I Became A Genius Of The French Royal Family [EN]: Chapter 29

Now It’s Your Turn to Die

Thanks to Kaunitz’s slip-up, the pieces were slowly falling into place in my head.

Austria was definitely connected to my assassination.

Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean Austria is the mastermind.

From what I’ve gathered so far, the culprit is most likely someone on the French side.

If Austria were truly behind it, Kaunitz wouldn’t have made such a revealing remark. A culprit wouldn’t confess on their own unless they were insane.

So, what’s Austria’s angle?

Their desire for a marriage alliance was genuine. Realistically, they can’t handle Prussia, which is rapidly growing in power, on their own. In this situation, they wouldn’t do something foolish that would jeopardize an alliance that’s proceeding smoothly.

But it was too unsettling to dismiss it as completely unrelated.

Figuring out the connection between Austria and the assassination plot was the top priority right now.

For now, one thing to keep in mind is that Maria Theresa is worried about something. Probably something related to her daughter, Marie Antoinette.

The fact that she’s struggling with the choice between being a mother and a monarch is very important information.

But on the other hand, I also have doubts.

Wasn’t it already decided that Marie would be used as a political pawn in a marriage? Even if she was reluctant to send her daughter to a country that was once a bitter enemy, she should have been prepared for it.

Why is she worrying about it now?

It was hard to understand.

Then, Theresa must be worried about something else.

Kaunitz reacted strangely when it was mentioned that Marie and I were on good terms.

What could be troublesome if she and I were close?

Logically, they should be happy to have someone to help her adapt properly in a foreign land. Rather, Theresa or Kaunitz should be encouraging me to continue getting along with the princess.

This contradiction was difficult to understand.

In my head, all sorts of hypotheses and possible schemes were constantly being broken down and reassembled.

Just one more step and I can figure it out for sure.

And the person who would provide that last piece of the puzzle came into my room.

“You summoned me, Your Highness.”

“Count Vergennes, I’m sorry to call you when you’re so busy.”

“Not at all. The broad strokes are already complete, and only the details need to be adjusted. I’m not particularly busy right now.”

“Really? That’s good then. Can you tell me how far the agreement has progressed?”

Count Charles Gravier Vergennes readily nodded.

“The marriage partners have naturally been decided: His Highness Louis Auguste and Princess Maria Antonia. And Bishop Beaumont will thoroughly educate the princess so that her understanding of French culture reaches a certain level or higher. Now that Your Highness is providing invaluable assistance in supplying the smallpox vaccine, we plan to begin discussing compensation for it.”

“Is Kaunitz being cooperative?”

“Regarding the marriage, we agreed smoothly on everything, but… the vaccine is a bit delicate. It’s not that they don’t want to compensate us, but they want to see how things go before making a decision, so it’s difficult to pressure them.”

“It’s a long-term issue, so they can’t make a decision right away. That’s understandable.”

Charles Gravier went on to list things that could be obtained from Austria as compensation.

Even after talking for only a few minutes, it was clear that he was more devoted to diplomacy and national interests than anyone else. In the first place, this person was assigned to me by Louis XV, so he must be trustworthy.

“…In my humble opinion, it would be best if Your Highness actually visited the areas where smallpox has broken out and demonstrated its effectiveness, just as you did in France. And…”

“I’ll leave those practical details to you. More importantly, do you know how our people are doing? I feel bad because I’ve been too busy to pay attention to them.”

“Ah, yes. I have a general idea. Bishop Beaumont is busy educating the princess, as I mentioned before. Colonel Esterhazy seems to be quite busy, surprisingly. He keeps hanging around a man named Baron Thugut, who is an Austrian diplomat.”

“Colonel Esterhazy?”

Esterhazy is a famous noble family from Hungary.

Valentin Esterhazy, who came as the head of security, is also from that branch, so it wasn’t strange that he was friendly with Austrian officials.

But the fact that he’s spending so much time with diplomats is noteworthy.

Come to think of it, I remember Kaunitz personally assigned Baron Thugut to Esterhazy on my first day here.

There’s definitely something fishy about this.

“Colonel Esterhazy is a very diligent person. He checks the schedules of Your Highness, me, and Bishop Beaumont almost every day and redraws the escort routes. Thanks to him, I am completely relieved about our safety. But that diplomat has a certain… air about him. He doesn’t look trustworthy, so I don’t trust him. But that’s not my area of concern.”

“I see. Is that so.”

It’s too common for the person in charge of security to be the mastermind behind an assassination, so I was naturally considering it.

But the reason why I hadn’t taken it seriously was that if I died, Esterhazy’s career would be completely ruined.

Having been in charge of protecting the royal family and failing, no matter what excuses he made, they wouldn’t be accepted.

It’s not a problem that can be solved with an apology.

Even if Choiseul or Maupeou backed him up, it would be impossible.

So I hadn’t paid any attention to it until now.

But at that moment.

One hypothesis flashed through my mind like lightning.

A hypothesis that is still only a hunch and has no evidence, just a delusion.

Nevertheless, if my reasoning is correct, everything fits together.

Kaunitz’s meaningful remarks.

The fact that the diplomat he assigned is spending time with Esterhazy.

And Theresa’s state of mind, troubled by the fact that Marie Antoinette is close to me.

There was only one possible scenario that could explain everything at once.

The problem is that there’s no way to verify this.

No, there was a way.

It’s just that in order to solve and fix everything, I have to die and go back to the beginning.

I almost went crazy trying to endure the pain of regression this time, but I have to endure that pain, which has become several times longer, one more time?

Just imagining it makes me shudder.

I’d rather just die. No. If I die, I’ll go back again, so I can’t die.

It was truly a dilemma.

Even if I try to escape from reality, nothing will change, and the time limit is approaching, so I have to make a decision.

There are currently two paths to choose from.

Use myself as bait to find out the real culprit and step on their tail in the next regression.

And the other is to avoid assassination and continue to survive, even if I can’t find out the identity of the culprit.

Even if I rack my brains until I get dizzy, the answer was already decided from the beginning.

What would change even if I avoid the problem here in a hurry?

At least I have to stay in Austria for several months.

If I don’t root out the source of the problem, even if I survive here, I’ll die somewhere else.

If I don’t eat or sleep on the day I was assassinated, I might be able to get through that day, but there is a high possibility that I will die in a completely new way on another day.

It may only lead to dying two or three times instead of dying once.

And above all.

Unless I catch and devour the guy who committed this terrible act, I won’t be satisfied no matter how much I continue to live.

I have never felt the saying “The best defense is offense” as clearly as I do now.

“Count Vergennes, you know that there will be a banquet at Schönbrunn [the main summer residence of the Habsburg rulers] in a few days, right?”

“Of course.”

“I have something to tell you about that.”

Since it’s not certain who the culprit is, I won’t do the foolish thing of throwing bait to only one person.

Count Vergennes, whom I trust as much as possible, is no exception.

Since I’m prepared to give up my life, I have to do it thoroughly.

I will spread different bait to everyone on the suspect list and see who gets caught.

Charles Gravier listened to my message, nodded, and left the room.

I told Esterhazy, Beaumont, and other suspicious people slightly different stories.

I can guess who will take the bait among them, but in reality, a completely unexpected person may get caught.

Of course, no matter who gets caught, what I have to do will not change.

※※※

When you open your eyes, life always begins with pain.

A body torn to pieces.

It feels like a ritual that forcibly gathers a dying body and forcibly returns consciousness.

Everything was painful, including the blood flowing through the body, the movement of the internal organs, and the activation of the nerves.

The pain that makes it impossible to even distinguish what you are or where you are is engraved on the soul.

If a price is required for the mysterious miracle of returning from death, then this pain may be natural.

Only then did I understand.

I died again this time.

Even if it was a planned death, this feeling could not be familiar and should not be familiar.

If I have to get used to this pain, I would rather not come back to life and give up everything.

However, regardless of my will, at the end of the pain that feels like an eternity, the senses are revived and consciousness is pulled up.

With a spirit boiling with pain and anger that has broken through the critical point, the first day in Austria, which I am facing for the third time, begins again.

“Ah, by the way, there will be a concert here at Schönbrunn Palace in a few days. It’s the orchestra conducted by the famous Joseph Haydn. Would you like to go see it with me?”

A kind and gentle voice returns my scattered mind to reality.

Thanks to that word that I feel like I can memorize even with my eyes closed, reason has returned perfectly.

“If it is a stage directed by Haydn, the master of symphonies, I would like to see it once.”

“Oh, you like symphonies?”

“Of course. And if I can enjoy a symphony with the princess, it would be an honor for me.”

“Thank you. Then I’ll be looking forward to it.”

“Ah, Princess. If you don’t mind, can I see you a little before the concert? I would like to talk a little more and then go to see the stage together.”

From now on, there is no time to waste even a single second.

I will finish all preparations and welcome her until the day of the concert.

“Then shall we meet an hour before the concert? I will explain it to you so that you can enjoy Haydn’s music even more.”

“I would be grateful if you would do that.”

“Thank you. Rather, I am more grateful that you are with me. Oh, by the way, if you are interested in art, would you like to go see the paintings together?”

“I lack a lot of knowledge about paintings, but if the princess explains them to me, I think I can enjoy them too. Let’s do that.”

Mari, who was very excited, continued to talk about art and music for a long time before getting up from her seat.

As soon as I could no longer see her back, I sighed deeply and leaned back on the backrest.

Looking back now, it was a method close to gambling to some extent, but the result came out anyway.

I refuse to let the first day in Austria get any longer than this.

All the cards have been prepared and the information has been perfectly collected.

Twice since coming to Austria. Including everything I’ve experienced from my past life until now, it’s a total of five times.

I’ve been through it enough to be sick of it, and now my patience has run out.

So from now on, it’s time to fight back.

You’re all dead.