to him and Andreas had been halved to account for his absence. Despite his return to the city, the two brothers continued to only receive half of the previously agreed amount, getting only 150 ducats a month instead of 300. In despair of this financial situation, and knowing that he would not receive satisfactory offers in Western Europe, Manuel again left Rome in the spring of 1476 at the age of 21. Much to the surprise of everyone else involved, Manuel travelled to Constantinople and threw himself on the mercy of Mehmed II. Having been born after the city's fall, Manuel had never seen Constantinople before and would probably have been uncertain of the kind of reception he would receive. In contrast to his reception in Milan and Vaudémont, Mehmed generously received Manuel and provided him with an estate, income (a military salary of 100 aspers a day) and a pair of female concubines. The arrangement was similar to the one experienced by Manuel's uncle Demetrios Palaiologos in the Ottoman Empire a few years prior and Manuel lived happily in the city until the end of his life. As many other Greeks in the Ottoman Empire, Manuel remained a Christian until his death. In Constantinople he became known as "el Ghazi" ("holy warrior") and he might have served in the Ottoman navy. With his two concubines, or possibly a wife, Manuel fathered at least two sons; John and Andreas, named after Manuel's brother. John died young and as a Christian, but Andreas converted to Islam. Manuel died at some point during the reign of Mehmed's son and successor, Bayezid II (1481–1512). Little is known of the further life of his son Andreas, who is last attested in the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent (r. 1520–1566). English historian Steven Runciman writes that Andreas took the Muslim name Mehmet Pasha and served as a court official in Constantinople. Neither of Manuel's two sons are believed to have had children of their own. With their deaths, the descendants of the immediate relatives of the last few Byzantine emperors died out. In popular culture A fictionalized version of Manuel appears as an antagonist in the video game Assassin's Creed: Revelations, where he is portrayed as a member of the Templar Order who seeks to retake Constantinople from the Ottomans and re-establish the Byzantine Empire, with himself as emperor. He is also placed in charge