I Am Louis XIV

Barras was deeply moved.

When he left Paris thirty years ago at the invitation and inducement of the Pope, he did not hesitate. After all, he had been operating in Paris for many years. Louis XIV was still a fragile young king at the time, and Mazarin was in power on his behalf. The bishop was a decisive and decisive person - later he was unable to move forward in Rome. The reason was that those who bribed him went back on their word and broke their promises, and it was also because Bishop Mazarin was determined to teach him a lesson.

Barras did indeed suffer in Rome for many years as Bishop Mazarin said. If Louis XIV had not sent Elario to Rome, he might not have been able to come back. What would he have done when he was desperate? He would become the dark wizard or ascetic monk he always looked down upon.

Fortunately, Louis XIV was short of manpower at that time. The Inquisition was what he used to curb wizards. Of course he would not hand them over to wizards. And Barras, except Louis XIV, had almost no one. He would be needed again and there would be no way out. Not to mention, how much favor did Elario receive from this majesty? Barras not only regretted it, but even his tribe thought he had made a wrong choice.

In order to seize the last opportunity, Barras has been even more diligent and cautious than Eralus in the past few years. The king gave him the position of Archbishop of Lyon, and he did not complain; he was asked to take charge of the Inquisition, but he did not He also recognized the right to judge and adjudicate. In short, he had been doing it sincerely for more than ten years. Even when the king was on his way to the conquest, an envoy from the Roman Church came to offer a rich bait, but he was not moved.

Even Cardinal Lariviere, who had long since left things alone, said a lot of good things for him.

The king once asked him jokingly if he wanted to return to Rome. Barras refused without any hesitation, just like he did when he left Paris, or even worse. Don't be kidding, why did he betray in the first place? Isn't it because France at that time seemed to be on the verge of collapse and there was no room for recovery? Twenty years later, it was hopeless that it became the Church of Rome. With the establishment of the Commonwealth Kingdom of Italy, even though the Duke of Colonna, the future King of Italy, was always courteous to the Cardinal Prince of Rome and the Pope, but Requests from the Vatican to retain Rome's independence have been either delayed or ignored.

If the Vatican can't even protect its holy places and palaces above ground, why would he go back to Rome? Perish together?

He failed to leave even a single good memory in Rome.

Barras has been able to accept any arrangement of the king calmly. After his people left the Island of the Sun, the king instructed the Duke of Colonna to give them a new place to live - because the Island of the Sun has become a new place for the Crusaders and the New Crusaders. The place where the Ottoman-Turkish struggle was most intense.

The old people and children stayed in their new homes, and the young people joined the duke's army. They all said that the king and the duke were fairer than the bishops. Although the merits of the wizards were not made public, their treatment and military ranks But they would not discount it. Their families quickly became wealthy as the army marched eastward, but sometimes they still envied the priests of Gaiola, because they were the tribesmen of Elario and they were serving the Sun King. of.

But no matter how much he regretted it, Barras could do nothing about it, especially as the king's power became more and more powerful, he could do less and less for Louis XIV, and there was also one mistake - which led to Marie Mann. When Mancini died, he had been worried about it for a long time, fearing that His Majesty the King would be angry... However, Louis XIV never mentioned it and did not treat them harshly. Some people may think this is because Marie Mancini did not He is no longer favored by the king, but Barras, who knows his Majesty better and better, feels that this should be a kind of fear - sometimes, people will deliberately ignore things related to the deceased to avoid him. She has passed away forever. The fact of not coming back.

It was like the apartment on the top floor of the Bastille, forever sealed by cement and bricks.

Because this room was once a prison cell where wizards and priests jointly set up magic-forbidden formations, and it was also once occupied by a noble lady who had a common heir with Louis XIV—she was also a witch. So when another witch and royal lady was arrested for violating taboos and laws, someone in the Inquisition actually suggested that the heavily guarded, but very comfortable and luxurious suite should be opened, in line with the identity of Madame Montespan. .

Thinking of this, Barras sneered and ordered this subordinate who was very likely to be Mrs. Montespan's subordinate to be deprived of power and imprisoned - how could Mrs. Montespan compare with that lady? The king imprisoned Marie Mancini. In addition to being angry that she had hurt the Duke of Colonna and threatening the queen and the crown prince, he was also worried that she had made an unforgivable mistake in her impulsiveness, thus losing the possibility of turning around.

Not to mention why the lady died, mortals don’t know. As the chief judge of the Inquisition, how could Barras not know? She died for His Majesty the King. She did not need to make such a sacrifice. The enemy's conspiracy was in line with her desires. However, her love for the King finally overcame her selfish desires. It is not surprising that she has such a strong and passionate feeling. Illustrious figures such as the Sun King would also become vulnerable in the face of her death.

Sure enough, when Barras went to ask the king where Madame de Montespan should be imprisoned (does it need to be re-established in the Bastille to house witches?) His Majesty the King said that there should be a special room for witches in the Inquisition. 's prison.

Of course there is. Barras doesn't know if Elario invited the king to visit there, but if the prison of mortals is a muddy hell, a nest of insects and ants, and a paradise of plague, then the prison of the Inquisition is one where even the devil begs for mercy. A place of despair where saints also wail. There are more instruments of torture here than the jewelry of noble ladies. They are made of wood, metal, and even clay and bricks. Some are handed down from the ancient Roman period, as well as the latest steam machinery. ——Although it was later banned mercilessly by His Majesty the King.

The cell here is very clean, because bugs can be used by wizards in many places, but it has no windows. The thick wooden door only has a small movable window that only allows plates to pass through. It is usually closed. There are no candles or torches in the cell. , it’s so quiet that most people will go crazy within a few days.

"You should be honored," Barras said sincerely when he met Madame Montespan: "You have the highest status among the criminals in the Inquisition."

Madame Montespan screamed. But Barras just twisted his ears gently. He had seen too many criminals. When the wizard was still a follower of the devil, he tried no less than three or four hundred people here. Later, under the king's order, he only committed crimes. After only a few wizards were arrested by the Inquisition, the number of prisoners here actually increased instead of decreasing - because originally Barras's jurisdiction was only in the Paris Basin, but now it covers the entire France.

His Majesty the King drives wizards and is also wary of wizards. After all, they are most directly different from mortals in their ideological roots. While he pulls wizards into the world, he also puts unnoticeable shackles on their necks.

"I want to see the king!" cried Madame de Montespan. "I am the royal lady!"

"Yes," Barras said, "so this is a secret trial. And," he turned around in the dark corridor, "you will see His Majesty soon. Although I think you should I hope not to see him." Then he was not surprised to see a look of fear in Madame Montespan's eyes. It seemed that she also understood that if the king was not present, then this trial might be someone else's conspiracy. , but if...then this trial was arranged under the king's instruction.

What surprised Barras was that after being frightened for a while, Mrs. Montespan suddenly calmed down. She stood there, arranged her curly hair, let them dangle well on her shoulders, and pulled off her sleeves. , wiping the stains and blood on her white skin - not her blood, but the blood that the fallen priests sprinkled on her during the Black Mass.

"Okay," she said, raising her head, "I will explain it to Your Majesty."

Barras was curious, "Do you think His Majesty will listen to your explanation, Madam?"

"So what if the evidence is conclusive? I haven't killed anyone, and I haven't broken any laws - there is no provision in the king's laws that prohibits holding a Black Mass. I didn't even do it because I wanted to kill someone. ." Mrs. Montespan was still able to show a smile, "Your Majesty is a just person, and he will not destroy his moral principles because of me."

Barras shook his head and had to say that what Mrs. Montespan said... was right.

The trial was held in an exquisite small hall. Although it was said to be a secret trial, it didn't necessarily have to be held in a dark and damp underground, right? In the small hall, there are no railings, trial seats, defendant's or plaintiff's seats in people's minds. There is only a small platform with a high-backed chair on which Louis XIV is sitting.

Under the platform, there were still some people sitting and standing, and Madame Montespan tried her best to force herself not to look at them with hatred - among them were Madame Montespan's two fathers. It was they who led the musketeers and the priests of the Inquisition to surround the cemetery last night and captured Madame Montespan who was holding a black mass in the cemetery and the priests and deacons who had been bribed and seduced by her.

"Your Majesty..." cried Madame de Montespan.

"I'm sorry." Louis said without looking up. He was looking at some information in his hand - "It seems that I also made some mistakes." He said.

"I do it all for you," Mrs. Montespan argued, "I just want to have another child with you."

"Then what?" Louis raised his eyes and looked at her, "This is not a reason, madam. I said that even if Auguste goes to Montreal when he becomes an adult, you can continue to stay in the Palace of Versailles. Your current title, You can keep your salary, room, and property, and you can go wherever you like..."

"I just want to be able to reach your heart."

"You said you didn't want this," Louis put down the information, "Maybe it's because you thought that with my heart, you could satisfy your insatiable appetite."

"You don't believe that I love you," said Madame Montespan, "but I have done nothing wrong to you."

"Because you can't do it." Louis said mercilessly. Madame Montespan's face suddenly turned extremely pale, and then turned red with shame and anger.

"We have been watching you." Duke Mortemar said. He knew that his wife was not only a witch, but also a witch that was extremely close to people's concept of the devil. Even wizards were not immune to her power, but she Her nature was not bad, and she gave him an heir, so even if he realized... his abnormal emotions, he tolerated them and took great care of her daughters.

But his willingness to take care of her and her daughter does not mean that he is defenseless against the particularly ambitious "eldest daughter". Although his "eldest daughter" is indeed very suitable to become a royal wife, not only does he not want to In order to climb up the ranks, she was allowed to get married early, and then her husband took her directly to the fiefdom instead of Versailles or Paris.

Who knew that even after having children, Mrs. Montespan still did not give up her original ambition.

He could say without guilt that he had tried his best, just like his former enemy and current friend Varro Vesalius.

It was really embarrassing to say that he thought Varro Vesalius would fight him to death, but when they actually got along in a palace, he found that things were not as irreversible as he imagined - than Between him and his wife, Vesalius probably hated himself the most - he had been repenting of his faults and believed that he had brought misfortune to his wife and children. He was really a naive and good man.

Vesalius felt somewhat guilty towards this daughter, Mrs. Montespan, but even his deepest emotions could not help but be worn away bit by bit by her coldness and ruthlessness, let alone as a daughter. Said that many of Mrs. Montespan's actions are chilling-otherwise Duke Mortemar would not have sent her to the monastery.

"First of all, there are the crimes committed by Madame Montespan and Father Anselmo - holding black masses, stealing and murdering pregnant women and children." Barras said, he temporarily acted as prosecutor.

Upon hearing this accusation, Madame Montespan's expression became unpleasant. She looked at the king with fear, but she soon became calm again.

"Do you plead guilty?" Barras asked.

"I do not plead guilty." Madame Montespan said confidently. "There is nothing in the French code that prohibits the celebration of Black Mass." She continued: "The king's hair and personal clothes were also left with me occasionally. How can it be called theft? As for pregnant women and babies, it is even more nonsense. I have only seen Father Anselmo."

"Don't you know that the ashes of pregnant women and the blood of babies are used in the Black Mass?"

"Oh my God," Madame Montespan smiled arrogantly: "Do I still care about how a servant cleans the courtyard or makes wine and cooks? What does it have to do with me if he kills someone."

Duke Mortemar glanced at the king. It seemed that Mrs. Montespan had understood that she would not be favored by the king. Now she admitted to the Black Mass, but claimed that she did not know the inside story. Everyone knew that she was lying, but even if Even if she is an accomplice, it cannot prove that she knew the inside story.

Louis sighed tiredly. Fortunately, after Marie's incident, Barras' supervision of the world in Paris became more stringent. Father Anselmo could not get fresh flesh and blood, so he could only manage to buy a body and die in childbirth. corpse.