Tyranny of Steel

While Berengar enjoyed his brief vacation with his harem in a distant corner of the world; an army had gathered on the edges of the Byzantine and Timurid borders. Currently A middle-aged Arab man stood atop a dune and gazed in the distance towards his rival's line of defense. Upon witnessing the combined forces of Germany, Byzantium, and Georgia gathered in the area of interest, he snorted in displeasure before riding back to his master in the field below.

The Timurid Empire had spared no expense to raise the largest army they could manage. Three hundred thousand men lie in wait for the opportune moment to invade the west, and in doing so, declare jihad.

Unfortunately for them, they had underestimated the strength of the Byzantine Empire's allies. Though the scout did not know just how effective the German Artillery was, he could make an educated guess based upon rumors from the West. He quickly descended into the camp and entered the tent which belonged to his Sultan where he knelt before the man and declared what he had seen.

"Your Majesty, it would appear that one of the Byzantine Empire's allies has deployed a large amount of cannons and other strange devices. There are 70 of such weapons in total spread across the border, waiting for any sign of conflict. It would appear that it would be unwise to invade from this location. Perhaps we should regroup with the Jalayirids and march from the south?"

The sultan immediately glared at the Scout in silence. He took a few seconds to ponder this information. Though they were both unaware of how effective the German Artillery was, the fact remained that cannons were scarce for most of the world's powers. In fact, 70 pieces of artillery were substantially more than his entire alliance had access to.

The idea that Byzantium's allies could field such an excessive degree of cannons alongside the existing Byzantine Artillery filled the man with caution. Thus, after careful consideration, he sighed heavily before inquiring further.

"It would appear we are presented with an unknown and powerful enemy. Tell me, are these the same people who provided Byzantium with the weapons they used to crush the Mamluks in Egypt?"

The scout nodded his head before giving his most educated guess.

"I believe so. At the very least, it seems highly likely. I have heard rumors from merchants in the west about the rise of a great Kingdom. Perhaps we should investigate further about this unknown enemy, and how powerful they really are?"

The Sultan of the Timurid Empire nodded his head in agreement. Only a fool would attack an unknown enemy, and Sultan Salan Mirza was no fool. Thus, the Timurid Sultan sighed once more before cancelling his previous orders.

"Very well. Dispatch our agents to the west and gather what information you can about this strange kingdom. I refuse to march on the Byzantine Empire and begin our Jihad until I know more about this potential threat. As for our army, tell them to return to their homes, and that Allah does not favor us on this day. We will reconvene when we have a proper understanding of the alliance that opposes us. "

The Scout nodded his head before departing from his Sultan's quarters, where he did as he was instructed. Meanwhile, the Sultan picked up a gilded chalice filled with water and sighed heavily in defeat. He could not believe that the enemy really had seventy cannons to spare. He began to become concerned over this issue in particular.

Either the enemy had withdrawn all of their artillery pieces from their national defense and dispatched them to the Byzantine-Timurid border, or they simply had an inconceivable number of artillery at their disposal, such a thing would undoubtedly be disastrous for his armies if he dared to provoke such a monstrous power. Thus, it was no surprise when he voiced his thoughts aloud.

"A wise ruler does not so easily fall into the trap his enemy has laid out for him. Whoever wears the crown of this strange Kingdom either wields inconceivable power, or is plauged by foolishness. To dispatch so many guns to my border can only be seen as an act of provocation. Yet, I do not have the means to act on it. If this was meant as an act of deterrence, then I am forced to concede. Well played, stranger..."

---

It was at this moment on the other side of the world, where Berengar lay flat on his back, completely exhausted from the events he had been engaging in for the past two hours. For whatever reason, he felt a twitch in his nose before sneezing a thunderous blast.

Such a loud noise instantly shocked the five naked women next to him awake, where they gazed around in shock, fearful that perhaps a storm may have approached their private island. Berengar felt a bit embarrassed as he realized this and instead attempted to calm his women by making a joke.

"It would appear somebody is talking about me behind my back..."

The idea that when you sneezed, someone was insulting you derived from the anime that Berengar used to watch in his past life. It was because of this that all the women looked at him weirdly, as if they could not comprehend the obscure reference he had just made. With an awkward smile, he merely informed the women to get some rest as he lied back and cuddled his head between two massive pairs of tits.

"Don't worry about it. Get some sleep. Lord knows I need it."

Upon saying this, Berengar once more drifted back into sleep, completely unaware that his provocation on the Byzantine borders had actually resulted in a successful deterrence.

---

Vetranis sat within the confines of his Royal Palace. On his face expressed solace as he listened to the report given to him by his most trusted advisor. The fact that he had been so close to a state of total invasion brought a cold sweat to the Byzantine Emperor's brow as he sighed heavily in relief. By his side was none other than the Strategos Palladius, who spoke about the intelligence report he had received from his agents in the east.

"It would appear that Berengar's act of sending an artillery brigade to our borders has done the opposite of his intentions. Rather than outright provoke a conflict into a single decisive battle, it has instead deterred the Timurid Empire from attacking.

Though for how long the German Emperor has bought us peace, I do not know. We have received rumors that the agents of our rivals have entered Europe looking for information about the military capabilities of the German Empire.

I have no doubt that a certain redheaded lass who controls Germany's intelligence will be able to thoroughly combat the Timurids' espionage efforts. Despite this, another fear occupies my thoughts. As reasonable as Salan can be, I fear his allies are impatient and will push for Jihad rather than seek a peaceful alternative, even if it means their deaths. As you know, those fanatics in the Mamluke and Jaylarid sultanates are far from rational."

Vetranis frowned when he heard this, it was true that they had bought momentary peace with the superior artillery being present on the Eastern border, but due to the extremist nature of the Muslim Sultanates, Jihad was inevitable and because of this he needed to make preparations. Thus, the Byzantine Emperor inquired about the feasibility of conscription.

"We have had some time now to prepare the agricultural and industrial innovations provided to us by our Allies in the West. If we were to enact conscription, how would it affect the stability of the Empire?"

Palladius knew this question was coming and prepared a thorough analysis of this very subject in advance for this meeting.

"Crop yields are higher than ever, and fewer men are required to toil in the fields these days. I think conscription is plausible, but I fear as if it might be overkill. Perhaps we should invest in a recruitment drive first. If we still don't receive the numbers needed to combat the enemy, then and only then should we resort to something as drastic as full-scale conscription."

Vetranis thought about this for some time and nodded his head in agreement with Palladius's suggestions.

"Very well. We shall do it your way. I have faith in your Palladius. Ensure that our Empire is prepared for the eventual onslaught of our enemies. If there is nothing else of importance, then you are dismissed."

With that said, the veteran Strategos bowed in respect to his monarch before departing from the Great Hall of the Royal Palace. There was a war on the horizon, and though they had successfully deterred a full scale invasion for the time being, inevitably, bloodshed would begin.

He did not know where Berengar had disappeared to in these past few weeks, but such an occurrence was becoming more frequent. Palladius made a quick prayer to god for the German Emperor's good health. After all, if he was ill, that would pose a very serious security risk to the stability of both Empires. After doing this Palladius quickly got to task enacting the new recruitment policies.

When Berengar finally returned to the fatherland, it would shock him to see that such a massive war was so narrowly avoided in his absence. This border dispute would confirm an old quote by Napoleon to be reality within Berengar's mind.

"God is on the side with the best artillery."