I Became The King Of Crusaders [EN]: Chapter 59

Two Cities Story (4)

* * *

“The north is completely cut off. Are you serious right now?”

Gi said.

Moonlight streamed in through the gaps in the tent.

A dim candle illuminated Commander Toroha and Gi.

“If your men had failed, we would have heard something by now….”

Gi muttered.

“Maybe Baudouin is trying to hide his failure.”

He smirked.

“If the convoy was attacked, the Assassins would have turned their swords. If they fought Baudouin on the spot…. It makes sense that there’s no news, doesn’t it?”

“But at least one of them could have escaped.”

Toroha sighed and looked at Gi.

“If information was leaked somewhere….”

“Are you suspecting me now? Me, who has helped your Knights Templar more than anyone else?”

Gi leaned forward.

His beard fluttered right above the candlelight.

Commander Toroha flinched and stepped back.

“Have you forgotten how much I’ve worked for your convenience until now?”

“I’m just stating a possibility. If not that….”

“Then the information must have leaked from your knights. Are you sure there’s no contact?”

Gi asked.

“There were members who accompanied Baudouin, weren’t there?”

“Contact is completely cut off. It’s as if they all disappeared….”

Just then, they heard someone approaching the tent.

The sound of armor clanking.

At least dozens of them.

Gi and Toroha both turned their heads.

Gi shouted towards the outside of the tent.

“Who is it?!”

“It’s the Captain of the Guard, Count.”

The voice said.

The figures outside the tent flickered.

“His Majesty the King has summoned both the Count and the Grand Master of the Knights Templar.”

“At this hour?”

Gi frowned and asked.

“Why are you delivering this message instead of a messenger? Tell His Majesty that I will be there soon.”

“It is His Majesty’s command to appear immediately.”

Soon, a quarrel broke out.

The Royal Guards pushed past the guards and entered the tent.

“What is this rude behavior?!”

Gi shouted as he stood up.

Silence fell.

The sound of locusts could be heard faintly from outside the tent.

“I don’t know what His Majesty wants to say….”

Gi growled.

“I’ll go now. But don’t think I’ll be dragged away like a criminal.”

“Understood, Count. Lead the way.”

The Captain of the Guard and Gi glared at each other.

Gi stepped out of the tent and said.

“I will repay this insult someday.”

* * *

Hama

Saladin’s army had established a camp near the city walls.

But the atmosphere in the city was surprisingly calm.

“Don’t forget the agreement we made, Prince Baudouin,” Sinan said, looking at me.

The robe he wore fluttered in the wind.

We were both standing on the city walls together.

“You have allowed the construction of propagation centers [places to spread their religious teachings].”

“It doesn’t seem like that’s what’s important right now. You can even plaster the entire city with propagation centers.”

I burst out laughing.

After all, the military power that dominates the city is our Crusader force.

And the number of Christian citizens is equal to that of Muslims.

If Sunnis and Shiites are divided, it’s even more beneficial.

“But I cannot allow some of the officials to be appointed from your people,” I said.

“There were no such conditions in the agreement we made at first. Isn’t that so?”

“If our Assassins hadn’t shed blood, you would never have been able to take this city.”

“And if our Franks [Western Europeans, especially the French] don’t shed blood in the future, this city will fall into Saladin’s hands.”

I pointed to Saladin’s camp outside the city walls.

Thousands of tents.

Saladin’s symbol, the yellow flag, fluttered in the center.

It looked more like a black sea than a military camp.

“Keep this in mind, Sinan. If it weren’t for the Kingdom of Jerusalem, you would have already been driven out of the mountains.”

“If it weren’t for us, you Franks would have been driven back into the sea long ago.”

Sinan scoffed.

“We are the scales that maintain balance and the sword that carries out Allah’s will. Pray to the cross that our sword does not turn against you.”

I answered with a laugh.

“Yes, we need your help to protect Hama and Homs.”

Conversely, the Assassins need these two cities to protect the mountains.

A symbiotic structure where each relies on the other.

“Even you don’t know Saladin’s true intentions, do you? Whether to attack this place or return to Damascus.”

I asked with a smile.

The Assassins’ intelligence was certainly great.

They informed us of the movements of Saladin’s army almost in real time.

But even they couldn’t figure out Saladin’s plan.

“If we had a little more time, we could have known.”

“Are you saying you need more time when the city is already besieged?”

I replied with a smile.

Sinan frowned and disappeared to the other side of the wall.

At that moment, a cavalryman rushed out of Saladin’s camp.

He stirred up a cloud of dust as he approached the wall where we were.

Some soldiers hurriedly raised their bows and crossbows.

“It’s a messenger! Lower your bows!”

Ganier shouted as he ran over.

Aygue also ran beside him.

“Commander of the brave warriors. Sultan Saladin wishes to meet with Prince Baudouin of the Royal Family of Jerusalem!”

The Saracen [term for Muslims used by Europeans during the Crusades] cavalryman shouted, looking up at the wall.

“I heard that the Prince is here in Hama! Or is he not here?”

“….”

“This is a trick,” Ganier whispered.

“To lure the Prince out….”

“Saladin wouldn’t do such a thing,” I said with a smile.

Saladin is a man who is obsessed with honor.

That was his weakness and his strength at the same time.

Still, I can’t give Saladin the initiative.

I shouted.

“Tell the Sultan! I, Prince Baudouin, invite the Sultan to Hama.”

“That’s…!”

The messenger frowned.

“Yes, Saladin won’t come into this city,” I burst out laughing.

“Then tell him to meet in the middle. The Sultan and I. Meeting with only escort troops.”

This time, Aygue came closer and whispered.

“Prince, if they do anything….”

“We can do something too. It’s not like they’re the only ones who can do it,” I said with a smile.

It’s a good opportunity.

I’m the only one with intuition.

If I face Saladin, I can know his true intentions.

Whether it’s a siege or a retreat.

Aygue sighed.

“Then I’ll go get Bulte. I need to prepare too. You can’t go alone, Prince.”

“Thank you, Aygue.”

I looked at the tents far away.

Salah ad-Din [Saladin’s full name].

The famous Islamic hero was right in front of me.

* * *

Who exactly is Saladin?

A Sunni [one of the two main branches of Islam] from the Kurdish people.

He worked under Nureddin with his father and became the ruler of Egypt.

When Nureddin died, he became Sultan and occupied Syria.

This time, even the north.

The one who regained the Kingdom of Jerusalem and founded the Ayyubid dynasty.

The man who faced Richard I, the Lionheart, head-on.

A figure more famous in the West than in Islam.

The person to whom German Emperor Wilhelm II donated a marble coffin hundreds of years later.

I looked at him approaching from afar.

The exact center of the Hama wall and the camp.

The hot sun beat down as if scorching the earth.

It’s hard to breathe.

It would have been better if I had gone to the tent.

Saladin approached us with his escort knights.

The turban wrapped around his head.

The long beard and chainmail that covered his neck.

The calm eyes.

It was the same as I had seen in the game.

We both came forward at the same time as if we had promised.

A distance close enough to see pores.

We stared at each other with our mouths shut.

Saladin gave a faint smile.

“He’s about the same height as my son. Prince Baudouin.”

The accent was strong, but not to the point where I couldn’t understand it.

“I knew you were young, but it feels strange to face you like this.”

Is his son about my age?

Well, it’s not unreasonable.

I looked at his face.

The age difference was enough to call him a father.

He continued to speak.

“I still remember the letter you sent me. You said let’s meet in Jerusalem. Unfortunately, we’re seeing each other here in Hama first.”

“We will meet again in Jerusalem soon.”

I looked at him.

Saladin gained power by advocating the recapture of the holy city.

The conflict between him and the Kingdom of Jerusalem was inevitable.

Two unstoppable trains running towards each other.

“That may be the case soon. But what’s important today is not Al-Quds [Arabic name for Jerusalem].”

He raised his hand and pointed to the walls of Hama.

“Aleppo and Mosul are already in my hands. You took these cities by taking advantage of the gap between Masoud and me fighting. The cities of Muslims.”

“It was the land of the Roman Empire before the Muslims conquered it.”

“You know history well, Prince.”

Saladin smiled.

A gentle smile like the uncle next door.

“Then you will also know that there is no chance of victory for you Franks. The Kingdom of Jerusalem is just a pebble thrown into the vast sea of Islam.”

He continued to speak.

“The army following the jihad [holy war] already numbers over 50,000. Soon, twice that number will gather.”

“Thank you for telling me the details of the troop status.”

“I am giving you the opportunity to save your lives.”

He scoffed as if it were nothing.

“Even if there are losses, we can replenish our troops as much as we want. Even from far away Baghdad, supporters are flocking every day.”

He continued to speak.

“Our Muslims will sweep you away like angry waves. How much longer do you think you can last before you are driven back into the sea?”

“….”

“Only after the water reaches your chin will you flail your arms and seek mercy and salvation. But there’s no need to worry.”

He continued in a calm tone.

“Allah [God in Islam] is forgiving and merciful and generous. You will all convert and find the truth.”

“….”

I looked at him without saying a word.

My heart was racing like crazy.

“There will be no captain who fears a calm sea.”

I opened my mouth.

“Behind our Jerusalem stands Rome, Europe, and Constantinople [Istanbul].”

I can say this much as well.

“There are tens of millions of Christians, countries, and tribes there. Even now, volunteers, funds, weapons, and supplies are pouring into the port every day.”

I continued to speak.

My voice gradually rose.

“If the flames burn, they can burn any river or sea.”

I waved my hand at Ganier and Aygue, who were trying to approach.

“Above all, your army is made up of lords. If you don’t take Jerusalem, do you think the lords will follow you?”

“….”

Silence fell.

I felt his emotions.

I didn’t feel anger.

Rather….

Intrigue?

He burst out laughing.

I waited with a nonchalant expression until he stopped laughing.

“Tens of millions of Christians. Your words are not wrong. Allah has made humans check each other so that this land does not become corrupt.”

He said with a faint smile.

“A hundred years ago, Allah inflicted hardship on us Muslims by allowing you to occupy Al-Quds. Now it is our turn to overcome the hardship and reclaim the holy city.”

He added.

“I don’t know what will happen in a hundred years, but what’s important is now.”

“What’s important is now.”

“And now….”

Saladin pointed to the wall with his hand.

“My army has besieged this place and Homs. The Prince knows well that there is no chance of victory on that side. Withdraw from the city right now.”

He continued to speak.

“If you hand over the city, I will guarantee the safe retreat of you Franks. You can take as much loot as you want. But if you reject my offer, I cannot guarantee what will happen.”

A short silence fell.

I stared straight at Saladin.

His emotions were like a lake.

A lake without a single ripple.

I have to figure out his emotions somehow.

Emotions….

I felt a slight impatience and anxiety.

Is he anxious because there will be many casualties?

No.

It’s a bluff.

As expected, he didn’t have the 余裕 [Japanese word meaning ‘composure’, ‘leeway’] to wage a siege even if it was unreasonable.

‘Going to Damascus must be more urgent.’

I looked at the large army behind Saladin and slowly opened my mouth.

“We are ready to fight as much as you want. If you want to try, try as much as you want.”

“You better think carefully before answering, Prince. Allah promises mercy. But there is no mercy for those who resist to the end.”

“I thought carefully before answering.”

I said with a smile.

“I also promise you. If the Sultan lifts the siege and leaves, we will not pursue you.”

Well, there are no troops to pursue in the first place.

Silence fell.

Saladin opened his mouth again.

“You are indeed an interesting person, Prince. A little different from what I thought.”

“Everyone says that.”

“Be satisfied with a small victory. Hama and Homs are just pebbles on the beach. We will soon reclaim these places.”

Saladin gave a faint smile.

“…….”

I looked at him without saying a word.

My vision was blurred because of the heat.

“It seems you are not used to the northern sun. I will have my men….”

Saladin added.

“I’ll send you some frozen fruits. There’s nothing better than frozen fruit for the heat.”

“I should be grateful.”

I replied with a smile.

I feel like I’ve seen this situation somewhere.

The movie I watched so much that the DVD wore out in the ROKA Army [Republic of Korea Army] multimedia room.

Baudouin IV and Saladin came out….

In that movie, the two gather their armies in front of the Kerak Castle.

The two face each other just before the battle breaks out.

It was after watching that movie that I became interested in this era.

Surely, the line that Baudouin IV said there was….

“Salam alaikum (Peace be upon you) [a common Arabic greeting].”

I bowed slightly.

Saladin looked at me with a surprised expression.

“Wa alaikum as-salam (And upon you be peace) [the proper response to ‘Salam alaikum’].”

He burst out laughing again.

“I sincerely hope that Allah’s peace be with you too. I’ll be waiting for you in Al-Quds next time, Prince Baudouin.”

He turned his horse and headed to his camp.

Aygue approached me.

“Are you okay, Prince?”

“I’m just a little hot,” I said.

“I’ll feel better if I eat frozen fruit.”

Aygue tilted his head at my sudden words.

I said with a smile.

“Tell the castle. Saladin’s army will withdraw soon.”

I looked back at Saladin’s camp.

An unstoppable train.

His beliefs and will were firm.

“At least for now.”