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And the emperor, having ratified the agreement with Anna, sent her away with peace and honor, while he himself in every way sought to win over the protovestiarios and chose to honor him with the greatest things, so as even to promise to dignify him with the rank of Caesar, set out for the west. But he said he would scarcely accept the rank when it was offered then, only when he himself had accomplished some worthy deed for the Romans, so that he might receive it not as a gift but as a prize. But at that time, as there was a need for money, he himself, as he later assured his own people, 69 sought the money from the common treasury, but the council around the emperor deemed it right for it to be collected by a general levy. This was the tenth of the pronoia of those who held pronoiai. Which indeed was collected ostensibly from the rights of the lords, but the peasants paid the whole amount, since those men were powerful. When great sums of money had been collected from this, the protovestiarios, taking these funds, quickly set out with very large forces against Demetrias and the regions there, leading the forces on foot.

(26) His brother-in-law, Alexios Raoul, led the fleet, about eighty ships; and with him was the megas stratopedarches Synadenos. And at that time the fleet seemed most useful for the affairs of the Romans, even if after its return, having gained such renown, it was neglected so as to cause more harm than good at times. For these things were suspected, and there were some inclined to believe, who were pleased that it had been done this way, that since, with the emperor's effort, the church happened to be established in tranquility, every enemy was then checked and brought to inaction 70 by the will of God. From that point, some of the imperial officials and councillors introduced proposals, that the mercenary force for the ships was very costly, and that by paying their expenses into the public treasury, the ever-flowing empire would have an abundance of money, and by these means, through truces and treaties, the affairs of the empire would be carried on without struggle and without trouble. Persuading the emperor of these things, they failed to consider the majesty of the Roman empire, that from its beginning it was not of a nature to be content with its own possessions, but considered it a loss if it did not also acquire others, and that for the city of Constantine, which held power and possessed islands, it was impossible to rule without triremes, and this when the Italian power had been roused from its great stupor to recover what yesterday and the day before had been theirs and had been acquired for the Roman empire by the triremes. The emperor, as was likely, understood these things, possessing sufficiently even before reaching full age the highest imperial knowledge, and he held on to the fleet; but fate prevailed, and it was possible for those who spoke to persuade him. And the peacefulness of the time, with the rest also yielding to the Venetians 71 and Genoese, and with Charles especially being out of the way, made his mind easily swayed. So those who neglected the ships allowed a sufficient time alone, reckoned without any contributing factor, to lead to their ruin. And holding the military and fighting force assigned to these ships as of no account, they permitted some to take up menial trades for whatever profit was possible from them, and others to desert to the enemy, so that together with them they ravaged Roman territory in the manner of pirates. But at that time, as the protovestiarios was setting out, a very great multitude followed towards the west. And indeed, attacking Demetrias, he arranged his forces there, sending some for spoils and plunder, and using others for the rebuilding of the towns there, while also watching for the empress's action concerning her nephew Michael, as has been said. And the first of his tasks was to surround Demetrias with twenty-four wooden towers on that very day, and to dig a double trench around it, and to let water from the sea into 72 the trenches, and thus, proceeding freely and little by little, to rebuild the town with stones. For these reasons he also made truces, and seemed inactive towards his adversaries.

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καὶ κυρώσας ὁ βασιλεὺς τὴν Ἄνναν μετ' εἰρήνης ἀπέπεμπε καὶ τιμῆς, αὐτὸς δὲ παντοίως ὑποποιούμενος τὸν πρωτοβεστιάριον καὶ τιμᾶν αἱρούμενος τοῖς μεγίστοις, ὡς καὶ τῷ τοῦ Καίσαρος ἀξιώματι σεμνύειν καθυ πισχνεῖσθαι, πρὸς τὴν δύσιν ὥρμα. ὁ δὲ μόλις ἀξίωμα μὲν ἔλεγε τότε λαμβάνειν διδόντος, ὅτε καὶ αὐτὸς ἄξιόν τι Ῥωμαίοις ἐπεξεργάσεται κατόρθωμα, ὡς μὴ δωρεὰν ἀλλ' ἆθλον λαμβά νειν· τότε δὲ χρείας ἐνούσης χρημάτων αὐτὸς μὲν ἐκ τοῦ κοινοῦ ταμιείου, ὡς αὐτὸν διαβεβαιοῦσθαι πρὸς τοὺς οἰκείους ὕστερον, 69 ἐζήτει τὰ χρήματα, ἡ δὲ περὶ τὸν βασιλέα βουλὴ ἐκ κοινῆς συγ κροτήσεως συλλέγεσθαι ἐδικαίου. ἡ δ' ἦν τὸ τῆς προνοίας τῶν ἐχόντων προνοίας δέκατον. ὃ δὴ καὶ συνήγετο μὲν ὡς δῆθεν ἐκ τῶν δικαίων τῶν δεσποτῶν, τὸ πᾶν δ' οἱ παροικοῦντες ἀπετίν νυον δυναστευόντων ἐκείνων. συναχθέντων μὲν μεγάλων χρη μάτων ἐντεῦθεν, ταῦτα λαβὼν ὁ πρωτοβεστιάριος ἅμα πλεί σταις δυνάμεσιν ἐπὶ ∆ημητριάδος καὶ τῶν ἐκεῖ ταχέως ἐξώρμα, πεζῇ τὰς δυνάμεις ἄγων.

(26) τὸ δὲ ναυτικὸν ὁ ἐκείνου γαμ βρὸς Ῥαοὺλ Ἀλέξιος ἦγε, περί που τὰς ὀγδοήκοντα ναῦς· συνῆν δ' αὐτῷ καὶ ὁ μέγας στρατοπεδάρχης Συναδηνός. καὶ χρή σιμον ἐδόκει τὰ μέγιστα τότε ναυτικὸν τοῖς Ῥωμαίων πράγμασιν, εἰ καὶ μετὰ τὴν ὑποστροφὴν οὕτω δόξαν κατημελεῖτο ὡς ζημιοῦν πλέον ἢ συνοῖσον κατὰ καιρούς. ὑπενοεῖτο γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα, καὶ πρὸς τὸ πιστεύειν ἦσάν τινες οἷς ἤρεσκε τὸ οὕτω πεπρᾶχθαι, ὡς ἐπεί γε τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἐν ἀταραξίᾳ καταστῆναι ξυνέβη βασιλέως σπεύσαντος, πᾶν ἐντεῦθεν πολέμιον συσταλῆναι τότε καὶ ἀπρα 70 κτήσει τοῦ θεοῦ νεύοντος. ἐκεῖθεν δὲ καί τινες τῶν βασιλικῶν ἀρχόντων καὶ βουληφόρων βουλὰς εἰσῆγον, πολὺ μὲν τὸ ἀντερε τικὸν εἶναι πολὺ δὲ τὸ κατὰ τὰς ναῦς μισθοφορικόν, ὧν ἐκείνων μὲν τὰ τέλη τῷ δημοσίῳ ταμιείῳ καταβαλλόντων, χρημάτων εὐ πορεῖν πολυβδάλουσαν βασιλείαν, καὶ τούτοις κατὰ σπονδάς τε καὶ συνθεσίας ἀκονιτί τε καὶ ἀπραγμόνως διαφέρειν τὰ τῆς ἀρ χῆς. ταῦτ' ἐκεῖνοι πείθοντες βασιλέα, οὐκ ἐνιδόντες καὶ πρὸς τὸ μεγαλεῖον τῆς ἀρχῆς τῶν Ῥωμαίων, ὡς οὐχ οἵας τ' οὔσης ἀρχῆθεν τοῖς οἰκείοις ἐμμένειν, ἀλλὰ ζημίαν ἡγουμένης εἰ μὴ καὶ ἄλλα προσλάβοιτο, καὶ ὅτι τῆς Κωνσταντίνου κρατούσης καὶ νήσους ἐχούσης ἀδύνατα δίχα τριήρεων ἄρχειν, καὶ ταῦτα τοῦ Ἰταλικοῦ ἐξ ὅτι πλείστης κορύζης ἀνεγηγερμένου πρὸς ἀνά ληψιν ὧν χθὲς καὶ πρὸ τρίτης ἐκείνων ἦσαν καὶ τῇ ἀρχῇ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἐκ τῶν τριήρεων προσεκτήθησαν. ταῦτα βασιλεὺς μὲν ὡς εἰκὸς ξυνεώρα, ἱκανῶς ἔχων καὶ πρὸ τῆς ἐς ἅπαν ἡλικίας τῆς ἐς μάλιστα βασιλικῆς ἐπιστήμης, καὶ τῶν νεῶν εἴχετο· ἀλλ' ἐνίκα τὸ μόρσιμον, καὶ τοῖς λέγουσι πείθειν ἦν. καὶ τὸ εἰρηνι κὸν δὲ τοῦ καιροῦ, συνυποκλινομένων καὶ τῶν λοιπῶν Βενετι 71 κοῖς τε καὶ Γεννουΐταις, ἐκποδὼν μάλιστα καὶ τοῦ Καρούλου γε νομένου, εὐδιάθετον τὴν γνώμην ἐτίθει. οἱ μὲν οὖν τὰς ναῦς παριδόντες ἐνῆκαν ἐκείναις χρόνον ἱκανὸν καὶ μόνον δίχα τοῦ συν εργοῦντος εἰς φθορὰν λογιζόμενον. τὸ δὲ ἐπὶ ταύταις ἀποτε ταγμένον στρατιωτικόν τε καὶ μάχιμον παρ' οὐδὲν ἔχοντες, τοῖς μὲν βαναύσας τέχνας μεταχειρίζειν ἐφῆκαν εἰς ἀποστροφήν, ὁπό ση τις ἐκεῖθεν δυνατὴ ἦν, τοῖς δὲ καὶ αὐτομολεῖν τοῖς ἐχθροῖς, ὥστε συνάμ' ἐκείνοις πειρατῶν τρόπῳ τὴν Ῥωμαίων κακοῦν. Τότε δὲ τοῦ πρωτοβεστιαρίου ἐξορμῶντος πολύ τι πλῆθος εἵπετο ἐπὶ δύσεως. καὶ δὴ προσβαλὼν ∆ημητριάδι ἐκεῖ συνέ ταττε τὰς δυνάμεις, οὓς μὲν πέμπων εἰς σκῦλα καὶ ἁρπαγάς, οἷς δ' ἐπὶ ἀνοικοδομὴν τῶν ἐκεῖ χρώμενος πολισμάτων, ἀποκα ραδοκῶν καὶ τὴν τῆς βασιλίσσης πρᾶξιν ἐπὶ τῷ ἀνεψιῷ Μιχαήλ, ὡς λέλεκται. καὶ πρῶτον αὐτῷ τῶν ἔργων πύργοις ξυλίνοις αὐ θημερὸν εἰς εἴκοσι καὶ τέσσαρας ποσουμένοις περιβαλέσθαι ∆η μητριάδα, διχῇ τε περιταφρεῦσαι, καὶ ὕδωρ ἐκ θαλάσσης ἐνεῖ 72 ναι τοῖς τάφροις, καὶ οὕτως ἀνέδην κατ' ὀλίγον κτίζοντα ἀνεγεί ρειν λίθοις τὸ πόλισμα. διὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἀνοχὰς ἐποιεῖτο, καὶ ἀεργὸς πρὸς τοὺς ἀντιπάλους ἐφαίνετο.