Chapter 08
15Ā The Political Situation in Jerusalem (1)
As the banquet came to an end and the night grew deep.
After passing through the long corridors of the palace and stepping outside, Michael breathed in the cold winter night air. The night in Jerusalem held a different kind of silence from the other cities of the Levant.
The streets, which had been noisy during the day with countless pilgrims, merchants, priests, and soldiers mixed together, became quiet as if they were holding their breath once night fell. Only the high moonlight faintly illuminated the white walls of the palace and the stone pavement.
As the knights who had followed him quietly watched their surroundings, someone slowly approached Michael.
“Sir Michael.”
Michael turned around and saw Raymond III, Count of Tripoli and Duke of Galilee.
His expression was as calm as it had been at the banquet, but his eyes were much more honest and direct than before.
“Lord Raymond.”
“Could you spare me a moment? His Majesty has given you a mansion inside Jerusalem. As I happen to be going in that direction, I was asked to show you the way.”
“His Majesty even gave me a mansion…”
Michael looked slightly surprised for a moment, then gave a small laugh.
Baldwin IV was much more meticulous than he had expected.
He had not simply given Michael a title and territory and left things at that. He had even prepared a base for him to establish himself in the very center of Jerusalem.
“It is an honor. Please lead the way.”
Thus, Michael left the palace together with Raymond III, accompanied by four knights.
Servants carrying torches walked ahead through the quiet night streets, while the two men walked side by side behind them.
After walking for some time without saying anything in particular, Raymond III spoke in a calm voice.
“You behaved quite cleverly at the banquet today.”
“You flatter me. I simply did not step forward unnecessarily in a political arena I had never seen before.”
“That is exactly what being clever means.”
Raymond III smiled faintly.
After pausing for a moment, he continued in a tone as if he were asking a very casual question.
“But… I am genuinely curious. What do you think of Guy de Lusignan and his faction?”
It was a question thrown directly at him.
But it was not blatant.
Raymond did not pressure Michael, nor did he urge him to answer.
He had simply brought it up naturally while walking beside him, but his intention was very clear.
He wanted to know which side Michael might lean toward.
Michael looked up at the sky for a moment.
The walls of Jerusalem revealed beneath the moonlight were quiet, but inside them, countless interests and political schemes were swirling.
And Raymond III was a man standing at the center of it all, holding onto the balance of the kingdom.
“To be honest…”
Michael slowly opened his mouth.
“I have not personally dealt with Guy de Lusignan deeply enough yet, so I do not want to make a careless judgment.”
Raymond III merely gave a slight nod without saying anything.
“But when I look at the people gathering around him, I do feel a little uneasy. Those who shed blood too easily and speak of war too hastily usually do not take responsibility for how the battlefield ends.”
A very slight change passed across Raymond III’s lips.
He said nothing, but from those words alone, he seemed to understand that Michael was at least not the same kind of person as the hardliners at court.
Michael continued walking as he added,
“It is easy to speak in the name of God. But if you draw your sword at the wrong time, it is not the church that burns. It is the villages. And it is not the nobles who die, but the people and soldiers. I do not like people who overturn the entire situation in such a reckless way.”
It was clearly the answer Raymond wanted to hear.
Caution toward the hardliners, an attitude that valued practicality and stability, and distrust toward impulsive calls for war.
Raymond III remained silent for a while before letting out a quiet laugh.
“No wonder His Majesty thinks so highly of you.”
“But do not misunderstand me.”
Michael calmly continued.
“It is not that I dislike fighting. If it is truly necessary, I will draw my sword before anyone else. If Jerusalem… no, if the Holy Land itself ever truly falls into danger… I will protect this land.”
Those words were not a lie.
As he looked into Raymond’s eyes, Michael’s voice no longer held the political politeness from earlier. Instead, it contained a much firmer conviction and belief.
“I certainly will.”
At that moment, Raymond III looked at Michael differently.
At first, he had considered him simply a young knight who was strong and clever. But there was something different in his words now, something beyond the ambitions of an ordinary man seeking power.
Raymond could not yet be certain whether it was genuine sincerity or merely a calculation made to look sincere.
But one thing was certain.
This man had an unusually strong attachment to the Holy Land.
“I will remember those words.”
Before long, the group arrived at the mansion located in Jerusalem.
It was a fairly large estate surrounded by stone walls. Inside, there was a stable, a small training ground, and even separate buildings capable of housing knights and soldiers.
As befitted a mansion granted by the king, its location was also quite good.
It was not too far from the palace, while its structure was also sufficient for Michael to operate as an independent power.
“Not a bad place.”
At Michael’s short comment, Raymond III nodded.
“His Majesty seems to think highly of you.”
Michael did not bother answering that meaningful remark.
Raymond III did not press the matter any further either.
“Rest for today. Starting tomorrow, far more eyes will be watching you than you might expect.”
“Thank you for the advice.”
After Raymond III left, Michael immediately ordered his knights to bring the troops staying at the inn to the mansion.
Before long, the heavy cavalry and Cuman cavalry entered the mansion’s courtyard one after another. The knights under his command, including Knight Giovanni, were also assigned their own quarters.
Although they were in the unfamiliar center of Jerusalem, once the soldiers filled the courtyard and the separate buildings, the mansion quickly began to look like Michael’s own stronghold.
That night, Michael stood alone by the window of an upper room and fell into thought.
His title, his territory, the king’s trust, Raymond III’s probing, and the countless gazes he had felt at the banquet.
He had now stepped completely into the center of Jerusalem’s politics.
But it was not yet time.
Now was not the time to swing his sword.
It was time to read the board.
And the next morning.
Michael’s original plan to return to Tyre immediately was completely changed by a single summons from the king.
“His Majesty is looking for you, Baron.”
At the servant’s message from the palace, Michael immediately moved.
When he entered the room where Baldwin IV was staying, the king, whose illness had become more apparent, was sitting in a chair looking even weaker than before.
But his eyes were still sharp.
“Were you planning to leave?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. I have matters in Tyre and Acre as well, so I do not think I can stay away for too long.”
“What if I wish to keep you here?”
At those words, Michael quietly raised his eyes.
Baldwin IV took a short breath before getting to the point.
“I want you to take care of Baldwin.”
“You mean Baldwin V?”
“Yes. As his swordsmanship instructor, and if necessary, in a role beyond that.”
The king’s words were short, but their meaning was heavy.
At that moment, Michael realized how close Baldwin IV felt his own death was.
The king already knew that his end was near.
And he knew all too well that after his death, his young nephew Baldwin V could become prey in the political arena.
“Your Majesty wants me… to protect the young prince?”
Baldwin IV remained silent for a moment before slowly nodding.
“I will not live much longer.”
The words were spoken so calmly that they sounded even heavier.
“When I die, many things will become unstable. That child may wear the crown, or he may die because of the crown. That is why I need someone like you.”
Michael said nothing for a moment.
The king’s gaze did not waver.
It was a request, but at the same time, it was almost like a final arrangement made before his death.
“I understand, Your Majesty.”
In the end, Michael decided to remain in Jerusalem.
And from the moment he made that choice, he became more than the Baron of Tyre and Acre.
He also took on the role of shield for the young Baldwin V.
After that, Michael immediately began organizing his forces.
Since he could not leave Tyre and Acre unattended while he remained in Jerusalem, he used his authority as a baron to summon Bernhardt, who had been the head of his retainers, to Jerusalem so that he could knight him.
A few days later, in the courtyard of the mansion.
Under the cold morning sunlight, Michael looked down at Bernhardt, who was kneeling on one knee.
“Bernhardt of Oldenburg. You have served faithfully at my side until now, and you have contributed more than anyone to establishing order in Tyre and Acre.”
Around them, knights, heavy cavalrymen, and some sergeants brought by Bernhardt stood quietly watching the ceremony.
Bernhardt had an unusually stiff expression as he lowered his head.
He also knew very well what this moment meant.
“Therefore, in the name of Michael von Eisen-Schwert, Baron of Tyre and Acre, I hereby knight you.”
Michael raised his sword and placed it on Bernhardt’s shoulders one after the other.
“From this day onward, you shall be Sir Bernhardt von Oldenburg.”
“I will repay this honor with my life, my lord.”
After becoming a knight, Bernhardt became not only practically but also officially the second-in-command under Michael.
Michael immediately appointed Bernhardt as his deputy lord.
“When you return to Tyre and Acre, focus on producing transitional armor. Train the heavy cavalry and sergeants further, and increase the number of cavalrymen as well. Also, continue recruiting Cuman mercenaries through the Genoese merchants.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Tyre and Acre are no longer simply port cities. They will become the foundation of the land we will build in the future.”
Bernhardt took the meaning of those words seriously.
From that day onward, he became even busier, both as a knight and as Michael’s deputy lord.
Meanwhile, as Michael remained in Jerusalem, he naturally had more opportunities to meet members of the royal family.
And during that process, he also encountered Princess Isabel, the half-sister of Baldwin IV.
Their first meeting took place in the palace garden.
It was winter, so there were not many flowers, but beside the corridor where the sunlight reached well, quite a few plants still kept their green leaves.
Isabel, who was walking there with some young maids, happened to encounter Michael.
She was still a young girl.
But as a member of the royal family, her features were distinct, and beneath her still-young beauty was a delicate charm that hinted at what kind of woman she would become in the future.
Above all, there was still an innocence in her eyes that remained far from the bloody politics of the court.
“It has been a while, Sir Michael.”
At first, Isabel spoke to him somewhat shyly.
Michael, on the other hand, lowered his head respectfully.
“Your Highness, Princess.”
It was only a short greeting, but at that moment, Isabel received an unusually strong impression from him.
He was young, attractive, and handsome, and his body naturally carried the imposing presence of a man who had experienced the battlefield.
And yet, in front of royalty, he was neither overly servile nor disrespectful.
All of this felt very unfamiliar and striking to young Isabel.
