Eagle Flag of Epirus

The funeral of Archduke Anastasius was presided over by Princess Eudosia and Grand Master John, and she couldn't help feeling a lot about the death of this old man. If it wasn't for the Komnen family's sideline who took her in, maybe he would have become a prisoner of the Latins, or a tool used by others to play with. On the night of the Great Rebellion in Tripolis, although the memory was blurred and Justinian kept her secret from her, Eudoxia still vaguely remembered that it was the old man who saved her mother and daughter. But the death of such a venerable man was so silent - yesterday's San Dimitrios church was full of people, but today's church is very quiet.

Few people participated in this funeral, although it was ordered by the will of the archduke before his death, but there was still a trace of sadness in Eudoxia's heart.

I never thought it would be me who would officiate his funeral.

In front of the altar, John X finished burning incense and praying, muttering to himself.

On the side, the monks placed four lit candles around the coffin to light up the white cloth wrapped around the body. Looking at everything in front of him, the Grand Master, who served the Dukas family for three generations, couldn't help but feel a little emotional. The Komnen branch in front of him used to be a political enemy in the eyes of himself and Emperor Alexis III, but in the end he was the one who served him. His funeral. At the beginning, Princess Eudosia almost got married to Manuel, who died in Kherson, by the Queen's marriage.

Seeing that everything was in place, the Grand Master, together with priests, priests and others, recited the "Three Sacred Songs" in a low voice:

"Holy God, Holy Mighty One. Holy Immortal, have mercy on me..."

"May the souls of the deceased be with the saints, with the righteous, and the living forever remembered with eternal memory..."

At this funeral, everyone was immersed in the mourning of parting, and accompanied by prayers, they stepped forward one by one to say goodbye to the remains of Archduke Anastasius. Although there are not many people, these people are all the retainers who have been following the Grand Duke, including the housekeeper of Moriah Hall, the servants who have been serving Princess Eudoshia, and those who have been holding swords for her. warriors. The night passed, and the Knight Commander Salius, still with red and swollen eyes, came to the corpse of the eldest prince. To him, Anastasius was loved and respected by him like a father.

"Forgive me, I am still a step late, and I failed to let you see His Royal Highness Justinian for the last time." The loyal servant kissed the icon in front of the coffin and seemed to be remorseful and repentant. And behind Sarius, a hand was placed on his shoulder.

"It's not your fault, Sarius, I couldn't catch up." Justinian, who had been hiding behind the crowd, finally came up and comforted his subordinates who were still immersed in mourning. At that time, although he rushed to the hospital bed of Archduke Anastasius as soon as possible, he still failed to see him for the last time. Strictly speaking, as the successor of Grand Duke Moria, he is actually the adopted son of this old man. It was hard for Justinian to say no to guilt for all this happened, but he understood what the Archduke on his deathbed was hoping for when he wanted to see him again—that is, to revive the country under his feet.

Justinian and Princess Eudoshia on the altar looked at each other, nodded, and took the wreath and incense ashes handed over by the other party. The burial was supposed to take place on the third day, but in extraordinary times, everything was kept simple. Justinian crossed his hand, sprinkled incense ashes into the coffin, and covered the coffin for Archduke Anastasius. The priests lifted the coffin and walked out from the back door of the church to the cemetery to bury the Archduke, surrounded by the crowd. This simple funeral is the final burial ceremony.

"Are you going to leave today?" Eudoshia asked in a low voice without looking sideways.

And Justinian also heard the tone of reproach in the princess's words, but he still insisted: "The crusade against Mikhail Dukas is urgent!"

"However, Archduke Justinian." The Grand Master on the side reminded: "Have you ever thought that when you led your army away from Thessaloniki, in case the Latins entrenched in Constantinople launched a surprise attack? What should we do? We can no longer bear the losses caused by the siege as in the past year." Until now, John X, a political ally, still disapproved of Justinian's dispatch of troops and wanted to persuade him to give up.

But Justinian shook his head and said: "At this time, the attention of the Latins is on the Bulgarians, they will never let go of the shame of Adrianople, and this time Bulgaria is seriously damaged. We have passed this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And this is the only opportunity for us to take the opportunity to unify the western border. If we miss it, when the Latins conquer Thrace and Bulgaria, then we will never have a chance to come back.” According to Genoese intelligence plus Analysis by yourself, UU reading www.uukanshu. com Justinian concluded that Flanders' Henry's appetite and ambition should not be underestimated, and he would never give up wealthy Thrace and confidants in Bulgaria for the dilapidated Thessalonica. Justinian knew it was a big gamble and a race, and when he dealt with Mikhail Ducasse, it was the final showdown between him and the Latin.

John X still wanted to persuade uneasy: "Your Excellency, even if we defeated the rebels of the Dukas family before, Mikhail, who has been running Epirus for many years, is still a hundred-footed worm. If you go wrong, the consequences will be disastrous, and I also heard that your new wife is Mikhail Ducasse's niece..."

"Okay, Your Excellency John." Princess Eudoxia interrupted the inappropriate speech of the Grand Master in time. She had also heard about the Ducasse girl of Agrinion, but in any case she had no idea about Chase. Stinney's trust is absolute. John X's starting point was good, but this time to say such words undoubtedly crossed the line.

"His Royal Highness, I did this to fulfill the last wish of Archduke Anastasius." Justinian was not offended by what the other party said just now, but he still hoped to convince the two in front of him. Support yourself in this expedition.

And Eudoxia finally nodded: "If you think it's right, then let it go! Just as we agreed at the beginning." Looking at the face of Justinian who was a few years younger than himself Having completely got rid of Qingzhi when they first met, the princess in Ziyi no longer hesitated and agreed to the other party's request.

"I hope that next year, when we are here for the monument of Anastasius, you will not rush out of your seat like this again."

If you like the Eagle Flag of Epirus, please collect it: () The Eagle Flag of Epirus has the fastest update speed.