Chapter 104: The Wedding

That tall knight supported Sibylla. His movements were light and calm, as if picking up a flower or a small bird from the ground. At first, Sibylla only felt strange toward him, wondering when such an attendant she didn't recognize had appeared by Baldwin's side, until the maids filed in and lit the candles, and she saw the familiar calmness and indifference in those green eyes.

But he was completely no longer the little slave in her impression. Like Baldwin, he was a chosen one, and with sufficient meat and high-intensity training and combat, both his height and shoulder width far exceeded those of his peers—she had once described him, surrounded by maids, as a puppy surrounded by a group of kittens.

And now? The maids almost uncontrollably wanted to get close to him, like iron beads attracted by a magnet. Even if there were the reins of reason pulling them, surely the boldest few would cross that line without hesitation. Sibylla knew that several of her maids were better at hunting knights than waiting for them to hunt themselves.

But surprisingly, these few maids stood in the distance, just appreciating with great interest, and did nothing.

"Why?" After Baldwin and Cesar had both left, Sibylla asked as if casually: "Is he not yet someone's?"

The maids exchanged a few glances. "He is Damara's knight," one maid said.

"You care about Damara?" Sibylla said. Since returning to Al-Asar, Damara had not returned to Sibylla's side, and of course, she was not in the Holy Cross Fortress either. And among her maids, there were not a few who had turned against each other for the sake of a knight. She did not think Damara's relationship with them was that deep.

"Can't say that either," another maid mused.

"Besides, Damara might be getting married soon. If her husband is not a knight here, she should dissolve her oath to Cesar," the third maid said.

"That should indeed be the case," Sibylla lowered her head and thought for a while: "Then when Cesar is free, who wants him to be their knight?"

She thought the maids would fight over it, but they looked at each other, and no one answered.

"Is it because of status? He is already a Knight of Bethlehem, and my brother will soon put him in a suitable position."

"That... is not the reason," a maid said hesitantly: "Although... I am a bit afraid of him..."

Sibylla showed an expression of astonishment just right: "Why would you say that? Did he do anything indecent to you?"

"No, no, no," that maid said hurriedly: "It's just... don't you think he is very... majestic?"

The maids immediately nodded one after another. Cesar was a very gentle person, it was true, especially respectful and protective toward women, just like the holy knights praised in the picture books or poems they had seen before—pure, fearless, and firm—but it was precisely this near-perfect conduct and attitude that made him seem not like a real person, but like a statue of silver or marble.

"You are afraid of him too?" Sibylla looked at the other maids. They all had powerful families behind them, so much so that they did not value the rules and laws imposed on women by the church and the secular world; they even dared to seduce clerics and monks.

"Can say so too," a maid replied with a smile, but their "fear" had a different meaning than the "fear" of the other few maids.

If it were just for a moment of carnal pleasure, who couldn't do it?

And Cesar was the one among all the knights, or even one could say among all men, who truly respected and protected them—this could be seen from Damara, Gerard's maid. When Sibylla chose Damara, it was because she was young, ignorant, easy to manipulate, and would not feel dissatisfied because she was given to a page of slave origin by the Princess.

But at the same time, Sibylla did not consider Damara at all. Damara was still a child, and it was easy for a man older than her to seduce her. Not to mention that Cesar was only nine years old at the time, even if he hadn't understood the affairs between men and women then, what about later? Later, he and Damara met frequently in the castle.

If he wanted to do something, Damara had no room to resist at all.

And they also saw that in these few years, let alone her body, Damara's mind had remained in a childlike state, still as pure and sweet, without being stained by a trace of filth or shadow.

If one said Cesar didn't like Damara and refused to serve her, he had, because of Damara's plea, used a minority to trap and kill a whole group of fierce Saracens, and fulfilled his promise, leaving not a single sinner behind.

He was so good that they couldn't help but be moved. Several maids lowered their heads and smiled; they had already sensed Sibylla's malice toward Cesar and would not cause him any trouble.

Unless they could truly enter into a marriage contract with him, if they could make their own choices, of course they would be willing, but unfortunately, their marriages, like Princess Sibylla's, connected two families, two territories, or two countries, and their families would not allow it.

"If I really made him fall in love with me," a maid once said whimsically, "and I couldn't be his wife, then this love would only break his heart and leave him haggard—this is not just unfair, it is simply an unimaginable, incomparably huge sin."

She said this, drawing ridicule from her companions, "If you want to make a person like Cesar abandon his piety and responsibility, I'm afraid only Princess Sibylla could do it."

This sentence made the maids fall silent.

Ever since the "hypothetical" marriage contract between Louis VII and Amalric I came to nothing, Sibylla's behavior had become much more restrained. In contrast, she became increasingly beautiful. Everyone who saw her said that she was finally no longer so childish and had grown into a good woman who conformed to education and secular norms.

Especially when facing those knights, she became more gentle and melancholic.

She often lowered her eyelashes, covering those blue eyes that were like whirlpools in the sea. Her face was pale, occasionally rising with a flush due to the low fever in the morning and evening. She was no longer so aggressive and high-spirited. Even David, who knew what role she played in the incident of the Count of Etienne being attacked, could not help but feel pity for her.

Who doesn't make mistakes? Not to mention that she was only a thirteen-year-old girl at the time.

And people at this time viewed women as children who had not yet grown up. Since they used this as a reason to deprive them of many rights, it was not easy to be overly harsh on them now—even Amalric I, after a few years, let go of his dissatisfaction with Sibylla and began to seriously consider her marriage.

The King originally wanted to marry Sibylla to a foreign knight, so that if Baldwin had no descendants of his own, her husband would not be able to meddle in Al-Asar because he was the Queen's husband and the future King's father—he still favored Sibylla; after all, his daughter with the Byzantine princess was still in swaddling clothes, while his eldest daughter was already sixteen, her flower room mature, and she could bear a healthy seed.

It was just that Amalric I did not expect his death to come so hastily.

Abigail was certainly not a good candidate. And he had a father with a gloomy temperament and a treacherous and changeable nature—Bohemond had suffered greatly from his mother and stepfather in his youth. And not long after he regained power, he fell into the Saracen prison. If it weren't for the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I mediating, he might have been locked up for longer.

But he did not pay no price; his price was being forced to allow the Byzantine tentacles to reach deep into his country and his family. He married Manuel's daughter and together with her conceived that idiot Abigail.

But it was precisely because Abigail was stupid enough that he was chosen. His existence destined that Raymond would not be able to dominate the court alone, and it would be difficult to form an alliance with Bohemond.

In any case, once Bohemond could grasp more say, and he was the maternal grandfather of the future King, I fear he would sideline Raymond overnight, and it was even possible that Bohemond would become the nameless but actual King of Al-Asar.

If Abigail were a person like Baldwin or Cesar—no, it should be said, as long as he could be like David, Raymond would find it difficult to deal with Bohemond. But as if the devil were at work, Abigail was just an idiot who could achieve nothing, whether in court or on the battlefield.

He was an inescapable shackle, or a stain, that God had placed on Bohemond.

Look at what he had done before; he hadn't even entered the Holy Cross Fortress, yet he had angered Baldwin, ruined his father's face, and had a quite bad influence among the knights.

Bohemond would not be naive enough to think that the knights would keep their mouths shut. Not just the knights in the castle, but also those two foreign knights; they would not cover up for such a despicable little man. He believed this matter would soon spread with wings, to Al-Asar, Acre, Yafa, Ghashalafa... it might even spread to the Apennines or Frankish lands.

This was truly a grand event; perhaps those people hadn't heard of Baldwin, Raymond, and Bohemond before they heard the great name of Abigail.

But no matter how much people loathed this frivolous fellow, his marriage to Sibylla remained unshakable.

This was the will of King Amalric I, and Baldwin would carry out the King's wish to the letter.

To complete this marriage, he even pushed back his own coronation ceremony.

Thus, on the birthday of John the Baptist (June 24), they held the wedding for Abigail and Sibylla.

A few days before the wedding, Sibylla was fasting and bathing. On the day of the wedding, the maids added a large amount of fresh and dried flowers to the water bucket and applied a mixture of powder and white vinegar to her. This mixture could make the skin look fairer, although long-term use would lead to lead poisoning.

In Al-Asar, women would also use rose water and olive oil. These two substances were of course much better than the lead mixture.

But no matter which one it was, Sibylla was not very interested, perhaps because Abigail's visits had been too diligent these past few days.

Sometimes Sibylla wished she could shout at him, you should go build a career! Go kill Saracens! Even if it's just participating in a tournament, or serving by my brother's side or your father's side, see if they can get you a good position!

Instead of sticking by my side all the time, annoying as a fat bee!

Of course, in the end, she said nothing. Although Abigail admired her almost to the point of madness, he was a man after all, naturally possessing a contempt for women. If she said that, not only would it be useless, but she might also lose her last useful hunting dog.

"Look at this," a maid shouted in surprise, "how beautiful it is..."

Although Sibylla's wedding dress had been in production for a long time, when this dark blue wedding dress, identical to the robe worn by the Virgin Mary, was taken out, people still gasped in admiration, even though it could be called simple—there was no excessive embroidery or decoration on the dark blue silk, only silver embroidery and pearl embellishments on the cuffs and hem, just like layers of ripples on the sea.

This color in this era signified purity and the protection of the Virgin Mary. She would bless the bride to be worry-free, happy, and healthy for life, and could also bless her to give birth to a healthy boy as soon as possible.

The maids helped Sibylla change into the wedding dress, styled her hair, and put on an exquisite golden crown. This crown was also Baldwin's gift. The heavy gold, precious sapphires, and rubies were still radiant even when covered by a thin veil, but they still could not compare to the Princess's face.

Because Amalric I had already passed away, the work of handing over the Princess could only be completed by Baldwin. He was Sibylla's guardian—this had nothing to do with age; as long as he was a male, he had the power and obligation over all his sisters. He could arrange their marriages, regardless of whether they were willing or not.

Today, the most magnificently dazzling people should of course be the bride and groom, and among the ladies, the most beautiful person was undoubtedly Sibylla. No matter what her inner heart was like, her appearance was just as the poets praised, like flowers made of jewels.

Abigail was also a young man with regular features, thin eyebrows, bright eyes, a narrow but high bridge of the nose, and thin lips, very similar to his father. Even the most critical person could not say this was an ugly person.

But the problem was, Cesar was here, and people would only look at him.

Even on such a grand occasion, he was still dressed in dark clothes, a pure black velvet coat and tights of the same color. Even his boots and gloves were black, only slightly embellished with some golden embroidery in some places, and only a silver cross hung on his chest.

Baldwin also wore only white attire today. Unlike the habits of later generations, white at this time was a noble and sorrowful color. He was still mourning for his father—their attire was inconspicuous among the guests who were all dressed gorgeously, but it made people unable to look away.

Clothing was originally just something to add flowers to the brocade.

If the brocade was already gorgeous enough, the existence of flowers became dispensable.

Even though Cesar had been as simple as possible without affecting the wedding, just as jewels placed against a solid-colored background stand out even more, simple attire could better highlight his appearance and temperament.

All, yes, all the ladies were looking at him. They looked at his black hair, his green eyes, his crimson lips, staring intently, smiling, completely ignoring that their husbands or brothers were right beside them.

To be honest, a portion of their husbands and brothers were also secretly peeping at this youth, unrelated to orientation. The human pursuit of beauty has always been innate. Only some elderly people who were older and had experienced enough could cough lightly to remind these young people not to be too carried away.

After all, the protagonists today should be Sibylla and Abigail.

Abigail's expression was very ugly. He kept staring at Sibylla nervously, worried that she would also look at Cesar like those maids. Fortunately, Sibylla did not; she was as cold as ever, whether toward him or toward Cesar.

Although comparing Cesar to himself did not make Abigail feel much comfort, at least Sibylla's attitude showed that she was not that kind of frivolous woman.

He smiled and took Sibylla's hand. Seeing that shining gold ring, Abigail was full of tenderness. Unlike people in later generations, although couples at this time also had the process of exchanging rings, it was not during the wedding, but during the engagement. The two rings were engraved with the names of the couple and the date of the marriage, which could also be said to be one of the proofs of this marriage.

Under the gaze of everyone, they each made their vows and received everyone's blessings.

Afterward, they were sent into a room. Although at this time, when women were pregnant and giving birth, there was no need for dozens of nobles to watch from the side like queens hundreds of years later, to prevent someone from swapping the baby or harming the mother.

But in terms of the bedding ceremony, they were more radical than people in later generations—Sibylla and Abigail, each wearing a loose and thin linen robe (only one such piece), were sent to a large bed, and the bed was surrounded by a dozen witnesses, who were important people like Baldwin, Cesar, Bohemond, Raymond, Balian, Humphrey... Heraclius stood before their bed to dispel curses and bestow blessings on the newlyweds.

Then everyone pulled a wide sheet to cover them. According to tradition, they should consummate the marriage under this sheet, that is, complete the true act of husband and wife. People had to watch them consummate the marriage with their own eyes for this marriage to be considered completely established.

After all, the canon law at this time stipulated that if the wife could not fulfill the wife's obligations and the husband could not fulfill the husband's duties, this marriage would be invalid. After all, for the church, marriage was not for the love between men and women, but for the sake of procreation. If one party could not do it, this marriage naturally had no meaning for existence.

Generally speaking, the onlookers would not be too harsh. As long as the newlyweds lifted their robes and wrapped their legs together, it was considered a successful bedding.

Sibylla closed her eyes and stretched out her legs. Although she had expected it, when she came into contact with Abigail, the cold and rough feeling still made her shiver all over. At the same time, she also smelled an indescribable odor—not a stench, but more unacceptable than a stench.

She trembled uncontrollably, while Abigail just thought this was the shyness and nervousness of a virgin. He pulled her arm and kissed her, wanting to soothe her, but Sibylla almost fainted—Abigail's embrace made her feel nauseous, and she could only bite the inside of her lip, forcing herself not to let out a wail or cry.

The light moved before her eyes, and she subconsciously opened her eyes, only to see the tall black-haired page beside her brother blowing out a candle. This seemed to be a signal, and people let out good-natured laughter, leaving one after another.

"The ceremony is complete!" they shouted happily.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 105 =====