kingdom of nations

Chapter 178 Unlucky Bohemond

The next day, Yalasa Road was still sunny and bright, with a high and wide sky and dazzling sunlight.

Unfortunately, those who came to the council hall of the main tower to participate in this important meeting were not at all moved by the comfortable sunshine and scenery. They were all restless, with gloomy faces, and there was not a trace of joy in their eyes.

After taking his seat, Raymond couldn't help but mutter a complaint: "That Bohemond guy..."

Everyone present understood Raymond's meaning, and some even nodded in agreement. Indeed, if this letter pleading for help had not been sent by Bohemond, but by Manuel I of Byzantium, the Crusaders could certainly have gloated and stood idly by.

But Antioch was different. Antioch, Tripoli, Al-Arazare, and Edessa—these four Christian nations located in the holiest lands—swore an oath to support each other, fight side by side, and never betray one another when they were founded.

They could not ignore Bohemond's pleas.

“If you ask me,” Guy of Arabia said to David, turning to him, “Bohemond of Antioch should have tried to break away from Byzantium long ago—or…” He raised an eyebrow and made an ominous gesture to David.

David simply shook his head. Abolishing the treaty with Byzantium was not so easy. Bohemond I, the founder of the Principality of Antioch, signed a treaty after being defeated by Byzantium, recognizing the Byzantine emperor as the monarch and becoming a vassal himself.

Bohemond I did this partly out of spite, since his nephew had already seized power in the Duchy of Antioch, and he was merely a duke in name only.

But this undoubtedly brought endless trouble to Grand Duke Antioch afterward.

The Byzantine Empire had always coveted Antioch – mainly due to its location. Byzantium was situated at the western end of the Anatolian peninsula, with the former Seljuk Turks to its east. Even though it was now fragmented, Antioch remained a formidable enemy.

Below its biggest rival, the Sultanate of Rum, lay the Kingdom of Cilicia Armenia, a small Christian country situated between Byzantine, Seljuk, and Christian states.

The Principality of Antioch stood in stark contrast to Byzantium. If Byzantium could annex this Christian state, its army could launch a pincer attack on the Sultanate of Rum.

So, having already established a point of intervention, the subsequent Byzantine emperors never stopped their methods—after Bohemond I's death in Italy, Alexius I proposed merging Byzantium with Antioch—a proposal rejected by the Crusaders.

When Byzantine Emperor John II's army besieged the city, he demanded that Raymond, Duke of Aquitaine and husband of Bohemond II's daughter, become his vassal.

Furthermore, when Bohemond III (whose name we know is Bohemond) was imprisoned by the Saracens, Manuel I seized the opportunity to marry his sister and demanded that he marry his niece... thus formally acquiring suzerainty and succession to Antioch...

The relationship between Antioch and Byzantium is now a tangled mess that can't be untangled, unless... someone can, like King Arthur, cleanly and decisively separate them in two.

"Gentlemen," Baldwin's voice came from above, and David immediately straightened his posture.

"We need to consider this matter carefully..."

------

Bohemond walked out of his room with a gloomy expression.

No, perhaps it's not accurate to say that.

Besides him, there were two Greeks and a Hungarian in the room. One of them was injured and needed to have his limbs amputated, while the other two had dysentery. The smell of blood, pus, and feces filled the small space, making it almost impossible to breathe.

He walked out feeling irritable, but the scene before him still did not make him feel any better.

Everywhere he looked, whether it was a flat area overgrown with vines and thorns, or a half-collapsed water house, warehouse and workshop, there were soldiers with their heads down and faces ashen.

They stood or lay down, mingling together like clumps of gray-black shadows, making it impossible to discern their faces or identities.

Bohemond faintly heard the neighing of horses. He wanted to check on the stables but stopped. The silence at this moment did not represent peace and contentment. On the contrary, it was like the sea before a storm, where their small boat could capsize at any moment.

He saw several soldiers looking at him. Bohemond raised his arm and saw his silver chainmail, the jeweled brooch that shimmered, and his thick fur cloak.

He hesitated for a moment, wanting to go back to his room, but the thought of those sharp groans, curses, and cries made him feel suffocated.

"Where are our priests?" he asked the attendant beside him. The attendant had been with him for a long time and knew from Bohemond's expression that he was also on the verge of collapse. He dared not be negligent or delay and immediately whispered, "They are all with Manuel I."

Upon hearing this, Bohemond couldn't help but let out a contemptuous sneer: "A bunch of fools. At a time like this, they're still thinking about Manuel I's gold and silk."

Because the previous military operations against the traitors and heretics Murray not only failed to achieve any results but also resulted in the loss of a large number of Crusader knights and priests, the Church had much criticism of them, both in Rome and Alassane.

He didn't bring many priests with him this time, and even fewer of them were trustworthy.

Bohemond originally had a loyal priest by his side, but unfortunately he was hit by a stray arrow and died in the previous battle. The other priests, upon hearing that Manuel I had fainted after seeing his nephew's head, rushed to his side, hoping to curry favor with the Byzantine emperor and seek money and power.

These short-sighted fools completely failed to see that the battle was sliding uncontrollably toward defeat, and what they sought was likely nothing more than a pipe dream.

Bohemond ultimately did not return to his room. He leaned against a half-collapsed wall, seemingly chatting casually with his servant, "Has it been confirmed that it is whose head?"

The attendant nodded very clearly. The scene was somewhat chaotic—Manuel I lifted the lid of the chest, saw the head inside, and immediately collapsed. As he fell, his arm struck the chest, knocking it off the table. The head rolled a considerable distance, but he bravely picked it up from the ground, disregarding the blood.

The deceased's face had been wiped clean, so he could see clearly that it was indeed the young, handsome general who always carried an air of arrogance.

A mocking smile appeared on Bohemond's lips—everyone knew that Manuel I had castrated all of his brother's male offspring upon his accession to the throne.

This so-called nephew was born a year and a half after his only surviving brother, Isaac, died. Even if he was a posthumous child, the time frame was far too long.

Everyone knew perfectly well, just like his grandnieces, that the child's true father was Manuel I. It was clear that Manuel I doted on this illegitimate son; he had assigned the young man a separate northern army, ensuring he wouldn't encounter any fierce enemies. But fate intervened, and they unexpectedly encountered a Turkic army that not only ambushed Manuel I's nephew's army in the dense forest but also beheaded him in the chaos of battle.

Their enemy, Arslan II, ordered his soldiers to clean the head, wrap it in silk, and return it to Manuel I. This dealt a significant blow to Manuel I. It is also possible that after leaving Constantinople, although their journey was relatively smooth—they encountered almost no organized armies—they suffered several defeats after entering the buffer zone between Byzantium and Rum Sultan.

This defeat was not caused by soldiers and swords, but by the despicable schemes used by the Turks.

They drove away the people, burned villages, poisoned rivers and springs, and even destroyed forests and meadows, so that all supplies for Manuel I's army of 30,000 men had to be slowly transported from the rear.

The soldiers were hungry and thirsty, and unable to find clean water, they drank filthy muddy water, which resulted in an outbreak of dysentery in the army.

Meanwhile, Rum Sultan Arslan II sent several armies to harass the army repeatedly, like ants gnawing at an elephant. Although they could not inflict fatal damage on the army, they plunged them into frustration and anxiety.

Under these circumstances, Manuel I had no choice but to order his army to temporarily regroup and rest in the abandoned Miléo Sephalon Castle.

This building was indeed once a huge and magnificent military fortress, but unfortunately it has been abandoned for decades. Even with many buildings, only a few rooms still retain their ceilings, walls, and floors that have not collapsed.

Manuel I was bound to have his own palace. He was accompanied on this campaign by many prominent generals, ministers and vassals. Even Bohemond knew that in such a time of unease and restlessness, it was best not to be too critical.

If he angered those people, the best outcome would be that they would lead their troops away; the worst outcome... Bohemond couldn't continue thinking about it.

As he saw Manuel I's eunuch approaching him in a white cloak, he immediately straightened his back and went to meet him.

"The emperor wants you to go to his side immediately."

Bohemond followed the eunuch toward where Manuel I was, taking a gemstone ring from his hand and placing it in the eunuch's hand: "What happened? How is the emperor now?"

“The emperor is only temporarily distressed; the priest has already bled him,” the eunuch whispered. “He wants to see you not for anything else, but…” He quickly glanced to his left and right, “The Turkic envoy has arrived.”

The room where Manuel I was located was not the largest room in the Miléo Sephalon Castle, which had also collapsed due to years of disrepair.

He's probably living in an armory or something similar now. It's built to be very solid and sturdy because it's used for storing weapons, but the lighting and layout are poor. Even though it's been cleaned, it still has an indescribable murky smell.

Bohemond was probably the last to arrive; he wasn't in his room, and the eunuchs took a little longer to find him.

He walked in silently and stood in his place. Manuel I saw him and gently raised his hand.

Those who were allowed to stand in this room, and who were still able to stand in this room, were all present. Beneath their feet lay a carpet that was once exquisite but was now covered in mud. Their faces were dimly lit by candles and torches, making them look like demons. The only one who could be barely made out was the face of Manuel I, which was as yellow and haggard as gold leaf, yet full of a strange vitality.

He reclined on a large couch covered with soft pillows inlaid with gold thread. The emperor wore a purple robe, a golden cloak, a crown, rings, and a scepter, still appearing as the majestic and dignified monarch he always was.

But when Bohemond looked up, he seemed more like a wooden statue, rotten inside. All its brilliance and color were just a layer of paint and gold leaf covering the surface of the wood. Perhaps if you reached out and gently pulled it, you could expose its true weakness and emptiness.

He didn't know if he was the only one with this thought, or if more people were... but at least the Turkic envoy had already shown a hint of secret joy.

He could see it; he could tell that the king who had once defeated their master, Arslan II, was at his last gasp.

Even so, he faithfully fulfilled his mission. He brought with him the condolences of his master, Arslan II, to Manuel I.

Despite having achieved several victories, Arslan II remained restrained in the face of an army of 30,000. He paid homage to his monarch – after all, he had previously come to Constantinople to submit to Manuel I and pay tribute after Manuel I defeated him.

They had indeed maintained a period of peace that lasted for ten years.

However, this balance was quickly broken after the death of Syria's Sultan Nour al-Din.

The death of Nur ad-Din meant that Arslan II, the Sultan of Rum, no longer needed to worry about threats from his Syrian kin. He seized the opportunity to annex the territory of a sultanate, forcing their sultan to seek help from the Byzantine Empire.

Of course, the sultan of this country was neither a Christian nor a vassal state of the Byzantine Empire, and had no bargaining power to use for trade or negotiation, so Manuel I would not pay him any attention.

However, Manuel I made a demand of Arslan II to divide his spoils, which was indeed an obligation that a vassal state should fulfill to its suzerain state, but Arslan II was unwilling to do so.

Manuel I believed that although Arslan II no longer needed to worry about the Sultan of Syria, he had also resolved the issues with Hungary and Serbia, so he had no worries about the future.

Since that was the case, he did not hesitate to expend troops and money to declare war on this defeated enemy who dared to provoke him again. However, he probably did not expect that he would suffer such a great defeat before the war even officially started.

His former servants' arrogant remarks in front of him were even more unbearable to him.

Although Bohemond believed that Arslan II had already shown great humility.

In any case, so far, the victor is still him, not Manuel I, and Arslan II has also said that he is willing to agree to the conditions previously proposed by Manuel I and cede a portion of the territory to the Byzantine Empire.

In that case, although there will be some losses, they are still acceptable.

But Bohemond sensed something was wrong, because that unfortunate fellow—Manuel I's illegitimate son—had died before the war even officially began.

Of course, Manuel I did not only have one son, and the one who was dishonorable—he now only hoped that Manuel I would agree to this matter as soon as possible, so that he could return to Antioch with his army as soon as possible.

(End of this chapter)