In the castle of St. John, under the porch lined with countless flowers, two bronze doors that had been wiped down to a ghostly glow slowly opened.

The delicate relief carvings on the semicircular arches first crack a small slit in the middle, and then this slit gradually expands, and the bronze door slowly recedes towards the portico, and a corridor that is not very deep gradually appears.

Alexander had seen the portico before, but at that time he had only stood with a large number of Portuguese nobles and watched Manuel and Maria walk under the bronze door.

The bronze doors of St. John's Castle are usually not easily opened, except for various important ceremonies and important people, these two bronze doors are usually closed tightly.

Now they opened in front of Alexander.

Alexander stood alone at the door, and to his slight surprise, Juana gave him the honor entirely.

Along the way, they rode into the city in a horse-drawn carriage, and although it was already night, it was surprisingly lively in the city.

The entire street from Cabo Arabrata to the Castle of St. John was lit up, lit up by lampposts that smelled of freshly cut wood, and the Lisbians, who had gathered on both sides of the street, took to the streets for the first time on such a bright night.

Knowing that this was to welcome the prince, who was said to be from Castile, the Reese themselves couldn't help but be full of curiosity.

At the same time, when he learned that this was also the first time that the new queen appeared in front of the public, Lisbne himself was even more excited.

In the carriage, Juana waved to the people in the street, and although she had lived in the city for many years, today was the first time she was facing the Portuguese as the hostess of the city and the country.

"You brought all this here," Juana couldn't help but say when she finally sat back in her seat and looked at Alexander opposite her excitedly, "I thought I might be under house arrest for the rest of my life, but I didn't expect your appearance to change my fate." ”

Hearing this, Alexander's expression calmed down.

Both he and Juana knew very well that there were too many suspicious things about his identity, and there were so many suspicious places that she didn't even dare to delve into them, but it was precisely because of his various doubts about his identity that he needed Juana's approval even more.

Again, this recognition was needed by Juana, who, as the loser of the war for the throne that Isabella accused of having an illegitimate child with her lover, lost not only her ability to run for the throne of Castile, but also her remaining freedom.

Now a new opportunity presented herself to support a "half-brother" who might not have come from an unknown origin but who would make her queen of the vineyards, or to give up this now rare opportunity and spend the rest of her life in the convent as a prisoner forever, Juana made the most reasonable choice.

Does it matter if the young man in front of her is the son of her father, Enrique?

Does it matter if she herself is not the daughter of Enrique IV?

All Juana knew was that she had now gone from being a prisoner under house arrest to being the queen of Portugal, and that she had even personally signed the order for the expulsion of Maria, which would have been unimaginable two years ago.

That's enough.

She had vowed to do whatever it took to regain her freedom, but now she just had to walk into the castle of St. John with the young man, and everything she longed for and dreamed of would be within reach.

"My brother, you are a gift from God, so we should love each other, and I believe that this is also our father's wish."

Juana leaned forward and gently cupped Alexander's face and kissed him on the forehead.

The kiss was calm and slightly cold, not excited, let alone affectionate.

But looking at Juana's eyes, which did not hide their smugness, Alexander smiled.

A deal that would never be known to outsiders was made in a traveling carriage, and although there was no written agreement between the two parties, they both knew that this agreement would be protected and observed by both parties to the best of their ability, because it was the basis for proving their identity in this world.

The bronze door slowly opened, and Alexander's thoughts were pulled back, and he was slightly surprised to see Manuel standing behind the door.

Before the gate could be fully opened, Manuel had already strode out of the castle.

Under the gaze of countless people, the King of Portugal walked up to the "Prince Joel Mordilo Astamara" standing under the castle gates, and after a slight pause, Manuel opened his arms and hugged his brother-in-law tightly.

"Welcome back, Duke," Manuel said first, then he looked at Alexander carefully and said in a slightly emotional tone, "I never thought you would come to Lisbon again in such a capacity, I know you are here to ask for help, and I am willing to help you fulfill your wishes." ”

Alexander shook his head lightly and said in a calm but unusually affirmative tone: "No, Your Majesty, I think you are wrong, it is to fulfill the wishes of all of us, and I promise you that you will get more than you think." ”

Manuel was silent for a moment, and he saw uncompromising firmness in Alexander's eyes, which made him understand that the young man in front of him was clearly not as eager to beg for help in order to get the throne, as he thought.

"We will be good company," Manuel finally spoke, he extended his hand to Juana, who was standing behind, and after letting her stand side by side with him, he extended an invitation to Alexandria in the gesture of his master, "Please come in, Your Royal Highness, welcome to the Château of St. John." ”

The trumpets sounded loudly, and the rapid beat of drums sounded fiercely from inside the castle gates.

An ornate carpet stretched from under the portico to the palace in the distance, flanked by two rows of knights in armor and swords.

A group of Portuguese nobles were already standing at the end of the carpet, looking at the young man who had come with the king's wife, many with different expressions on their faces.

The illegitimate son of Enrique IV?

A contender to challenge for the Castilian throne?

All eyes were on him, and everyone wondered why this young man dared to challenge the current Queen of Castile.

Although the formidable Isabella was no longer alive, no one dared to despise Ferdinand, and he would never allow anyone to threaten the throne of Castile.

A figure suddenly walked out of the crowd, and when he saw this man, the Portuguese couldn't help but breathe a low commotion.

Don Makrosbein stood in front of everyone, he looked at Alexander, who had already walked in front of him, and under everyone's gaze, the personal treasurer of Isabella before her death bent down.

"My lord, I am Her Majesty's personal treasurer, Juan Don Macrosbyne, and allow me to pay tribute to you," Don Macrosbyne bowed first, and as he straightened up, he seemed to look at Alexander carefully, and then fell down on one knee under the gaze of all and took Alexander's hand, "Your Highness, in the name of the Macrosbyne family, please accept my allegiance to you. ”

Another imperceptible commotion rang out, and some of the nobles' expressions changed.

Manuel had a satisfied smile on his face, his gaze looking out into the crowd and the strange-looking nobles, the corners of his mouth twitching at a subtle hint of sarcasm.

Even in the Lisbon court, there were people who had complicated relations with Castile who had previously strongly opposed Manuel's divorce from Maria, and who had now witnessed Isabella's private treasurer openly swearing allegiance to Enrique IV's illegitimate son, much to the indescribable shock of the pro-Castilian elements, who had already been extremely surprised by the sudden appearance of such a person.

"Duke of Roman Thesia, Count of Monttina, Regent of Pisa and Prince of Wallachia, Alexandre Giulian Gombray." Manuel took the glass from the servant who was already waiting, raised his arms high and announced to everyone, "Prince of Castile, let us give him a new surname and title, Giorgio Mordilo Astamara of Castile, long live!" ”

"Hooray!"

Loud cheers instantly resounded over the castle square, and countless wine glasses were raised to the sky at this moment.

Amid a wave of cheers, Manuel and Alexander walked into the palace together.

Don Macrosbein followed Juana, noticing the excitement on Juana's face and his gaze racing towards Alexander.

At this moment, Don Makrosbein knew better than anyone that a war for the throne was inevitable.

At the end of February 1502, King Manuel of Portugal officially announced the dissolution of his marriage to Maria of Aragon, and subsequently ordered Maria to leave Portugal within two days.

Manuel then announced that he would marry Juana of Castile, daughter of Henrique IV.

At the beginning of March, the new queen of Portugal, Juana, in the name of her half-brother, invited Alexandre Giulian Gombray, Duke of Thesia, Rome, to Lisbon.

Manuel greeted the Duke of Rome Thessia with great pomp and ceremony, and immediately publicly announced the recognition of the Duke of Rome Thesia, who bears the name of Gewre Mordilo Astamara, as Prince of Castile.

When the news reached Barriariddod, it took Ferdinand a long time to sort out the relationship.

He didn't believe it at first, but as new information kept coming, Ferdinand finally began to face the facts in front of him.

And then he was completely enraged!

Ferdinand's anger was so angry that he could no longer bear it and ordered someone to be sent to Toledo to arrest Alexander VI at once.

But those who were sent out came back empty-handed.

Alexander VI had already left Toledo after the departure of Juana and his wife, and as for the Pope's whereabouts, to Ferdinand's disbelief, Alexander VI actually went to the south.

By this time, Ferdinand seemed to know at last who the enemy who was always hiding in the shadows was, and he was now absolutely sure that all of this was planned by the man named Alexandre Giuliante Cambrai, and at the same time by the name of Giorre Mordiglo.

From the very beginning, this man had his eyes on the crown of Castile, and even now he wants to come to Sicily, everything that happens is inextricably linked to him.

As for Don Bavi in the south, Ferdinand didn't think he had anything to do with Alexander at first, but now when he heard that the Pope had gone to the south, Ferdinand could finally be sure that there was obviously a shadow of the young man behind it.

"The throne, he is for the throne," although he had not yet heard of the Castilian prince making a claim to the throne, but Ferdinand knew that it was only a matter of time, "the French, the Portuguese, the Sicilian, and Don Bavi......"

Ferdinand suddenly realized that when it all came together, he was in a very bad situation.

In this situation, Ferdinand decided to write to his in-laws asking for help.

He had two in-laws, Henry VII, now King of England, and Archduke Maximian, Holy Roman Emperor.

Ferdinand did not have much hope for Henry VII, he knew that Henry VII would agree to his son marrying his daughter Catherine of Aragon, more to contain France, and the performance of the British on the battlefield in Italy not long ago seems to be more willing to fan the flames than to be directly involved in that war.

However, for Maximian, Ferdinand was very confident.

He knew that Maximilian was always trying to expand the power and influence of his illusory Roman Emperor, so he was confident that Maximian would not sit idly by and watch what happened in Iberia.

Moreover, all indications already indicated that the French had formed an alliance with Rome-Thesia, which was enough to stimulate Maximian's nerves.

"Your Majesty, I am here to ask for your help, for it is about the passing on of the rightful crown of our blood, and therefore I ask you to wage a war in Europe that is sufficient to stop the Roman Thesians, and I have to remind you to be fully prepared, for it may well become a great war that will affect the fate of our kingdoms."

Once he came to his senses, Ferdinand's movements became swift, and his emissaries were sent to the courts of the allied nations across the continent.

However, at the same time as Ferdinand quickly began diplomatic mediation, trade union emissaries can also be seen everywhere in countless castles, courts, and palaces of the rich in Europe.

In the palaces of the German princes, in the mansions of the Fugger family, in the Doge's palace in Venice, in the depths of the castles of the Loire, plans that had been brewing for a long time were quietly unfolding.

With the crown on the Iberian Peninsula in mind, a great battle will unfold on the continent of Europa that will determine the fate of Europe!