Chapter 265: 264: The Holy Maiden of France

Time flew by once more; throughout the months, while Berengar was using the period of peace he had established in Austria to turn his Duchy into a significant power, France found itself engulfed in war. For decades the English had been attempting to invade the Kingdom of France in a bid for control of the French Throne. 

England has seized considerable gains within the past year, and with each passing day, more French land fell to the English invaders. When Aubry returned from the Byzantine Empire, he was sent off to war against the English by his father, King Gilles de Valois. 

At the moment, the effeminate Prince was clad from head to toe in steel plate armor, unlike in Austria where steel was a shared resource, in France, it was a rare commodity, and to outfit a man in a full suit of armor comprised of the material was a great expense.

Due to his tabard being sullied earlier in the day, Aubry lacked the colors that distinguished him as a member of the Royal Family. If anything, he looked like a common man-at-arms. As such, few men in either Army were aware of his identity.

Aubry was taking part in his first battle. Though a legendary swordsman, he was by no means an experienced soldier, and as such, was quite nervous about the conflict. Currently, He was acting under the command of the Duke of Burgundy while the French forces fought against the English in a field within the Duchy of Burgundy.

In Berengar's previous life, the Duchy of Burgundy would betray the French Throne and side with the English in the next year. Of course, this had happened after the French royal Heir assassinated the Duke. In this timeline, such a thing may not occur; after all, Aubry was the Heir and was an entirely different person from the Crown Prince during Berengar's previous life.

Aubry fought fiercely beside the Duke of Burgundy as the man advanced his forces against the English lines. As a petite and effeminate young man, Aubry lacked physical strength, especially compared to the veteran English Knights he was facing. Thus he had to make up for his lack of power with his sword skills. 

He was currently protected by a great bascinet, which blocked his pretty face; his honey blonde hair flowed out the back of the helmed, creating the image in the minds of the English and French alike that he was a female warrior leading the charge against their enemies. His dainty feminine figure, clad in the slim armor, did not help resolve this confusion.

The English longbowman fired upon the French Knights as they charged into the fray, atop their mounts. At the moment, Aubry was equipped with a lance and couched it under his arm as he rammed the tip of the weapon into the breastplate of an English knight, skewering the man upon impact. 

The heavily armored cavalry of both forces clashed into one another, sending Knights and Lords to their deaths. Perhaps it was God's will, but the effeminate Prince managed to survive the charge, and so too did the Duke of Burgundy. 

As both armies struggled in a battle of life and Death, Aubry was unseated from his horse by a lance, and though it did not kill him, it surely dented his breastplate and broke one or more of his ribs.

Gasping for breath, a tear formed in the young Prince's eyes beneath the visor of his great bascinet as he struggled to breathe. The pain was unbearable, yet despite this, he slowly rose to his feet, where he unleashed his longsword from his sheath and used it to dodge an oncoming blow from an English man-at-arms. 

After deflecting the blow, Aubry spun his blade around, gripping the cold steel by the hand and using the pommel to strike his opponent's iron helmet, caving it in and crushing the man's skull as he did so. 

A sharp pain, like a knife digging into his abdomen, dug its way through Aubry's ribcage; with each movement, he felt as if he were going to pass out. Despite this, the young Prince continued to struggle on the battlefield.

If he did not fight, he would surely die this day; thus, he twisted his sword around so that he was once more wielding it by the hilt and pierced through the gambeson armor of a nearby English soldier.

With the young Prince surrounded by the chaos of war, the Duke of Burgundy led the Army and began to encircle his position; he could not allow the Crown Prince to die on his watch. Slowly, but surely the tides of battle began to change in favor of the French Army, and eventually, Aubry was relived by the courageous Knights and Men At Arms of France who had caught up to him and allowed him a short reprieve from the battle. 

Aubry winced in pain as he clutched the dented portion of his breastplate; afterward, he was slowly led away from the battlefield by some nearby Knights who were concerned for his safety. Aubry was forced to retreat to the encampment while his soldiers fought without him.

The field physician stripped Aubry of his armor and clothes before examining the rib cage, where he shared the news with the boy.

"Three of your ribs are fractured; you will recover in time. However, for now, I advise you to stay clear of the battlefield. One wrong move, and you could get yourself killed."

After hearing this, Aubry nodded before covering himself with a silk robe. The material was rare in France, but due to trade from some traveling Austrian merchants, the boy could get such a luxury, and he wore it whenever he got the chance.

The Prince clutched his side and winced in pain as he moved around. Shortly after that, the flaps to the tent opened to reveal the Duke of Burgundy with a grave expression on his face, the man was covered in the blood of his enemies, but he did not appear to be harmed in the slightest.

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When the physician had begun to examine him, the young Duke, who was no older than twenty-six, pushed him aside before barging over to Aubry while wrapping the young Prince in his bloodstained embrace.

"Thank God you are alright! I don't know what I would do without you!"

After saying this, the man began to violate the Prince's tongue with his own; despite this act of passion, the Prince did not turn away and instead accepted the gift. It was a little-known secret that the Duke of Burgundy and the French Prince were in an illicit relationship. 

Though the Duke was married and had three children, the moment he first laid eyes on Aubry, he fell in love, and thus for the past three years, Aubry had been in a relationship with the Duke of Burgundy. 

Of course, the Duke of Burgundy was just one of Aubry's many lovers, he was a rather promiscuous young man, and thus he had more than one man by his side. He was even in a scandalous affair with several of his Knights.

The Duke of Burgundy had no way of knowing this. Thus he thought that Prince Aubry was loyal only to him.  After their little intimate display, Aubry wiped the blood from the Duke's face before putting on a gentle smile and asking the question on his mind.

"Did we win?'

To this, the Duke chuckled lightly before nodding his head.

"Would I be here if we hadn't?"

Though this was good news, it was far too early to celebrate; the English invasion was not something to be taken lightly. The French had been fighting the English for decades, and yet the war was still entirely unresolved. 

With this said, the couple maintained silence for some time. Eventually, the Duke of Burgundy spoke his views on the conflict that embroiled the Kingdom of France.

"This war is far from over. However, this victory is a good start. With our Holy Maiden leading the charge, the morale of our forces is stronger than ever!"

Aubry was confused when he heard these words and spoke softly, as he was attempting to limit the amount of pain he felt from his broken ribs.

"Holy Maiden?"

The Duke of Burgundy removed the gauntlet from his hand and wiped the bangs out of Aubry's eyes. In doing so, he whispered into the young man's ear.

"That's what our troops are calling you! They saw your honey hair and petite figure as you bravely charged the English Knights. Without your tabard, the men have begun to think that you are a woman. This is why they are calling you the Holy Maiden.

Rumors have already spread of your feat in battle, and the men are speculating about your origins. Some are even saying that you are a young woman of low birth chosen by God to lead the French to victory in our hour of need. If you ask me, it is a nickname fitting of your divine beauty!"

Upon hearing this, Aubry began to blush as he looked to the side, not willing to gaze into the eyes of his lover. He was far from pious; in fact, one could call him the personification of lust. Despite this, he had been given such a beautiful nickname.

After a while, the effeminate Prince began to giggle like a girl; to him, it was the greatest joke he had ever heard. However, for the sake of morale, he would continue to present the image of a pious young woman; after all, what France needed now more than ever was a symbol to rally behind.

Thus the lustful trap that was the Crown Prince of France had become the Joan of Arc of this world, while in reality behaving far more similar to the ancient Roman Emperor Elagabalus. Of course, the promiscuous character of the so-called "Holy Maiden" would never be revealed to the public at large, nor would his identity as the Prince of France. 

The war would continue to wage for some time; who would win the Hundred Years War in this timeline had yet to be determined. Though with Berengar's intervention in this world's affairs, anything was possible. For now, the French would continue to fight against the English, as they had for decades.

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