I Became The King Of Crusaders [EN]: Chapter 96

Fifth Column (1)

* * *

Kingdom of Jerusalem

Royal Palace

“You summoned me, Your Majesty.”

“Come in, Theodora.”

Baldwin IV said, rising from his seat.

With a wave of his hand, all the surrounding doctors left the room.

“You employ Saracen [Arab or Muslim] doctors.”

“They are the best doctors here, at least. And they haven’t tried to kill me yet.”

Baldwin IV replied with a smile.

His body was wrapped in bandages.

The room was filled with a hazy mist of incense.

“I hope my appearance doesn’t discomfit you.”

“My father also suffered from a severe illness in his later years. I am fine, Your Majesty.”

Theodora said.

She looked at the king.

Baldwin’s uncle and the King of Jerusalem.

“Emperor Manuel was a great man. No one is unaware of the achievements he made.”

“I share the same sentiment as Your Majesty.”

“I called you here today for a specific reason. I simply have one question to ask.”

Baldwin IV leaned forward.

He coughed repeatedly.

“Before leaving, Baldwin asked that you be entrusted with the resettlement project. He said there would be no one more suitable than you, a Roman princess.”

“Your Majesty does not think so.”

“No, my thoughts are not much different from Baldwin’s. There would be no one as suitable as you. That is precisely the problem.”

Baldwin IV said.

His eyes turned to Theodora.

“Being the most suitable also means being the most dangerous. Theodora, you understand my meaning.”

Instead of answering, Theodora lowered her head.

She said.

“The more Romans who immigrate, the greater my influence will be. That means…”

“It also means the influence of the Roman Empire will grow.”

Baldwin IV said.

“I heard that you, not Basilious (the Emperor), were the first to conceive of the marriage with Baldwin. Is that true?”

“Prince Baldwin helped Basilious defeat the army of the traitor Andronikos. And he became a hero of Constantinople.”

Theodora said.

“I was the first to request the marriage, but Basilious made the decision.”

She continued.

“Both Basilious and I wanted Prince Baldwin. Marriage was the only way. Your Majesty knows this.”

“…I think I understand what you mean. The kingdom is in a precarious balance.”

Baldwin IV said.

He rested his chin on his hand and continued.

“The Saracens and Eastern Christians who originally lived here. Now, even the poor from Constantinople will immigrate. Eventually, there will be more people following the Eastern Church [Orthodox Church] than the Western Church [Catholic Church].”

“Since the last rebellion, interest in the Holy Land has grown in Constantinople. The Eastern Church can provide support for the defense of the Holy Land no less than the West. It already is.”

She added.

“If there are apples and pears in both hands, there is no need to give up one.”

“That would be the case if neither was rotten.”

Baldwin IV replied with a smile.

“If Basilious advances to the East, Antioch and Tripoli will be affected. Our kingdom will be the same.”

“As I said, Prince Baldwin is very popular in Constantinople right now. And the empire is a place where public sentiment drives much of what happens. Even more so than here in Jerusalem.”

Theodora said.

“And not only the citizens but also Basilious regards Prince Baldwin as a close friend.”

“….”

“I have a foot in both the empire and the kingdom. But before that, I am Prince Baldwin’s wife.”

Theodora said.

She looked directly at Baldwin IV.

Although she didn’t say it directly, the question he was asking was simple.

And the answer she had to give was also simple.

“Entrust this resettlement project to me. Then I will prove it to Your Majesty.”

She said.

“That there is no poison in the fruit.”

* * *

Verona

Lombard League Conference Hall

“This is an outrageous request!”

Men were seated around a circular table.

Red and white silks fluttered in the air each time the men stood up and sat down.

“We Italians can fight at any time if we have weapons. But now you’re telling us to receive new training!”

“That’s right!”

The others nodded at the old man’s words.

Nobles and officials.

They all poured out words in an excited tone.

“This is the most important time of the year. Are you saying we should leave our fields and livestock and only train?”

“The citizens won’t accept it right away.”

“Besides, you’re saying we should change the chain of command to be Jerusalem-centric. We are, after all, a voluntary alliance, not a subordinate of one person! You can’t just issue orders like this!”

“Just because we won once doesn’t mean you can treat the alliance like this!”

Only one man sat silently.

All eyes were on him.

“Prince Baldwin! You were the first to make this proposal. So explain yourself!”

“Understood.”

The man rose to his feet.

A white cloak with five crosses drawn on it.

The men who had been chattering all fell silent as if by agreement.

“Then I will answer each one of your concerns.”

* * *

“Or does anyone else have anything to say?”

I looked around the table.

What a mess.

What would it be like if it were the Last Crusaders game?

One click would have ended everything from persuasion to seduction to threats.

But now I had to do it all myself.

[Innate Charisma].

I’m glad I have this at least.

“The reason why new training is needed is simple. Because otherwise, we cannot fight against the Imperial Army.”

I said.

Pike spear training wasn’t everything.

Unifying the command system was also important.

I couldn’t just let each city fight on its own.

If the battle turned even slightly unfavorable, they would only look at each other and retreat.

“But now is the busiest time for farming. If we train as you request, Prince, the citizens will have nothing to eat.”

“That’s right. If we do that, we will inevitably suffer great losses even if we win this war.”

A man with a bulging belly nodded and chimed in.

Was he the podestà [chief magistrate] of Crema?

I don’t think he has to worry about food for a while.

I swallowed the words that came up to my throat.

“I’m not saying we should conscript all the men. But we need to train as many soldiers as possible.”

I said.

“And the women and children are already taking care of the livestock, aren’t they?”

“Even so….”

“You don’t have to worry about food for the time being. The supply chain has already been established.”

Alexandria, the Eastern Roman Empire, Cyprus, even regions in North Africa and Spain.

An countless number of merchants were bringing food and supplies to Italy.

“I am also willing to postpone the repayment period. I won’t charge interest, so I’m essentially supplying food at a loss.”

“….”

The men looked at each other in silence.

It would be hard to say anything when I’m stepping up and spending money.

“And the Emperor will cross the Alps with a large army. He will take the necessary supplies from the surrounding villages.”

I said.

In that case, even if the villages in the northern region farm now, they were likely to be taken away by the Emperor.

“It would be better for these villages to stop farming and evacuate to the cities.”

“Since the Prince is directly supplying food, I understand that problem. But why do we have to make new spears?”

A man stood up and asked.

“We already have plenty of spears, bows, and weapons in our armories to arm the citizens.”

“They are all short spears. We need much longer spears to stand against the Imperial knights.”

I added.

“These are weapons and tactics already used in the East. They have won many victories against the Saracens. The effect is certain.”

“Has this tactic ever been used in the East, Prince?”

Eig next to me bowed and asked.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen it.”

“Shh. They don’t know if what I’m saying is true or not anyway.”

I replied with a smile.

But not all of what I said is false.

I learned it all during war history class.

‘It’s the first time I’ve ever seen longbows and crossbows used together like this.’

Originally, the pike formation usually included musketeers, that is, musket soldiers.

But the knights of this era did not armor their horses.

Archers and crossbowmen would be enough to counter them.

“But making new spears costs an enormous amount of money. At this rate….”

“I think you are all mistaken about one thing. We have not yet won the war.”

I said.

“If we lose to the Emperor, there will be no need to worry about money. After all, Frederick will take everything away. Am I wrong?”

“….”

“Everything the Prince has said so far is correct.”

The pot-bellied man I saw earlier stood up.

The podestà of Crema.

“But the Prince and the Kingdom of Jerusalem monopolizing command is controversial. After appropriate discussion….”

I barely managed to hold back a snort.

So you’re saying we should leave it to you?

You can’t even agree when the enemy is right in front of you?

In the first place, it was the Lombard cities that prevented me from coming to Verona.

Appropriate discussion, my ass.

They just didn’t want me to take the lead.

I glared at the man.

“You were the podestà of Crema. I understand what you mean.”

I looked around and added.

“Are there any others who agree with Crema’s opinion? That the Kingdom of Jerusalem is unfit to take command. If you think so, please feel free to speak up now.”

“No, Prince, my words….”

The pot-bellied man flinched and said.

I could feel his embarrassment.

He knew what I meant.

‘I’m not planning on visiting your city with the Holy Cross.’

Right now, nobles and officials were all flocking to me, begging me to come to their cities.

The cross on which the Son of God, Jesus Christ, was crucified.

It’s on a different level than other saints’ relics and remains.

I am the one who possesses this Holy Cross.

Which city I visit is my choice.

What if I went to Milan but not Crema?

The citizens of Crema would immediately rise up.

‘We can’t enjoy the glory that Milan received! The incompetent podestà must resign!’

Unlike other European countries, public opinion and sentiment determined the leader in Italian cities.

Then I could use that.

“It seems that there are no other cities besides Crema that object. I understand.”

The pot-bellied podestà slumped into his seat.

A feeling of helplessness.

Yeah, just stay like that.

After trying to instigate openly and failing.

“The army of Jerusalem suffered the most damage in the last battle.”

I said.

The allied cavalry took the bait, but the knights of Jerusalem fought the most fiercely.

I couldn’t deny this.

The officials and nobles all remained silent.

“And His Holiness the Pope has given me direct command. If you are dissatisfied, you can go to His Holiness and speak directly to him. I have no intention of stopping you from doing that.”

“….”

Silence continued to flow.

I guess that’s about it.

I got up from my seat with a faint smile.

I felt like a teacher scolding whining kids.

“If you have nothing more to say, I will return to the training ground. I have a lot of work to supervise.”

* * *

12th-century Italian nobles and citizens’ clothing

(munchener bilderbogen munchen 1890) – public domain