Facing the Caesar's warm and benevolent smile, Metropolitan Makarios of Pontus finally signed his name on the document, religiously approving the official implementation of the Inquisition in Pontus.
Though his actual role was merely to sign, giving the Inquisition a formal name.
Just as Metropolitan Makarios was sinking into the despondency of succumbing to secular power, the next request Manuel made uplifted his spirits slightly.
"Speaking of which, there is also this document regarding the construction of churches; please take a look at it as well, Your Excellency." With that, his attendant, just as before, produced a second document and handed it to Metropolitan Makarios.
After reading this document, Metropolitan Makarios re-evaluated the young monarch before him.
According to this document, he was explicitly granted the authority to manage the religious affairs of Bosporus-affiliated Asia Minor.
Furthermore, Caesar would allocate funds to the Pontus diocese for the church to construct churches in areas predominantly inhabited by the Islam, and provide administrative support for them.
While the former, by diocesan reckoning, should naturally fall under the jurisdiction of his Pontus diocese, the latter was a consolation and "gift" from Caesar Manuel to him and the clergy he led.
Had it been before he was semi-coerced into religiously endorsing the Inquisition, he might not have been moved by this.
However, after such a turn of events, the Metropolitan had a vague grasp of his current monarch's style and bottom line, making him more accepting of his earlier actions.
And before Caesar departed, Manuel specifically relayed a message to him that raised his expectations even higher than before this formal meeting.
"Metropolitan Makarios, please provide much assistance in the future governance of the orthodox in Pontus.
After all, this can also be considered the will of the Holy Father."
Under such seemingly ambiguous rhetoric, the old clergyman ultimately rekindled his faith in Caesar Manuel, and his expression returned to normal.
After more than a quarter of an hour, Manuel rose and left the church.
On his way back to the palace, Caesar recalled the Metropolitan's relaxed expression, and he felt much relieved.
"Although I used some veiled threats, it seems the church won't cause any trouble over this matter," he muttered to himself.
"Ah, truthfully, I didn't want to use such direct methods, but this is the most efficient way, and it avoids all sorts of pointless squabbling, isn't it?"
Regarding this, his Commander of the Guard couldn't help but carefully recall his Majesty's expression, feeling a bit puzzled: why did he feel that his respected Majesty was clearly enjoying himself?
Nevertheless, from that day forward, the Inquisition officially began its activities in Asia Minor, continuing until it was abolished by Manuel's descendants centuries later.
After issuing the scheduled directives for churches and missionary work that day, and before their formal implementation, religious affairs were considered concluded for a time.
On the evening of the same day, after resolving the religious matters, Manuel finally opened another stack of documents in the corner, patted them, and began to prepare to deal with his long-planned commercial affairs.
What he cared about most was his unforgettable Black Sea trade route.
As Plato once said in ancient Greek times: "We (Greek city-states) live around the sea, like frogs around a pond." The sea in this statement has always been debated; some say it refers to the entire Mediterranean, others that it only refers to the Aegean Sea, but whether broadly or narrowly interpreted, the Black Sea is somehow related to it.
And in Manuel's eyes, before he revealed his ambition for the western shore of the Bosporus Strait, the Black Sea was his springboard to the Mediterranean, the Middle East, North Africa, and Southern Europe.
Furthermore, another major reason he particularly valued Black Sea trade was historical evidence.
In ancient times, the ancient Greeks had close trade relations with the nomads of the Eastern European Great Plains via the Black Sea.
And in the most recent historical period, since Baghdad was captured by the Mongol army led by Ilkhan Hulegu in 1258 during their western campaign, and the then Basileus of Trabzon, Manuel I Megas Komnenos, who shared the same name as Manuel himself, quickly submitted to the Mongols, the capital of the Empire of Trebizond, Trabzon city, became the so-called western terminus of the Silk Road.
Under the protection of the Khanate, Trabzon was able to flourish through Silk Road trade, thereby possessing immense wealth.
During the empire's prosperous period from 1297 to 1330, the city became a major trade center in the world at that time, and was renowned for its vast wealth and artistic achievements.
However, by the mid-14th century, the Empire of Trebizond experienced a 15-year civil war.
Trabzon city could no longer fully recover its lofty commercial status and prosperity, and Black Sea trade was quickly monopolized by the opportunistic Venice and Genoa, two major trading powers.
Even so, the annual net income of the Empire of Trebizond was still higher than that of a certain Constantinople empire, excluding the Peloponnese; the annual commercial taxes provided by Trabzon city to the Komnenos family far exceeded those of a certain "City Desired by the World" and "Queen of All Cities"...
In short, since Manuel had now driven away most of the Genoese forces that once dominated the Black Sea, and had controlled both sides of the Black Sea through a series of military actions, he must seize this excellent opportunity to revive the once immensely prosperous Black Sea trade.
At least half a century before the Age of Discovery, the restored Black Sea trade route's position in Mediterranean trade could basically be said to be crucial.
"This is the prelude," Manuel muttered, feeling a bit dizzy after reviewing these explanations for the development of the Black Sea trade route, which he and his financial officers had written.
This was still the summary he had written for himself.
Realizing it was getting late, he set it aside, took out paper and pen, and brought an end to the day's busyness—
What bothered him most was the profit-sharing issue with Venice.
Although Bosporus and Venice were now legitimate allies, Manuel was still very clear about who was stronger or weaker at sea.
While he very much wanted to monopolize the profits from Black Sea trade, it was merely a thought.
To suppress Genoa, with whom his relationship was terrible, he had to try his best to keep Venice on his side.
But if he shifted all trade competitiveness, what would be the point of him reviving the Black Sea trade route?
So, in the end, he planned to temporarily allocate about 20% of the trade volume to Venice.
However, this was only a preliminary idea; a final decision and notification to Venice would require at least further discussion with his Finance Minister.
Just as he was about to continue immersing himself in devising a plan, the church bells in the city suddenly rang, striking seven times.
Only then did Manuel look up at the clock in his room.
Seeing the hour hand pointing to nine o'clock, he turned to look out the window, realizing how deep the night had become.