they were advising the holy emperor to seize him. But he was never persuaded, saying. I will not break the oath, which I made to him, which I would confirm yet again, that, even if he comes, he will take us captive; but if he again breaks his oaths, it remained up to God who is much more powerful than he. 7.2 For this very reason, he did not send any of his sons to meet this impious man, but only the excellent man Demetrios Leontaris, Isaak Asan, and Manuel Kantakouzenos the protostrator, with many young nobles and soldiers and gifts; who met him around Koutoulou and came with him as far as Diplokionion, speaking, of course, with Leontaris the whole way. 7.3 And there at Diplokionion were found the holy emperor and his sons with one galley, in order to ferry him across, and having embarked on it, they greeted each other in the middle of the sea from their galleys and talking went as far as the place on the other side in Anatolia, which is now called Skoutarion, but formerly Chrysopolis. And he, having disembarked from the galley, went up to the tents which they had prepared for him beforehand. But the emperors, with their galleys, eating and drinking and sending consignments of food to one another, around evening he mounted his horse and departed on the road leading toward Nicomedia, while the emperors returned home. 7.4 In the spring of the same year, when he returned to the West by way of Gallipoli, he went to Adrianople. And the holy emperor, having prepared Demetrios Leontaris, sent him to him, so that he might both learn about his premeditated plans and give him forewarning and reproach him through the good love and honor which they had shown him, both through the crossing and through such an ambassador, I mean the person and the gifts which he brought. The emir therefore saw him with the greatest honor and love and finally said to him: “It has been days that I have not been well; but I want to get better and we shall eat and drink together and talk.” But he died after three days.

8.1 And they did not do just anything to Leontaris, but he was in his tent, and perhaps wondering how the lord was not summoning him at all, so that he might hear his services. When he learned of his death at almost that very hour, since they had secretly closed the roads leading to the City, and although Leontaris sent many letter-carriers, they did not let them pass at all. And days passed, behold, from this the mystery against the City was revealed; and there was a great rumor and counsel and deliberation; and the holy emperor received many reproaches from his counselors for not seizing him, as he was at the monastery of Peribleptos because of a plague. 8.2 With difficulty then, sometime, Leontaris, having sent a man by another road leading to Mesembria, and he having come from there by sea, brought a letter that the emir had died; and this indeed became the “In the evening weeping will take up its lodging, but in the morning, joy.” 8.3 And behold, they fell into another care and counsel and deliberation, whether to have love for his son Murad and to concede that he be the lord, as their oaths also stipulated, or to bring Mustafa from Mystras and make him lord in the West, while Murad is lord in the East. While the holy emperor and father counseled the first and judged it right for many reasons, his son and Demetrios Kantakouzenos were for doing the second, and that he should give them Gallipoli as well, only with difficulty at some point, as if by concession, did the holy emperor give authority to his son, saying, “Do as you wish; for I, my son, am both old and”

ἐβουλεύοντο τῷ ἁγίῳ βα σιλεῖ, ἵνα πιάσῃ αὐτόν. Ἐκεῖνος δὲ οὐ κατεπείσθη ποτέ, λέγων. Οὐκ ἀθετῶ τὸν ὅρκον, ὃν πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἐποιησάμην, ἂν ἐβεβαιούμην καὶ ἔτι, ὅτι, καὶ ἂν ἔλθῃ, μέλλει αἰχμαλωτεύσειν ἡμᾶς· εἰ δὲ πάλιν ἐκεῖνος ἀθε τήσῃ τοὺς ὅρκους του, ἀπέμεινεν εἰς τὸν θεὸν τὸν πολλὰ πλεῖον δυνά μενον ἐκείνου. 7.2 ∆ιὰ ταύτην δὴ τὴν αἰτίαν οὐδέ τινα τῶν υἱῶν αὐτοῦ ἔστειλεν εἰς συνάντησιν αὐτοῦ δὴ τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς, ἀλλὰ μόνους τὸν ἄριστον ἄνδρα ∆ημή τριον τὸν Λεοντάριν, Ἰσάκιον τὸν Ἀσάνην καὶ Μανουὴλ πρωτοστράτορα τὸν Καντακουζηνὸν μετὰ πολλῶν ἀρχοντοπούλων καὶ στρατιωτῶν καὶ δώρων· οἳ καὶ συνήντησαν αὐτῷ περὶ τὰ Κουτουλοῦ καὶ ἦλθον μετ' ἐκεί νου ἕως εἰς τὸ ∆ιπλοκιόνιον, ὅλην δηλονότι τὴν ὁδὸν ὁμιλῶν μετὰ τοῦ Λεοντάρι. 7.3 Ἐκεῖσε δὲ εἰς τὸ ∆ιπλοκιόνιον εὑρεθέντες καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς ὁ ἅγιος καὶ οἱ υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ μετὰ ἑνὸς κατέργου, ἵνα περάσῃ ἐκεῖνον, καὶ ἐμβὰς εἰς αὐτό, εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν μέσον ἐχαιρετήθησαν πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀπὸ τὰ κάτεργα καὶ ὁμιλοῦντες ἀπῆλθον μέχρι εἰς τὸν πέρα τόπον τῆς Ἀνατο λῆς, ὅπερ νῦν Σκουτάριον ὀνομάζεται, πρότερον δὲ Χρυσόπολις. Καὶ ἐκεῖνος μὲν ἐξελθὼν ἀπὸ τοῦ κατέργου ἀνέβη εἰς τένδας, ἃς αὐτῷ προη τοίμασαν. Οἱ δὲ βασιλεῖς μετὰ τῶν κατέργων τρώγοντες καὶ πίνοντες καὶ ἀποστολὰς τροφίμους πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀποστέλλοντες, περὶ τὸν ἑσπερι νὸν ἐκεῖνος μὲν καβαλικεύσας ἀπῆλθε τὴν ὁδὸν τὴν περὶ τὴν Νικομή δειαν φέρουσαν, οἱ δὲ βασιλεῖς ἐπανέστρεψαν οἴκαδε. 7.4 Τὸ δὲ ἔαρ τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἔτους ἐπαναστρέψαντος εἰς τὴν ∆ύσιν διὰ τῆς ὁδοῦ τῆς Καλλιπόλεως, ἀπῆλθεν εἰς τὴν Ἀνδριανούπολιν. Ὁ δὲ ἅγιος βασιλεὺς ἑτοιμάσας τὸν Λεοντάριν ∆ημήτριον ἔστειλε πρὸς ἐκεῖνον, ἵνα καὶ περὶ τῶν προμελετωμένων μάθῃ καὶ προμηνύσῃ καὶ ἐκεῖνον ἐλέγξῃ διὰ τῆς καλῆς ἀγάπης καὶ τιμῆς, ἧς πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἐπεδείξαντο, καὶ διὰ τοῦ περάματος καὶ διὰ τοῦ τοιούτου ἀποκρισιαρίου, τοῦ προσώπου λέγω καὶ τῶν δώρων, ὧν προσεκόμιζεν. Εἶδεν οὖν αὐτὸν ὁ ἀμηρᾶς μετὰ τιμῆς καὶ ἀγάπης ὅτι πλείστης καὶ τέλος εἶπε πρὸς αὐτόν· «Ἔχω ἡμέρας, ὅτι οὐχ ὑγιῶς ἔχω· ἀμὴ θέλω γενεῖν καλὰ καὶ θέλομεν φάγειν καὶ πιεῖν ὁμοῦ καὶ ὁμιλήσειν». Ἐκεῖνος δὲ μετὰ τρεῖς ἡμέρας ἀπέθανε.

8.1 Καὶ τὸν μὲν Λεοντάριν τὸ τυχὸν οὐκ ἐποίησαν, ἀλλ' ἦν εἰς τὴν κατούναν αὑτοῦ, καὶ τάχα θαυμάζων, πῶς οὐδὲν παρακαλεῖται αὐ τὸν ὁ αὐθέντης, ἵνα καὶ τὰς δουλείας αὐτοῦ ἀκούσῃ. Τούτου μαθόντος τὸν θάνατον αὐτοῦ κατ' αὐτὴν δὴ σχεδὸν τὴν ὥραν, ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὰς στράτας ἔκλεισαν κρυφίως τὰς φερούσας εἰς τὴν Πόλιν, καὶ πολλοὺς γραμματοκο μιστὰς ἀποστείλας ὁ Λεοντάρις, οὐδὲν τοὺς ἀφῆκαν νὰ διέλθουν. Καὶ ἡμέραι παρῆλθον, ἰδοὺ ἀπὸ τούτου τὸ κατὰ τῆς Πόλεως ἀπεκαλύφθη μυ στήριον· καὶ θροῦς μέγας ἐγένετο καὶ βουλὴ καὶ μελέτη· καὶ πολλοὺς ἐλέγχους ὁ ἅγιος ἔλαβε βασιλεὺς παρὰ τῶν βουλευόντων, ἵνα πιάσῃ αὐτόν, εἰς τὴν μονὴν τῆς Περιβλέπτου δι' αἰτίαν θανατικοῦ εὑρισ κομένου. 8.2 Μόλις οὖν ποτὲ δι' ἄλλης ὁδοῦ τῆς εἰς Μεσέμβριαν ἀπαγούσης στείλας ὁ Λεοντάρις ἄνθρωπον καὶ ἀπ' ἐκεῖ διὰ θαλάσσης ἐλθόντος, ἔφε ρε γραφήν, ὅτι ὁ ἀμηρᾶς ἀπέθανε· καὶ ἐγένετο τοῦτο δὴ τὸ Ἑσπέρας αὐλισθήσεται κλαυθμὸς καὶ εἰς τὸ πρωῒ ἀγαλλίασις. 8.3 Καὶ ἰδοὺ ἔπεσον εἰς ἑτέραν φροντίδα καὶ βουλὴν καὶ μελέτην, πότερον νὰ ἔχωσι τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν Μουράτην ἀγάπην καὶ νὰ παρα χωρήσωσιν εἶναι αὐτὸν αὐθέντην, ὡς καὶ τὰ ὁρκωμοτικὰ αὐτῶν διελάμ βανον, ἢ νὰ φέρωσι τὸν Μουσταφᾶν ἀπὸ τοῦ Μυζηθρᾶ καὶ ποιήσωσιν αὐτὸν αὐθέντην εἰς τὴν ∆ύσιν καὶ ὁ Μουράτης ἔνι εἰς τὴν Ἀνατολὴν αὐθέντης. Τοῦ μὲν ἁγίου βασιλέως καὶ πατρὸς τὸ πρῶτον βουλευομένου καὶ κρίνοντος δίκαιον ἐκ πολλῶν αἰτιῶν, τοῦ δὲ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ Καντα κουζηνοῦ ∆ημητρίου, ὅτι νὰ ποιήσουν τὸ δεύτερον, καὶ ὅτι δίδῃ τους καὶ τὴν Καλλίπολιν, μόλις δέ ποτε οἱονεὶ ὡς κατὰ παραχώρησιν δέδωκεν ἐξουσίαν ὁ ἅγιος βασιλεὺς τῷ υἱῷ αὑτοῦ· Ὡς θέλεις, ἐπειπών, ποίη σον· ἐγὼ γάρ εἰμι, υἱέ μου, καὶ γέρων καὶ