Chapter 40: Feudal Life On an Isle

"My brother… what are you doing here?"

Antonius looked at Giovanni in his eyes and replied with a warm smile on his face. "Ahh, my brother, as you can see we are thieves over here…And congratulations! Your guard caught me!"

Another guard, holding his halberd, shouted out. "Liar! Which thief in Europia goes putting things inside instead of taking things out!"

No one responded to him, Antonius and Giovanni continued staring at each other, millions of thoughts ran through Giovanni, but he soon realised something. Then, what happened at the site shocked most of the guards here.

Giovanni leapt forward and hugged the 'thief', with full strength that Antonius could almost feel his ribs cricking. The two men hugged as-if for an eternity, while the guards in the surrounding looked reluctantly at each other, full of confusion in their eyes. Then they decided that it is best for them to follow Giovanni's order and dispersed back to their posts.

After a while, the two men stopped hugging, then Giovanni mumbled. "You don't have to do this, really."

"But I want to." Antonius replied forcefully. "And you can't stop me from doing this because it is my will."

Giovanni remained quiet for a while. Then tears burst forth like streams of water from a dam, flowing all over his face. His eyes dripped with water, howling in misery and joy. It seems to Giovanni that his world before his eyes has turned blurry, his voice melted, muffled sobbers wracked against is chest.

Antonius watches as this man before him cries like a pampered child. He knows this man too well, and he is about the same. Antonius knows that, being a man, no matter what position or job he is in, must always show a man's valour, durability and toughness to the outside as that is what the society requires of a manhood. However a man is also like a dam wall, when too much stress, in this case water, builds up behind the wall, there will always be a point whereby the wall cannot take the stress and collapse, which is what is happening now.

Antonius did not interrupt him, patted and touched his back. He knows that in a circumstance like this it is best to let him go, and release that stress and misery within him. After a while, the weeping finally stopped, Antonius pulled down his hood and wiped Giovanni's face.

"It is fine now." Antonius whispered. "I am here."

Giovanni nodded slightly and replied. "Come inside, we need to talk."

…

After a while in the camp tavern, which is already closed, Antonius and Giovanni seats facing opposite each other, while Francesco and several boys standing by the side with five big chests.

"It did cost quite a lot of strength getting these big boxes over here… we had to get three wagons pulled by cows, you know, cows aren't easy to find nowadays in the city."

"I appreciate the effort very much…"

"Inside it…" Antonius continued as he patted and opened a chest. "…Is about five thousand Ducats worth of coins inside each chest, all freshly minted with Ottoman silver and gold… should be enough for you to get out of your crisis, for a brief period of time until the Ottoman come for us."

"I don't know how to thank you, my brother, I can only say that I owe you my life…"

"That makes us even!" Antonius laughed wildly. "I owe you mine, and you owe me yours."

Giovanni laughed bitterly, shook his head and said. "Remember what I have told you a few months ago?"

"Aye, you said that we don't belong here right?"

Giovanni nodded. "Aye, I remember."

"I felt that way the moment I met the emperor and his courtiers, but now I think I understand the problem further." He paused for a while, looking at his empty mug and pointed below. "The problem with this city is not with its people."

"The problem with the city is its incompetent nobles." He then pointed upwards.

"You mean… the problem is the nobles including the Mega Doux and the emperor?"

"Aye, the people of the city truly welcomed us by heart, seeing us as their protectors and saviours from those Ottoman blades on the outside. But inside those halls and palaces, they see us differently."

"You mean…"

"Yes, those civil servants see us as illiterate barbarians who don't know how to hold and write with a quill. Those nobles see us as a trouble in stopping them from selling their country and profit by smuggling with the Ottomans using their privilege…"

"You mean the Mega Doux?"

"Aye, I've never seen the head of a government doing business directly with their enemies, I've just learnt that he became the richest man in the city because he has profitable business ranging all the way from Anatolia to Italy."

Antonius is quite surprised, because he, who is controlling the maritime route, did not know about this. He asked. "How did you know about all this?"

"From someone close to me in the city… but hey that's not your concern." Giovanni stopped for a moment and continued recalling. "And for the emperor who appeared friendly all along the way."

"Aye, I know." Antonius interrupted. "The emperor sees us only as a tool to secure his city and his throne against the Ottomans and the faction led by the Mega Doux, balance of power, you see. As far as I know the previous commander of the Roman army is a man belonging to the Mega Doux Loukas' faction."

"You are right." Giovanni nodded in agreement. "I bet that immediately after everything is settled, and the Ottomans failed to take the city, he would immediately dump us, chase us away to that isle he promised us, fearing that we could form a new faction and threaten his rule."

"Typical Greek political plays and Byzantine intrigues." Antonius taunted.

"What do you plan to do after the contract is over?" Giovanni asked again.

"I don't know, what about you?"

"Well, I plan to leave with a woman to the isle and spend the rest of my life there as a feudal lord."