June 29, Crown Prince’s temporary palace study.
Crown Prince Charles Durand put down the border military intelligence report in his hand, his brow furrowed.
“What on earth are those Empire folks up to lately? Frequently sending scouts to harass the border—are they trying to provoke a war?”
There was a clear note of displeasure in his low voice.
His chief spy and advisor, Renault de Marcor, paused for a moment before answering, “According to intelligence, the forces active on the border belong to the Count Palatine of Vinland, Elector Otto Heidelberg. His territory borders Wallonia to the west and our Kingdom to the south, and has always been a traditional springboard for the Empire to invade our Nation. However…”
“However what?” Charles pressed.
“The recent Great Plague isn’t just ravaging our Kingdom; the situation on the Empire’s side is equally serious, perhaps even worse. The territory of the Count of Vinland has developed agriculture and is the Empire’s largest grape-growing region, rich in resources, densely populated, and economically prosperous. Because of this, the blow dealt by the plague has been exceptionally heavy.”
“The Count Palatine’s frequent dispatch of troops across the border is likely not for the purpose of starting a war, but rather to plunder our border villages, seizing people to make up for the massive economic losses and labor shortages caused by the plague.”
“That is why I despise those damn Empire bandits!” Charles snorted coldly, his fingers tapping on the desk. “If the bandits can strike, so can I! They dare to come and rob us, so why can’t we go and rob them? We have always been peace-loving, but I didn’t expect the Empire folks to think we were easy targets!”
Renault’s lip twitched slightly.
Peace-loving? Your Highness, does your conscience not hurt when you say that?
The Lorraine Kingdom’s bellicosity was famous in the surrounding areas; it really couldn’t be associated with being “peace-loving.”
“Your Highness, have you forgotten the lesson of your uncle?” Renault reminded him cautiously.
“Your uncle continued the strategy of several previous kings, invading and controlling the city-states of Northern Pannotia to compete with the Empire for hegemony over the Pannotia Peninsula, only to end up mired in a swamp of war.”
“We and the Empire have consumed too much national strength in this war that has lasted for over sixty years. Your uncle eventually emptied the treasury but gained nothing, and finally, in an attempt to fill the financial hole, he incensed the Sword-Bearing Nobles…”
Regarding the dangerous topic of the King, Renault stopped while he was ahead and returned to the subject of Pannotia:
“In the end, the nations of Pannotia broke free from both our control and the Empire’s, declaring independence and forming the Pannotia Alliance. The result…”
“The result was that those fools refused our aid, thinking they could protect themselves with money and mercenaries. As it turned out, their mercenaries were defenseless before the Empire’s Crested Nobles and quickly collapsed entirely under the slaughter.”
Charles took over the conversation, his tone mocking.
“Originally, when they were still part of the Empire, the Empire’s army would at most plunder villages and extort cities. Once they declared their separation from the Empire, the Empire people went mad with joy—they could finally engage in a thorough spree of smashing, looting, and burning!”
“Millennium-old city-states and wealthy lands were turned to ash in an instant. Many cities in that region, once famous for their economic prosperity, remain ghost towns to this day.”
“Therefore, once a conflict begins, when and how it ends is no longer within our control, Your Highness.”
Renault concluded, “We and the Empire are like two dying giants, both waiting for the other to fall first so we can survive a little longer by devouring the other’s corpse.”
“Sigh, forget it.” Charles sighed and made a decision. “Strengthen border defenses and issue an order: there will be heavy rewards for capturing or killing Empire spies and scouts. If necessary, implement a scorched earth policy. We must not leave a single grain of food for those damn Empire bandits!”
“Yes, Your Highness, I will arrange it immediately.” Renault bowed, preparing to leave.
“Wait.” Charles suddenly called out to him, a hint of interest appearing on his face. “Renault, you have the Bloodline of the Sigil. Did you… feel anything special last night?”
Renault was momentarily stunned.
Last night, his Bloodline of the Sigil had indeed been unusually active, and it seemed all Crestbearers in the Capital had similar reactions, even causing some public order disturbances among the sons of Sword-Bearing Nobles.
The problem was… how did the Crown Prince know?
Was that rumor true—that the King actually possesses the Bloodline of the Sigil as well?
To this day, no one in the Kingdom knows if the Durand family truly possesses an Engraved Mark.
The King has never publicly displayed Sigil abilities, but they have never denied it either.
Most rulers are keen to associate themselves with historical legends to show off their noble Bloodline of the Sigil.
Only the Durand family has truly continued a millennium of rule while remaining tight-lipped about the matter of their Bloodline.
In this Noble society that worships Engraved Marks, the King’s deliberate concealment of their bloodline seemed extremely abnormal and mysterious.
Just as Renault was rapidly thinking of how to answer this sensitive question, a Royal messenger rushed in, rescuing him from his awkwardness.
“Your Highness, it is extremely urgent! An urgent letter for you from Grand Inquisitor Guillaume St. Clair of the Inquisition!”
Charles and Renault glanced at each other, both feeling somewhat surprised.
It was the first time the Church, especially the Inquisition with its high degree of independence, had taken the initiative to contact the King.
“Let me see.”
Charles took the letter, broke the Seal, and began to read carefully.
As he read, he suddenly burst into loud laughter.
Renault was baffled by the laughter.
Charles handed him the letter, his face full of delight: “Look at this, Renault! The crisis of our Kingdom might just be delayed a bit longer!”
Renault took the letter and scanned it quickly, soon understanding the reason for Charles’s ecstasy.
This was a report on a case of Heresy personally submitted by the Grand Inquisitor of the Inquisition.
Usually, when the Judgement Court arrests someone, they just send the evidence to the High Court afterward to go through the motions.
But this time was different—the Heretic they caught was actually a core figure of the Moderate Faction and the Kingdom’s Minister of Finance, Marquis Etienne Fugger!
The content of the letter was detailed, and the attached evidence was conclusive; it was an ironclad case.
This was indeed worth a personal letter from the Grand Inquisitor.
According to the Holy Covenant signed between the Church and the King, cases involving such high-level officials of the Kingdom must be handled by the King.
Theoretically, this required the King’s personal Judgement. But His Majesty the King loathed Nobles; if this case, which involved so many people, fell into his hands, heads would likely roll throughout the entire Noble circle.
And Princess Charlotte, as the leader of the Moderate Faction, would likely fight desperately to protect this key general of her camp.
The position of Minister of Finance was too critical; it was the lifeblood of the Moderate Faction.
After much thought, the only person who could handle this case without completely shattering the Kingdom’s delicate political balance was Crown Prince Charles.
This letter itself also implied the Inquisition’s intent to curry favor and do a favor for the Crown Prince; the deeper meaning behind it was worth pondering.
“Renault,” Charles suddenly asked, “who do you think would be appropriate to serve as the new Minister of Finance?”
This sentence was practically a death sentence for the wealthy Marquis.
Renault immediately understood Charles’s line of thinking: this was an excellent opportunity to strike the Moderate Faction, but Charles did not intend to uproot them entirely.
The reason was simple—the King had never truly split.
Charles, Charlotte, and even their father the King were essentially in an alliance.
Neither the Robe Nobility nor the Sword-Bearing Nobles were any good; keeping them in a state of mutual checks and balances was the only way to maintain the King’s rule.
Therefore, the Minister of Finance must fall; his massive wealth could replenish the Kingdom’s exhausted treasury, while also allowing the Crown Prince to win great prestige among the Sword-Bearing Nobles (since they would also get a share of the spoils).
But the problem lay in the fact that the position of Minister of Finance was vital and could never be handed over to the Sword-Bearing Nobles, otherwise their Greed would accelerate the Nation’s collapse.
At the same time, it could not be easily handed back to Princess Charlotte, as the drama of their opposition still had to be played out.
So, in the entire Kingdom, was there a Robe Noble who was proficient in commerce and finance, belonged to no faction, would not easily offend anyone, and yet had some connection to the Crown Prince?
Thinking of this, Renault almost instantly thought of the only candidate—Viscount Bernard de Laval!
His surprise was practically written on his face.
Charles knew they were thinking of the same person, so he said with a smile, “The Minister of Finance was refusing to release the final payments for the Laval House’s projects, and in the blink of an eye, he himself became a Heretic. Of course, the evidence is solid; he got what he deserved. But Renault, don’t you think… this is too much of a coincidence?”
“Allen de Laval performed a Confession before. Although most Nobles just took it as a joke… he has entered and exited the Church’s headquarters many times, and even managed to walk out of the Judgement Court unscathed. Add to that this letter… Hmph, it seems he has made a connection with the Church and paid me back a favor in the process.” Charles analyzed.
He had actually been following intelligence on Allen all along; he was even the first to know about Livia’s proposal for a Duel.
At the time, this serious military leader had almost failed to suppress a laugh upon hearing the news.
This Allen de Laval was too interesting. It was the first time Charles had heard of a Marriage Contract turning into a Duel.
At the thought of the Count of the Borderlands, whom his father valued, losing face so badly in this matter—which also indirectly slapped his father’s face—a surge of pleasure welled up in Charles’s heart.
As for how Allen de Laval connected with the Church, to be honest, Charles didn’t care much.
Instead, it proved that the Laval House was determined to remain neutral, which was a good thing.
In such a sensitive period, a Minister of Finance with a neutral stance was precisely what was needed to push through those financial reform plans that had been stalled by constant bickering.
After all, reform was urgent; if they didn’t change, the Kingdom could only wait for bankruptcy!
Bernard de Laval was of the first generation promoted from merchant to Noble, and his abilities were sufficient for the vital post of Minister of Finance.
As for the criticism his sudden rise would provoke… wasn’t that even better?
Even if he wanted to get on good terms with the Robe Nobility, it would be impossible now!
The more the Crown Prince and Renault thought about it, the more perfect they felt this was.
This Minister of Finance position had to go to Bernard; he couldn’t refuse even if he wanted to!
In a few days, the “St. Nora Sigil Academy Freshman Banquet” hosted by Charlotte would be held.
Charles decided to go and see for himself exactly what kind of man this Allen—who was evaluated as “no ordinary man”—really was.
He even felt that Livia proposing a Duel might mean she truly liked Allen.
She was a warrior, and using the result of a Duel to determine domestic status was very much in line with the thinking of the Sword-Bearing Nobles.
These two were both very interesting.
Charles was even looking forward to seeing what kind of sparks would fly if they reconciled at high speed after their Duel.
This Crown Prince was also enjoying the gossip with great interest.
Allen probably could never have imagined that the Crown Prince, who had killed his father and tried to kill him in the previous timeline, had unknowingly come to regard the Laval House as trusted aides and pillars of the state in this one.
Even more terrifying was that the Crown Prince was completely unaware that the Robe Nobility was collectively jumping into the camp of Revolution!
After Bernard became the Minister of Finance, it would be as easy as turning over a hand for Allen’s United Bank to obtain a Royal charter, and it might even be granted some of the functions of an acting national treasury.
With the Nation’s Credibility backing it, the United Bank’s appeal would far exceed any advertisement. It would leap from being a private bank to a “quasi-Central Bank.”
At the same time, the bank’s issuance of paper money (Bank Notes) would receive official tacit approval or even support, making them a quasi-currency in domestic circulation.
The emergence of credit currency would greatly accelerate capital flow and accumulation, allowing the strength of the Robe Nobility (the bourgeoisie) to grow rapidly.
Under the temptation of profit, the Moderate Faction would only become more steadfast in supporting Allen’s revolutionary cause.
After all, they were already tied to the same chariot as the United Bank; they would share in both glory and ruin.
Furthermore, under his father’s protection, Allen’s revolutionary cause would also take on a “legal” cloak.
Bernard could “legally” prioritize Royal and national orders (army uniforms, weapon maintenance, road construction, fortification repairs) to the enterprises associated with the Mutual Aid Association controlled by Allen, providing a steady cash flow and expansion opportunities for the Revolution.
The Workers’ Patrol could transform into a Royal-sanctioned “Urban Enforcement Squad” or “Canal Patrol,” legally training and arming personnel.
Members of Dawn’s Children could penetrate the tax bureau, customs, and postal system, building a massive shadow network hidden within the state machinery.
The Minister of Finance’s office was the intersection of the Kingdom’s intelligence; Dawn’s Children could use it to obtain the financial vulnerabilities of the Nobles, lists of foreign spies, army deployment and logistics reports…
This intelligence would be a priceless treasure for future struggles!
And Bernard’s financial reforms, with the full support of the Robe Nobility and the assistance of Allen’s modern knowledge, might truly be able to temporarily reverse the Kingdom’s financial decline, improve the lives of the people, and create the opportunity for the arrival of the Revolution.
Even if he stepped down in the future, the prestige he accumulated among the people would be very real!
The Crown Prince’s little calculations were unknowingly pushing the Laval House to the peak of power while also placing a noose around his own neck.
“Call Charlotte over… No, Renault, get the guards. We’ll go find her ourselves and hold a ‘financial meeting’!” Charles ordered with high spirits.