Empire of India: Rise of the Ruthless Prince

General Barnabas was back in Lisbon after a long sea trip. His homeland was one of the most precious places for him. He liked the fresh air and an ambience back home that wasn't present in Asia.

He came to the capital for work-related queries and was supposed to meet the council in the Royal Court in the upcoming weeks. He already sent a messenger to the palace requesting an urgent meeting with the king.

Barnabas was unsure of the time frame in which he would be allowed to discuss with the council. He hoped to get it done within two weeks at least. He also sent a letter to the Castro family and requested an urgent meeting with the Patriarch. In the letter he stated that it was about the subcontinental affairs, especially the Vijayanagara Empire.

He was sure that he would get a favourable reply from them soon. Castros were an efficient bunch after all.

Barnabas headed back to his home in the Capital. Barnabas was an unmarried man; it was his choice, as he was in the dangerous occupation that has a high risk of him dying on the battlefield. He refused to get married for that reason.

A few days later, as Barnabas expected. A favourable reply from the Castros came. They had accepted his request to meet the patriarch.

The patriarch of the Castro family was in the capital, Lisbon for official reasons. Barnabas was instructed to head to their mansion in the capital to have an audience with him.

Barnabas dressed well, in luxurious attire, and headed to the Castro's mansion in the capital. Their mansion was in the richest place in the capital streets. He had to take a carriage to the place. In a few minutes he was in front of a huge mansion. It showcased the massive wealth that the Castro family held.

He showed the guard in front the letter and entered the complex. He was then guided in by the servant to the patriarch's room.

Barnabas entered the study room of the Patriarch and bowed slightly.

"Greetings to the Patriarch." He said.

Henrique Castro was an old man in his 70s yet he was a shrewd and cunning man. He managed the Castro family at his age and he had short, well-kept gray hair. He had a sharp gaze despite his age.

"Take a seat, General." He smiled at him.

Despite his smile, Barnabas could feel the tension. He knew that Henrique was going to be a tough nut to crack.

He sat down on the plush sofa and looked at the patriarch.

Barnabas got straight to the point, skipping formalities.

"I have come to ask a favor of you, Lord Henrique."

Henrique turned serious and leaned forward.

"Yes, I could sense the urgency from your letter. And why else would such a great general be at our doorstep?" Henrique asked.

"So what is the problem? Lord Barnabas"

"I need your help in convincing the council!"

"The council? Convincing them about?" Henrique raised his brow in confusion.

"You must have known by now that we lost Daman to the Marathas."

"Yes, I have." Henrique said. "It's been a humiliation for us."

"I know, we were caught off guard for a moment."

"Off-guard?" Henrique scoffed. "You exploited too much of the local labour."

"Lord Barnabas, I shall be honest. If you appeased some leaders earlier on and pulled back too much suppression of the local people." Henrique continued. "The rebellion wouldn't have been that strong."

Barnabas sighed. "What's done is done! I wasn't there to defend the port either."

"Then what is the issue?"

"The issue is that I feel there was the hand of the Vijayanagara Empire in our loss."

Henrique frowned at the mention of the Empire. "Those pests? Both that bastard Krishna Deva Raya and his blood Alfonso have corrupted and taken away my poor daughter."

"Yes, the current Emperor is a dangerous man, Lord Henrique. Even more dangerous than the former one." Barnabas pressed.

He raised his brow thoughtfully. "Even than Krishna Deva Raya? That's hard to believe."

"I can voice for it, Lord Henrique." Barnabas said. "He was the one that called me to the Empire for a deal; the deal was also finalized."

"Then in the meantime, he took over the kingdom that was letting us control the Daman port."

"It was as if he knew that your presence would cause him trouble?" Henrique asked.

"Exactly and even the Dutch have caught a whiff of this."

Henrique clicked his tongue. "Those ones as well, eh? And you are saying that one person was responsible for all this?"

"Yes, Lord Henrique."

Henrique wanted to get back at the Empire. Even his own grandson had conned him. He regretted sending Antonio for the negotiations with him. That grandson of his finessed his own uncle to get himself the best Portuguese cannons, which were not for sale to the other empires.

"But what sort of help do you wish for? From the council nonetheless?"

Barnabas scratched his chin. "We have lost all our bases in the subcontinent and the Vijayanagara Empire is responsible for it."

"We need to stop them before they become too big and we have to bend to their whims to take a portion of trade from the subcontinent." He continued.

"So, you are saying you want to secure funding from the council to cut the growing fangs and put them back in their place?" Henrique asked.

"Precisely." He replied.

"Let me think." Henrique pondered thoughtfully.

It wasn't a big deal for the Portuguese to equip a foreign entity to fight the Empire. It was well-known that the Empire lacked the cannon tech. Considering their size, there won't be any European merchants that would sell their cannons to the Empire.

Henrique was sure that the cannons that Antonio gave away were not used to their full potential by them.

'Their cannon tech is behind us. And not to mention their ships.'

"It is worth a shot," he smirked devilishly. "I will extend my hand to you in the council meeting."

Barnabas smiled and got up. "Thank you for the support, Lord Henrique."

"I will see you at the council meeting. Lord Barnabas."