Tyranny of Steel

News had quickly spread of Acre's fall, and Berengar could not care less. The reality was the Byzantine Army in itself was capable of defeating the Crusader army. Still, he was slightly worried about reports of rifled muzzleloaders being used by the enemy. He did not think they would develop that technology so soon. Even then, it was not a major concern, as their range was still vastly inferior to his own weapons.

The young German Emperor was more focused with important matters regarding his own realm. He had just received word of the war that was being waged in the settlement of New Swabia. Emmerich had discovered tomatoes, and as a result, he had begun to fight with the natives over their many tomato plants.

The man had even begun to request an additional brigade of soldiers to assist him in his efforts, which Berengar quickly approved. There were many dishes he could make with tomatoes, and he did not care what the cost was he would have them brought to the Fatherland.

As for the idea of produce from the New World, an interesting idea came to mind, and because of that, he fetched his ambassador to the Aztec Empire. After waiting for a little while, the young Aztec Princess was standing in front of Berengar.

She no longer had the appearance of a savage warrior, instead she wore fine jewelry and a silk dress that tightly clung to her curves. Unlike the frilly dresses worn by German noblewomen, she wanted something short and simple. If anything, the dress that the woman wore was far more modern in design than Berengar had expected.

Berengar was stunned at her appearance and complimented her looks briefly before getting down to business.

"So you have shed the skin of a savage and have become a proper lady? I must say I am impressed. That's not the reason I called you here. I was wondering if you could return to your homeland briefly and negotiate on my behalf."

Tlexictli stared at the man in disbelief. She had only just arrived in the Empire not long ago, and yet despite this Berengar was already asking her to leave. However, she simply sighed in defeat before asking the question on her mind.

"Do I even have a choice?"

A smug expression appeared on the German Emperor's face as he shook his head and informed the woman of her task.

"Afraid not. What I need you to do is return to your father and ask him to prepare large quantities of cocoa for me. I have plans for such a crop, and I need large supplies for it. If he is willing to do this for me, I can promise him some benefits in return. What do you say? Are you up for the task?"

The young Aztec Princess could not believe her ears. The man wanted her to travel across the atlantic just so she can bring back vast quantities of cocoa beans? She had no idea what it was that he had planned, but clearly it was something important. She would never believe that Berengar wanted to prepare German Chocolate cake for Adela's upcoming birthday. Thus, she naively bowed her head before responding to his request.

"Very well, if it is so urgent, I won't mind returning to my homeland. However, I will miss the Empire. I have grown quite fond of how pleasant it is here."

When the emperor heard this, he broke out into a fit of laughter before giving the girl hope.

"It's not like you're going to be away forever. You will be gone for a little over a month. Trust me, I need Cocoa for my plans, and you're the most reliable person I have to negotiate with your father."

Tlexictli smiled and nodded her head. She truly feared Berengar was kicking her out of the fatherland. She had come to realize why Berengar was so condescending towards her people during his invasion. Germany was an advanced civilization with trains and factories. How could her people even compete with the quality of life that the people of the empire lived in?

"I understand. Perhaps do you wish for me to tell my father that his gods demand cocoa?"

When Berengar heard this suggestion, he chuckled once more before giving the Aztec Princess free rein.

"If you think that's the most effective solution. However, I trust you enough to not screw mover .After all you of all people should be aware of the consequences of betraying my trust."

Tlexictli shivered in fear when she heard these words. She had witnessed Berengar's conquest of her people first hand, and was well aware of his complete and total disregard of human life. The last thing she wanted to do was end up on his bad side. Thus, she obediently followed her orders and quickly set off on a journey to the New World, where she intended to negotiate with her father on matters of trade.

As for Berengar, he was quickly interrupted by one of his many wives. The redheaded spymaster quickly entered his office, not even needing the permission most would require, where she placed a document on the desk of her husband. It was a dossier about the ongoing information her spies had gathered on the Timurid Empire.

"Our spies report that the Timurids are suffering heavy losses in the crusade. They simply have not had the time to adapt to the rapid development of firearms that have come as a result of your interference in this world. They are requesting to purchase some firearms in order to ease the burden they are currently under.

As we speak, the Timurid Armies are being used as meat shields for the Byzantine Musketeers. Acre is only the beginning. It is acting as a staging point for the other Catholic Kingdoms to muster their forces. Soon there will be tens of thousands of crusaders in the Holy Land. We have two options supply the Timurids with firearms, or disrupt the gunpowder supply of the enemy.

Berengar reflected on this issue carefully for several minutes before inquiring for further details.

"Do we know where the catholics are getting their saltpeter from?"

Having heard this, Linde laid out a map of the suspected trade routes from where the Catholic World was getting their hands on the necessary component to create gunpowder.

"We suspect it is coming from India. The trade is not flowing through the middle east, but through the Golden Horde. The political situation within the horde has stabilized and a new khan has been selected. Their new leader suspects we are responsible for the infighting that has been going on in their ranks, and he is correct in his assumption.

The new khan is not the kind of man to recklessly charge into our lands, especially after what we did to the Eastern Coalition. However, he has decided to supply our enemies with the saltpeter so he can use them as a proxy against us. If we can disrupt the trade routes that the Golden Horde uses to bring saltpeter into Europe, we can cripple the Catholic's efforts to invade the Holy Land.

Berengar thought about this issue for several moments in silence before nodding his head in agreement with Linde's assessment.

"I agree, something needs to be done to disrupt the Catholic's saltpeter supply, however for the time being, they are a powerful tool to be used against the Byzantine and Timurid forces. Dispatch some spies to the Golden Horde to monitor things. As for taking action, we will wait until the crusaders and Timurids kill each other in larger numbers for interfering in their conflict."

Linde's eyes widened in disbelief as she heard Berengar's words and immediately asked for clarification on his stance.

"The Byzantine Empire is our ally. Should we really be allowing them to suffer such losses?"

In response to this question, Berengar nodded his head before elaborating on his plan to Linde.

"Of course, the more losses the Byzantines suffer, the better it is for me. Whether we support them or not, it doesn't matter in the end the Byzantines will win the war. However, the losses they suffer, should they be severe, will cripple the foundation that Vetranis has sought to maintain. By the time of his death, the Empire will be in a poor state, allowing for Alexandros to become a prime candidate to succeed him. Especially since the only other option is that fool Quintus.

As for the Catholics, they are destined to lose this war, so the more of them that die, the less pressure we will be facing when they finally turn towards our borders. Either way, it is in my interest to drag this conflict out as long as possible, ensuring all sides are in a feeble state after the war is over.

If the Byzantine Army calls upon our alliance to end the threat that the crusaders pose, then we will answer, but until then, let the war run its course. At most, you can provide intelligence on behalf of our allies. Yet, direct intervention is out of the question for the time being."

Linde nodded her head in response before obeying her commands.

"I understand. I will make sure that Imperial Intelligence does as you have instructed."

After saying this, the young Empress left her husband be, where Berengar quickly got back to work on other important matters.