At the beginning of the 16th century, Iberia was a place of excitement and passion, the land that had been occupied by Moorish rule for centuries was finally restored, and then it was increasingly valued by European powers as it became more and more powerful, whether it was Castile, Aragon, or Portugal, and the royal family was respected for its promising actions during this period.

Then, there is the dazzling harvest of the countries in the opening up of overseas territories.

While the countries of Europe were complaining about their power in the Mediterranean being squeezed by the Ottomans, the Iberian Peninsula was thriving.

The proximity to the Atlantic Ocean has made them look more at the endless ocean, and in the eyes of the Iberians, the Mediterranean Sea is not much bigger than a bathtub, and their eyes have long been set on the mysterious and rich East, and the mysterious continent that Columbus still regarded as the east coast of India.

Or even in the countryside where they don't understand all this, people rejoice that business is getting better, and they know that the wine they make in their vineyards can be sold out in the big cities without much effort, because there are many people who drink in barrels all day long, and they also know that many cities along the coast are building shipyards, large and small, and if they have the strength to go to work in those shipyards, and earn a few silver to feed a whole family. They also knew that the fleets from Africa plundered a lot of slaves, and in addition to the rich people who had their eyes on the smooth-skinned and exotic slave girls, many more people looked at the able-bodied male slaves who only needed to be given a meal and did not pay at all.

All of this is taking place in Iberia, from Porto in Portugal in the north to Malaga in Aragon in the south, and there is a kind of exuberant exuberance that is not found anywhere else in Europe.

Alexander could feel the intensity of the aura, which could be seen in the priests who held wooden crosses and dressed plainly and solemnly, compared to these pious priests, the Italian priests were simply fat bastards, and there were hardly any fat people to see here, let alone all kinds of jokes about the clergy.

The people here have a deep respect for those who serve God, and at the same time they are unusually religious, as can be seen in the behavior of the ancient Benedictic canon, which is still observed everywhere, and although they do not wear religious robes, in Iberia, Benedictine canons have become a conscious rule of life in many families.

All this makes people feel as if they are in the land of a model of heaven on earth, and even Schell, as an Orthodox Christian, cannot help but sigh at the piety of the Iberians.

Alexander was also drawn to this place, where he had spent too long on the continent, where he saw everywhere the confusion and confusion of people as the old and new ages came, the millennia of faith that was gradually crumbling with the emergence of many new things, the people from anger to cynicism and then to indifference because of the depravity of the church and the moral decay of the clergy, and as far as he knew, the great schism that had thrown the whole of Christendom into chaos would take place. That would be the terrible catastrophe that would follow the split between the Eastern and Western Churches, which would have almost brought the Vatican to the Holy See.

And these are just legends in Iberia, where the Holy See, the Church, the priests, and the royal family they support have a high status and prestige that allows them to do anything.

"The king was still more interested in the new route through Africa, which he felt was already ripe, so although he was also eager to open up a route to the western Atlantic, it was clear that he thought that the road to Africa should be secured first."

Sitting in his chair and drinking black hot coffee, da Gama said with a little worry, he was no stranger to this strange-tasting drink seriously recommended by the duke, but he could not adapt to it, and now he simply put down the cup and became a little excited: "Duke, are you sure, I mean those nautical diaries, I have carefully studied the routes inside, and I can be sure that as long as the contents are true, we don't have to waste any effort at all, as long as there are 2 or 3 boats to get to those places, and I have a hunch, Christopher Columbus may have arrived in a very small part of the land, perhaps much larger than he had described. If that's the case, that's enough for us to have a place to stay. ”

Alexander looked at the excited navigator, this was the first time he had met this celebrity, and he had the impression that this man was actually a stubborn and somewhat irascible person, and he was too obsessed with wealth, probably because of this Manuel wanted to replace him with his own cronies, after all, no one wanted a less obedient person to have such a huge source of wealth in his hands.

Alexander also believed that da Gama was now so enthusiastic about the route to the West, probably because he had heard new news from Castile, that just over two months earlier, Columbus had returned from what he considered to be India, and that this time he had been escorted back in shackles, but his own account and the accounts of some witnesses testified to how the Spaniards, including Columbus himself, who had reached the "coast of the West Indies," were vying for the plundering of local wealth. And how crazy it is to draw one sphere of influence after another in that vast land.

This made da Gama a little unable to sit still, and compared to being snubbed by Manuel, the double temptation of being able to re-sail and acquire wealth made it impossible for him to curl up at home and wait for the king's favor again.

"Something must be done, a large enough fleet must be organized, they must be fully armed, there are already people there fighting for land, since there will not be only one such thing, so we will organize a fully armed expedition," said da Gama, who was a little thirsty with excitement, and took a cup of coffee and drank it, "These need to be sponsored, but the most important thing is to get the king's permission." ”

"Then let us do these things," Alexander said to Tiego, who was sitting on the sidelines and only listening attentively, "we can do all of this, raise ships, recruit experienced sailors, and provide enough supplies for this voyage, and then the next thing to do is to make the king change his mind." ”

Tiego nodded silently, he knew that this was his mission, but it didn't seem so easy to get Manuel to change his mind.

Manuel I was a very stubborn man, and although he was very keen on the wealth that the Western Atlantic route could bring, he still valued the eastern route more, not to mention the influence of Queen Maria on him.

Maria was adamantly opposed to the opening of the Atlantic route, which she considered "absurd and treacherous", for a number of reasons, but not the least of which was that she did not want a new conflict between Portugal and her mother country over the colonies.

Although Alexander VI had used a papal meridian to temporarily resolve the dispute between the two seafaring powers, this did not mean that the contradiction really did not exist, and now it would be very difficult for her to have a conflict again over a new course.

"It's a really tough task."

Alexander could not help but admit that it was not so easy, and that it was a troublesome task to convince the couple to change their minds, not to mention the conflict of beliefs, interests, and ideas.

In early October, James left Lisbon in a hurry after being summoned by the king, and he was in a hurry to find out what was going on in Castile because he had heard that his brother had been involved in a lawsuit.

Before embarking on the ship, Alexander approached James, and after some secret conversation, James embarked on a journey to Castile with the instructions Alexander had given him.

Queen Maria is still staring at Juana, which has actually become a show to relieve boredom in her daily life, and in Maria's opinion, Juana will one day have trouble, even if she now lives in the convent of the Lady of Mercy all day long, and even rarely goes to the castle of São Jorge, but this does not reduce Maria's suspicion of her.

Alexander, on the other hand, disappointed Mary a little.

From the beginning of hearing that Alexander was going to visit Juana, Maria firmly believed that the duke must be involved in something, although she did not think that the Pope's son-in-law was an enemy, but when she thought that Gonzalo was involved, she couldn't help but feel that there was some great conspiracy.

So she wrote to her mother early on to report everything she had heard, and there was more than one, but Queen Isabella did not seem to believe her daughter at all, and she replied to Maria that Gonzalo was her most trusted general, and that perhaps he was not very satisfactory in some ways, but that he was blameless in his loyalty.

Although Maria had always been obedient to her mother, she could not sit still and turn a blind eye this time, especially after sending someone to inquire about Alexander and visiting Juana on two other occasions.

She soon learned the duke's purpose from some of the people who had been planted by Juana's side, and to Maria's surprise, it all started because of some rumors that Cardinal Massimo had heard from the Aragonese army stationed there during his tour of Sicily.

Among the Portuguese soldiers who joined the Aragonese army, it was rumored that Juana, who was under house arrest in Lisbon, was treated harshly, and that the queen not only deliberately sought out her, but even withheld her due treatment, so that the former heir to the throne of Castile was now not only very embarrassed, but even a little miserable.

The cardinal, apparently believing that he could not turn a deaf ear to such a thing, reported it to the Pope, and the Duke of Rototesia had another task in addition to the secret review of the holy sites.

At least that's what Mary heard, and though she was still skeptical, she was at least relieved.

After all, the Duke doesn't seem to have anything to do with Juana, so the only explanation is that, as he heard, he was ordered by the Pope to see if Juana had really been treated unfairly as Cardinal Massimo had heard.

Maria was annoyed, she felt that she had been too kind to her cousin, and that it would have been enough to imprison her in the Cliff Prison in Lisbon, but now it was clear that she had only lost a bad reputation.

Maria felt compelled to clarify all this to the duke, and since the duke was tasked with examining the local relics, she wished not to be mistaken about Juana's affairs.

It's just that the duke doesn't seem to be very keen on getting along with the king and his wife, and he frequently visits churches and monasteries during this time, or goes with some merchants, although this makes Maria somewhat relieved, but considering that she wants to gain the favor of the Vatican, she thinks it is better to have more contact with the duke.

So when she heard that the Duke had visited Juana again at the Monastery of the Mercy Mary, she felt that she should take the opportunity to attend the anniversary of the Officiating with the Duke to remind him, even though she knew that she had been accompanied by someone else.

Syndication Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of October, when all churches ring their bells in the early hours of the morning until it is completely dark.

Alexander was awakened by the sound of the bell, and he got up from his bed and staggered to the window.

Listening to the faint noise outside, he pushed open the window, and was surprised to find that although it was still dark, there were already many people on the street.

Because it was not yet dawn, some people held torches in their hands, and although there were many people in the streets, they kept their voices as low as possible, silently drawing crosses on their chests while listening to the bells, and some knelt down in the streets, chanting scriptures softly in their mouths.

Alexander stood in the window and watched the street, and after a while he let out a slight sigh.

The late 15th and early 16th centuries were very special times.

For example, on the European continent, which has been shrouded in the sky for thousands of years, a deep-seated faith has cracked, and a ray of dawn that has never appeared before is projected through the crack, bringing a ray of light to the dark earth.

However, it was also at this time that those who still held great reverence for their faith burst out of their hearts with stronger convictions than before.

This belief spread with great fervor throughout the Iberian Peninsula, and many years later in the realms of the German princes, and the revolution it brought about would tremble the whole Christian world.

At the gates of the Cathedral of Angels, Alexander met Archbishop Bruo.

At the sight of Alexander, the tall archbishop greeted him in a loud voice from afar, and then he walked towards Alexander with the vigorous steps of a knight rather than a priest.

"Duke, I can assure you that what you see will be very impressive, and I am sure that you will not forget it even after you return to the Vatican."

The archbishop stretched out his arms as he spoke, and with his gesture Alexander looked at the blackened crowd in the square in front of the Cathedral of Angels, accompanied by the deafening chanting of the Atlantic tide.

"Don't you think you're witnessing a real miracle, Duke," the archbishop asked Alexander, "I know that your status makes it impossible for you to make a more impartial judgment, but I can guess that you will not be able to see it in the Vatican." ”

Alexander nodded silently, he knew what the archbishop meant, but he couldn't help but admit that such a scene was indeed not seen in the Vatican.

The Vatican square was also crowded with people, but who were they, prostitutes, filmmakers, assassins, and brokers who specialized in drilling, a scene that seemed to have only happened in Florence during the time of Savonarola, but ironically, the man was eventually burned at the stake for his overzealous faith.

In Iberia, the same fanatical move was supported by the monarch, and Alexander took a deep breath as he watched the royal couple slowly walking through the crowd towards the Angel Cathedral, surrounded by many noble knights.

He had to deal not only with Isabella's daughter, but also with Manuel I, the king of Portugal who seemed to have the upper hand due to the oppression of the two kings behind his wife, but who in fact had an unusually determined, even almost fanatical belief.

Alexander suddenly felt that his decision to come to Portugal first was a wise choice, and it was not difficult to imagine what a more fanatical Castile would be like if he looked at the people here, and it would only be even more fanatical than here.

Alexander didn't think he had a chance to shake the two kings in such a situation, unless it was an opportunity to pry the foundation of their seemingly solid throne, or to bring a rift in the unbreakable alliance between the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon.

The royal couple, who had already made their way through the crowd to the steps of the cathedral, walked up to the archbishop, who at the same time bowed their heads to the cross in the archbishop's hand and at the same time received the archbishop's blessing.

It was only when passing in front of Alexander that Maria stopped first, and a pair of black eyes on her face, which was so covered by thick white powder that she could barely see her true face, that she said slowly: "Duke, you have seen all this happening here, and I am sure you must have personally proved how ridiculous some rumors are, so I hope that you will report to the Vatican in a fair way what you have seen and heard." ”

Mary's words made Alexander look at Archbishop Bruo, and after glancing at the archbishop's expressionless face, Alexander bowed to Mary.

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I swear by the honor of my family, and I will definitely report to the Vatican everything I see as true." Maria watched Alexander be silent for a moment, then nodded slowly, put her hand on Manuel's arm, who had been watching the scene, and the two of them slowly walked towards the cathedral.

"It seems that it is still correct not to go directly to Castile." Looking at the back of the couple, Alexander whispered to himself.

Alexander, who had been at a loss as to how to shake the foundations of the Spanish kings, saw hope in Portugal at this moment.