Meanwhile, in the Mistras Palace on the Peloponnese Peninsula, Basileus Constantine XI of the Roman Empire was reviewing the correspondence he had exchanged with his Brother-in-law, Manuel, during this period.
Upon reaching the most recent letters, he handed them to some of his cabinet members.
"Look at these few points," Constantine pointed out in parts of his replies, handing them to his confidantes, led by his Chief Minister Sfrantzis, "It seems my Brother-in-law will not prevent us from returning to the city."
As the Emperor had said, after nearly a month of negotiations, Manuel finally clearly stated in his letter that he would welcome the Basileus, who had been campaigning in the Peloponnese, back to Constantinople.
The Emperor's cousin, and also his private secretary and personal bodyguard, Theophilos Palaiologos, heard this and complained indignantly, "Constantinople is clearly under your rule, Your Majesty, and you are the only Basileus of the Roman Empire right now, so why do you have to consider others' feelings just to return? Holy Mother, please…"
"Enough," the Basileus interrupted him, a little awkwardly, "Who told me to lose so disastrously in Macedonia?"
As Constantine XI said, at that time, he led an army of 10,000 from Morea and Thessaly, and after joining forces with 4,000 Roman rebel soldiers from Western Macedonia, they were utterly defeated on the plains of Southern Macedonia by the 8,000 Ottoman garrison troops who marched out of Thessaloniki, returning in disarray.
His army of 14,000 was ultimately reduced to just over 5,000, and he had no choice but to return to Thessaly to garrison.
Even now, thinking of those Sipahi Turk heavy cavalry, clad in heavy armor and fighting ruthlessly, Constantine couldn't help but feel a little unnerved.
Fortunately, his Brother-in-law's great victory at Varna successfully rescued him from his embarrassing performance on the southern front and also brought Thessaly truly back under the Empire's rule.
Therefore, by all accounts, the Basileus indeed did not have enough confidence to make his Brother-in-law abide by all the agreements made before the war or to let his people directly take over Bithynia, which was under Bosporus's actual control.
"So, Your Majesty, are we to set off for the capital now?" His close friend and Chief Minister, George Sphrantzes, brought the topic back to the return to Constantinople.
"Yes, the sooner we return, the better," Constantine narrowed his eyes, "This way, at least the citizens in the city will not all side with my Brother-in-law.
I will also be able to reach a relatively reasonable agreement with him."
Meanwhile, in the city of Pest, the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary, the Hungarian Parliament was holding its final meeting for the future of the Kingdom.
And "White Knight" Hunyadi János sat in the front row, his gaze solemn.
"…In summary, the next King of the Kingdom of Hungary will be Ladislaus, the posthumous son of the former King Albrecht von Habsburg, currently residing in Vienna, namely Ladislaus V von Habsburg.
His mother is Elizabeth of Luxembourg, daughter of the Kingdom's legitimate King Sigismund von Luxembourg.
Therefore, by the grace of God, Ladislaus V is the sole and undisputed King of the current Kingdom of Hungary, and is the next King of Hungary and Croatia…"
Listening to the concluding speech of his colleague, Hungarian Primate Szekcsi Dénes, who stood on the stage, Hunyadi felt somewhat helpless for a moment.
He never expected that after they, the regency council appointed by King Albrecht, betrayed his last wishes for the future of Hungary, after all the twists and turns, the Crown of Saint Stephen would still end up on the head of his posthumous son, Ladislaus.
"Never mind, this isn't so bad either." Thinking of the tragic state of the Hungarian army on the Varna battlefield, Hunyadi smiled bitterly and shook his head, letting go of those unnecessary thoughts.
The subsequent resolutions of the Parliament were much as Hunyadi had expected.
The Royal Parliament re-appointed the Governor of Transylvania, "White Knight" Hunyadi János, Hungarian Primate Szekcsi Dénes, and the Ban of Mačva, Nicholas of Ilok, as the regency council for the young King Ladislaus.
After delivering his acceptance speech on stage, Hunyadi thought the meeting would also draw to a close.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, an unexpected great gift fell upon him.
"At the behest of His Holiness Pope Eugene IV, and in recognition of Mr. Hunyadi's efforts in resisting the Ottoman infidels, and because the Kingdom, now with a young monarch, needs a warrior of God to guide it," Szekcsi Dénes declared to Hunyadi with a resounding voice, "The Royal Parliament has decided to appoint the Governor of Transylvania, Hunyadi János, as the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary.
Hunyadi János, are you willing to swear before the Lord to defend the Kingdom forever?"
"I am willing," Hunyadi, who immediately reacted, his lips trembling slightly, and a flicker of barely perceptible ambition ignited in his eyes, "I swear by my life!"
After Hunyadi was appointed Regent of Hungary, the meeting officially concluded.
Before its end, out of respect and courtesy to their allies, the Hungarian Primate, on behalf of the Papacy, expressed that blessings would be given to the Greek Church in the south on Christmas Day.
However, no sooner had he finished speaking than some discordant voices came from the assembly—
"The glory of defeating the infidels should belong to us.
Our Catholic Hungarians have sacrificed so much to defeat the Ottoman, and in the end, the Romans of the Greek Church took all the credit, it's hard to accept!"
"Stop, stop, is this something that can be said in this Parliament? This is a topic that cannot be touched."
"That's enough, in my opinion…"
Watching the Parliament begin to clamor below, Hunyadi and his two colleagues exchanged glances, speechless for a moment.
On the other side, in Constantinople, facing the questions of his monarch, Caesar Manuel, and the gaze of his colleagues, the Chief Minister of the Autocratic State, after a brief moment of surprise, took a deep breath, gathered his courage, and answered firmly:
"Your Majesty, you know me," Looking directly into Caesar's now particularly sharp eyes, the Prime Minister immediately clenched one hand into a fist against his temple, bowing his arm in salute,
"There cannot be two suns in the sky, nor two kings in a country; in my heart, there is only one sun, Manuel!"