Manuel felt his opportunity had come again, and he couldn't help but chuckle inwardly at the request made by a trusted servant on behalf of his old friend.
However, in the imperial court, he maintained his usual calm and benevolent facade, displaying an ambiguous attitude in front of others, making it difficult for those present to guess his inner thoughts and true intentions. Subsequently, Manuel skillfully bypassed the topic and announced the end of the court session for the day.
Just as Rutaoglu suspected he would return empty-handed, a personal guard of Caesar quietly approached him and delivered a message: "Lord Rutaoglu, Caesar invites you for a discussion this afternoon, regarding Bey and your country."
The Turk servant keenly perceived Caesar's true attitude from this, and half-sensed his intention. As for the other party referring to his master as "His Highness," he felt nothing, as it was common for Beyliks like Karaman to have different internal and external titles.
So, that afternoon, in a small council room in Trabzon Palace, Caesar Manuel met with Rutaoglu from Karaman again, accompanied by two of his cabinet members and his Commander of the Guard.
This time, Caesar did not put on any elusive pretense, but directly expressed his willingness to provide support to Suleiman. He then asked Rutaoglu to state Karaman's requests to see if he was currently able to meet those conditions.
Although he received Caesar Manuel's immediate promise, Rutaoglu did not appear overly overjoyed. He had a feeling that Bosporus would likely refuse to provide direct military manpower assistance.
Sure enough, when faced with Rutaoglu's first request—to directly send troops, disguised as foreign mercenaries, to support Karaman and cut off Ottoman logistics—Caesar immediately refused. "Although I don't know what Lord Suleiman instructed before you came, he should know that Bosporus has just ended a war with the Ottoman and has no spare capacity to send troops abroad, right?"
Having the reason for his refusal accurately and unreservedly pointed out, Rutaoglu was somewhat silent. Therefore, he immediately and unreservedly presented his master's true needs on the spot: "I report to Caesar, since that is the case, could you please help His Highness sustain his wartime economy or disrupt Ottoman logistics through covert means? According to His Highness, this support is not without cost; we will bring stone, timber, and handicrafts in exchange, and will proactively become the first Muslim country to officially permit Bosporus merchants to conduct business. Furthermore, if this war ends in victory or unconditional peace, Karaman is willing to proactively enter into a mutual defense alliance with Bosporus."
After hearing Rutaoglu's proposal, Manuel did not simply agree readily but pondered to himself, "Barter-style trade is acceptable, but Bosporus and Karaman are not land-bordering countries, so the efficiency of trade is questionable. And an alliance after the war is won feels like an empty promise? All in all, only the allowance for Bosporus official merchants to trade seems worth considering.
"But Suleiman is not an diplomatic fool, and he should also know what I need. Given our relationship, for him to only offer these, it seems Karaman truly has encountered difficulties."
After this thought, which occupied Caesar's mind for less than a second, he had a rough idea.
"Tell me, what is your master's current situation?" Manuel said calmly. "Don't worry, just speak freely; there's no one here now except for a few of my trusted cabinet members."
Upon receiving Caesar's response, Rutaoglu felt quite surprised: Bosphorus Caesar was as perceptive as ever.
Therefore, after a moment of contemplation, he finally revealed his master's current predicament without reservation: "Manuel, my master's current situation is not optimistic. Because my master ascended through an unconventional succession, the domestic opposition forces are not small, and some of them have even colluded with the Ottoman, disrupting our allied forces' military deployment. Fortunately, my master is young and capable, and can still firmly control most of Hamid, which was previously occupied…"
Hearing this, Manuel finally understood why the allied forces of Karaman and the Mamluk currently only controlled one success, Hamid. "The political and economic foundations of the Beyliks in Asia Minor are indeed conspicuously worse than that of the Ottoman, a giant deeply rooted in Southeast Europe. Even with an enlightened ruler, it can only be temporarily held together.
"But my plan cannot be without a Karaman that is in cahoots with me. It seems I must help Suleiman with this. And fortunately, I can give him a hand in suppressing internal opposition."
Just as Caesar thought this, Rutaoglu also finished his narration. Facing the Turk servant's expectant gaze, he did not make any meaningless pauses or say anything irrelevant, but immediately put forth his opinion: "Since that is the case, I will speak frankly: Bosporus is willing to provide Suleiman with a batch of Tauris-made firearms. These firearms are easy to use, and can be mastered with less than two or three days of training. As for instructors, I will send three Philaka Soldiers disguised as merchants to escort them.
"Regarding the economy, Bosporus is deeply mired in financial problems, so direct support is difficult to provide, please understand. However, as an alternative, I will try to boost the Içel region during the upcoming Black Sea trade route expansion.
"As for Ottoman logistics, I will also find a way to take care of some 'trifles'. You don't need to worry about that. And compared to the Ottoman as an external enemy, how about I give Suleiman some small pointers to curb those internal scourges?"
"I'd like to hear more," Rutaoglu said, immediately bowing forward to listen to Manuel's "teachings." After listening, Rutaoglu's face was filled with shock, as if saying, "Is this really possible?"
As if seeing through the other's doubt, Manuel smiled frankly, "I merely suggested some methods; whether to adopt them or not depends on your master."
And so, Rutaoglu, having achieved his goal, returned with Bosporus's response. As he left Trabzon, Serenus, feeling somewhat anxious, boldly came to the small council room again the next morning to ask his monarch, "Caesar, although you have a good personal relationship with Lord Suleiman, is it really wise to give him the matchlock, a secret of our country? And are we truly going to cut off the Ottoman's logistics? Holy Mother above, what if another war breaks out?"
"Serenus, while the matchlock is a secret, it may not be as secret as you imagine. Before you came to serve me, my father and I gave the earliest version of the matchlock sample to the Venetians; I'm sure they are now studying how to improve it, and have also sold a certain quantity to outsiders in exchange for ducats. After all, these merchants are all obsessed with money, aren't they?
"However, the versions currently used by the Bosporus Army are no longer the initial ones that could easily be leaked, but the new version I personally improved. Do you think I'm a brain-damaged person who would casually throw out the new version?"
"I dare not!" Serenus quickly bowed.
"That's right," Manuel said, gently smiling to ease the other's tension.
"As for the Ottoman's logistics, rest assured, there's no need for us in Bosporus to act personally." As he spoke of this, a cunning smile appeared on Caesar's face.