At the end of his personal letter, Manuel also ordered Barbara to levy additional taxes at her discretion to fund the war effort.
At noon that same day, at the pass in the Pontic Mountains on Trabzon's eastern border, Alexander Komnenos patiently awaited a reply from White Sheep Sultan Kara Osman.
The border region between Trabzon and White Sheep was separated by the Pontic Mountains, which stood 15 to 22 stadia (3000 to 4000 meters) high. To reach the plateau regions of Asia Minor from here, one could only pass through the valley where the fortress city of Akçaabat was located. This served as a natural barrier for Trabzon against the ferocious Turks and was a crucial reason for its self-preservation.
Without this natural barrier, Trabzon might have suffered the same fate as other regions of Pontus, being conquered and Turkified by successive waves of Turk barbarians. During the westward migration of Turks triggered by the Mongol invasions, large numbers of Turkmen, or Turk barbarians or Turks, once again migrated from Central and West Asia to Asia Minor. The Pontus Greeks, who had struggled to survive on this land after the Battle of Manzikert, finally could no longer endure it and fled in droves. The local Armenians, however, continued to try their best to stay rooted in their homeland, until at some point in the future they would be 'Turkified' voluntarily or involuntarily, gently or brutally.
However, that was a future in another timeline. At least for now, people did not have foresight to predict the distant future, or even if they did, it would be futile. Let's focus on what is happening now—
White Sheep Sultan Kara Yuluk Osman Beg, who was stabilizing the recently conquered Mardin region, did not come in person but sent his son Sheikh Hassan to negotiate with Alexander. By the time Sheikh Hassan arrived, Alexander had already been waiting for over half an hour in the scorching heat. But out of courtesy, he put on an eager expression and earnestly informed him of the problems he was currently facing.
Sheikh did not ignore the request of his old ally due to religious reasons. Moreover, by kinship, he was also a cousin of Alexander's generation. Therefore, after listening to Alexander's grievances, Sheikh readily agreed to lead over a thousand Turk tribal militias to help him seize the throne. If Alexander was willing to hand over Akçaabat to the Aq Qoyunlu Dynasty, he would even actively persuade his father to let him command the forces in the northwest and drive Bosporus into the Black Sea in one fell swoop.
This eager attitude, however, put Alexander in a difficult position. "Wouldn't a thousand troops be too many? Even when my father was alive, fifteen hundred soldiers were enough, weren't they?" Dreaming of being the Emperor of Trabzon, he was unwilling to hand over the city. And having been somewhat deluded by his subordinates' flattery, he believed that the Komnenos family's supporters were all over Trabzon. As long as he temporarily held the east with its excellent terrain and then launched a counterattack, wouldn't a mere Bosporus collapse utterly?
Driven by this mindset, he decisively rejected the proposal to hand over Akçaabat and also refused Sheikh's offer to personally lead a thousand troops to assist, to avoid interference in his internal affairs. In the end, Alexander only borrowed 500 cavalry and one of Sheikh's generals from White Sheep, leaving Sheikh feeling at a loss for words. He could only say, "May the peace of Allah be upon you," expressing his blessings to his relative before leaving dejectedly, preparing to dispatch 500 elite cavalry to assist him.
While Alexander was still mobilizing troops, Manuel had already formulated a battle plan, ready to forcefully remove the troublesome thorn that was Alexander.
In the Trabzon Palace, on the eve of the military action, Manuel pointed at a topographical map covered with military dispositions, confirming the final military deployment. "Although Alexander's position in the east is easy to defend but difficult to attack, he is limited by his size and system, and the forces he can mobilize probably do not exceed 1000…"
"Excuse me, Your Majesty, to interrupt, it's not 'not exceeding 1000 people,' it's hard to say if he even has 500 troops." David interjected to correct him. He truly didn't understand why Manuel always liked to exaggerate the quantity and quality of the enemy.
"Yes, but he might contact neighboring countries and borrow troops from them, such as the Aq Qoyunlu Dynasty…" Manuel continued, picking up the thread of conversation.
"Although Alexander is somewhat afraid of war, under the instigation of those around him, he will certainly have an inexplicable confidence in defense." David stroked his short beard and continued to interject, the look in his dark eyes quite subtle.
Can't you stop interrupting! Manuel had an urge to drown him in the Black Sea.
But Manuel still concealed his emotions very well, only glancing at Badars to have him subtly remind the other party.
However, before Badars could speak, an unexpected person warned David before him.
"Prince David, His Majesty is the commander of this operation now. Moreover, in terms of rank, he is not only Caesar but also the current monarch of Trabzon. Lord, if you have opinions, you can correct him after His Majesty finishes speaking. How can you repeatedly interrupt the conversation so casually?" The one who spoke to refute David was Dungar, who had recently joined Manuel's side. He was now looking directly into the other's dark eyes with his beautiful deep blue eyes.
"Your Excellency is absolutely right. I apologize, Your Majesty, I was presumptuous." Although he didn't think highly of this Anglo in his heart, David showed no displeasure on his face; instead, he used it as an opportunity to save face.
"No matter, the scriptures say: 'A person with insight is not easily angered. Forgiving an offense is one's glory.' Let's return to the main topic.
"Therefore, our primary task is to probe his strength. For this, after reaching Machka, we will divide our forces into two: Tukharovsky will lead 1500 Grand Company soldiers, dragging his main force from north to south, doing his best to destroy their fortresses; while Aidian will cooperate with me, leading 750 elite Filaka, and after finding an opportunity, directly launch a furious attack from west to east until Akçaabat is in our hands.
"And Dungar and Posadas will be under Tukharovsky, each leading 250 and 500 men, following his command. Can you do it?" After speaking, Manuel looked at the two. Since the Venetians and John IV had a decent evaluation of Dungar, he wanted this young man to try leading troops.
"Yes, Your Majesty, loyalty!" The two accepted the order, with Dungar even performing a solemn one-knee bow, which gave Manuel goosebumps. "It's just a military order, is it necessary?"
"The remaining forces," Manuel's sharp eyes swept over David, "will be led by Vladimir and others, staying behind to ensure logistics. Prince David, please cooperate fully."
"Yes, Your Majesty." That gaze made David a little uneasy. Although his Brother-in-law was younger than him, there was an inexplicable sense of authority. It seemed it would be best to keep his little tricks hidden for now.