Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology-Chapter 873: Enraged Mehmed IV (Re-Edit Version)

Istanbul, Ottoman Empire

A meeting was held within the luxurious Topkapı Palace, which is a gigantic architectural marvel that had been the centre of administration and royal power since the time Constantinople was conquered in 1459 by Sultan Mehmed II, Mehmed the Conqueror.

Within the palace, a few soldiers were adding a layer of tinted paper to a massive map sprawling right at the entrance. Mehmed, looking at this scene from the balcony, clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. This was the first time in the last 50 years that the map showed the reduction of territory of the Ottoman Empire, making him feel the illusion that the majestic palace he had adored since childhood had lost its vitality, and the ancestors' portraits hanging on the wall he respected were mocking his incompetence. This feeling made him enraged.

This was one of the reasons why he increased the funding for the construction of Dolmabahçe Palace, the new palace that was built to replace Topkapı. Initially, Mehmed was very reluctant to move out of his childhood home which all of his great ancestors had lived in—even if it was outdated—but now, even thinking about constantly being reminded of his shameful performance in the form of a 10-foot by 30-foot map changed his mind.

"Ahmed, what's the status of Mustafa and Ibrahim?" Getting into the hall after a short break, Mehmed asked, calming his emotions.

Grand vizier Fazil Ahmed Pasha bowed down in respect and responded, "Your Majesty, according to our latest intelligence, they are currently on their way. They should be in Istanbul, um.., by the end of the month at the earliest."

"Very good. Although it is a pity that we will have to give up nearly half of the territory in the Middle East, it cannot be helped. We cannot lose territory in the Balkans."

Fazil nodded in agreement.

"Putting that aside, have the French, English, and Dutch agreed to finally send the troops?"

"Ah," Fazil showed a very awkward look, "No, Your Majesty Sultan, they are dragging their feet. It seems like they would help us only when we are in existential trouble. It is highly unlikely that they will help us with our losses in the Balkans."

'Snort!!' Sitting down on his throne, Mehmed grunted disgustedly.

"In fact, my Emperor, instead of reinforcing us, the Western Europeans might even support the German barbarians to annexe more land in the Balkans. Shameless bunch they are, we cannot expect infidels like them to have a backbone."

Mehmed's face was sour, but he soon returned to normal. "Humph."

"I knew something like this would happen. These guys only agreed to help us so that we would act as a buffer between them and the Bharatiya Empire. If it were not for the threat brought by the rising Bharatiya Empire, all of them might even be overjoyed and very happy in splitting us up and taking pieces of us for themselves. It is a good thing that I asked Mustafa Pasha, Ibrahim Pasha, and Salim Al Abdullah Rehman to retreat with their armies beforehand. With their arrival, an army of 300,000 soldiers who had been tested in battle for the last five to six years should be ready to march into the Balkans, showing the Western world we are still the overlords of the Mediterranean and Asia Minor, Just because we are in a moment of weakness doesn't mean that we cannot fight back ."

"With the new army reinforcing the Balkan battlefield, once we are successful in catching the Russians off guard and taking back Chișinău, we can immediately launch a counterattack on the Russian mainland using our frontier fortress and military bases in Crimea." The possibility of counterattack greatly motivated Mehmed as his eyes became bright at the prospect of taking a big chunk of flesh from the Tsarist Russian Empire, the old enemy of the Ottoman Empire.

Hearing the emperor's plan, a glint of excitement passed through Fazil's eyes. "It is very possible, Your Majesty. Maybe with Allah's blessing, it will happen very soon. Exchanging the ground in the Middle East for the ground gained in Russia is a worthwhile trade." Fazil Ahmed Pasha smiled like a fox as he echoed the words of Mehmed.

"Good, keep me updated in the coming days about the army. They are instrumental in taking down our enemies who have become too arrogant."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Mehmed was left alone, but thinking about how he would slaughter the Russians and those hateful infidels who were responsible for making the Russian occupation of Chișinău possible, an imperceptible smirk appeared on his face. 'Just you wait, Alexis, I will teach you a lesson you cannot forget,' he muttered, his voice, despite being a whisper, echoed throughout the halls of Topkapı Palace.

---

Unfortunately for Mehmed, the news he received a few days later completely stunned him and made his heart go cold.

The atmosphere within Topkapı Palace was chilling. No one dared to utter a word. Everyone had their heads lowered, not having the gall to look up at the emperor, who was properly enraged.

"You mean on the way of retreating, the army of 300,000 came across an important strategic city that had been raided by the assassins from the Bharatiya Empire, and instead of ending the pitiful and sinful lives of these infidels, not only did we lose a few thousand people, but even Salim Al Abdullah Rahman was killed? MAKE....IT....MAKE....FUCKING....SENSE!"

The last part of his question was almost a roar, making it impossible for any of his subordinates to look up at him and raise their voices.

In the end, knowing that only he could respond at a time like this, Grand Vizier Fazil Ahmed Pasha spoke out, "Yes, Your Majesty, although the losses in this battle were not too much, it was very unlucky for Salim Al Abdullah Rahman Pasha to be killed."

"Tch!!"

Mehmed raised his hand and made a shooing gesture in the air, as if doing so would send away all his problems. "Forget it, forget it. We were able to resist the recent Russian advancements into Silistra, Wahachia, and Budapest. Why should I make myself unhappy for this old fool who got himself killed for his incompetence?"

"Even if he came back in one piece, there was no way he would command the battle to reclaim Chișinău or even defend a fortress in the Balkans. I was about to replace him with a younger general anyway."

Everyone in the palace let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully, the emperor had calmed down. But the next words of the Grand Vizier immediately plunged them all into an ice cellar.

"Your Majesty, although we did not suffer any major actual losses in the battle, it seems like there was someone important among the ranks of the Bharatiya Assassins who were in Qom."

"The news is that the whole alliance army, as well as the western command of the Bharatiya Empire, has been mobilized and marched towards Qom in order to rescue the so-called important person!"

'Krackel!'

Noticing the ugly expression on the emperor's face, he quickly added, "This is still a piece of unconfirmed news, Your Majesty, it may not be true." Although these words had some effect on Mehmed, overall, it was not very large.

In the coming few days, his worries really came true.

"Your Majesty, NOT GOOD... on the way back, our troops were ambushed by the alliance army. Alliance Army Commander Lachit Borphukan acted himself and launched a sneak attack against our men, who were in retreat. We lost 30,000 soldiers in the ambush, my emperor."

"Damn it!!"

Mehmed roared in frustration, but his troubles were yet to stop, as every few days more news came from the Middle East.

"Your Majesty, the temporary military fortress we used to camp, had been ambushed by the alliance army. We managed to kill over 10,000 enemies, but unfortunately, we lost 18,000 of our own."

Mehmed couldn't believe it, "How is it possible to lose so many troops despite having the protection of the fortress? Damn it."

"Um… it is reported that bombs were dropped from floating red balloons in the air, Your Majesty, which caused a breach to happen in the fortress wall that was not meant to withstand artillery bombardment. After the breach, we were rushed by the alliance army."

"Damn it all."

The news that kept coming made Mehmed sleepless.

"Your Majesty, the army was attacked once again. They were attacked by a small group who climbed up the hill from behind and assassinated a lot of our senior officers, although we managed to eliminate all of them, it was not before over 395 senior-level officers were killed."

"Your Majesty, we lost more of our troops. Our artillery company was crossing a bridge; it suddenly exploded, killing over a couple of hundred of our men and breaking down nine artillery pieces." freёnovelkiss.com

"Your Majesty, we were ambushed. We lost 4,000 more people."

"Your Majesty, we lost 3,000 people."

"Sultan, we've lost 8,000 men."

As the retreating army neared the European borders, reports kept flooding in, each one igniting his rage, but deep down, it also made him scared. He knew he was not facing the Bharatiya Empire; he was facing the so-called alliance, an alliance of sinners who were supposed to be extinct a long time ago, only alive due to the Bharatiya Empire's will. In his impression, the alliance and its army, made of misfits and deadmen, Zionists and kafirs, were supposed to be like weaklings that had gotten a new lease on life only because someone decided to keep them as a pet. But this army, which he looked down on, not only proved to be a thorn in his flesh but had now reduced his army of 300,000 veterans to bereaved dogs. *If the pet is so strong, how strong is the master?* This thought kept repeating in his mind, making him restless.

Weeks later, the army finally reached Istanbul, but the losses were more tragic than he imagined. But instead of feeling saddened, angry, or anything else, he felt relieved.

Mehmed once again affirmed how correct his decision was to have the three generals retreat back to Turkey. Maybe if he had not compromised and remained headstrong, even the 200,000 troops wouldn't be coming back. He momentarily even considered calling back Kara Ibrahim Pasha and Abaza Siyavus Pasha and completely retreating from the Middle East, but the news he heard next put a complete halt to the orders he was about to give.

"Your Majesty, Ismail Khan was successful in developing the cannon you requested of him. He has invited you to take part in the practical military trials of the cannon."

"Oh!!" This was good news that he hadn't heard for the last month and a half.

Receiving constant bad news made him unable to become angry anymore. He was angry for the first time, the second time, the third time, and the fourth time after that, but the fifth time he couldn't even be bothered.

---

Somewhere on the outskirts of Istanbul.

"Boom!!!"

"Hahah, Good!!"

Looking at the cement wall that had been obliterated 100 meters away, Mehmed laughed heartily.

"You did good, Ismail, very good. You have to be rewarded handsomely," he said as he constantly patted the back of a lean middle-aged man who looked like he would be blown to the wind any moment.

"Ah, thank you, Your Majesty."

"Tell me, Ismail, does this thing have as much range as the cannons made by the Bharatiya Empire?"

"Ah, no, Your Majesty."

"Eh?" The smile on Mehmed's face immediately froze. Then why was he called? "I remember telling you to develop artillery capable of taking on the Bharatiya Empire's artillery. If you have not succeeded, then why did you invite me?" A dangerous glint flashed across his eyes. The thought of becoming happy for no reason made his blood boil, especially now since it looked like he was desperate for good news, which made him even angrier.

Looking at the livid expression on the emperor's face, Ismail Khan's heart skipped a beat. He understood that his rigour had gotten the better of him once again. "Your Majesty, you have misunderstood."

"When I say the cannon I developed is not as good as the Bharatiya artillery, what I mean is the Bharatiya Empire's cannons that they use for themselves to defend their borders. I have read the intelligence reports, Your Majesty. Those cannons still have a range of 15%-25 % greater than the cannons we developed in the same calibre."

"But when compared to the Bharatiya cannons that are currently being used in the Balkan theatre and the Crimean theatre, the difference is not too big."

"Our cannons might have a few meters less range when aiming for accuracy compared to the cannons of the Bharatiya Empire, but we also have slightly more power, making our cannonballs pack extra punch upon impact."

Mehmed's eyebrows relaxed as he finally understood what was happening.

"So you mean although we cannot compete against the latest cannons of the Bharatiya Empire, which they use for themselves, the cannon you have developed is not different in effectiveness when compared to the Bharatiya cannons sold to the Russians?"

"Precisely, Your Majesty."

Fazil, who was silent until now, spoke out in order to confirm that they were not misunderstanding anything, "While the Bharatiya cannons still have the advantage of range, we have the advantage of power?"

Turning around, Ismail nodded but also shook his head, making the two biggest predators on the Ottoman food chain confused. However, they did not react and waited for the eccentric craftsman to explain himself.

"Yes, but not entirely, Lord Grand Vizier, because when I say that the Bharatiya Empire has the advantage in range, I mean the range at which the cannon can be accurate and precise. Although our cannons are not as accurate and precise as the Bharatiya cannons, after a certain range, they can still be used to hit enemy artillery positions much further ahead, though it will take a greater number of tries."

"Hmm!! I can work with that."

Almost immediately, Mehmed placed orders for 300 such cannons, which were now named Ismail Cannons, to various workshops and factories across the empire.

P.S. Thank god it allowed me