kingdom of nations

Chapter 58 Murder?

"Have you ever killed anyone?" asked Geoffrey.

Cesar was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously lowered his eyes, "I have killed him."

Although this was not what he wanted, nor was it his hobby, when Witt and others sent out invitations with bad intentions, he knew that he and these original beneficiaries would have an irreconcilable relationship.

They can also be said to be his first test paper, and the answers he gives on this test paper are directly related to his future destiny.

He was a coward. He didn't believe that if he disappointed Amalric I, he would forgive him as generously as he had promised. He had seen that in this era, a person's life was always small and fragile, like sand in the wind.

Cesar could only tell himself that this was self-defense. They wanted to kill him, so he had to fight back.

"That's not what I'm talking about." Geoffrey waved his hand casually. Since he'd taken a liking to César, he'd certainly known his past. Before being rescued by Amalric I, he'd been an Isaac slave. Even though his origins were unknown and he had no memory of his past, he displayed the grace and talent of a knight's son.

As for Witt, even though this guy was blessed, to the Knights Templar, he was still a pile of dried dog shit on the road. If you accidentally stepped on it, you would have to rub your shoe soles against it disgustingly. His death would not have any impact on the Holy Land, the Holy Cross Castle, or the Knights Templar.

Except for his crazy mother, Geoffrey spat in his heart. After Witt's death, his mother was unwilling to give up. She had always tried to get her son out of the monastery earlier, but had never succeeded. After hearing that he was dead, she even took people to secretly dig Witt out of the grave.

She had appealed to Amalric I, but of course there was no result. So she went to appeal to the patriarch at the time, but the patriarch was too lazy to pay attention to the little woman who had no money. Finally, she even went to the Knights Templar, which was really ridiculous.

Although the Knights Templar had many conflicts with Amalric I, they would not stand on the side of an Isaac woman in this situation. She was ridiculed and almost beaten to death by the soldiers. In the end, she could only curse and walk away with her son's body.

Geoffrey, hearing this, could not help but curse these men for their inefficiency. He immediately led his men in pursuit, but the woman was very cunning. When the Templars followed her to the Isaac neighborhood, she disappeared like a fish in the sea.

Although the knights could break into the Isaac neighborhood to search, they were helpless because Amalric I was preparing for the ceremony to welcome the Byzantine princess into the city. A large number of craftsmen were building an arena for the martial arts competition. There were people, materials and warehouses everywhere... In the end, the matter was left unresolved.

But it shouldn't matter. Froy thought, how much trouble could an Isaac woman cause?
"No, that's not what I'm talking about," he said, returning his attention to his conversation with Cesar. "You're aware that your king has decided to attack our castle in Tortosa."

Cesar nodded: "It's not a secret." After hearing the accusation from the "Eagle's Nest", Amalric I immediately summoned the Grand Master of the Knights Templar. He may have intended to mediate, but both sides were on the verge of a fight and there was no room for easing. In particular, the Grand Master of the Knights Templar had an unprecedentedly tough attitude. He and Baldwin could almost hear the roar of Amalric I in the left tower.

From the bottom of his heart, he also felt that the relationship between superiors and subordinates in this era was very strange, or that only in the Holy Land could such a loose and deformed relationship exist.

Amalric I was the Lord of the Holy Land. True, he was also the leader of all the Crusaders. Antioch, Tripoli, and several surrounding Christian cities could be considered his vassals. However, aside from the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, who were directly under his jurisdiction, the Knights Templar and the Knights Templar would only obey the will of the Pope.

As the Grand Master said, they fought for God, not for secular kings. They had only a cooperative relationship with Amalric I. Perhaps when fighting against the Saracens, they would be willing to obey Amalric I's dispatch, but in normal times, not only would they not bow to Amalric I, they would also frequently challenge his authority.

The several forces in the Holy Land were like a group of monsters forcibly glued together by faith. Each head had its own will, and they were always quarreling and fighting. Although they were able to barely maintain unity when facing the Saracens, humans were emotional animals after all. Cesar was shocked watching from the side, wondering when this thing that was barely held together would suddenly fall apart.

"Last time, Amalric I hanged twelve of our brothers, which made many of us angry and uneasy. But in the final analysis, they did fail in their duty. Not only did they lose an important military stronghold against the Saracens, they also surrendered to the Saracens. Even if they returned to the Knights Templar, they would still be held accountable and might even be executed.

"Although Amalric I's actions were somewhat excessive, they were still within his authority," Geoffrey calmly analyzed. "After all, the Knights Templar were able to receive a steady stream of donations, privileges, and recruits because we were fighting for Christ, exterminating those hateful pagans, and ensuring the safety of pilgrims along the way."

"This is the foundation on which the Knights Templar were founded and on which they stand today. If we fail to fulfill our promise to God and believers, the Knights Templar will be a palace built on sand, bound to collapse sooner or later. But this time is slightly different. Our brothers in Tortosa are fighting against infidels, even though your king has always said that he intends to win over this force that split from the Seljuk Empire and convert them to God.

But haven’t they converted yet?

The Templars attacked them like lions hunting goats, which was a reasonable thing to do, but from the perspective of your king, Amalric I, this was a naked provocation that he could not tolerate.

So you could think of it as a small, punitive war. It wouldn't be a big war, and Amalric I would definitely win."

"The Knights Templar...don't care?"

"No matter. No matter who," Geoffrey said flatly.

Cesar couldn't help but raise his hand, "Can I ask a question?"

"Go ahead," Geoffrey replied readily.

"Don't you have jurisdiction over the Tortosa branch?"

"We do have Grand Masters, Archpriests, Grand Masters, and various other administrators and supervisors, both large and small. But according to the original teachings, everyone in the Order is equal in status. Brothers are like monks in a monastery. When a brother is stubborn, as long as he hasn't violated his vows, abandoned his faith, or blasphemed God, we can only advise him, not attack him.

Otherwise, we will kill each other in front of God, and we will be abandoned by the saints and cursed. We will never do that."

Geoffrey lowered his voice again and said, "Of course, those brothers stationed abroad can and should be given more freedom." He added with a hint of meaning, "You know, to maintain a military fortress, we need a lot of money."

Knights were not productive. The Templars often called themselves armed monks, but they also hated and despised labor. But what didn't cost money? Food, water, clothes, armor...

They could collect taxes from farmhands and merchants in their own territory, but what should they do in Alaska? Of course, they still used the same old method, collecting taxes from merchants and pilgrims, as well as offerings from surrounding forces.

"The new owner of the Eagle's Nest took over the position only a few years ago," Geoffrey said. "But there are also voices within the Eagle's Nest opposing him. We all know that Hassan was the founder of the Eagle's Nest, and his successor was his son, Hassan II. After Hassan II's death, the position should have been passed to his child. However, his son is still very young, so Rashiddin Sinan has become the new 'elder.'"

Geoffrey gave César a knowing look: "Sinan was once a close friend of Hassan II. Some people suspect that he took advantage of Hassan II's trust in him to seize the power that Hassan II left for his descendants.

And when he was still in Tortosa - he was having a very hard time, so he signed a covenant with us to pay a large amount of money to the Templars in Tortosa every month.

But they later renewed their treaty with your king, and one of the clauses in the treaty was to abolish this tax."

Hearing this, Cesar suddenly realized that Amalric I was generous, but his generosity was towards others.

The Templar branch in Tortosa had lost such a large sum of money in one go, so they would definitely not give up. That was why they brazenly sent out troops to destroy the alliance between the Eagle's Nest and the Castel de Santa Croce.

The Templars in Alaska decided to remain neutral this time because the root of the matter was very difficult to explain - whether it was the owner of the Holy Land, Amalric I, or the Saracens, no one would care what faction or position the "Eagle's Nest" belonged to, they only knew that those who did not believe in God were pagans.

The alliance between the Knights Templar of Tortosa and the Saracens could be traced back several years - their attack on the Saracens this time was not for morality or faith, but for money.

"But your king also agreed on a condition with the Knights Templar, that is, he can only arrest the Knights Templar of Tortosa - if they do not die immediately on the battlefield, he cannot execute them. The Knights Templar are willing to pay ransom for them, including some sergeants and retainers on the list, but some ordinary soldiers are not included." Geoffrey said seriously: "In order to demonstrate his authority and vent his anger, your king will definitely choose to kill them all. Do you understand?" He stared at Cesar: "Not one or two, not ten or twenty, but more, you, and Baldwin, since the king has sent you to the battlefield, you must perform the duties of retainers, one of which is to walk on the land and fortress where a tragic war has ended, and kill those who are still groaning and crying.

For those worthless things, you should stab them in the chest with a sword or slit their throat with a dagger to make sure they die completely.

There are about fifty Templar Knights in Tortosa. Each knight has one or two squires, three or four armed servants, and some sergeants, the kind that will be retained. There are about a hundred of them. Of course, priests are pardoned, as are craftsmen.

Geoffrey counted on his fingers.

"There are a full four or five hundred soldiers and servants left. Amalric I will certainly ask you to do this to temper your character and make them bleed. This is a rare opportunity. But can you do it? You can fight back against those who want to kill you, but can you do it in front of those who are unarmed, dying, and perhaps even crying out for your forgiveness, desperately trying to live?

If not, you should start preparing now.

"A knight is a hound," the Templar said without shame, "whether it is God's or Amalric I's, a hound is useless if it cannot run in the hunting grounds and hunt rabbits and geese for its master, no matter how agile, how smart, how strong, how loyal it is.
Swords that are no longer useful will be broken and reforged, and the same goes for hounds and people. Especially since the master you serve, Baldwin, has been blessed, and those who are close to him have not been infected, and the position around him has become popular again.

If he hadn't insisted, you wouldn't be the only one around him now.

Amalric I probably wouldn't be pleased by this. "If you don't show greater value, Baldwin can't protect you." He placed his hand on Cesar's shoulder and pressed down hard. "You are the most favored child I have ever seen by God. You seem perfect. Perhaps because of this, He gave you such a great weakness.

You have to overcome him, do not regard those who fall to the ground whimpering and groaning, looking at you with a pair of helpless eyes as innocent people like those pilgrims. If it were you lying on the ground, they would not hesitate to attack you, and they would even be more cruel.

They are your enemies. Treat them the way you have treated your enemies before.” He shook Cesar’s shoulders vigorously and whispered solemnly, “Do you understand? This is what you must do.”

------

"Do you really like him that much? You're teaching him like a new member of the group."

Shortly after César left, a Templar who had been following the conversation came forward and sat across from Geoffrey.

"Isn't he worthy?" asked Geoffrey.

"He's not even willing to listen to your advice and leave Baldwin and join the Knights Templar," the other party said with a smile.

But they all knew that if Geoffrey said this, Cesar would immediately abandon his original master and join the Knights Templar with joy.

Of course, Geoffrey would not go back on his word and would still accept him, but he was afraid that he would no longer be respected by the Knights Templar.

Even if the blessing he received was enviable or even jealous, he would only become a spear or shield that the Knights Templar would use without hesitation. Even if he was lucky enough to survive, he would always be just a sergeant and could not be officially promoted to a knight, let alone go any further.

If a person is disloyal to his original master, he will inevitably be disloyal to his new master. This is an idea engraved in everyone's mind.

"Many people are inquiring about the prince's attendant," the later Templar Knight remarked. "And indeed, what lord, lord, or even king wouldn't want a beautiful, capable attendant? For them, keeping such a delightful creature at court wouldn't be a problem."

"He refused?"

"No, those invitations were never sent to him." After all, for those who knew the inside story, these invitations were almost a humiliation. They did not understand the relationship between Baldwin and this servant, and they just thought they could bribe him with money.

"However," the later Templar Knight said, "when William Marshall suddenly appeared in the arena, their attention was diverted. After all, how could a nine-year-old squire, even with an unforeseeable future, compare to a knight who could be of use now? Amalric I even wanted to invite him to join the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, but William Marshall refused."

"As expected," said Geoffrey.

William Marshall was not only English, but had recently received favors from Queen Eleanor. The Templar recounted the story of William Marshall and Queen Eleanor, then continued, "Given this favor, Amalric I could not force it and could only give the brave knight a suit of silver-plated chain mail and some money."

But I think Queen Eleanor and King Henry the Younger will be generous with their rewards when William Marshal returns.”

"Of course, isn't he coming to this tournament to establish the authority of King Henry the Young?" Geoffrey asked. At that time, co-ruling was common, sometimes with the Queen Mother and the King. Sometimes, even the old King and the new King co-ruled, as King Henry the Young faced. Henry II was still alive, and he still had a large court and royal staff. Although he had abdicated, he still held most of the power.

Young King Henry was very young and immature. Even with the support of Queen Eleanor, he could not directly confront his father.

In this case, William Marshall had to make a name for himself so as not to bring shame to his master.

"He did it. The prices offered by those lords or envoys were truly eye-watering," the later Templar Knight quipped, "even I was tempted."

Geoffrey nodded in agreement. "After hearing a few prices, I feel that even if William Marshall wavered, it wouldn't be incomprehensible."

"Well," the later Templar asked with a smile, "don't you always believe that a person's character is like a flawless porcelain plate, once cracked it is irreparable?"

"William's situation is different from César's," Geoffrey said frankly. "William Marshall was originally the second son of an earl. He passed the 'Ceremony of Selection' and was knighted before he met Queen Eleanor. Queen Eleanor simply redeemed him from someone else. She redeemed only his body, not his soul.

But Cesar... Although I really hope that he can become a Knight Templar, I have to say that if it weren't for Amalric I, he would still be an Isaac slave and would be sold as a slave to the pagans.

Do you understand? Even if he had been baptized before, no one would perform the sacraments for him when he died. His soul would fall into the lake of fire in hell and burn for ten thousand years until the end of the world.

The kindness that Amalric I showed him was completely different from the kindness that Queen Eleanor showed to William Marshal; there is no comparison between the two."

------

"Baldwin?"

"Ok?"

"if……"

Baldwin waited patiently. It was the first time he saw Cesar look so hesitant.

(End of this chapter)