Chapter 307 - 230: The Call of the East
This was all happening too fast.
How could that spiteful Scorpion let him off so easily?
He preferred to believe this was some new form of humiliation.
However, the fact remained.
"A messenger from the Holy See, the venerable Abbot of Cluny Monastery and Cardinal of Ostia, Gerard’s Otto, has brought joyous news," Archbishop Siegfried of Mainz said to Henry, who was still kneeling on the ground.
Henry bowed slightly, his hands trembling as he lowered the hood of his coarse cloth robe. He knelt and kissed the ring of Gerard’s Otto.
Gerard’s Otto placed a hand on his head in blessing. "It is over. Rise, my son, and become the great Emperor that God wishes you to be."
"It is over?"
"He is willing to discuss the terms of your pardon."
These words invigorated Henry, as if someone had poured warm wine down his throat.
"Thank you, Archbishop. Thank you..." Henry said, grabbing the hand of the Archbishop of Mainz.
"Thank the Marquis and Marchioness of Tuscany, and this Bishop as well. They have all done their utmost on your behalf," the Archbishop of Mainz said with a smile. "Go to the castle and get cleaned up. Your Majesty, your mother is in the castle. She is desperate to see you.
Once everything is in order, the Holy See will grant you an audience."
.....
「Afternoon. The Great Hall of Canossa Castle.」
The air was fragrant with rose petals, rosemary, and lavender.
The religious leaders of the Tuscan domain, along with the Emperor’s own retinue—the Archbishop of Mainz, Count Albert Habsburg, Friedrich of the House of Hohenstaufen, Count Riesgo, and others—were taking their seats.
The abbots of Saint Benedict’s Monastery and Flasino Monastery chatted like old friends. They waved to the acting abbot of Nonantola Monastery, a short, normally serious and bookish man, who smiled back at them.
No one knew what would happen, how harsh the Pope would be, or how willing the King would be to compromise.
A palpable energy of tense anticipation and hope surged through the great hall.
Marquis Azo had never imagined he would meet the Emperor under such circumstances.
’Your Majesty, where is your imperial army?’
’How could you have collapsed without even putting up a fight?’
Soon, the Emperor’s nemesis, Duke Rudolph of Swabia, dispelled his confusion.
Rudolph told him that his own son, Welf, the Duke of Bavaria, had been one of the key figures in forcing the Emperor to make his penitent journey to Canossa. Though long loyal to the Emperor, Welf had recently begun to align himself with Rudolph. The son’s actions had put the father in a difficult position.
"An army? You should count yourself lucky the Emperor hasn’t decided to punish you."
But Rudolph’s mood was even fouler than Marquis Azo’s, for it looked as though the Holy See intended to pardon Henry.
’What a joke. If that happens, it’s all over.’
’Once the ban of excommunication is lifted, Henry will surely not spare me.’
’I have to stop this, even if it means...’
Just then, Henry entered the great hall.
He wore a simple white robe with some gold embroidery, but no crown or royal insignia.
His eyes immediately fell upon Gregory—that Scorpion.
The Scorpion had already ascended the dais to sit upon another throne. As was his custom in public, he was dressed like a Roman Emperor, holding a jewel-encrusted Golden Rod as if it were his scepter.
Next, his gaze fell upon the woman at Gregory’s side: his cousin, the Marchioness of Tuscany. Just as her mother had opposed his father, she now opposed him. Then he saw the man standing beside Matilda.
Henry couldn’t ignore the man; he was too conspicuous. He was much younger than Henry himself and seemed frighteningly tall. Just like his father, the legendary Giscard.
This was the demonic monk who had put the new King, Robert, on the throne of England, defeating the Conqueror. He was the real reason England now threatened the Salian dynasty. If it weren’t for the Normans, Henry wouldn’t be in such a wretched state.
As for why the man had pleaded with the Pope on his behalf... Henry would sooner believe it was a pang of conscience from Matilda.
"Holy Father, I beg your forgiveness," Henry said.
"Do not ask for my forgiveness. You should ask for God’s. Whether your sins are redeemed depends not on me, but on the will of God." Gregory stood and raised his scepter.
"Holy Father! I must bring charges against this sinner—" Rudolph suddenly began to shout.
But Gregory raised a hand, silencing him.
Aside from Henry, who kept his head bowed, everyone else watched in silence.
"We trust, my brothers, that you have long been aware through many reports of how a savage tide of Barbarians is attacking the Church of God and the lands of the East, laying them to waste as a calamity.
For centuries, Heretics have relentlessly attacked the Catholic World, brazenly forcing Christians to forsake God.
Once it was Iberia; now it is Syria, Little Asia, and the East. Nearly all the lands where Christ once walked have fallen into the hands of the Heretics.
Christians who will not leave their homes face mounting persecution and threats from the Heretics, forcing them to flee those sacred lands for refuge further west.
The Holy Church is in retreat! This cannot be tolerated!
Even the ancient Greek Empire, once the protector of the Eastern Christians, has lost its former glory and might. The Empire is shattered, exhausted by the onslaught of Heretics from all sides.
The Emperor of the Greeks repeatedly appeals to me, pleading for aid. He tells me that the Heretics brazenly threaten the empire of Christ, and that the holy Eastern Church is all but destroyed.
The lands of the Greeks in Asia have been completely overrun. The Turkic People have mercilessly destroyed all their holdings in Anatolia. They lay waste to every village and city they find, carry off every Christian they can see, and slaughter all who dare to resist.
Monks are butchered, women are violated, the old and the young are ravaged, and not even the Nobility are spared.
Such heart-rending cruelty has spread to the very walls of Constantinople. The fields beyond lie barren, and savage atrocities have seized all in their grasp. Tens of thousands of Christians are slaughtered like cattle." Gregory then looked at Henry, who still kept his head bowed. "For a long time now, I have dedicated myself to mobilizing Christians everywhere, inspiring them to act for this cause. They should strive... to offer their lives for their brothers, for this is God’s work. There is nothing more sacred than giving one’s life for the work of God, for it touches upon the salvation of every single Christian.
Unfortunately, Emperor Henry, because of your sins, I have been forced to remain here, to deal with your affairs, while ignoring the cries and pleas of the Eastern Christians.
In all the Catholic World, what could be more intolerable than this?
I tell you now, I will not pardon your sins because you dress as a Cultivator, nor because of how long you waited in the mud. The penance does not equal the crime. That is why I was unwilling to proceed in that manner, and why I summoned you here.
Your actions save no one, not even yourself. On the contrary, they hinder the salvation of others.
If you wish to obtain salvation and pardon, then you must make amends for the obstruction your deeds have caused."
"Make amends?" Henry raised his head.
"Yes, make amends. Do not ask me for a pardon; go and ask God for one.
Go to the East, my son. Take your army, take your Sword, take your spear, and take your Battle Armor!
Go to the city of God! March on Jerusalem!"
"Yes! Yes! This is a great mercy! This is God’s..." Duke Rudolph nearly jumped for joy.
’Without a doubt, the Empire is mine.’
But Gregory shattered his fantasy once more.
"The mastermind behind this suffering in the East is the Devil himself! All of you—pious Christians and valiant Warriors—must defend the faith of Christ and serve the King of the Celestial Realm! Now is the time to prove yourselves sons of God and prepare to march on Constantinople!
My sons, do not win a Crown for yourselves! Win a Crown for the Lord of Heaven!
Extend a hand to our Christian brothers in the East!
Take back the lands the Heretics have stolen from Christians over the centuries!
Let the city of God, the Holy Sepulchre of Christ, the earthly Jerusalem, return to Christian hands! Prove our Devotion to God, and let His kingdom come on earth!"