Temple Sword

Chapter 184 Demeter

1323, 2th day of Ramadan (February)

Timisoara, Hungary
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Shortly after the midday prayer time, the whole castle was filled with a sleepy and pleasant calm.

Nothing worth mentioning happened, the soldiers were huddled around the roaring fires in the watchtower, and the servants in the kitchen had finished washing the dishes and were sharing the scraps of their master's dishes.

As the inhabitants drowsy after lunch and Latin sermons, eyelashes heavy and looking into the distance, the queen rests in bed, gathering strength, her newborn dozing in a carved cradle beside her.

Elizabeth's old nanny was sitting in the corner, looking at the two of them. Although her eyes were still half-opened, she was already snoring lightly. She barely held her embroidery with limp hands. Rely on their spears more than usual.

Demeter Nexel was perhaps the only one awake during this lethargic hour. He was in his messy study, crouching at his desk, writing something on a roll of parchment, his mind already in the middle of his next session. There are three tasks to start.

Lately, he's been thinking about making a Bible of his own, but the plan is only a preliminary idea at this point.

The heavy silence was broken by a blast of horns, and outside came the clatter of hooves, chains, and the creak of the castle door, and then more instruments and shouts of excitement, and then the door of the great hall was slammed open. , Charlie, intoxicated with happiness and pride, pushed open one door after another with both hands, and moved forward with unstoppable steps.

"Where is my son?" he called from a distance.

Everyone knew the king wasn't referring to Kamen.

"Where is my dear son?" He hurried to the ladies' place without even taking off his heavy traveling cloak and fur hood.

The Governor of Transylvania brought him the news of the birth himself, and of course Charlie believed that his loyal Thomas Szechenyi did not do so out of pure goodwill, after all bringing such importance to the monarch Those who get the news are always rewarded handsomely.

On reaching the last door, Charlie tried to hold back his excitement a little, but he was so delighted that he burst into the queen's bedroom with equal enthusiasm, went straight to the cradle, and took out the carefully wrapped Baby, hold it up in front of you.

Old Nan woke up with a start, and nearly fell off her chair, and Elizabeth opened her eyes, but the King took no notice of them.

"My son, my heir!" he said excitedly.

The baby also woke up at this time and started crying.

"From now on, you will be called Charlie! Just like your father and grandfather!" cried the king, over the baby's cries of pain and fear. "Let the whole kingdom, the whole of Europa, know this name!"

"Your Majesty, you scared your son!" Elizabeth snapped, "And you didn't even take off the dirty clothes on the road!"

"Cry, my son, cry aloud!" laughed the king. "Show papa what you can do!"

"Charlie!" said the queen, sitting up in bed, almost falling on top of her husband. "You've frightened the poor child!"

Charlie finally came to his senses, awkwardly and clumsily handed over his son to the old nurse, and the little guy was calmed down after a while.

The King felt ashamed at once, for he had just rushed from room to room like a wild boar, and frightened his son.He exhaled and smoothed his clothes before looking at his wife for the first time.

"Elizabeth," he nodded cautiously at her, "I hope you are well."

"I am well, Your Majesty," replied the Queen calmly, "thank God we are all well."

"I was on my way as soon as I heard the news, or...ready to be on my way," said the king, taking off his gloves. "I was going to start the next day, but a sudden snowstorm prevented me, so I didn't arrive until now. .”

"We are all waiting patiently for you, Your Majesty," Elizabeth smiled gently at him. "If you wish, you can learn the details of the birth of the child later."

"It's okay," Charlie waved his hand gently, "what matters is that God answered our prayers and gave us a son. By the way, is Demeter still here? Is he taking good care of everything?"

"Of course, it's the same as before." The queen nodded, but didn't say anything more.

Then little Charlie began to cry again, and the nurse hurried into the room, and said the boy was hungry, and it was time to nurse him, and the King nodded, and decided to go away, since he could not be of any help in that respect either.

"I hope you're both stronger when spring comes," said Charlie, turning at the door. "We're going to Visegrad next month, and I want Charlie to be christened there.

Then you'll see how much the city has changed since you were last there, you won't recognize it!

Soon we will be able to move out of this corner of the kingdom for good, and from now on, I will work hard to ensure that my son has a bright future, and I will ensure that he does not inherit a pile of ruins that need to be rebuilt, as I have..."

With that said, he walked out the door, immersed in boundless happiness.

-

Demeter Nekse had been acting strangely throughout the second week, hiding in his room, hiding himself among the piles of rare books, scrolls and notes, but even with his serious work In terms of attitude, this is too unusual.

Even when he left his study room on a rare occasion, he still lowered his head and lowered his head, carefully avoiding the flank where the queen was.

"What's wrong with you, Demeter?" the king asked him bluntly, when they were alone in the small throne room.

"Nothing, Your Majesty," said the Chancellor, bowing his head, "it's really nothing..."

"Don't lie to me, I can see what's in that stubborn head of yours," Charlie looked at Demeter suspiciously, "You dare not look at me directly, and you are so quiet and even sad, what are you? What's wrong?"

"I'm just a little tired, that's all," the man lied, forcing a smile, "The plan to mint new silver coins, formulate new tax forms, supervise the preparations for the birth of the prince, all these add up to make me tired It's broken, Your Majesty. When the first rays of spring sunshine arrive, I'm sure my body and mind will recover."

"The sunshine in spring...is really interesting," the king picked up the half-full wine glass, showing a half smile, leaning on the cushioned throne, and moaned comfortably for a while,

"I remember that in the extremely hot summer last year, I moved the entire court to the Timis River, and you were the only one who would rather stay in the cold city walls and dark rooms... At that time, you didn't seem to be Not very fond of comfortable weather."

"That's because I had an urgent project at the time." Demeter shrugged and said nothing more.

The king still looked at him curiously, not wanting to stop there.After all, this was one of his own cabinet members and one of his most important subordinates, and his strange behavior really bothered Charlie a little.

"Well, no matter what your problem is," the king took a sip of his wine, "tell me what's bothering you, or keep silent forever! But I don't want to see your sour face anymore!"

Charlie raised his voice and patted the armrest of the throne. "You are a man, not a woman, don't expect me to read your expression like them, tell me what's wrong with you like a man, or cheer me up and solve your problems!"

"A woman," admitted Demeter, "because of a woman, Your Majesty. I knew her a few years ago, and besides her beauty, she has a sharp mind, which is what attracts me most about her.

She was a wonderful woman, but, alas, she is now the wife of a nobleman, so I could never have her, nor share my tenderness with her..."

"A woman!" Charlie nodded, and Demeter didn't know whether the relieved expression on the king's face was because he finally knew the answer to the riddle, or the disappointment that the hidden secret was something as mundane as love.

"Unfortunately, Demeter, I can't help you in matters of the heart," said the king. "You see, I married for diplomatic purposes, if I want to spend a sinful and beautiful life with a girl." Time, I'll tell her directly.

And as for things that bother your soul, thank God I never had to deal with love!Love makes one weak, vulnerable, sick, unselfish... like a Wallachian vampire needs blood!
Demeter, beware of such emotions, you are now in a state of grief, and becoming less of yourself.Be sensible when it comes to choosing a wife!That's all I can say..."

"Your Majesty, you don't need to worry about my tormented soul," said Demeter dejectedly, and hurried to the door of the small throne room, "don't worry about me, I will overcome my problems like a man, maybe Wait until the first ray of sunshine in spring..."

"Or the affairs of Visegrad will keep you busy," said the king, "and you may forget her then."

The Chancellor opened the door and shook his head, wondering how he could possibly forget someone he sees every day.

"However," the king said, raising his index finger, "if this nobleman dies, there will be no obstacle between you and that woman. If that's the case, don't miss your chance to marry her!"

"I don't want him to die, Your Majesty," the man smiled for the first time in a long time. "Compared to this stupid love, I respect him more. Even if he hugs the lady in my heart instead of me, I have no complaints."

With this, he bowed respectfully, and left the king, and the matter was never mentioned again between them.

(End of this chapter)