((Changing a few aspects of the story to make it more dramatic, no offense
))
There were a few Phoenix guards surrounding the building, but his sharpshooters (whom he had personally trained) made short work of them. Then his battalion of veteran commandos kicked down the door and charged inside, swords drawn. Anybody inside who resisted was captured and taken into custody as a suspected Phoenix collaborator. The building was secure within minutes, upon which Alejandro himself entered, accompanied by his brother, Cesar, and some of his officers. He congratulated his men on their success before turning to the captured guards.
"Who are you guarding?" he demanded.
The guard, too scared to act otherwise, nervously pointed upstairs.
Alejandro nodded to his men, and he walked up the steps, his pistol loaded and ready just in case. He was always a talented shot with his pistol and could not miss.
He pushed open a door and entered the room upstairs. Huddled in the far corner were two nobles he recognized from his time at court: Antoni de Trastámara and his wife, Princess Margaret of France. The spymaster was right about the target being important. If he could get them out of Madrid and to France, that could possibly convince the French to intervene on behalf of the imperials.
"Who are you?" demanded Antoni.
"My name is Alejandro de Leon," Alejandro said, "I am a Captain-General in the Imperial Hispanian Army and the Marshal of the Realm. My men have just killed the rebels holding you hostage. We are going to get you out of this city and to France."
He heard them sigh with relief. "Thank heavens!" said Margaret. "Thank you so much, Marshal Leon!"
With the rest of the city secured, it was quite simply getting the nobles out of Madrid and to Alejandro's estates in Leon, which thankfully remained unscathed by the war. From there Alejandro took them to one of the harbors in his domains and put them on the first ship to Bordeaux, with some guards of course. A little bit later, he heard that the nobles had arrived in France unharmed, where he assumed that they would try to convince the court to intervene. His work done, he returned to his estate in Leon, where he looked over his plans for the defense of the region while waiting for further instructions from Napoli.
((Private))
However, he then heard that the Chancellor had taken credit for the extraction of the nobles. While he was angry on the inside that his participation had been overlooked, he decided that now was not the time to act. Any "reminders" to the Empress Dowager of his contributions would likely be interpreted as a power grab and destabilize the imperial cause. He decided to discuss this with the Emperor at some other time.
He realized he had another idea to speak with the Emperor on. Montsegur had proposed a constitution, hoping to make himself into a "King of Carthage" (like that worked out the last time there was a Carthage) and to control the Emperor like a puppet. While this proposal was blatantly a way for Montsegur to formalize and legitimize his power, it nevertheless was somewhat popular among certain groups of Hispanians who wanted change or reform of some kind. The imperial cause, supporting the status quo, did not have such an advantage. He quickly wrote up a proposed reform that would grant his side such an advantage and set off for Napoli (once he was authorized to do so), leaving Cesar and some veteran officers in charge of defending Leon, Asturias, and Castile.
((Private - Emperor Alfons IX
@Michaelangelo))
"Your Imperial Highness," he said, bowing in respect, "Thank you for granting this private audience with me. I come before you to discuss two things. The first matter is the recent securing of the lands of the former Kingdom of Castile for the Imperial cause and the extraction of Prince Antoni de Trastamara and Princess Margaret of France ((assume I used the correct title for the Prince)) to Bordeaux, for which due to my overwhelming dedication to the cause decided to let the Chancellor receive credit for. I am proud to inform you that Castile is now a bastion for the Imperials and will be a bastion from which to launch an invasion of the Phoenix's home regions from my bases in Leon and Asturias. Currently I am awaiting further orders on how to proceed next and am ready to return to Castile if needed. But that is not the main reason I'm here.
"The second matter is on Montsegur's proposal of a constitution, one more strict on the monarch's powers than any other currently in existence in other parts of Europe. I am a firm believer in rule by divine right and would like to see it continue throughout your long and prosperous reign. However, Montsegur's idea of a constitution is somewhat popular among the Hispanian people. So, I would like to propose a form of government that would counter the enemy proposal's appeal. We don't need a constitution; such a legal document binds Your Majesty's power and limits you authority, weakening the state irreparably. But I do believe that the support of the people is necessary to a long, peaceful, and prosperous reign of a monarch. So we must expand the government's bureaucracy and administration so that it includes the most talented of your subjects, maximizing the efficiency of the government. I believe we could learn from the bureaucracy of the Eastern Roman Empire during its heyday and from the so-called 'meritocracy' of the Chinese, where supposedly anybody could advance in society should they have the talent to do so, while the authority and the power of the emperor is upheld. It would be wise if we could apply some of the ideas of the 'Enlightenment' that has swept Europe in the past few decades and use them as inspiration to reform and strengthen the government. This idea would have constitutionalism's appeal to the people without limiting your power at all. I would like to hear your opinions on these proposed reforms, Your Imperial Highness."
Alejandro handed the Emperor a bunch of papers covered with neatly-written notes detailing his proposed meritocratic reforms.
((Proposing Enlightened Despotism as a postwar government type, as well as politely and subtly "reminding" the Emperor of my role in securing Castile. He's just a kid anyways, right?
))