Swiss Arms 93 (Patreon)

Swiss Arms

Chapter 93

-VB-

Hans von Fluelaberg

I thought everyone had gathered when all of the important abbots, abbesses, priests, archdeacons, and bishops had shown up, but no, I was wrong. 

In the week I had given myself with the mayor, more people showed up to partake in the election and throw their names in the lot, and the situation grew proportionally out of control for me when I realized that there were other lords here hedging their bets. 

Baron of Hewen, Prince-Bishop of Konstanz, distant Habsburg cousins and relations, and even some Wittelsbachs from the Palatinate showed up. It was almost like if they had the means and political motivation, then they were here. On top of that, there were cathedrals, abbeys, and churches that were part of the Diocese of Chur but were in the middle of Diocese of Konstanz… 

Yeah, Roman Catholic dioceses at the time was as patchy as the Holy Roman Empire it was part of. 

And I didn’t know what to do.

It was one thing to sway the local priests to my side with gifts, pledges of protection, outright bribes, and promises of future entry into the Compact.

It was another to ask someone with more power than the entirety of the Compact to let go of their ambitions for a title that would give them even more political power. 

What’s worse, I couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer for the mayor of Chur, who was rather upset at my inability to come up with a solution.

Bitch, I’m not a handyman who could solve ALL problems!

The point remained. The election of the Prince-Bishop of Chur now involved people who I had little to no political, social, or financial leverage over. 

But I stil wanted to give it a try.

It was why I was back in talks with the Abbot of Saint Galls. 

“You wish for me to throw my support behind your candidate.”

“I do, Your Excellency,” I replied while sitting across from Abbot Heinreich von Ramstein. The elderly priest had come in with the Abbot of Disantis, and while the latter had joined the Compact, he had yet to because I couldn’t just pay his huge debt without a better excuse than just “because he wants to join the Compact.” Aside from setting a potentially disasterous precedent of paying people off when they might not even provide military support (coughLangweiscough), I personally didn’t just want to without getting something more out of it. Abbot von Ramstein had political power I could use, either in ensuring who got to be the Prince-Bishop or in ensuring that Chur became an entity separate from the Prince-Bishop.

Unfortunately for Chur, there wasn’t enough political or financial power with them or the Compact to ensure it. I could steer who could become the next bishop, though, even if it was just a little. And maybe, just maybe, if I got a person who felt like they owed it to me, I can potentially get them to agree to separate Chur off from the prince-bishopric. 

The elderly priest hummed. “That can easily be done. I probably would have done it for a third of my debt.”

I smiled as I shook hands with him.

One vote down. Many more to go.

---

“Y-You want me to become the Prince-Bishop…?” Abbot Gion of Disentis, and also a member of the Compact now, stuttered as he looked at me in shock. 

I nodded. “I will give you every help you need, abbot, but if we allow someone else who has even an iota of hostility toward us, then they can break us from the inside,” I replied. “I can’t allow that to happen. Surely, you wouldn’t want your new friends to lose out because you did not want to rise to the occasion?” 

My words momentarily incensed the man but he calmed down. 

He also calmed down a bit. Was he that kind of person? Someone who grew colder the more they got angry? 

“I…” he paused, and then swallowed before he stuttered. “I am but a man of God,” he replied. “I do not know much about politics, but if you want my participation, then I want you to promise me that you will not interfere with church matters.”

“On religious and theological matters, I will not. I can promise you that.”

He nodded. 

“Very well, then, baron. You… you have my help in this.”

Alright. Things were looking up.

-VB-

Isabella von Fluelaberg nee Gorizia

She tittered with excitement. 

For the past two months, she hasn’t had blood in her tampion, and considering how frequently she and Hans have been making love in bed, it could mean only one thing. 

She giggled at the thought of telling him the news. At the same time, she was ready to fight him if he decided that her being pregnant would be justification to stop her from continuing her blade practices. If anything, she needed to be as healthy as possible for their baby! 

So when Hans finally came back to the mansion, she greeted him with a smile. 

Hans looked at her for a second before his eyes widened.

“Isabella…?”

“I’m pregnant!” 

Hans stared at her for a second before he abruptly wrapped her up in a tight embrace. She squealed when he spun her around in the air for a bit before letting her down, and then kissed her. 

She returned the kiss, ignoring the way there were gasps around the manor lobby from the servants. 

Hans noticed it, and with a grunt, he broke the kiss and then scooped her up. And then stomped his way to their bedroom.

The door slammed close behind them…

“... Ahn~!”

-VB-

A/N: what actually happened after Siegfried died IRL was that Bishop of Constance (Konstanz) took over administration until Rudolf II von Montfort (yes, the same Montforts who control the County of Montfort but not from the direct ruling family of Montfort and a separate family in Constance), who sided with the pope during Emperor Louis the Bavarian (yes, the guy we want to deck) vs. Pope situation. 

This probably got him the nomination from the pope when the election STILL couldn’t decide who to make the prince-bishop of Chur. But Rudolf II von Montfort wasn’t a clergy working within the Diocese of Chur at the time … but in Wurzburg on the other side of Bavaria. Before this appointment, the pope also appointed a French priest to become the Prince-Bishop of Konstanz (Germany) so …

Yeah, clergy and noble randos appearing out of nowhere to contest the election or throw their own name? Perfectly valid. Frustrating to write about because I can’t find a record of WHO was at the election but still. 

A/N 2: also, yay, Hans and Isabella are finally going to get a kid!