I Became A Genius Of The French Royal Family [EN]: Chapter 158

< Crossroads of Choice >

Perhaps it was thanks to my rigorous education, but Louis XVI surprisingly showed that he could deliver when it mattered.

‘The conditions presented by the nobles last time were a kind of ultimatum disguised as a compromise. Such insolent behavior can never be accepted.’

Originally, even a timid person gains courage if they have a reliable backer to support them, even if they go a little overboard.

And Louis XVI’s trust in me had now reached almost the realm of faith.

As the King took such a firm stance, the nobles retreated into seclusion, saying they would come up with another compromise.

“As you said, they can’t do anything when I take a strong stance. I should have done this sooner.”

“Of course. Your Majesty is the King of this country.”

The nobles’ original aim was to provoke this extreme reaction from the King, so it was going according to plan.

Still, if possible, I hoped they would just give in and come in without using harsh measures.

In this situation, my wife and children were the only ones who could soothe my complicated feelings.

I wanted to see my family, so I quickly left Versailles and returned to Paris.

I wanted to see their faces, which I wouldn’t be able to see for a while, for as long as possible.

“Daddy’s home~”

“Daddy, let’s play chess~!”

As I entered the palace, the children, who had been studying, threw their books aside and ran towards me.

Surely they don’t like it this much just because they don’t have to study when I come?

Anyway, a day passes quickly as I play with the children with all my might and talk to Marie.

Marie, who had been lying silently on the bed, slipped next to me and asked.

“You seem to have a complicated mind today?”

“Hmm? Was it that obvious?”

“I can tell just by looking at your eyes. If you have something you want to say, go ahead. I’ll listen.”

Marie got up from the bed, picked up a bottle of wine, and came back.

It seems she had prepared in advance knowing this would happen.

Sometimes I wonder if my wife’s intuition is almost in the realm of mind reading.

I love my wife more than anyone else, but I can’t see through her to this extent just by looking at her eyes.

Is this why women say men are dense?

I don’t want to admit it, but I have to.

“Actually, I was hoping you could take the children somewhere for a while…”

“Why? Is there a big event that the entire royal family has to attend?”

“No, it’s not that, but I was hoping you could stay in Austria for about a month and then come back. I’ve already finished talking with His Majesty Joseph II, so you just need to go and relax. You’ve never been to the place where Empress Theresa is buried, have you?”

“Well, I would like to go to my mother’s grave, but… is that okay?”

It is an unwritten rule of this era that a princess who has left home cannot easily return to her hometown.

So Marie was unable to attend Theresa’s funeral when she died.

“This visit is nominally to resolve a major diplomatic issue. So there won’t be any problems.”

Anyway, the fact that Marie and the children went to Austria will become such an insignificant issue that no one will care about it anymore.

“Is it because of the commotion going on outside right now? Are you expecting the conflict between the social classes to get bigger instead of being resolved? So you’re trying to get us out of the way in case the sparks fly this way.”

“To be honest, that’s the main purpose. But it’s not because I think it’s really dangerous. It’s just to prepare for the worst-case scenario.”

I don’t think it will happen, but there’s no guarantee that none of the nobles who are really cornered will do anything rash.

Of course, if Marie or my family died, I was prepared to end my life without hesitation.

I don’t care if my mind collapses or not.

The problem is that even if I reset after finding out that something went wrong with my family, there’s no guarantee that I can go back to the way I was before.

What if I went back to before I died, but my family was still in the same bad situation?

My mysterious ability is a power that guarantees my safety, but it doesn’t guarantee the safety of my loved ones.

I needed to put in place safety measures that were several times more thorough than now.

In that respect, if I send them to another country, I can rest assured that even if the domestic nobles go crazy, they will be safe.

“···Has the stage where things can be resolved peacefully already passed?”

“It’s not that, but if they were going to give in now, they would have given in a long time ago. Both the nobles and the commoners.”

“Okay. I don’t want to show the children a Paris full of bloodshed, so I’ll do as you say.”

A parent’s heart is the same in any era.

Even if it’s something that can’t be helped, I didn’t want to show the children the scenes that would unfold in the future.

No, not just the children.

I also hoped that Marie would stay away from such scenes of violence and madness as much as possible.

The fact that people die and blood flows does not change, whether it is a just reform or something that is unavoidable for the future.

In the distant future, it may be recorded as an achievement that is praised, but if you evaluate it coldly, it is just the result of a plot.

What would Marie say if she knew all the facts?

I already know the answer.

She would affirm all my choices.

That’s why there are scenes that I don’t want to show her even more.

Perhaps among those who will have their heads cut off, there will be quite a few people who used to talk to Marie.

In many ways, the mental burden is bound to be great.

Well, whatever the case, in the end, there is only one choice I can make.

Let’s end the situation as quickly and swiftly as possible.

※※※

Now that the King has ignored the nobles’ ultimatum, there is only one option left.

The Duke of Chartres emphasized that the game must be decided before the year changes.

“The longer we delay, the more likely information will leak, and if that happens, all that will be left for us is destruction. The Duke of Orléans is by no means an easy man. He may already be expecting us to take a hard line.”

“···Then isn’t it dangerous?”

“That’s why we need to move faster, more boldly, and more powerfully than the Duke of Orléans expects.”

“Specifically, what should we do?”

This isn’t the Middle Ages, and the army isn’t something that local lords can raise whenever they want.

In that sense, the Duke of Chartres’ existence was like welcome rain for the nobles.

“There are already many nobles in the upper ranks of the military who share our views. The same goes for the provinces. As long as we can secure weapons, recruiting soldiers is a piece of cake.”

“Isn’t that weapon the most important thing?”

“We’ve already figured out a way to get them. All the top ranks of the military are nobles, so there’s nothing difficult about it. Besides, we also have Marquis de Launay, the governor of the Bastille [a fortress and prison in Paris]. We will continue to smuggle weapons out over the next month or so.”

“If we take the army and occupy Paris and Versailles, won’t the citizens rise up?”

“Unless we are prepared, what problem is there when we are already heavily armed? It would be better if they rise up. Just kill them all as an example and they will calm down.”

Once we have perfect armaments, we don’t even need to pay attention to the noisy bourgeois [middle class] and commoners who are causing trouble now.

As the discussion flowed smoothly, Marquis de Belille cautiously pointed out one shortcoming.

“But is there any guarantee that things will go so well? It is certainly a good idea to recruit troops from our territories outside. But the people are not fools either. This is obviously treason, so will they easily join us?”

“That’s right… the officers are all nobles, but the non-commissioned officers and soldiers are commoners. Will they follow our orders…”

The commoners who live in the provinces are insensitive to the trends of the times.

So it won’t be difficult to conscript soldiers right now, but it’s questionable whether they will listen if we tell them to advance to Paris.

However, the Duke of Chartres opened his mouth as if he had been waiting for this question.

“There’s no problem. There are plenty of ways to trick the soldiers. We didn’t start a rebellion. Rather, it is for the future of France. We are raising an army to punish the evil enemies who are occupying His Majesty’s side and plunging the country into chaos by colluding with England.”

“···So you’re saying that we should pretend that all of this is for His Majesty and France?”

“We’re not pretending. If the class system collapses and the discipline of society is shaken, great chaos will come to this country. And who would be most pleased to see this? It’s England!”

Even as times change, human nature does not change easily.

In the past, the phrase ‘It’s all because of those Habsburgs’ was an invincible propaganda tool, but now, if you insist that ‘It’s all because of England,’ most things will be accepted.

What was the reason why the Duke of Chartres’ family was wiped out?

It was because he was charged with leaking national secrets to England.

If that hadn’t happened, he wouldn’t have lost everything to the point of being unable to recover.

“Anyway, if you do as I tell you, there won’t be any problem bringing the soldiers. All that’s left is to maintain the security of the plan.”

“If this leaks out, everyone will have their heads cut off, so there’s no way anyone would blurt it out.”

“Of course, no one will rashly open their mouths. However, we must always keep in mind the existence of a traitor. So, to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, I will let you know the exact timing when all preparations are complete.”

“Well… there were traitors in the Estates-General [a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm] voting hall, so there’s no way there won’t be any here. I understand.”

As Marquis de Launay said, the existence of more than 20 traitors who voted for the commoners in the Estates-General has not yet been identified.

The reason why the Duke of Chartres’ father, the late Duke of Orléans, was beheaded by Christian was the same.

It was because he did not notice the existence of a traitor lurking right next to him.

Since this was advice based on experience, none of the nobles could ignore the Duke of Chartres’ words.

As a result, everything has been going according to plan so far.

Chartres is confident that he will be able to fulfill all of Christian’s requests smoothly if things continue like this.

But there is one thing.

‘Something feels strange.’

No matter how hard he racked his brains, there was one thing he couldn’t understand.

‘That Christian is handing over the reins of the plan entirely to me and doing nothing?’

The plan that he had heard from Christian was as follows.

Gather the nobles who support the rebellion, lead the army, and set a date for the uprising.

Then, if he leaks the schedule, Christian will lead the soldiers stationed in Paris and Versailles and suppress the nobles in advance.

Of course, it’s not an impossible strategy.

If the nobles’ armies are defeated individually before they gather in one place, it would be possible with just a handful of standing troops in Paris and Versailles.

But this is a plan that can only be carried out if the Duke of Chartres is fully trusted.

What if he changes his mind in the middle and tries to ruin the plan?

The troops in Paris and Versailles alone can never stop it?

One piece of the puzzle that didn’t fit was confusing his mind.

Was there something he was missing?

A sense of unease that only he, who recognized Christian’s abilities more than anyone else, could feel.

All those who ignored this feeling became Christian’s prey.

He will not follow in his father’s footsteps.

The Duke of Chartres immediately released his henchmen and began an investigation.

There was a man who, like himself, had been humiliated by Christian.

A noble who had rashly uttered the word manipulation at the Estates-General and suffered a great setback brought surprising news.

“It was as the Duke suspected. After investigating, I found out that a soldier carrying Christian’s letter boarded a ship heading to the New World. Perhaps he intends to bring troops from New France?”

“I see. So he was anticipating our movements.”

Chartres, who had never heard of such a thing from Christian, was convinced.

From the beginning, he did not trust him even a little bit.

Far from trusting him, perhaps he was planning to tie him up with the nobles and get rid of him.

‘Damn it. Then the only way I can take is…’

As he failed to make a proper decision and kept postponing the date.

One piece of good news flew in from Africa.

“A significant number of French warships coming from New France were hit by a storm and had to significantly change their course! They are currently forced to stay in a port in French Africa…”

The Duke of Chartres’ eyes lit up at the informants’ report.

Worrying that he might have received distorted information, he spent more time collecting intelligence from various sources.

The results were the same.

A significant number of the New France troops, who were Christian’s insurance, were stranded in Africa.

So what to do now?

The ambition that he had been suppressing until the opportunity came began to smolder in his heart.

Suddenly, words he had heard from his father before flashed through his mind.

Was it said that the owner of the era is given by God?

Clearly, until now, the owner of France chosen by God was Christian.

But what about now?

The New France army, which was Christian’s insurance, could not come to France due to a sudden storm.

No country prospers forever, and no one’s heyday lasts forever.

‘As long as he is human, if he continues to repeat success and victory, there will inevitably come a time when he becomes complacent. Christian would have been no exception.’

His thoroughness in secretly bringing troops from New France was admirable, but even that was in vain due to the machinations of the heavens.

If now is the historical turning point to choose the owner of a new era.

Now is the time to make a choice.

Will he obey Christian as planned, offer the nobles as sacrifices, and become a loyal sycophant [a person who tries to win favor from wealthy or influential people by flattering them]?

Or will he ruin all of Christian’s plans and reign as the new power in this country?

The Duke of Chartres, who was about to choose the path of reigning, could not bring himself to utter the words that had risen to his throat.

‘But what if even this was within his expectations…?’

That would be impossible for anyone to see.

Unless he was a god, who would have predicted that the fleet would suddenly encounter a storm and drift to Africa?

But a hint of anxiety does not leave his heart.

Right now, the nobles are waiting for him to open his mouth.

The corners of the Duke of Chartres’ mouth trembled as he looked at them.

< Crossroads of Choice >