I Became A Genius Of The French Royal Family [EN]: Chapter 161

Peace Envoy

“Is everyone assembled?”

Duke Chartres, upon exiting the Tuileries Palace, immediately approached Marquis Bellile.

The troops that were supposed to arrive managed to reach the outskirts of Paris without incident, a little too easily.

“More than half have arrived as scheduled. The remaining troops will be assembled by tomorrow. What about Marquis Lonnay’s inside support?”

“Everything is proceeding as planned. Marquis Lonnay’s soldiers are scheduled to seize the southern gate in two days. We’ll enter through there, seal off the other three gates, join up with Marquis Lonnay’s forces, and advance directly to the Tuileries Palace.”

“Perfect. What about the Duke of Orléans’s movements?”

“Thanks to our smokescreen, Marquis Lafayette’s troops have left Paris. If the Duke of Orléans had suspected our plans, he wouldn’t have made such a blunder. Moreover, there’s a dinner banquet scheduled at the Tuileries Palace in two days, just when we’re planning to attack. He even invited me.”

Marquis Bellile, already confident of success, chuckled.

“It will truly be a last supper. The problem is, unlike Christ, the Duke of Orléans can’t be resurrected. Hahaha.”

“Still, just in case, let’s send soldiers outside the gate to monitor whether Christian is leaving Paris. We need to be extra cautious at times like these.”

“By the way, things are unfolding so easily that I wonder if we’ve overestimated the Duke of Orléans.”

“…It just means we moved swiftly.”

‘What bullshit.’

Chartres barely suppressed the curse and turned away.

How could those guys know how much he had suffered and maneuvered behind the scenes?

He had to humor them now because he had no choice but to borrow their wealth and power, but that would soon be over.

Once everything was settled, he would personally eliminate all the incompetent nobles who were just taking up space.

And he would fill those positions with young and capable nobles.

The new France that Christian had tried to create would be completed by his own hands, not anyone else’s.

These guys were just tools to achieve that goal.

Duke Chartres concealed his true feelings and anxiously waited for the sun to set two days later.

And finally.

All the troops were assembled, and the promised time had come.

“Listen, everyone!”

Chartres shouted, mounting his horse with a dignified air.

“Our France is in crisis right now. Those treacherous British lackeys are clouding the royal family’s judgment and trying to manipulate the political situation as they please. If things continue like this, our France will inevitably decline, unable to overcome conflict and chaos. As nobles of this country, how can we just stand by and watch this tragic situation unfold!”

This isn’t treason.

It’s merely a righteous revolution to correct a wrong.

The excuses of those who stage coups are always the same, but that’s because these excuses are effective.

“Let’s go together! To save our homeland, France! Future generations will regard this action of ours as a great move that saved France! Advance!”

“Uwoooo! Viva la France!”

“Let’s wipe out the British lackeys!”

The soldiers believed Chartres and Marquis Bellile without a shred of doubt.

They were now righteous warriors who had come to save France from ruin.

“There are already comrades inside Paris who share our cause! Don’t be afraid and march on!”

The self-proclaimed revolutionary army entered the city through the southern gate of Paris with high spirits.

As planned, the gate opened without any problems.

Marquis Lonnay must have seized the south gate as planned.

At this moment, even a trace of anxiety disappeared from Chartres’s heart.

‘We’ve won.’

As they entered the city without any problems, the soldiers’ morale soared.

The fact that the gate opened without much resistance made most people think that they were indeed being supported.

“Now, if we join up with Marquis Lonnay’s forces and head to the Tuileries Palace, the situation will be over…”

“Duke Chartres! I’ve come from Marquis Lonnay!”

A soldier who had hurriedly come down from the ramparts saluted Chartres and Bellile.

“Where’s Marquis Lonnay? Why are you here?”

“Some of the Paris garrison are showing signs of unrest. The Marquis said he would suppress them and join us at the Tuileries Palace.”

“The garrison at a time like this? Could it be that the plan has been exposed?”

“That’s not it. There was a clash during the process of seizing the gate, and some people seem to have heard the noise.”

That was an accident that could very well have happened.

Fortunately, judging from the messenger’s words, it didn’t seem to be a big problem.

Rather, he didn’t think that such a big plan would go off without a hitch until the end.

If it was a minor variable, it would be more comforting to have it happen.

“So, when did the Marquis say he would join us?”

“He said that the suppression would be almost over by now. He instructed us to fire a signal flare once if there were no problems on this side, and twice if there were.”

“Wouldn’t firing a signal flare attract attention?”

“Those who don’t even know we’re attacking won’t immediately notice just because a signal flare goes up once. Wouldn’t it be more important for us to occupy the Tuileries Palace first?”

Chartres nodded.

Since they were in the middle of an extreme blitzkrieg [a swift and overwhelming military attack], swift movement was more important than anything else.

The most important thing right now was for Marquis Lonnay’s forces to join them as quickly as possible, and everything else was just a secondary issue.

“I understand. Then we’ll leave first, so fire the signal flare right away.”

“Yes, sir!”

Even the time spent exchanging words here was a waste.

Chartres encouraged the soldiers and immediately resumed the march.

He would occupy the Tuileries Palace and cut off Christian’s head before dawn.

The red carpet leading to the throne flickered before Chartres’s eyes.

※※※

Pyoong!

With a loud noise, a streak of light soared into the sky.

“It’s over with one shot… Duke Chartres seems to be heading to the Tuileries Palace as planned.”

“Th, that’s what I said! I said I’d only tell the truth!”

“The messenger will be back soon, so we’ll check then.”

“Then you’ll spare me as promised, right?”

Marquis Lonnay, who was in charge of the Bastille prison, was tied up tightly and kept bowing his head.

He couldn’t understand why things had turned out this way.

No, he understood, but he felt like his head was empty with the despair that everything he had achieved so far had been shattered.

“His Highness’s order was to show as much leniency as possible if the Marquis cooperates willingly. Don’t worry.”

Marquis Lonnay looked up at the monstrous man who had crushed all of his troops like toys.

Was his name Louis Nicolas Davout?

Marquis Lonnay had also heard rumors about the children of Orléans.

They were said to be human tanks who had swept away the barbarians of the New World like a grinder grinding coffee beans.

At first, he had just laughed it off.

No matter how many achievements they had made, the opponents were just barbarians who didn’t even know how to shoot properly.

The rapid occupation of the territory of Nueva España [the Spanish viceroyalty in North America] was the same.

At best, they were just poorly trained rabble from the colony.

What was so great about winning against such people?

But after experiencing it himself, it was a different story.

He realized it only after becoming a victim himself.

‘These bastards are war machines. They’re on a different level.’

As soon as Chartres left the gates of Paris two days ago, Davout’s army, as if they had been waiting, surrounded the area.

He couldn’t understand where they had been hiding the troops, but Marquis Lonnay immediately went into interception.

He had gathered a lot of troops in the Bastille and nearby fortresses.

He was confident that the country bumpkins who had fought against the barbarians in New France were no match for him, but he couldn’t even last a day.

The troops who had secretly taken up positions in Paris were uprooted, and the plans were all exposed.

Marquis Lonnay had already lost all will to resist Christian.

There was no way he could win.

Against those monsters.

It was a mistake to have grabbed a rotten rope like Chartres in the first place.

“Hey, please tell His Highness that I was just forced to come along by Chartres’s coercion, and that I’m doing my best to cooperate now…”

“Whether you do this or that, the Marquis is one of the main culprits of the rebellion. You should be grateful to His Highness just for saving your life.”

Davout coldly cut him off without even looking at Marquis Lonnay.

He was a typical upright and inflexible soldier who worshiped his master like a god.

Neither persuasion nor bribery would work on such a guy.

‘Chartres, you son of a bitch. You should have obtained information about Christian having such monsters in advance.’

He couldn’t help but laugh when he thought that Chartres and Marquis Bellile, who were heading to the Tuileries Palace, would also have the same experience as him.

Still, he was in a better situation because he could at least save his life.

There was no need to blame anyone else.

Marquis Lonnay could only curse his own lack of foresight for not going under Christian from the beginning.

※※※

“They’re coming soon.”

Napoleon muttered quietly, watching the signal flare rising from the gate.

He and the troops led by Jean Lannes had already taken their positions and were waiting for the bait to enter the trap.

Lannes, who had quietly approached from the side, responded to Napoleon’s words, which were close to a soliloquy.

“You seem to be itching to get moving…”

“Only Davout got the chance to be active first. If you had sent me, I could have wiped them out half a day faster.”

“Still, when you think about it, this is the main stage. Besides, you’re the one who came up with the suppression operation, so it’s fitting that you finish it.”

Lannes laughed a little absurdly and looked around.

The atmosphere around him was so quiet, and it wasn’t just because the night was deep.

As long as people were living there, there should be at least a minimum of activity, even in the early hours of the morning when everyone was asleep.

The reason why it wasn’t was simple. All the residents in this area had been evacuated.

Since most of the main force was left in Africa, there weren’t many troops that could be used right now.

He couldn’t know the exact number of troops led by Chartres, so if he made a mistake, he might have to accept damage as well.

Napoleon solved that concern very simply.

Predict the opponent’s advance route in advance and evacuate the residents to avoid casualties.

And if you bombard the enemy who is advancing without knowing anything with a barrage of artillery, that’s the end of it.

“Seriously, even if it’s in the middle of the city, how can you think of shooting cannons…”

“Since you’re thinking that way too, the enemies won’t even be able to imagine it. That means it’s an effective strategy.”

The damage to the houses can be compensated by confiscating the property of the nobles who caused the rebellion.

Christian gave a simple and perfect solution, saying only one word, “Proceed.”

After enduring the boredom and waiting for dozens of minutes.

Finally, the vanguard of the rebels appeared with a sound that shook the ground.

“All troops, prepare to fire.”

The only order he received from Christian was this.

If you only capture the mastermind of the rebellion, you can kill all the rest.

So, you have to aim a little further back than the guys running in the front.

Usually, those who are confident of victory stand at the very front and march to create a great image.

“Even if they’re rebels, it’s truly heartbreaking to have to fight among the same French people. How heartbroken must His Highness be.”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

“So, I, the right-hand man of His Highness, must relieve that sadness even a little faster, right?”

What’s the way to end the war quickly?

Of course, it’s to annihilate the enemy faster than anyone else.

That’s why Napoleon loved cannons more than anything else.

No matter how you look at it, there was no better thing to achieve peace than this.

“Fire! Smash all the heads of those rebels!”

쾅! 콰아앙! 콰쾅!

Towards the heads of the rebels who were marching without knowing anything.

A rain of shells bringing peace poured down.