Chapter 10: Augustus and the Sultana

Chapter 10: Augustus and the Sultana

Romie, Constantinope.

The white-haired Constantin XI listened to the report from his envoy before sighing, “Is there no way to salvage the situation?”

The Romain Empire used to span from the northern forests to the southern deserts. They had been a true powerhouse that no one dared to trifle with.

But by the time the crown fell into his hands, it was already an utter shitshow.

Many years of decline had dried up their national treasury, making them weaker than ever. Without sufficient resources to support their soldiers, their military naturally became weak too.

And it didn’t help that they were surrounded by powerful enemies.

Their territory used to be so vast that it would take half a year to travel from one end to the other, but all that was left of their empire now was its capital. It was no different from a head without its body.

Their population only numbered 100,000, and no more than 5000 of them were able to fight on the battlefield. Heck, they couldn’t even provide enough food for their people; they were highly reliant on overseas shipping.

They had only been able to hold their ground thus far thanks to the towering city walls left behind by their ancestors. The future of the empire looked as dull as the purple robe Augustus had worn.

The Ottomains had already encircled Constantinope. From time to time, their soldiers would even plunder their suburbs.

Constantin XI didn’t think that he was an incompetent ruler. He had never indulged himself since taking over the throne. Instead, he diligently governed over what was left of the Eastern Romain Empire.

Unfortunately, it was too late to stop the empire’s spiral into decline. No matter how he struggled, the situation never improved.

And it looked like the end was finally upon him.

After Sultana Momoana inherited the Ottomain’s crown, she first cruelly murdered all her siblings before stabilizing the surrounding countries. Then, she turned her eyes toward Constantinope.

With her soldiers and navy, she completely locked off the remnants of the Eastern Romain Empire.

It was said that she mobilized over 200,000 soldiers for this operation!

Constantin XI desperately reached out to the other states for help, but he was unable to convince them to deploy even a single soldier to support them. Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be any chance of Sultana Momoana backing off either.

And just moments ago, Sultana Momoana just issued her ultimatum.

Hand over the city or die!

You’re asking about whether your people will be pardoned after the surrender? That’s the sultana’s decision to make. Your Majesty, you need not worry about it.

The prime minister thought that this battle was an extravagant gamble. There was not much they stood to gain from this battle, so it was best to minimize casualties wherever possible.

“Atrocious!” Sultana Momoana roared. “When did you become as cowardly as a mouse? Constantinope is the heart of our Ottomain Empire! We absolutely have to conquer it! I have spent far too long preparing for this battle, so how can I give up on it now?

“If those measly heretics think that they can stop me, they can give it a try. I’ll trample all of them into dust. I’ll show them the miserable outcome of opposing me, the one blessed by God!

“Warriors!” Sultana Momoana roared. “Tell me. Is there anyone in the world who can stop the charge of our Ottomain warriors?!”

“No one! We, Ottomains, are the strongest in the world! May our God forever bless the Sultana!” The commanders in the tent cheered aloud.

“Hmph!” Sultana Momoana harrumphed before turning back to her prime minister.

The old man knew that he had spoken out of place, so he kneeled down and apologized before backing out of the tent.

Had the circumstances been different, Sultana Momoana might have listened to her prime minister’s advice. Unfortunately, she had gotten her hands too dirty climbing up to the throne.

She had broken the vow she had made before her father’s dead body. She gathered all of her siblings together, only to massacre all of them. She forced her father’s concubines to be buried together with her father. She even purged the imperial court, summoning one of the eastern tribal leaders to the imperial court, only to end his life with a swing of a halberd...

Thus, Sultana Momoana urgently needed a resounding victory to establish her prestige.

The warriors under her commands were like ferocious wolves; they wouldn’t bow down to a hypocrite who only knew how to scheme.

Constantinope had been declining in recent years, and it happened to be well within reach. Thus, the Romains became her victims.

They have been suffering for the past few centuries anyway. That’s just how life is.

Before Sultana Momoana could continue planning with her military commanders, a piece of bad news reached her ears.

“Your Majesty, I have an urgent report. We lost Sochia!”

—

Starve’s Additional History:

Sultana Momoana is modeled after Mehmed the Conqueror (aka Mehmed II). Mehmed II mobilized around 80,000 to 200,000 soldiers for this operation.

Augustus is another term for the Roman emperor, which is translated as ‘venerable’.

The Patriarch here refers to the pope.