"What do you mean?"
Omar Pasha's smile vanished at once. Even wrapped in a lambskin coat, he felt a chill crawl down his spine.
"Omar Pasha, when a fire burns too fiercely, the normal thing to do is stop trying to save it, lest the flames leap onto you."
"Two generations of Sultans recognized my worth and showed me kindness. Queen Mother Shevkyevza entrusted me with heavy responsibility. Even if I died ten thousand times, I could never repay that trust.
"I will never betray the Sultan! Nor will I become a petty villain like Muhammad Ali!"
Faced with Omar Pasha's righteous declaration, Zaganos merely smiled faintly.
"Omar Pasha is a true man of loyalty and feeling, a true believer. That is why we follow you. But have you considered that the House of Ottoman has already betrayed the faith? They are nothing but lapdogs of the Westerners.
"Such people have lost Allah's protection. They will be burned alive by the flames they themselves have kindled.
"You need only avenge them, and everything will fall into place. How could your great undertaking possibly be compared to the petty scheming of someone like Muhammad Ali?"
The misbaha in Omar Pasha's hand—prayer beads, a religious implement—clicked and creaked as he rubbed them. After a long while, he finally asked, "But I am a Serbian."
Zaganos shook his head.
"I see no Serbian. I see only a devout Muslim, a hero who bravely fought the Russians, a loyal man who seeks vengeance for the Lord."
"How certain are you?"
"Ninety-nine percent."
"Good. Convene a war council. Here, we will wash away the humiliation the Russians have inflicted upon us for centuries!"
"As you command, my lord."
Half an hour later, in the war council chamber.
The generals in Omar's army were all deeply