Tyranny of Steel

Berengar and Hasan stood within the confines of the Granadan Royal Palace; throughout their absence in Aquitaine, the situation within Portugal had deteriorated rapidly. Though the Austrian Jaegers and Grenadier Guards were initially sent behind enemy lines to disrupt the border, they soon were embroiled in a chaotic and lawless region where deserters from the Portuguese Army ravaged the land as nothing more than filthy brigands. 

The true extent of this lawlessness remained unknown. Still, one thing remained certain, a massive army of foreign peasants would soon be arriving in Portugal, whether or not they were capable of restoring order to the Portuguese Crown or would engage in the same criminal behavior as the soldiers of the Portuguese Army remained to be seen. 

Despite the unruly situation in Portugal, it created an opportunity for Berengar. Though he had initially planned to outright invade the Kingdom, with its current state, there was little chance that the enemy would be rushing the Granadan Border any time soon. As such, he was communicating with his Generals and the Sultan of Granada about his newfound idea.

"Portugal is in an unprecedented state; much of the realm has become a wasteland where those who possess any semblance of might are capable of doing as they please. Thus, I have decided to shift my strategy; after all, if we were to invade the Kingdom at this point, it would only be met with resistance from not only what remains of the Portuguese Army but also the brigands and the people themselves.

Thus I have decided to maintain our presence on the border and begin rebuilding the Granadan Army. With our Support, over the next few months, a sufficient force can be armed and trained, fully capable of invading Granada by itself. Obviously, we will provide surveillance and long-range artillery support to the Granadans when they invade Portugal."

Arnulf immediately cursed under his breath when he heard this, and Palladius smiled; after all, the veteran Strategos of the Balkans was the winner of their little wager. Luckily it was just a favor owed to the man. Otherwise, Arnulf would be more irritated than he currently was. Though Berengar took note of the two men's expressions, he did not inquire any further about it and instead shifted his attention to Hasan with a broad smile on his face.

"What do you say? Do you think your Kingdom is up to the task?"

The young Sultan smiled as he heard this news; he was growing disheartened by relying on Austria to win this war; any chance to become self-sufficient in terms of military matters was something he greatly desired. Thus with a broad smile on his lips, he nodded his head.

"I will have you know that the men of Granada are more than up to the task!"

Berengar nodded his head as he heard this before responding to the young Sultan's words.

  "Very well, we will maintain a presence at the Granadan-Portuguese Border. My soldiers will begin training your troops, and I will begin supplying you with the weapons necessary to win your wars. After all, I still have tens of thousands of Muskets and hundreds of my old cannons lying around in a warehouse."

After saying this, Berengar shifted his gaze to Arnulf and Adelbrand to give them their new orders.

"Dispatch orders to our units behind enemy lines, command them to maintain their positions and continue their reconnaissance operations. I want a regular update on what is transpiring on the other side of the border. If there is even the slightest hint of an attempt to attack our troops in the trenches, I want to know about it beforehand!"

Berengar's generals saluted him briefly before responding in the affirmative.

"Yes, sir!"

After saying this, Berengar looked over at Hasan and Palladius before issuing their orders.

"What remains of the Granadan Army will withdraw from the Trenches and return to the Capital where they will undergo further training alongside the new conscripts. As for your soldiers, Palladius, keep them at the border and maintain a presence. I don't want the Portuguese to think we are withdrawing a significant number of troops from the border."

Hasan and Palladius both nodded their heads as they responded to this request.

"It will be done."

"You can rest assured, King Berengar, my troops will hold the line until a point where it is no longer necessary!"

After saying this, Berengar smiled; with this strategy, the war in Granada had transitioned; from an all-out offensive by the Triple Alliance to a security operation designed to train the Granadan forces to be self-sufficient without needing to rely on Austrian Support. In other words, this next phase of the Reconquista was this world's equivalent of Operation Freedom's Sentinel. 

Berengar knew he would be in Granada for at least another half a year because of this, thus making it his most extended campaign to date. He only hoped that his civil work would have made significant progress by the time he returned to the fatherland. 

As for what he intended to do between now and then, that was simple; he would stay in the Granadan Palace and spend some time getting close to the Princess of Granada. After all, if he were to endure such a long period of time away from home, then he would not do it celibate. 

Whatever may come of the relationship between Berengar and Yasmin, the young King of Austria knew that at the very least he was going to make sure to get under the princess's skirt. Thus he put on a friendly facade as he dismissed the meeting of Generals and placed a hand on Hasan's shoulder.

"This meeting is adjourned, come, my friend, let us get something to drink and speak further of our future conquest!"

Ignorant of Berengar's desire to spend some intimate time with his sister, Hasan quickly agreed to this request and played right into the Austrian King's hands.

"I will get my sister to pour our drinks for us!"

Berengar smiled and nodded as the two men departed from the war room and entered a more comfortable setting before long; Princess Yasmin was fetched from her quarters, where she was dressed in a skimpy outfit as she held a bottle of fortified wine in her hands.

She gracefully poured the substance into Berengar's and Hasan's chalices before climbing between them and wrapping her arms around the young Austrian King. Hasan's eyes instantly grew wide as he noticed this. He did not know when his sister and his guest had grown so close, but he was happy to see it.

This only meant that he was one step closer to achieving his goal of uniting their two houses in matrimony. Thus he began to play the part of his sister's wingman as he broached a question to the King from the East.

"Tell me, King Berengar, what do you think of my sister Yasmin? She is beautiful, is she not?"

Berengar smiled graciously as he took a sip of the wine from his chalice before nodding his head in agreement.

"Truly, her appearance is unrivaled in these lands, but her mature personality is what I find most attractive."

Yasmin blushed as she heard this flattery; she did not know whether or not Berengar was exaggerating. However, it did not matter; a compliment from a handsome and powerful man was something that she would accept.  Upon seeing the reactions between his sister, and his guest, Hasan smiled before asking another question on his mind.

"Yasmin? What do you think of Berengar? Be honest; your Sultan commands it!"

A sultry expression appeared on the mature woman's face as she spoke on the matter.

"I think there is no man more handsome than he; in fact, I find his disfigurement quite appealing, it proves he has been battle-tested, and nothing is more attractive than a man who fights his own battles!"

Berengar nearly choked on his wine as he heard this; he had seldom heard such a compliment since he received the injury in mortal combat with his brother years ago; besides being comforted initially after his wound, his wives tended to avoid discussing it. Indeed in their minds, it was a blemish on his otherwise handsome appearance. 

Thus he had a somewhat awkward expression on his face when he touched his eyepatch and the wounded eye beneath it. Upon seeing this, Hasan glared at his sister, clearly speaking about such a thing was considered rude. However, in the next moment, Yasmin leaned over and grabbed ahold of his hand before asking the question on her mind.

"May I see what lies beneath?"

Obviously, She was referencing the wounded eye, and as such, Berengar exhaled deeply before nodding his head. After doing so, he took off his eyepatch very slowly before revealing the scar he bore as a symbol of his foolishness.

  One could make out the visibly shocked expression on Yasmin's luscious lips beneath her face veil as she gazed upon his battle scar, which had long since healed over the years. Berengar's blue iris was intact, aside from a thin verticle scar that cut through the center of it.

This scar connected the gap between the top and bottom of his eyelid, which also contained the same wound.  The Granadan princes slowly reached out to touch the scar before halting her hand; she had almost forgotten to ask for permission and thus raised her voice before doing so.

"May I?"

Berengar silently nodded his hand before the soft tanned hands of the mature Princess placed themselves upon his eyelids, a broad smile formed on her face as she did so; she had accidentally let out her inner thoughts on the disfigurement while she touched upon Berengar's wound.

"Such character, it is truly befitting of a warrior like yourself!"

Berengar was shocked when he heard this; the woman wasn't simply flattering him; she genuinely found his wound attractive. In the next moment, Yasmin lifted the veil from her face and pressed her lips against Berengar's as she shifted into his lap. 

Hasan looked away awkwardly before coughing slightly; he intended to break the couple apart. After all, he knew where this was headed, and he had wanted to ensure their bond was a bit stronger before he allowed Berengar to bed his sister. 

Yasmin narrowed her gaze upon her little brother upon hearing this interruption before standing up from Berengar's lap. She was displeased by Hasan's actions, he had pressured her so much into seducing Berengar, and now that she finally had him in her grasp, the fool had interrupted her. Seeing that the atmosphere was ruined, she quickly grabbed ahold of the bottle and thrust it into her brother's hands before rebuking him for his behavior.

"Pour your wine yourself!"

After saying this, she stormed off, leaving Berengar and Hasan alone, in awkward silence. 

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