A year passed, and 1182 drew near.
A new year in Constantinople.
It was also the first new year I was spending in this era.
I took part in all kinds of events with the young Emperor.
Countless church rites and services.
But there were interesting things here and there as well.
The development of the telescope, and the jousting tournament.
I took a liking to the latter.
"Waaaaah!!!"
The crowd's roar rang inside my helm.
I held my lance and looked ahead.
Through the narrow slit of the helm, I could see the target.
A wooden man holding a sword.
At the twitch of my thigh, Vult sprang forward.
The smell of dirt and sweat drifted into the helm.
I leveled the lance as if laying it gently against the wooden figure and—
Thud――――
With a heavy shock, the wood toppled backward.
The fallen figure immediately sprang back up like a roly-poly doll.
But I had already passed.
The crowd's roar rose again.
"Waaaaah!"
With Aig's help, I dismounted.
When I took off my helm, the imposing sight of the Hippodrome came into view.
Until not long ago, chariot races had been held here.
I never thought I would be jousting in this place.
"You handle the lance more skillfully than I do now, my lord."
"If I practiced that much and still couldn't, that would be a problem."
I replied with a laugh.
Facing another knight was still difficult.
What I had done was set up targets and strike them with the lance.
I had to pass before the target sprang back up and hit me.
My sixth sense had improved a lot in the meantime.
What I could sense was not only people's emotions.
If I heightened my senses, I could faintly feel objects like the targets as well.
Wiping sweat, I looked around.
This looked more than a hundred times larger than the tournament we held in Eilat.
If that had been a village fair, this was on the level of the Olympics.
I headed toward the Emperor's box in the center of the stands.
Alexios greeted me with a smile.
"Excellent skill, Prince Baldwin. I would like to try it myself, but…"
He looked to his captain of the guard, Ruaak.
"Ruaak opposed it, saying he would not allow it even if it killed him."
"I was only concerned for His Majesty's safety. You may do so when you are a little older…"
Watching them, I barely held back laughter.
Has he become some sort of knight enthusiast?
'Well, a lance charge is every man's dream.'
Even in the twenty-first century, there were enthusiasts who put on full armor and jousted.
And the weapons, armor, and symbols used by the crusaders survived into the twenty-first century.
The knightly orders as well.
The Templars appeared in all kinds of conspiracy theories and stories.
Which meant they were that appealing.
"Still, this thing you made is fascinating every time I see it."
Alexios muttered, raising the tube to his eye.
He blinked repeatedly.
Like a child touching a toy for the first time.
"It is like the eyes of an angel looking down on the earth from heaven. Did the Archangel Michael truly tell you how to make it?"
"He appeared on the day we defeated Andronikos and told me."
I said.
In truth, the Archangel Michael had been something I came up with on the spot.
'I only knew he was supposed to be the strongest among angels.'
As it turned out, Michael held a high place in the Eastern Roman Orthodox Church.
In effect, the guardian angel of Constantinople.
By the time the rebellion ended, I had become a hero who saved the capital under the Archangel's protection.
"Then this holy object belongs to you alone, Prince."
He carefully handed the telescope back to me.
I looked across the arena through it.
I could see the faces of citizens seated far away in the stands.
They were not perfectly clear.
'It's a shame it's slightly cloudy…'
Making the lenses themselves was not the difficult part.
Convex lenses had been used since the first and second centuries.
The problem was processing them as transparently as possible.
The Byzantine glassmakers used every method they could to shape the lenses.
They experimented not only with glass but with crystal as well,
and even with Naxium, used to work abrasives and marble.
The result was this telescope.
It was blurred and full of bubbles, but it could see distant places.
"The Archangel commanded me to use this tool as I wish."
I said with a smile.
A telescope was not like alcohol such as elixir.
Mass production would be difficult right away, and the profit would not be that large.
'Astronomers, soldiers, and sailors would buy it, but…'
Once its simple structure was discovered, it would spread quickly.
I could keep it for myself, but…
that would waste a great opportunity.
'If I could give it only to knights and commanders, it would still help greatly.'
In that case, it was better to leave production to the Eastern Roman Empire, where glassmaking was most advanced.
You sell high while you can.
"Within today, I will have the court artisans record the exact method. The imperial army will be able to use it soon."
"It is a truly great gift, Prince. Just imagining the generals using it…"
"In return, I would like to ask one thing of Your Majesty."
"Ask whatever you wish."
"If Your Majesty permits, I would like to take some Greek fire with me."
"Greek fire…"
The young Emperor murmured, looking thoughtful.
Greek fire.
We used it effectively against the rebels.
In a narrow space, fire tactics had a tremendous effect.
In truth, if I put my mind to it, it might not be impossible to make it myself, but…
I had no time to dig up oil and test mixtures at leisure.
And there was symbolism in having received "Greek fire" from the Empire.
Alexios nodded.
"We can spare as much as you need from our stock. I will have it delivered to Antioch."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
We could transfer it into jars in Antioch.
Jars that catch fire.
Like incendiary grenades.
'Holy grenades made in Antioch…'
That sounds oddly familiar.
I shook my head.
"And also…"
Alexios spoke again.
"In time for your departure, the founding of the order will be complete. They will be able to go with you to the Holy City."
"So soon?"
I asked.
A knightly order founded by the Eastern Roman Empire.
'The Order of the Holy Sepulchre'
No matter how I thought about it, it sounded strange.
A knightly order made up of northerners—Vikings.
'I thought it was boasting when I first heard it…'
The Emperor was serious.
And there were already hundreds of volunteers.
"I did not expect there to be so many applicants for the Varangian Guard."
The 'Order of the Holy Sepulchre' differed from existing orders.
If one served in the order for several years, one gained eligibility to enter the Varangian Guard—a sort of evaluation unit.
"There is a tradition in the Varangian Guard."
Alexios said with a smile.
"Each time an Emperor dies, they may retire from the palace with as much treasure as they can carry. As much as they can take with their own hands."
Is it like severance pay?
A kind of Eastern Roman coin, then.
Serve the Empire for years, receive a generous payout, and retire!
But if it works like that, does the Guard disband every time an Emperor dies?
As if reading my look, Ruaak spoke.
"What His Majesty mentioned is only a tradition. Most of the Guard choose to remain even after the Emperor's passing."
He bowed his head and added,
"I will personally lead the Order of the Holy Sepulchre that has been founded."
"It is an honor to fight alongside you, Ruaak."
I looked at him.
During the assassination attempt, he had held off several attackers by himself.
'If a former captain of the Guard is leading them, they won't be rabble.'
So the gifts I gained from the Eastern Roman Empire amounted to three.
Greek fire, an Eastern Roman order of knights, and later a promise of expeditionary support through marriage.
The profit was richer than I expected.
So much so that the money I spent here felt like nothing.
"Before you depart, there is one matter we must discuss."
Alexios began carefully.
He waited until the cheers of the crowd subsided, then continued.
"For you to return safely to Jerusalem…"
He looked at me and added,
"First, we must settle Cyprus."
"Let us organize the situation."
I tapped my finger on the map.
The Emperor's study.
At the table stood Hugh, Ruaak, Alexios, and I.
"So Admiral Kontostephanos is presenting a false letter of appointment and acting as governor of Cyprus."
"Yes, that is correct."
Ruaak said.
He pointed to Cyprus on the map.
"They say he is detaining ships coming and going from the harbor. He is likely trying to control information from leaking out."
"He has a hundred ships… that will not be easy."
I muttered.
The admiral who joined hands with Andronikos.
Kontostephanos.
When he saw Andronikos's rebels lose, he immediately turned his fleet and fled.
And he went to the island of Cyprus.
"The captains and sailors will not even know they have rebelled. They likely believe the capital has fallen to rebels."
Ruaak said.
I looked at him and asked,
"How many ships remain loyal to Your Majesty?"
"About fifty. It will be difficult to fight head-on."
So that was why they had left it until now.
I looked down at the map again.
Only the admiral and high-ranking officers knew they were traitors.
If the captains and sailors did not know…
"Then would it not suffice to take an edict bearing the Emperor's seal?"
Hugh asked.
"Then the captains and sailors would surrender on their own."
"No matter how golden an edict may be, Admiral Kontostephanos will claim it is a forged document made by rebels."
Ruaak replied.
"He already controls those entering and leaving the island and the flow of information, so it would not be difficult."
"We could ask Venice for help, but then we would have to pay no small amount."
I said.
To fight head-on, we would need at least fifty more ships.
It would be faster to go bankrupt trying to obtain them.
Then the remaining option was…
to cut off the snake's head.
"If we kill or capture the admiral, we can take the island with minimal losses. The rest will accept His Majesty's command."
No matter how many ships he had, he could not guard a large island twenty-four hours a day.
If we could land by exploiting a gap, the orders—skilled in close combat—would have the advantage.
In the original history, Richard I had taken Cyprus in this manner.
And then gave it as a gift to Guy after Jerusalem was lost, if I recall.
I shook my head.
'Break through the cordon, land, and seize Kontostephanos.'
Easy to say.
But much would be required.
"First, we should infiltrate spies and find a gap in their watch…"
"His Majesty and I thought the same. We already sent several spies, but…"
Ruaak sighed.
"That man has sealed the harbor completely. One can enter, but cannot leave."
"Then we do not know where the admiral stays, nor where their defenses are weak."
I rubbed my chin.
A spy with no means to send information outside.
"Doves—carrier pigeons—are useless at sea. To use flags or signal fires, we would have to approach very close to the island."
Ruaak said.
"But if we approach, we risk being discovered by their patrols."
"Yes—there is the 'Angel's Eye'!"
Alexios cried out excitedly.
He pointed to the telescope on the table.
"With this, we would not need to get close to see signals!"
"Flags and signal fires cannot convey detailed information. And signal fires would only increase the risk of being caught."
I shook my head.
And the telescope's magnification was not that high, either.
"Even with the 'Angel's Eye,' we would have to go at night to avoid being discovered."
"At night. Then we cannot use flags or signal fires."
"This is truly a dead end."
Hugh murmured.
He let out a sigh.
"Then even if there are casualties, perhaps we have no choice but to break through head-on."
"…"
I stared at the map.
I had seen a situation like this before.
Something from military academy.
Was it Fort Drum?
Early in the Second World War.
American forts in the Philippines were surrounded by Japanese forces.
'We must find some way to contact friendly forces along the coast!'
Their method was simple.
On a dark night, they aimed a gun at a prearranged position.
Then they placed a lamp inside the chamber and removed it repeatedly, sending Morse code.
An observer watching from the other side would receive the signal.
There was no worry of being discovered, and the signal could be seen from farther away than in daylight.
'We can do the same here. We have a telescope, too.'
Even outside the cordon, we could safely confirm the signal.
Back then I complained about what use it would ever be.
I never imagined I would use it in the twelfth-century Mediterranean.
I told them all what I had thought of.
When I finished, Alexios spoke first.
"As expected, Prince, you have a plan. To exchange letters using light…"
"It is complicated, but it seems entirely possible."
Ruaak murmured, thoughtful.
Hugh was the same.
"There will be no smoke, so no risk of being discovered. Kontostephanos's men would never imagine such a method."
He laughed heartily.
"The problem will be finding someone to infiltrate the inside."
"He must be someone who can meet the admiral directly."
I said.
"But he cannot look too suspicious."
Hmm. Someone like that…
There is exactly one.
I smiled faintly.
Shall I go see Marco again, after so long?
"Marco, what is wrong? Why are you suddenly shaking?"
"I do not know. I suddenly feel a chill."
Marco scratched his head.
He trembled, rubbing his hands together.
"Just now I had a very frightening feeling…"
"Stop talking nonsense and get back to the calculations. At this rate, the day will slip away."
At his colleague's scolding, Marco shrugged.
"Fine. It's probably nothing."