kingdom of nations

Chapter 23 The Unfortunate Count Etienne (Part )

"Snowing."

Amalric I said coldly - as the saying goes, angels are always alone, demons always come in groups, and bad news always comes one after another.

At the same time three days ago, the King of Alaska had gone to bed. He was exhausted and upset by what had happened before, and had no interest in playing chess, reading or listening to music. Just as he was about to fall asleep, a servant came to report that Prince Baldwin was waiting outside the main tower.

If it were anyone else, they might really be turned away, but Baldwin - if there was anyone in the castle who understood his king better than Baldwin, and the huge responsibilities and heavy pressure his father shouldered, it might be only Amalric I himself; and he was such a gentle child that unless something big happened, he would never come to disturb the sleep of the Lord of the Holy Land at this time.

Amalric I immediately stood up and asked someone to bring candles. Baldwin quickly brought Cesar and Damara to the king, and they brought very bad news - Amalric I immediately called the servant and asked him to call Bohemond, Duke of Antioch, Raymond, Count of Tripoli, and their son.

While waiting, Amalric I stumbled upon a picture of a saint hanging on the wall—St. George, the saint of Bohemond and Raymond. A valiant knight, clad in armor, mounted atop a holy white horse, holding a silver sword high, engaged in a desperate struggle with the red dragon, symbolizing Satan. An angel cast a golden light from behind rolling clouds, illuminating the saint's body... This was a gift from God, endowing him with infinite wisdom and power...

He didn't know whether this was a test from God or a prank from the devil. Antiochus, Tripoli, and Alasarus were kings, dukes, and earls respected by everyone. They were knights of Christ, protectors of pilgrims and the holy land, but why were they so unfortunate in terms of offspring?

His son Baldwin was almost flawless, but he had recently contracted leprosy; Raymond's son David was upright, even stubborn. As a knight this might not be a shortcoming, but as the future lord of a county, this would be the point that his enemies would be most happy to exploit; and Bohemond's son Abigail... Amalric I was too lazy to even mention him.

And things seemed to be even worse. He, Raymond, and Bohemond all had only one heir...

Soon, Raymond and David, as well as Bohemond and Abigail, arrived. David looked confused and even felt sleepy. It seemed that he knew nothing about this matter. Raymond didn't know whether to blame him or be thankful for his stupidity; Bohemond's expression and Abigail's cracked mouth said it all.

Bohemond was about to step forward to apologize, but Amalric I just waved his hand, saying that now was not the time to teach or punish him. Cesar brought a trunk, which was usually placed next to the bed. It had a flat surface and could be used to rest your feet or put things. Now it was used to unfold a map.

"What did you say to the guide?" asked Amalric I.

Abigail shrank back when she saw Baldwin. She didn't dare get close to the prince, fearing that his leprosy would be transmitted to her in a moment. Her father Bohemond didn't have that patience. He slapped him in the face, grabbed his hair, and dragged him to the trunk.

In the past, someone might have tried to persuade her, but the trouble Abigail caused this time was too great.

Princess Sibylle's reputation might be somewhat affected by this erroneous marriage, but as Amalric I had originally planned, he would choose a husband for her from among the most pious and brave knights, so this flaw was completely insignificant. As for Amalric I and Louis VII, their recklessness, while also being laughable, was harmless and even endearing. Furthermore, if Amalric I had not only had Baldwin as his son, Princess Sibylle's marriage would not have been a big deal.

But Abigail bribed Count Etienne's guide to lure Louis VII's minister, the envoy of the Holy Land, a Christian, into the pagan territory, to have him injured, killed, or imprisoned... That would be a scandal worthy of being called shocking!
This was not what a Christian should do to a Christian, not even what a Christian should do to a pagan. Even the devil would not eat his own kind, not to mention that Count Etienne was a guest of King Alaskar, Duke of Antioch, and Count of Tripoli. He was invited into the castle and received bread and salt in the hall. When he left, everyone came to see him off.

If Count Étienne were captured by the pagan lords, they might be able to ransom him, but if he were wounded, lost, or killed in battle...

Amalric I closed his eyes. This was shaking more than just Alazarus! It was shaking the very foundation of the entire Crusade! It was like a shepherd finding lamb's blood in his dog's mouth. Wouldn't he be suspicious? By then, not only Louis VII but even the Church would hold him accountable. Perhaps he would have to hand Alazarus over to quell their suspicions.

When Abigail was questioned by her father and carried up to the main tower, she was already scared out of her wits and in a trance. After being stared at by Amalric I's steely blue eyes, she poured out everything in one go.

Damara had already been sent back to her room by Amalric I's servants. Cesar leaned against Baldwin. When he heard Abigail say that this matter was indeed done by him alone and had nothing to do with Princess Sibylle, Baldwin breathed a sigh of relief and let down his tense shoulders. No matter what his position was, as a brother or a future king, he did not want Sibylle to be involved in this matter.

"...So I told him to take Count Étienne to the lands of Mullet..."

To Cesar, Mule was an unfamiliar name, but not to Amalric I and the other two adults. Amalric I immediately ordered his servants to take David and Abigail away. Bohemond insisted on putting Abigail in prison, but was rejected by Amalric I. This matter would be best resolved without too many people knowing about it. If Abigail was put in prison, what would he say when someone asked about his crime?
Baldwin and Cesar couldn't stay in the room any longer. Before leaving, Bohemond put his hand on the map, but his head whirled around with a strange smile on his face. "Ah, yes," he said, his eyes fixed on Cesar. "I see this pious and clever boy," he asked briskly. "Is it him? Did he hear or see something? Or perhaps an angel appeared in his dream and told him this secret that should have been kept secret? That's why he rushed here in such a hurry... Is it him?"

Baldwin took a step forward and blocked Cesar with his body.

"Enough," Raymond interrupted Bohemond's sarcasm in a deep voice: "Even if no one saw it and no one heard it, the servants' mouths would be opened by women and wine - you might as well say that this is God's will, so that we can make up for the loss, rather than being forced to face a terrible and almost irreparable situation after things broke out completely." Amalric I nodded to Baldwin, and Baldwin immediately pulled Cesar out the door. He felt a little regretful that he should not have let Cesar stay there. It would have been better for him to leave with Damara.

Cesar didn't take it seriously. Some might say that unprovokedly incurring the enmity of a Grand Duke was courting disaster. But after witnessing the fate of Witt and the servants, the pilgrims at the Holy Sepulchre, and the dwarf at the banquet... he should have known that in this place, in this era, those in high positions were not bound by doctrine, law, or morality. They needed no reason to punish a lesser person.

Abigail had long-standing hatred for him. Unless he left the castle and stopped being Baldwin's servant and friend, he would never again have contact with Princess Sibylle... But if that happened, just because he, a humble servant, had stood with the princess and spoken to her, Abigail would have a thousand reasons to kill him.

"Who is Mulai?"

"He is a prince of Armenia." Cilician Armenia was an independent principality founded by Armenian refugees fleeing the Seljuk invasion. "Prince Mulai once lived in Alasar for several years and even became a member of the Knights Templar. But unfortunately, he was soon tempted by the devil, abandoned the Knights Templar, and switched to the Seljuk Sultan Toglor II. He received a position and a small piece of territory from Toglor II.

That territory happened to be on the pilgrims' route, so a former Christian, a knight with a cross on his cloak, degenerated into a thief and began to rob houses.

Baldwin walked into the room. Although it was late at night, he was not sleepy at all. Like Amalric I, Raymond and Bohemond, he took out a map from the locked cabinet, spread it on the bed, and looked at it face to face with Cesar.

The First Crusade was in 1096, and the Second Crusade was in 1147. These two great expeditions opened up four smooth roads for pilgrims: "When Count Etienne came, he took the route of Louis VII's Second Crusade, starting from Paris to Lyon, from Lyon to Metz, passing through the Holy Roman Empire, Hungary, Bulgaria, and arriving in Constantinople. From Constantinople, they rode along the coastline or took a boat across the Mediterranean - this is very close to the territory of the Seljuks." Baldwin said, pointing to a specially drawn red line.

"If you take a ship, you'll pass through Rhodes and Cyprus, but you also have to be careful of Saracen pirates. But from a safety perspective, it's better than passing through the territory of the Seljuk Sultan. You've taken classes with me before," Baldwin said, "you should know—"

The Seljuk Empire was a great empire established by the Turks in Central Asia and West Asia. It believed in Islam and was once glorious. However, after the death of its last ruler, Malik Shah, in 1092, it split into more than a dozen small dynasties. Toglor II was the Sultan of one of the larger dynasties... But just looking at Mulai's behavior, you can tell that he is just an incompetent person.

"My father sent Count Etienne to the ship at Jaffa Port." Baldwin sighed when he said this. Because of the previous events, many young knights had challenged Count Etienne. Count Etienne was obviously not prepared to shed blood for a princess whom he had never met and would hardly meet in the future. He could be said to have "escaped" from Alasarru very quickly and did not intend to stay even for a day - if he had taken a ship to Acre, perhaps they could have caught him back.

The average daily walking distance for a person is 6 to 10 leagues (one league equals four kilometers), and 8 to 12 leagues on horseback, but the speed of a sloop could be as high as 30 to 50 leagues a day. It would be fine if Count Etienne went directly to Smyrna or Salonica, as these two cities are located in the heart of the Byzantine Empire and are quite far from the Seljuks. But since there is a bribed guide, he might do something to persuade the count to disembark early, and then he would always find a way to lead the count to Mle or other Seljuks.

"Abigail gave him a deposit of one hundred gold coins," Baldwin said hoarsely. "If he succeeds, he can get another four hundred gold coins from Abigail when he returns."

That’s three point three three… me, Cesar said in his mind.

"What will Your Majesty do?"

"There's no other way. We have to find Count Etienne. If we can capture the guide before he notices anything, that'll be fine. But if he already senses something's wrong, we might have to negotiate. But in my opinion, Count Etienne isn't a greedy man, so if that's the case, it won't be too difficult to deal with. Worst case scenario... you know, someone will have to take responsibility."

Caesar was silent. He had been there for so many days and had roughly figured out the relationship between Alasarus, Antioch and Tripoli. You can think of them as a big family. The masters of the three countries get along like brothers, but Antioch and Tripoli are vassals of Alasarus. Amalric I is like the eldest brother. He accepts the allegiance of Bohemond and Raymond, but also has to bear the troubles and guilt they bring.

Baldwin and César thought all they could do was wait, but three times a day passed, and no sign of Count Etienne or his entourage appeared in the several ports. Whether on the main roads frequented by pilgrims or the narrow paths known only to thieves, from Ashkelon and Jaffa to Caesarea, Acre, Tyre, Sidon, Beirut, Tripoli, or Antioch, not a single trace could be found...

Bohemond, the father of the instigator, had been running around for several days and nights. Raymond also looked haggard and dazed. Amalric I was immersed in heavy government affairs while always paying attention to the news from all sides. Until now, he had not been able to write to Louis VII to tell him that his envoy might have become a prisoner of the Seljuks.

As the knights rushed out of the castle gate one after another, Baldwin stood behind the window and watched. Cesar knew that he wanted to be one of them, for his father Amalric I and his sister Sibylle.

"Can I go?" he asked suddenly. "I'll go." In your place.

(End of this chapter)