Jaffa.
The blacksmith Balian was directing the people as they dug irrigation channels. He wore tattered hemp clothes and stood barefoot in the mud, utterly unconcerned with a nobleman's dignity.
Under his leadership, whether Frankish immigrants, Saracen residents, or remnants of the Empire, though they spoke different languages and held different beliefs, all pulled together as one.
Princess Sibylla, Lady of Jaffa, watched this royal official whom her brother had sent to assist her, her expression somewhat complicated.
She knew perfectly well what Baldwin IV meant by this arrangement. He wanted nothing more than for her to marry into the Ibelin family and forge a solid political alliance.
Sir Stephen, Sibylla's personal guard, said earnestly, "Your Highness, he is an outstanding young man. If you and he could be together, I believe you would receive the heartfelt blessings of many people."
"Indeed."
Justice, loyalty, kindness, courage—the Eight Virtues of chivalry seemed perfectly embodied in this young knight, a blacksmith and bastard by birth.
"If I had met him a year earlier, I might have been overjoyed. He is humble, tall, handsome, and from a wealthy family. He is an even better marriage prospect than William. Compared to him, Guy of the Lusignan family, whom Mother chose for me, is merely a village lout who loves fighting."
Though Balian had been born a blacksmith, Baron Godfrey had already petitioned Baldwin IV to legitimize his bastard status. Balian was now the true young lord of Beirut, Arsuf, and Ibelin.
Such a union would not diminish Princess Sibylla's status, and it would form a powerful political alliance capable of jointly resisting the pressure of the Baronial faction within the Kingdom, represented by Raymond.
Her gaze swept over the Gwent board and card case on the table, the complete hardcover sets of The Witcher