kingdom of nations

Chapter 311 New Life (Part 1)

The papal envoy stood smugly in the council chamber of the governor's palace.

The crowd was divided into three groups, the most distinct being Natia and Portia, who occupied the main positions, and the officials and knights surrounding them—all of whom were from the lord's faction.

Standing opposite them were the papal envoy and the Knights Templar who had escorted him to Nicosia.

The people standing in twos and threes among them were mainly Cypriot nobles and representatives of the people. They had different expressions but were all in the same boat and kept silent.

This papal envoy was a handsome young man who, through his appearance, developed an ambiguous relationship with the current Alexander III and was able to wear the red robe at such a young age. After Alexander III issued the Great Expulsion, he volunteered to take on this seemingly dangerous task.

But is it really dangerous?

He didn't think so, otherwise he wouldn't have tried to get the job—the Cypriot nobles were originally just a bunch of cowards terrified by the Saracens, and after Cesar's "seven days of mourning," they became even more submissive lambs at the mercy of others. If Cesar were in Cyprus, he would definitely have refused the job.

But the lion had been imprisoned in Bethlehem by a conspiracy and could not return.

Even if he returned, he would be driven out by the combined forces of the Templars and the Byzantine Emperor. Now, only two women remain in the governor's palace: his sister Natia and his wife.

Needless to say, the former was merely a lowly woman who had served as a female slave in the Sultan's palace for nearly ten years, a fact known to all. The papal envoy's disdainful gaze swept over Natia, presumably because she, like those unfaithful prostitutes, was adept at flattering any man she encountered.

As for Portia, the envoy's gaze lingered on her for only a moment before moving on.

Portia's appearance is not what people admire today; she is as coarse as a peasant woman.

He thought to himself, especially when he saw that the other woman's unusually large belly wasn't even covered by a tight-fitting garment, that Venetian women were indeed unrestrained, while he reluctantly read out the papal decree of the Great Excommunication.

This decree was filled with some of the terrifying words commonly used by church officials, such as blasphemy, hell, an extremely serious crime, and no possibility of forgiveness. It was followed by stern warnings, forbidding all of the sinner's friends, relatives, and those with economic and political ties from approaching him or allowing him to approach them. All contracts and documents related to him were null and void, including his two previous marriages, the oaths he had made to the knights, and the oath he had made to the king. At this point, the envoy emphasized his words and glared at the two women in the main seat and the knights behind them.

He seemed to be saying, "Why haven't you cried, knelt down, and begged yet?"

And those knights—you are all members of the Crusaders, how can you still be so stubbornly working for a devil? Do you want to go to hell?
However, he eventually remembered the most important thing.

"...Although you have also become the devil's concubines and servants of Satan, if you have been deceived and coerced, then...as long as you kneel down and repent now, you will receive the Father's mercy."

"Is the Father willing to forgive us?" Portia asked doubtfully, wearing a very heavy and thick cloak that crossed at her chest and reached her ankles, covering her hands and abdomen.

“Yes, only this. Praise be to my Lord, praise be to the Father, what a generous and merciful man he is!” the envoy said sincerely, completely ignoring the disgusted expressions of those listening. Then he revealed a wicked and cruel smile: “You will come with me to Rome, to confess your sins in a monastery and receive a purification ceremony performed for you by the priests. I hope that your prayers and penance will cleanse you of your sins, even if it is just a little bit.”

Portia smiled.

Although the words were presented in a grand and respectable manner, the papal envoy's demands were undoubtedly for them to become two hostages. These despicable men still harbored some fear of Cesar and his supporters. Furthermore, Portia had Dandolo of Venice behind her. Even if Dandolo couldn't persuade the Venetian council to send a fleet, they could still extort a large sum of money from Dandolo in exchange for Portia.

Moreover, just by looking at the unfriendly gaze of the papal envoy, one could tell that they would not allow Cesar's child to live.

The fact that this child is alive means that he still has rights to Cyprus, Bethlehem, Damascus, and even Arrassa Road. "I understand," Portia said.

The papal envoy nodded reservedly, not at all surprised that the woman had finally given in. The outcome was decided—excommunication was such a terrible thing. If they still insisted on following that sinner, they would be despised witches, destined to wander and starve.

Then he saw the "slave girl" bending down to remove Portia's cloak. He was about to scold her for changing clothes at this time, asking if she didn't know she was now a sinner.
His anger froze on his face instantly, making him look like a clown.

Portia was about to give birth, and her belly was indeed very large, but not to the exaggerated extent he had seen.

The reason for the large bulge under her cloak was that she was tightly gripping a crossbow. This crossbow might not be as powerful as the Sangra crossbow, but at a distance of only ten paces, the difference was negligible.

The papal envoy's mouth gaped open; perhaps he wanted to call out his identity, or perhaps he wanted to plead, but everything vanished with that soft "pop"...

Portia's shooting skills were personally taught by her grandfather Dandolo, who even commissioned a lighter and smaller crossbow for her—this crossbow came with her to Cyprus as part of her dowry. Cesare never stopped her from continuing her training in this area, and he even hired a squire from the Crusaders who was the best crossbowman to teach her how to shoot accurately.

The crossbow bolt pierced the stagnant air and struck the papal envoy squarely in the throat. He raised his hand, clutching his throat in disbelief, and tried to pull the bolt, which was embedded deep in his flesh, but after several attempts, he could only cluck like a chicken waiting to be slaughtered, his hands covered in blood, unable to change anything.

A few breaths later, he fell backward, his final moments casting his gaze upon the Templar Knight beside him. Why didn't they stop her? Why didn't they protect me? He couldn't understand.

The Grand Master of the Knights Templar had clearly already submitted to the Pope's orders.

When he landed in Pendea, the Grand Master of the Templars, who controlled the city, not only personally greeted him but also knelt before him and kissed his ring. When the Grand Master pointed this Templar out to him, he said that this was the most valiant and skilled of the Templars, capable of bringing him out unharmed even with a thousand heretical soldiers in the Governor's palace. This allowed the Grand Master to speak so confidently and declare, despite the knights' watchful eyes, that he would take away their two mistresses.

He was certainly prepared; if things really got out of control, he could kneel down and beg for mercy, and even swear that once he returned to Rome, he would do his best to plead with Pope Alexander III to change his terrible idea and withdraw the extermination order.

Of course, this was just something he said casually. Anyway, he would do anything as long as he could get out of here safely—even if they asked him to dance with the devil with his bare buttocks exposed.

But he never expected Portia's response to be so swift and brutal. The Templar beside him didn't even flinch, and when the other Templars behind him placed their hands on their sword hilts, he even reached out and pressed them down, indicating that they should not make any rash moves.

Then the other person slowly removed their mask.

"Walter?" Portia's knight Albon, one of the many senior knights who had served Josephine II, exclaimed in surprise. He had fought alongside Walter, and after Josephine II was captured, he had approached Walter, hoping he could persuade the Grand Master of the Templar Order to find a way to ransom Josephine II.

Of course, the request was rejected, but Walter still personally funded him with some money so that he wouldn't be in such dire straits, but they didn't contact each other for more than ten years.

Natia had even heard of Walter's name. Walter and Rofro were both friends of Cesar in the Knights Templar. When Cesar first arrived in Arrasal, they had given him various kinds of help.

Cesare once said that the two knights were trustworthy to kings, priests and pilgrims (but it was hard to say for commoners and pagans), and even so, they were still considered rare "good men" in the Crusades.

A squire took the crossbow from Portia's hand. Portia stared at Walter. "Why didn't you stop me?"

"My only mission was to escort him safely to Nicosia, and the Grand Master didn't say anything after that," Walter shrugged.

Both the papal envoy and the Grand Master of the Knights Templar believed that since Walter had accepted the mission, he should understand their meaning—he had temporarily become the papal envoy's attendant, and had to follow his arrangements and obey his orders, no matter how shameless the other party's demands were.

The Templar Knight, who had once been entrusted with boundless hopes by the Pope's special envoy, tilted his head, squinted at the corpse on the ground, and grinned. "Little fellow, this is all I can do for you."

He then bent down, hoisted the unseeing corpse of the papal envoy onto his shoulder, tossed it over his shoulder as if carrying a sack of wheat, and swaggered out of the council chamber as if no one else was there. The people present looked at each other in bewilderment, but no one dared to stop him, or rather, there was no need to.

Walter's words, seemingly addressed to the deceased papal envoy, were actually meant to a different person, and the expressions of the people, especially the Christians, became even more complex.

They had indeed heard of Cesar's extremely high and pure reputation, his great respect among knights, and his previous close relationship with two Grand Masters of the Templar Order. They never expected him to take such a risk, allowing his wife to shoot the papal envoy; this was far beyond their initial expectations.

Portia returned to her seat. Even though she had been trained, she was still a pregnant woman, ten months along and about to give birth. The assassination had drained her of a lot of energy—any other woman would be out of breath even holding a cup at this point, but she had killed someone.

Portia slumped in her chair, pale and with purple lips, but she raised her hand to refuse any help from others.

"So, Your Excellency Archbishop, are you now willing to accept my request?"

The Archbishop of Cyprus emerged solemnly from a small hall shrouded by a curtain. "Are you sure, child?"

“What is uncertain? The Pope has already issued a severe punishment, bringing shame upon my husband, me, our future children, and his sister Natia, even though we have committed no sins, all for his own selfish reasons.”

We are no longer Christians.

As soon as she said this, everyone present couldn't help but look at the Venetians and knights around her.

The Venetians were relatively easy to deal with; they had only come to the Catholic Church out of necessity, which was one of the reasons for the Roman Catholic Church's many grievances against them. Even politically, they still preferred to accept the rule of the Byzantine emperor. Converting them to the Catholic Church wouldn't be difficult. The real problem was with the knights...

The knights, led by Albon, showed no change in expression.

That's right. Under the Great Excommunication, the person who was excommunicated was banished from Christian society. As Crusader knights, they could no longer be loyal to him. Christians could not contact or speak with someone who had been excommunicated, but there was no problem with contacting or speaking with pagans.

While they were fighting the Saracens in Syria, they were also hired more than once by the Seljuk Turks, Saracens, Byzantines, and even pagans of unknown faith and origin. Even Isaac caravans hired them. Did they ever hesitate as long as they had some glittering gold trinkets in their hands?
Not at all, as long as the other party doesn't instruct them to plunder and massacre civilians—this is something Albon has always insisted on, whether they are Christians or Saracen civilians. He knows very well that doing evil is like a wild beast eating a person; once you've done it, you'll never forget the taste.

Of course, one should not attack Christian armies or cities.

Apart from that, they obeyed without question.

They still belong to the Cypriot lord, only now that the lord has changed from a crusader knight to a Byzantine nobleman in purple robes.

The Archbishop of Cyprus did not answer immediately. He turned to look at the Cypriot nobles—some looked surprised, some frowned, and many more…and many more looked delighted.
(End of this chapter)