cesar walked out of the room alone. He sat on the cold stone steps and opened the handkerchief in the light coming in from the small window. Under the layers of woolen threads was a floor plan of the Temple Church.

The Temple of Solomon was once the highest place of worship for the Isaacs. It was built by King Solomon in 967 BC and was destroyed twice. The first time was in 586 BC by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II; the second time was in 70 AD by the Roman general Titus.

When the Saxons occupied this place, they built two temples on the basis of the temple, the Temple of Omar and the Temple of Aksa. After the establishment of the Knights Templar, the then King of Alazar donated the Temple of Aksa to the Knights Templar. The Knights Templar converted part of it into a church and used the rest as ancillary facilities such as the knights' armory and stables.

But it was not a purely holy place by any means, so when Amalric I chose a church for Baldwin's election ceremony, the Temple was not among his top choices.

But Cesar had to consider that if something happened to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, it seemed that the only thing left for them would be the Temple Church.

Although there are several churches around the Holy Cross Fortress, including the Church of the Lord's Prayer, the Baptistry, and the Cockcrowing Church... these were all built by saints. Baldwin would be the king of Alazarus. All the kings of Alazarus were chosen in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It is a strong proof and the most convincing. If he was chosen in other chapels, it would be questioned again and again. After all, the Temple Church was the earthly residence built by King Solomon for God, and he was also a great king. If Baldwin had visions of King Solomon, even if King Solomon was not a saint officially canonized by the church, he would not be much inferior to St. George whom Amalric I had visions of.

To be honest, when he made a request to Damara, in fact, to the Gerard family behind her, he did not hold much hope. After all, he was still an outsider with unknown identity, and he did not expect the Gerard family to respond so straightforwardly. However, when he thought about the fact that the Charity Knights founded by the Gerard family and the Knights Templar had been in constant conflict in recent years, and the former had been at a disadvantage several times - it was not surprising that they made such a move.

More likely, it was because they saw Baldwin's trust in him.

When Baldwin had spoken to him, Cesar had almost impulsively wanted to tell him everything. But as the saying goes, even estrangement cannot separate family. To do so would be to humiliate Amalric I and his Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. He could only believe what he saw. How had Baldwin contracted leprosy? How had his servants despised and humiliated him? So far, he had been unable to enter any of the holy sites. What was preventing him?
For a single silver coin, commoners would fight and murder. But what about Alasar? It was a holy city of gold, and every devout person who came here would use all their wealth to add a ray of glory to it. For these... and perhaps also for faith, Baldwin's enemies were everywhere, at all times, and would do anything to achieve their goals.

From the perspective of later generations, Cesar could see through the intentions of those devils in red robes at a glance. Neither the Patriarch in Alaska nor the Pope in Rome wanted Amalric I to have an impeccable successor. It would be best if Baldwin died. Even if he didn't die, he must be deprived of his inheritance rights and expelled from Alaska.

Even though the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is now controlled by the priests of the Gerard family, no one can say that there are not one or two daring and presumptuous people or fanatics among the hundreds of priests of other sects, and the conspiracy they are about to carry out cannot be avoided by ordering knights to patrol day and night or torturing and looting.

(End of this chapter)