While Theodore had quietly taken control of Kaffa, inside the Governor's Office in Genoa—
Simon Boccanegra was in a good mood. To help them suppress the Corsican mountaineers, the Visconti Family of Milan had specially sent a skilled general nicknamed the "Golden Knight" to assist them. As soon as he was integrated with Genoa's mercenary groups, they would be able to thoroughly crush those restless Sardinians.
Thinking of this, Simon pleasantly sipped his tea. These tea leaves were a luxury drink from the East, and only a Governor from a prominent family like him could enjoy them as an after-meal beverage.
"Your Excellency, the message from our informant in Theodoro has arrived." Just as he took a sip of tea, his personal valet informed him of this.
Boccanegra waved his hand, signaling to place it on the table. The valet complied, then carefully exited the room.
"Let me see." After finishing his drink, he opened the sealed letter and began to read it against the cipher.
There was nothing special in the secret letter; it simply stated that Theodoro had conducted some military training as usual, followed by a string of platitudes praising the Lord and flattering him.
Boccanegra stifled a yawn, then placed the secret letter over a lit candle, burning it to ashes.
Everything was as usual, he couldn't help but smile, "However, Kaffa hasn't reported its daily situation for a while. The current consul is Paolo Grimaldi, isn't he? While it's fine to be a bit lazy, this is too indolent!" After some thought, Boccanegra complained, but thankfully he was stepping down in the second half of this year, so these messes would be left to his successor. If a political rival took the position, he could even use it to his advantage.
The next morning, back in Genoa, completely unaware of what had happened in Kaffa, Manuel, who had finished his work early, called for Isaac Arno and Badars Gavras, asking them to accompany him to deal with the noblewomen.
They quickly arrived at a rather beautiful building. Led by Isaac, Manuel came to a room door. After his attendant knocked for a while, they were finally allowed to enter. The room was comfortably furnished, filled with purple decorations symbolizing nobility, and a small flag bearing four Beta crests. Inside the room, two young and beautiful maids were vigilantly watching the men who had entered, while also guarding, well, the mistress of the room, for lack of a better term, although she was technically under house arrest. The captive was a beautiful young woman dressed as a noble from Constantinople. She appeared slightly younger than Manuel, her face veiled, her complexion fair, her fingers long and slender, her hair black, and her fitted dark purple dalmatica accentuated her graceful figure, though her upper body was still developing. Although she feigned composure, her dark brown eyes revealed deep worry and fear.
Manuel was a little puzzled. He pulled Isaac outside the room and quietly asked, "Why is this young lady looking at us so strangely? Honestly, tell me, did you do something outrageous before?"
"Your Highness, this, this, we are innocent! Although it might have been a bit…" Isaac stammered, but faced with Manuel's hawk-like gaze, he finally gritted his teeth and explained the situation to Manuel. "On the night of the uprising in Kaffa, a group of audacious bandits took advantage of the chaos in the city and ran into various rooms in their hotel, extorting people. When they reached this young lady's room, because they had taken sufficient precautions beforehand, the bandits couldn't get in for a long time. Of course, they eventually broke in. Once inside, seeing that they were noble, beautiful, and having wasted a lot of time, they lost their minds and tried to do… Holy Mother above, anyway, it was that kind of thing, against the principles of the Holy Father."
"And then?"
"Fortunately, a brave traveler ran out into the street to seek help from the militia during the bandits' intrusion. Just as they were tying them up, the militia arrived in time, rescued them, and sent the bandits to meet Satan."
"Isn't that good? A perfect resolution?"
"But when they were rescued, the militiamen were too rough, just a little…"
"Don't tell me you…"
"No, absolutely not, Your Highness! Although the militiamen were ill-mannered, they still adhered to basic principles. They absolutely did not suffer inhumane treatment, otherwise they wouldn't be confined in such a comfortable room."
"You know they're confined… Sigh, what is all this…?" Manuel immediately felt a headache. What kind of situation was this? A melodramatic plot happening around me? It's so absurd it's opening the door for absurd's grandmother!
"And when we negotiated with them, they only said they were from Constantinople, arriving around the beginning of this year. They refused to say anything else, stating that they would only answer to a noble familiar with proper etiquette," Isaac added.
Manuel told Isaac there was no need to say more, because if he continued, he might completely lose his composure.
"Alright, alright, I'll handle it myself." Manuel sighed. He was truly not good at simply dealing with girls.
He then returned to the room, dismissing most of his entourage, leaving only Isaac and Badars, and a few other key personnel.
Manuel shrewdly adopted the demeanor befitting a noble. He wore a gentle smile, and his every gesture displayed the cultivation and etiquette expected of a Roman Grand Noble.
"Young lady, I have heard the general situation. I deeply regret what happened to you, but rest assured, I swear by the Holy Father that I will never harm you."
Hearing the refined and charming young noble in front of her, dressed in an indigo custom dalmatica, speak with such demeanor and swear by the Holy Father, coupled with a good first impression, the fear in the young woman's eyes diminished considerably. She slowly nodded, "Hmm, truly… *cough*, I hope you can do as you say."
Manuel looked at the beautiful young woman in front of him, who was a bit flustered and struggling for words, and felt a subtle emotion, but he maintained an expression as if nothing had happened. "What happened in Kaffa City before was truly atrocious. I apologize to you for everything that occurred. However," he changed his tone, "to be frank, remaining in this city is actually not very safe for you. I hope you can tell us your family, so it will be easier to contact them to bring you back to your safe home."
"I'm sorry, but I cannot say," the young woman replied decisively, a hint of added worry in her eyes as she answered him.
"Why?"
"No comment."
"Young lady, I will tell you directly: due to the change of hands in this city, Genoa will certainly wage war against us soon to reclaim it. At that time, this place will be engulfed in conflict. Do you think we will have the energy to protect a noblewoman of unknown identity? Even if she is a noble."
"But…" Hearing this, the young woman bit her red lips with a hint of fear, her vulnerable appearance making Manuel feel a little uncomfortable, but half a second later he pinched his left pinky finger, regaining his composure, and continued to maintain his expression.
"How about this, I'll tell you directly: I am a member of the Gavras Family. How about you tell me your family?"
Seeing her still hesitate, Manuel had no choice but to reluctantly put on a cold face and say, "Young lady, you wouldn't want to be thrown into a military camp to do *that* during wartime, would you?"
At this, everyone present was startled. The two maids looked as if they were ready to fight Manuel, while the young woman questioned him with some indignation: "Didn't you just swear by the Holy Father that you would never harm me?"
"I swore I wouldn't harm you, but I didn't swear I would definitely protect you. Besides, as a noble from Constantinople, you must know quite a bit about Roman traditions," Manuel replied with an innocent expression.
After a moment, the young woman finally gave her reply, "I can tell you my name, but you must tell me yours too."
"No problem."
"Then I'll count down from three."
"Please do."
"3,"
"2,"
"1—"
"Manuel Gavras."
"Barbara Palaiologina."
They were silent for a moment, then shouted at each other in shock:
"Ah?!"
Manuel finally lost his composure.