Guarding the Eastern Frontier

Inside the Bulgaria Royal Palace's council hall, Laszlo sat at the head of the table, with the Regent of Bulgaria, the cabinet ministers, Vlad, and Grand Master Martin seated below him.

A map encompassing the entire Balkans was laid out on the long table, with Bulgaria positioned in the center.

Frederick began to explain Bulgaria's military defense system to Laszlo in detail.

A very conspicuous main road was marked on the map; this was the route from Sofia to Constantinople.

This road was a vital link connecting the Ottoman Empire's capital and the Rumelia Governorate.

The Ottoman, for military and trade needs, frequently maintained and diligently managed this important road.

Now, this road traversed the Bulgaria Kingdom from east to west and was also the most important road within the kingdom.

Bulgaria's important cities of Sofia and Plovdiv were both located on this main thoroughfare.

The closer one got to the eastern part of the kingdom, the more developed the road network became, as the Ottoman used it frequently, while in the west, only the area near Sofia had a relatively complete road network.

Most of the major towns in the north were almost all nestled in mountain valleys; for example, Frederick's capital of the Tarnovo Principality, Veliko Tarnovo, was a typical example.

This city was once the ancient capital of Bulgaria, and over a hundred years ago, it was the second-largest city in the Balkans, second only to Constantinople.

In 1396, after the Crusade's disastrous defeat at Nicopolis, the Second Bulgaria Empire fell, and Veliko Tarnovo was burned to the ground by the Ottoman, who resented its defensibility.

It was not until today, several decades later, that the city began to prosper again.

Further north, cities like Vidin and Nicopolis, situated close to the Danube River, had developed transportation and served as Bulgaria's main trade export centers.

The Crusade lords brought two important things to Bulgaria.

One was a rigidly hierarchical feudal system, and the other was the Western Church's set of religious rituals and doctrinal interpretations.

Frederick, utilizing his many years of governing experience in Austria, established a relatively complete bureaucratic system in the Bulgaria Kingdom, primarily composed of local nobles and clergy.

The lords simultaneously bore military and economic obligations, both paying a portion of taxes and providing military support to the central government when necessary.

For most Crusade lords, who came from lower noble families or were noble sons without inheritance rights, this seemed like a matter of course.

Facing these Bulgaria nobles, who were as pure as blank slates, Laszlo couldn't help but shed tears of emotion and envy.

Although he was well aware that the main reason these Bulgaria nobles had not yet sought to expand their privileges through various means was due to the threat of the Ottoman and his authority as Emperor, this was still enough to evoke a sense of awe.

Thinking about the Holy Roman Empire, and then Hungary, Laszlo felt a lump in his throat that he couldn't swallow.

When did he forget what the feudal system originally looked like?

Only in Bulgaria, this nascent nation, could he see a feudal kingdom that had not yet experienced the collapse of rites and music, the rise of powerful nobles, or the fragmentation by oligarchs.

As for the Holy Roman Empire's princes... it's better not to mention them, and there are also the Hungarian nobles who are unwilling to contribute anything and refuse to fight abroad.

Thinking of all these things, Laszlo's determination to push for reforms became even stronger.

As the old saying goes, liege lords must pay money to their monarch and fight for him.

No matter where that old saying comes from, this is how the feudal system should be.

As for centralization? Like the Eastern dynasties?

Laszlo had now fully realized that this was impossible.

In fact, if he could, through reforms, force all nobles loyal to him to pay their due taxes and serve more than 40 days of military service annually, later historians would comment: 'This monarch greatly advanced the centralization and modernization process of the XX country.'

Pulling his thoughts back from the idea of reforming the Kingdom of Hungary, Laszlo began to carefully observe the markings on the map.

Hungary needed reform, and Laszlo could assert that rebellion would definitely occur.

Rebellion would lead to a void in border defenses, and if the Ottoman seized the opportunity to attack at that time, all would be lost.

Therefore, consolidating the Bulgaria defense line and safeguarding the eastern frontier of the Habsburg Dynasty's territory became crucial.

This map marked dense military fortresses in eastern Bulgaria; some were original castles and fortresses that, after reinforcement and expansion, became regional defense centers.

There were also many newly constructed fortresses, most of which were still under construction but already possessed basic defensive capabilities.

Widely distributed manors, villages, and towns throughout Bulgaria's territory also began to build basic defensive fortifications.

In the eastern regions near the Ottoman border, Laszlo, before returning his army, ordered the establishment of a garrison base, modeled after the East Roman military towns, and left a small contingent of troops there.

Today, the scale of that base had expanded, with walls, towers, barracks, stables, and other military facilities all in place.

The military strength stationed there had also greatly expanded, with the garrison reaching five hundred men.

Larger armies were assembled near Sofia, guarding the capital.

In Kyustendil, southwest of Sofia, the growing Teutonic Order of Saint George was also a significant standing military force in Bulgaria.

Under Laszlo's edict, Grand Master Martin finally lifted the restriction that only German could join the Teutonic Order, beginning to accept more new members from different regions.

Besides these standing military forces, Bulgaria also had the potential to conscript several thousand troops, and even push the limit to squeeze out ten thousand was not an issue.

However, if it truly came to that point, it was feared that before the Ottoman arrived, these not-so-submissive Bulgaria would have already raised the banner of rebellion.

As long as Mehmed II wasn't insane enough to launch a full-scale national attack, Bulgaria's strict defense could delay the Ottoman for half a year or even longer without issue.

And this time would be sufficient for Laszlo to make ample preparations in the rear in Vienna.

There was another issue that greatly concerned Laszlo, which was the obedience of the Bulgaria.

This issue was primarily linked to religious and cultural conflicts.

The Bulgaria resisting Latin lords was not the first time.

In 1204, the Fourth Crusade overthrew Byzantium and established the Latin Empire.

In 1205, the Bulgaria decisively defeated the Latin Empire's army in the Battle of Adrianople, even capturing Baldwin I, the first Emperor of the Latin Empire.

It can be said that the Bulgaria's resistance to the Crusade lords was an old tradition.

However, Bulgaria, which had changed hands several times within sixty years, now had a dwindling population, with vast areas uninhabited, and the total national population was less than seven hundred thousand.

This figure was less than half of Austria's and one-sixth of Hungary's.

Even so, disturbances frequently erupted among the Bulgaria.

It was only in recent years, as more and more missionaries poured into Bulgaria from Rome, and more people began to convert to Roman Catholicism, that the danger of rebellion significantly decreased.

Gennadius II, the false patriarch established by the Ottoman in Constantinople, repeatedly attempted to incite Orthodox believers to rebel.

He had vehemently opposed the merger of the Orthodox Church with the Roman Church and had publicly condemned the East Roman Emperor who promoted the merger of the Eastern and Western Churches; now, he had become a lackey of the Ottoman.

In earlier years, some people believed his nonsense, but now, the Bulgaria feared the sharp swords in the hands of the Teutonic Order, who engaged in armed missionary work.

Laszlo was also considering whether he should establish a new Eastern Patriarch in the East, controlled by him, to counterbalance the Pope's influence on the Habsburg Dynasty.

This plan was still immature, and Laszlo decided to wait until it was more refined before attempting to implement it.

The situation in Bulgaria was roughly like this.

So many fortress constructions, as well as taxes to maintain the army and government expenses, and the expenses for the Crusade lords' enjoyment.

Laszlo could already envision the painful lives of the Bulgaria under high pressure.

But in times of chaos, although he wished to treat the people of various nations under his rule leniently, enemies from all directions did not allow him to do so.

To prevent him from worrying about the Ottoman's comeback to the point of sleeplessness every night, he could only make the people of Bulgaria suffer.

Let Frederick bear the infamy.

As long as the Ottoman's desire to advance westward could be stopped, everything was worth it.