Snow White

The greenery that covered the walls and floors of Camelot Castle was being scraped away by attendants with shovels as they tried, little by little, to restore the castle to its original state.

A castle full of greenery certainly looked nice, but it did not suit the dignified image of the Kingdom of Camelot. The king's castle was also the kingdom's face.

Fortunately, Arthur had other castles. One used to receive foreign guests had become the temporary workplace of Camelot's upper ranks.

This was a castle in the queen's name.

As king, it was hardly strange for him to own several residences in the capital. The queen, too, possessed her own private property.

Sir Kay strolled through the palace grounds with a riding crop in hand as though he owned the place, while Gawain followed behind him, chatting as they walked.

"Gawain, what do you think of Princess Anne?"

Sir Kay spoke casually. As the powerful Lord Chancellor, his words represented more than just an elder's opinion; they also represented Camelot's official stance.

"Her Highness is truly adorable. She will surely grow into a beauty someday, just like Her Majesty the Queen."

Gawain spoke in praise, though what he described was merely a hopeful vision of the future. Whether the little princess would become a beauty or possess the refinement of a noblewoman like the queen was something he could not know. He was no prophet like Merlin; it was simply a wish.

After all, he had no desire to lust after children. Although life expectancy in the Middle Ages was not as long as in modern times, and people entered old age at thirty and could call themselves elderly, marriage norms were naturally more relaxed. One could say they were utterly merciless toward little girls—girls could marry at twelve. But Princess Anne was only six. Even by medieval standards, she was far too young.

"So you agree to this marriage, then." Sir Kay stopped walking.

"No, I just think she's too young. We aren't suitable, are we?"

Gawain looked thoroughly awkward. He had initially assumed Mordred's pursuit of Princess Anne meant the man had a fixation on little girls. He had not expected Sir Kay to make him one as well.

"Age is not a problem. You can get engaged first, then wait until she grows up." Sir Kay sounded utterly unconcerned. "You should know that the queen selected this fiancée for you. If you refuse, she may very well marry Sir Mordred instead. Royal blood runs through his veins too. Once that happens, everyone will think Mordred stole your bride from you. You will have lost to him."

The corners of Gawain's mouth twisted bitterly. For no reason at all, he had been forced to wear a green crown. He held no romantic feelings whatsoever for six-year-old Princess Anne; he only thought she was an adorable child. Yet Mordred's charge to court her had left him with no choice but to answer the challenge.

The queen's declaration had made everyone believe that Princess Anne ought to be Gawain's fiancée.

If Gawain could not keep his fiancée from being stolen away by Mordred, then he had undoubtedly lost to Mordred.

That would affect how the world viewed him and deal a severe blow to Gawain's reputation.

"Where is His Majesty?"

Gawain asked Sir Kay. He had wandered around the palace for so long without seeing Arthur.

Compared with the king's castle, where numerous nobles and attendants lived, the queen's castle was not very large.

"His Majesty has taken some of the Knights of the Round Table out of Camelot to hunt in nearby towns. He will not return for some time. This hunt is meant to entertain Princess Anne's father, His Grace the Duke of Brittany."

Sir Kay spoke casually. "With the king away, the Round Table Council will not convene. Lancelot is still in France, and Sir Bedivere is attending the king. I am now the kingdom's regent, its first consul. Everything here is decided by me."

"You are the one who wants me to marry Princess Anne?"

Gawain lowered his head as he asked. Before absolute power, he had no say in his own marriage. It was just that his prospective fiancée was far too young—something that would earn a prison sentence in modern times.

"This is Her Majesty the Queen's wish. My own contribution was merely a push at the right moment. Though your uncle Arthur has ruled Britain for many years, his rule is not actually secure. In England, twelve baronial houses are stirring restlessly. In Cornwall, Scotland, and Ireland, followers of the old faith and nobles alike harbor thoughts of rebellion. We have merely suppressed them.

"If you become heir to the throne, this is the country you will have to rule.

"If Arthur remains in his prime, then there is nothing to discuss. They will not dare do anything.

"But once you are king, you will have to rely on yourself to govern this country. I do not believe you possess Arthur's ability.

"As Lord Chancellor, I must fulfill my political duty. Even if it means interfering with the marriages of royal family members, I must seek the kingdom's interests.

"Once you are knighted, you will receive no more than the lands of one or two villages. At the beginning, you will also have to spend a great deal of money developing your land and building your castle.

"You have seen my father Sir Ector's castle. You should know how much building one costs, what it needs to be equipped with, and what you must prepare as a knight obligated to render forty days of military service to the king."

Sir Kay spoke easily and naturally. Even when speaking to Gawain and Mordred, he never held back. That was simply his temperament.

In an Eastern dynasty, such a minister would either be a usurper or an arrogant man courting death. In the West, however, it was entirely normal. Compared with the Lord Chancellors of the Merovingian Dynasty who monopolized power, Sir Kay, loyal to Arthur, was practically meek.

He regarded Arthur not only as his king, but also as his brother. Rather than speaking as Lord Chancellor, he was more like an elder speaking to a younger relative.

"I know. A castle is best built atop a mountain or on a cliff by the sea, where it is easy to defend and difficult to attack. If the local environment is unsuitable, then on level ground, the castle should have a central courtyard surrounded by a moat. A bridge should be built across it, with spikes set beneath the bridge to prevent enemies from secretly crossing the moat. The castle gate should have a wooden drawbridge.

"Inside the castle, there should be a manorial court, since disputes among the tenants are arbitrated by the lord. There should be watchtowers, kennels, mews, an armory, and granaries. By Arthur's royal decree, the castle must provide nearby residents with a water-powered mill, a communal bread oven and millstone. A small chapel for worship must also be built, and Druids hired to provide medical services.

"A knight must have at least two squires. When going to war, he must always have two horses ready, and his squires must also be fully armed. There must be militia as well. To avoid running out of food and supplies, grain must be stored, and vegetable gardens and farmland must even be opened within the castle..."

Gawain listed everything he knew about castles and their requirements. These were the essential facilities for a knight with land.

Gawain had no foundation in Britain. Everything had to begin from nothing. Whether building a castle, recruiting knights, or farming, he needed money—a great deal of money. The yield from the poor land of one or two villages could never meet his needs.

Either Arthur would have to grant him land above the standard allotted to ordinary knights, give him a generous annual stipend, or place his lands near a commercial city or major transportation route so he could obtain commercial privileges. Otherwise, he could only accumulate wealth over generations, and perhaps after several generations of construction, his castle might reach the scale of Sir Ector's.

"Gawain, you astonish me. I am shocked—I have never been this shocked before. You can explain all this so clearly and methodically. When I first became a knight, I actually knew nothing. Even now, my experience in governing the kingdom has come from slow trial and error. I merely assumed all of this was only natural, that castles were simply supposed to be like this."

Sir Kay wore a stunned expression as he listened to Gawain explain it all. Then, with the air of testing him, he asked, "If you were made to govern a territory, how would you do it? What would be your first step?"

Gawain pondered for a moment before saying, "If it were me, the method of governance would differ according to the territory. Rich lands have the troubles of rich lands, and poor lands have the troubles of poor lands. The first thing I would do is find a way to make money."

"Make money."

"Yes. Force is important, but it can serve as a safeguard for maintaining order; it cannot be the method of rule. With money, one can build and operate. The wealth that land can produce is always limited. The richest country in the world belongs to the emperor of Greece—the greatest city of the Eastern Roman Empire, Constantinople—because commerce can earn vast amounts of money."

"I understand. You want to turn your territory into a city like Constantinople. But that would require a great deal of money to build, the king's support, and above all, a great deal of time. It might not even succeed.

"Do you know? There is a best and effortless way for you to gain your own castle, your own army, and your own money."

Sir Kay shook his head, having understood Gawain's intentions. It was, in a sense, a difference in outlook between two nations.

Gawain's father was a Viking king from Northern Europe.

Although the Vikings' primary sources of income were not pillage and slaughter but farming, animal husbandry, fishing, and hunting, for kings and nobles, there was no faster way to make money than robbery.

As a pirate kingdom famous throughout the world, the Vikings made quick money through plunder and mercenary work. At the same time, their shipbuilding and navigational skills were ahead of the world, allowing them to sail farther than any other maritime pioneers and secure monopolies over trade.

The marriage alliance between Uther and King Lot had allowed Camelot to monopolize this trade route. For Gawain, so long as he gave up agricultural income and established handicraft industries, then sold Camelot's goods to Northern Europe, he would never be poor.

Britain's land was so barren that even if they made flowers bloom from the fields, people would still starve. Every year, Sir Lancelot returned to France to purchase grain from continental Europe.

Britain's population was generally scattered.

Camelot, as the royal capital, had only twenty thousand people because they had initially avoided concentrating too large a population and triggering a food crisis.

"Marry Princess Anne," Gawain said.

"Exactly. You have no great achievements to your name. You were knighted merely because of the king's bloodline, and many people are unconvinced—especially Sir Mordred. Although you beheaded the Green Knight and became a hero, everyone has doubts about what truly happened. So even if you become a Knight of the Round Table, you will hold the lowest seat. Your territory will not be large, and even if you become a noble, you will only be a lord above the rank of knight. But marrying Princess Anne is different. As a member of Camelot's royal family, once your territory is arranged in Brittany, I believe the princess's father, His Grace the Duke, will be very willing to grant you the title of his baron—no, his count.

"A count. You understand the weight of that title, do you not? It is something you could never obtain in Britain itself."

Sir Kay patiently persuaded him. In a sense, he was speaking plain truth. Both dukes and counts had originally been military offices granted by Roman emperors to commanders of barbarian tribal chieftains.

So-called nobles were all military nobles; the term meant military commanders.

In Arthur's era, the people of highest status were the former kings throughout Britain, who were addressed as dukes and barons. Marquises had not yet appeared. Counts were introduced only after the Danes took England, and viscounts would emerge still later.

The five ranks of duke, marquis, count, viscount, and baron were gradually perfected in later history. Thus, in Camelot, apart from dukes and barons, there was only the rank of lord among the nobility. Knights could only be considered commoners, while squires belonged only to the gentry class.

To put it simply, a duke was a high official, a marquis was a city mayor, a count was a county magistrate, a viscount was a deputy county magistrate, a baron was a township head, and a knight was a village chief.

Counts were regional lords guarding one area and governing several counties, which was why they were called regional counts. When William I, Duke of Normandy and the Conqueror, invaded England, England was divided into four great earldoms. After he took control of England, fearing that counts held too much power, he divided their authority so that each count's jurisdiction was restricted to a single county.

In Brittany, counts possessed broad lands and governed several towns. Ordinary people could not easily obtain such a title.

Princess Anne was this era's Snow White, a top-tier, fair-skinned, wealthy beauty.

"Far more than that. Princess Anne is the duke's only daughter and sole heir. Once the duke dies, she will inherit his lands, and her husband will inherit the ducal title. In other words, you will become a duke, able to meet even the king as an equal."

Seeing hesitation appear on Gawain's face, Sir Kay hurriedly offered an even more persuasive argument. "Think it over carefully. The princess must marry you. If she marries Mordred, that would also fulfill the terms of the marriage alliance, and the title of Duke of Brittany may someday belong to Prince Mordred.

"Once the engagement is settled, there will be nothing left for you."

This was how marriages among great medieval nobles worked. For example, Henry I of England lost his male heir, leaving Princess Matilda as his only heir. Henry V, the Roman Emperor, proposed to six-year-old Princess Matilda, and their marriage contract was settled the following year. Two years later, Matilda was formally betrothed to Henry V in Germany and crowned Queen of the Romans in Mainz.

Matilda was only eight at the time, while Henry was twenty-four.

In fact, this was not an isolated case. After the Hundred Years' War between England and France, Charles V of France had his daughter Isabella marry the king of England, and the two countries signed a peace treaty.

Princess Isabella was only six at the time. She was only seven when she came to England to marry, while the king of England was twenty-eight. It was difficult to imagine how the king must have felt.

Was he marrying a wife or raising a daughter?

The age gap between them was so enormous.

Yet this was entirely normal, a routine arrangement in the Middle Ages. If the engagement negotiations went smoothly, Gawain would go to Brittany and become a count, while Princess Anne would remain in Camelot's court to be raised by the queen. It was effectively an exchange of hostages, building mutual trust. In the future, the Duchy of Brittany in France would naturally become part of Camelot.

Without war, Britain's national unification could be accomplished through marriage.

The queen saw no problem with it. Sir Kay saw no problem with it either. It was a perfectly normal arrangement, and the bargain was far too good to pass up.

But Gawain thought there was a problem. A very serious problem.