I Became The King Of Crusaders [EN]: Chapter 119

The Eagle of Broken Oaths (4)

* * *

“I didn’t realize things would escalate this much, Your Grace,” Aigre said, looking extremely nervous.

He scratched the back of his head.

“I was going to report directly to you, but things kept happening, and you went to stop the mercenaries…”

“Don’t worry, Aigre. I wasn’t going to scold you,” I said with a smile.

Aigre, Pierre, and Marco stood before me.

“I was just a little surprised.”

“I simply told the residents the truth, Your Grace,” Pierre said, grabbing my hand.

“The truths that Your Grace did not directly speak of.”

“Oh, I see,” I said, giving an awkward smile.

‘I feel this every time, but this guy is too much of a fanatic,’ I thought.

“This all happened due to a mistake on our part in Venice. I must apologize for the ship not arriving on time,” Marco said, bowing his head. His apology seemed sincere.

“We will definitely compensate for not adhering to the contract period. I don’t know what to do to make up for this inconvenience…”

“There’s no need to apologize. You said the departure was delayed due to the waves. I couldn’t blame you for that,” I replied.

“Rather, it seems the situation has become interesting thanks to that.”

Marco tilted his head at my words. Then Aigre said, “These days, it seems that military scrip [certificates promising future payment for military service] is being sold for much higher than the assigned amount. I heard that villages are even fighting each other to obtain military scrip.”

“It’s not unreasonable since indulgences have been created,” I said.

The situation was actually quite simple.

‘Military scrip’ is a token that reduces time in purgatory and allows one to go to heaven!

As Pierre preached this, the surrounding villages rushed to obtain military scrip.

‘I underestimated the faith of this era too much,’ I thought. I couldn’t have imagined turning promissory notes into something religious.

“Indulgences?”

“It might be more accurate to call them pardons, since they reduce the punishment received in purgatory.”

Purgatory was an intermediate concept between heaven and hell, a place where those who had not committed great sins, but were not worthy of going straight to heaven, stayed. They could go to heaven by receiving minor punishments and praying there.

‘Nowhere in the Bible does it give the Pope the authority to grant such things!’ I thought. This was the reason Martin Luther of Germany opposed Rome and created Protestantism, along with the printing press. As the Bible in German spread, Germans read and made judgments directly.

‘The Pope has no authority to sell indulgences!’ I started that several centuries earlier.

I stroked my chin. Strictly speaking, it’s not an indulgence, is it? Since it’s closer to a bond or money that will be exchanged for that amount later—a temporary measure to raise money. But there’s no need to use it once and throw it away. If managed well, it could be a tool to raise funds steadily. Maybe it could be more than that.

“If no interest is given… it’s practically money,” I said with a smile. ‘If you bring this paper, we’ll exchange it for real coins!’ That’s paper money. The first place to use paper money was the Northern Song Dynasty, so it’s around the same period.

Marco, who had been standing blankly, clapped his hands. He waved his arms with an excited face.

“T, that’s really amazing! If it’s issued in Jerusalem, all the believers in Europe will want to use it. Money that reduces punishment the more you use it…”

“Even if you use paper, you still have to exchange it for real coins, right? Then it doesn’t seem like there’s much profit,” Aigre asked.

“You’re not a merchant, so you don’t understand. This is a huge deal. It’s also very simple at the same time,” Marco waved his hand. “Let me explain it easily. Let’s say a German blacksmith sells armor to a Jerusalem knight and receives this ‘paper money’—a paper money with one dinar written on it.”

“Continue.”

“Then the Jerusalem knight exchanged the armor for a piece of paper with ink on it. Where else can you find a better deal than this?”

“But if you exchange that money for real coins, it’s useless, isn’t it?”

“Of course, that’s right. But what if you don’t exchange it and keep using it to buy other things?” Marco asked.

“Until you exchange it for real coins, Jerusalem is getting a free profit. As long as people believe in this paper, Jerusalem will never lose money!”

“Mr. Marco is right,” I nodded.

The key currency country in the 21st century is the United States. Maintaining the dollar hegemony is paramount for the United States. I don’t know the details well since I’m not an economics major. Anyway, the important thing was one thing: maintaining trust. That meant not issuing banknotes excessively. We need to maintain the gold standard linked to gold and have branches to handle financial transactions.

‘I don’t have to worry about this,’ I thought.

“The Knights Templar branches are all over Europe. They can exchange this ‘holy certificate’ for coins there. We should entrust the issuance to the Knights Templar altogether.”

Using paper money is the same as supporting Jerusalem!

Then the punishment received in purgatory is also reduced!

Is that the conclusion?

I feel like the biggest con artist of the 12th century.

“We in Venice will also support Your Grace and Jerusalem!” Marco said, spitting. I could feel his excitement—a reaction like a pirate with a treasure chest in front of him.

“If there’s anything you need, please tell me.”

“We can’t write paper money by hand one by one,” I said. We need to use the method Martin Luther used here. We also had the right tools: the elaborate wood carvings I saw at Kang’s house.

“Call Kang. I think I’ll need a few wood carvings.”

“Wood carvings?” Aigre tilted his head.

“It might be more accurate to call them stamps,” I replied with a smile. What could be better than woodblock printing for printing indulgences?

Aigre looked puzzled and sighed. “I guess I’ll have a lot more work to do.”

“Ah, Your Grace!” Marco raised his hand as if he had remembered something. “Come to think of it, there’s something I wanted to ask. As you said before, I’ve collected wood by type, but…” He continued, “What exactly are you going to use the wooden barrels for? What’s the relationship with the elixir…”

“Let’s just say they’re barrels to store the elixir,” I said. Oh, that’s right. Unlike the Levant, where it was difficult to find wood, Europe was rich in wood. Of course, it cost some money to collect the wood, but I’ll be able to recover it soon.

“I’ll briefly explain it from now on. Some of the things I know aren’t accurate, so there will be some trial and error,” I said. I think it was a mistake that the first whiskey was made in the original history.

“First, put wine in the wooden barrels, wait until it soaks in, and then put the elixir in…”

* * *

The next day, I held the crossbow in one hand and held my breath. I could hear a heartbeat in front—a rhythm like beating a drum. It’s shaking like crazy.

I shook my leg to signal to Bulte. Bulte quietly moved his steps. The horseshoes made a squishing sound as they stepped on the mud. I could see him beyond the bushes.

‘A big one,’ I thought. A wild boar almost the size of a compact car. Arrows and bolts were stuck all over his body. Blood droplets dripped. He panted and looked around. I carefully raised the crossbow. One shot would catch him—the neck. If I shoot the exposed neck in a straight line….

Instead of shooting the crossbow, I signaled Bulte to charge. The wild boar was startled by Bulte’s charge and ran away to the other side.

“Lord Richard! He went that way!” Richard ran over with a crossbow. A few hunters followed him with spears.

“I know!” I shouted.

The wild boar quickly changed direction, brushing past them. Richard shouted back again, “Brother! He’s over there!”

After a while, a pig’s scream echoed. Richard and I went to where the sound came from. The wild boar was lying down with a spear stuck in its neck. Young Henry was the one who made the final blow. He stood next to the prey with a triumphant expression.

“Hoo, it was a great hunt, Your Grace. Richard, you also d, did a good job,” Henry said.

“I thought my brother was only good at jousting, but he’s quite good at hunting too,” Richard said with a smile. He got off his horse and approached me. Colorful silk clothes fluttered in the wind, golden spurs and a rose-colored tunic, even a pure white cloak. He looks more like a king than a duke.

He came to my side and whispered in a small voice, “Your Grace, you could have caught him, but you deliberately drove him this way. Isn’t that right?”

“Well, why would I not catch the prey in front of me?” I replied with a smile. Surprisingly, he’s quick-witted in these places. I didn’t come here to catch wild boars. This was an event to reconcile young Henry and Richard.

“Didn’t Lord Richard also have a chance to catch him? I think you lowered your crossbow at the last moment.”

“…” Richard stared at me blankly without saying a word. Soon he burst out laughing. “I knew my hunch was right. I think Your Grace and I have something in common. I guess you could say a hero recognizes a hero.”

I shrugged instead of answering.

“By the way, that’s a really wonderful horse. How many years have you been training it?”

“I didn’t need training from the beginning. He obeyed me well from the first day I saw him,” I gently stroked the mane of Bulte next to me. He shook his head as if he felt good. The fluffy texture of the fur was felt at the fingertips. He ran well from the first day we met. His stamina is also great, so there’s no need to switch to another horse.

“And I got it for free too.”

“To get such a fine horse for free. I’m a little jealous,” Richard said. He looked at his brother and shouted, “By the way, I don’t need any beaters when I’m with Your Grace. You find the places where the beasts are right away. Isn’t that right, brother?”

“I, it’s really amazing. H, how do you do it, Your Grace?” Young Henry looked at me and asked. He still hasn’t completely gotten rid of his stuttering, but it’s much less than before.

“Let’s just say I have my own senses.”

“Did you use your ‘senses’ to find the enemies running away in the rain?” Richard asked with a smile.

“Your Grace, you seem to be a very mysterious person. You fought the Redbeard Emperor to save the Pope, and now you’ve even reconciled our brothers.”

“Everything is the will of the Lord.”

“Ha, there’s no funnier word than the will of the Lord. It’s what the pretentious clerics in Rome say,” Richard said with a sneer. “The knights are arrogant, the monks are greedy, and the nuns are lustful whores. Not a single exception.”

“I don’t think I can agree with that. Of course, there are corrupt people, but…” I stared at him straight in the eye. “If all the Knights Templar were arrogant, they wouldn’t donate all their wealth and fight the Saracens until they die.”

I remembered Hugh’s last moments. His intestines were sticking out, lying in the rain, but he smiled at me even at that moment.

“…” Richard, who had been silent, lowered his head. “I think I made a mistake. Please forgive my rudeness. Actually, I’m not a very well-regarded person either. How can I say anything to others?” He smiled and asked loudly, “Ah, yes. Won’t you sleep with us tonight? Your Grace, me, and my brother.”

What?

Before I knew it, my head tilted. Sleep together?

“G, good suggestion. Your Grace is now our blood brother,” Young Henry said. He came to me and put his arm around my shoulder. “What could be more certain than sh, sharing a bed?”

I looked at the two and let out a sigh of relief. Did you really just want to sleep together? In this era, it was common for lords to sleep with close people. Sleeping with vassals was to show trust. As far as I remember, Richard and young Henry didn’t have any homosexual tendencies.

‘Still, I don’t want to sleep in the same bed with two men,’ I thought. ‘I have to do this to save Jerusalem. My situation is really pathetic.’

Then Richard said, “By the way, I don’t know if my father will allow us to go to England. He’s probably wary of Your Grace coming.”

“You don’t have to worry about that part,” I replied with a smile. Henry II wouldn’t welcome us, but I had my own way—forcing Henry II to accept us. Pierre is enough for that. He won’t be able to stop the priest.

“I’ve already taken care of it a little.”

* * *

Q: Did the lords and nobles really sleep together at that time? (No sexual meaning)

A: In medieval Europe, it was common for lords to sleep in the same space with trusted subordinates. Sleeping together showed the lord’s trust in his vassals.

Also, in the case of Richard I, there are many records of sleeping in the same room as King Philip of France.

Based on this, modern and contemporary scholars have argued that the two were in a homosexual relationship, but this is considered to be of low reliability.

Records that the two slept together were written in the Middle Ages, but no medieval people at the time took issue with this.

In the case of young Henry, there are many records of sleeping in the same bed with his father, Henry II, after reconciling.

However, due to the nature of historical records, it is difficult to rule out the possibility that he was homosexual or bisexual.

‘If Richard had slept with a man, it could not have been kept secret. After all, kings lived lives in which every move was exposed. And if the king had been caught up in such a scandal in an era when homosexuality was not only an unforgivable sin but also considered a crime, the chroniclers would have mentioned it in some way. They even recorded that William Longchamp was suspected of liking boys. And Richard’s rivals would surely have seized on this scandal and tried to gain political advantage.’

Source material – Strange Middle Ages (Yoo Hee-soo), Eleanor of Aquitaine (Alison Weir)