He nodded. "But it was an ugly business which had little to do with virtue. I determined that anything was better than the battlefield. Money exchanged hands for many sordid purposes. I bought and sold secrets and thus became very powerful in my own right. I had access to the church's money and used it at will for my own purposes. Where many young men were maimed by battle, I was whole and strong. There was no lack of female attention. While the High Commanders battled, I pleasured ...