In January 998, at the estate of the duke of franks, the king of France tells his father that he is certain that the poisoned ministers will change his life. The duke tells the king that he has never seen him so beautiful, and that he wonders if he will soon be able to forget the cold. He tells the duke that he was sent to him because he has a manuscript that will make the king forget the events of the last autumn. He asks the duke how he obtained the manuscript, and the duke tells him that it looks like "aicrama" . He then tells the prince that the king is rushing to visit a famous monk who speaks the strange language of Bagdad. The prince tells him to bring some food for the monk. He also tells the son that he had to refuse the transfer of his brother, the Duke of gibson, to Rome. The king asks the son to tell him the contents of the manuscript. The son tells the father that the manuscript is likely from the Caliph of bagdad, and only he can tell him what it says. The father then tells him about the jews, who have just thrown out of Paris for plotting against the duke. The jews' chief, Flavius, has been accused of having Christian children kidnapped. Flavius is rumored to torture the children and then sell them as slaves to other Jews.