The Youngest Prince Of The English Royalty House [EN]: Chapter 94

94. Rising Chaos (3)

—1189, Venice, Doge’s Palace—

Swish, swish.

Here, where the beautiful Mediterranean Sea waves crash.

Today, it is Venice, the most celebrated republic, where merchants without blood or tears throw their conscience into the River Jordan [a symbolic act of renouncing one’s past sins or moral burdens] for the sake of business.

For these people, the chaos in Europe was a bonanza, and the turmoil in the Angevin family was an ‘opportunity.’ Aren’t the merchants of Venice the true archetype of the ruthless traders Shakespeare spoke of?

Shylock was just a victim who suffered because he was Jewish.

Anyway, the merchants of Venice are the worst villains in the world, always plotting to sell things more expensively and buy them cheaper. But today, the atmosphere was different from usual, because the way Europe was turning out these days was unusual.

The merchants of the Republic of Venice, who call themselves ‘great merchants,’ were sensitive to information and realized that the state of Europe was not good.

The biggest problem now was that the atmosphere in Western Europe was not good.

Of course, the reason was the death of Guillaume I, which everyone knew.

The news that Guillaume I, who had willingly become the ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem for the sake of his father, the Count of Surrey, the stability of English politics, and himself, had been mysteriously killed.

It was a huge hot potato all over Europe.

In other words, this meant to the Angevin-Plantagenet dynasty, ‘England, you… are so presumptuous.’ All of Europe expressed ‘mourning’ with intentions as solemn as the people of Christ.

But that mourning was an ‘elegant expression’ on the surface. Right now, the people of Venice had to recalculate their abacus [reassess their financial situation and plans].

“So, has the culprit been identified?”

“With the limited information available, the real culprit has not yet been identified.”

The Venetian merchants are friends who keep each other in check for the sake of business.

“It must be Philippe II [King Philip II of France].”

“No, it’s Geoffrey [likely referring to Geoffrey, son of Henry II].”

“It might be the work of the Eastern Roman bastards [a derogatory term for the Byzantine Empire].”

“Anyway, in this situation, Prince John is creating something bizarre like Sunday school.”

“We need to change our supporter now. Don’t you know that Prince John is a young lord who cannot survive in this era?”

As if they weren’t merchants, they were talking like they were trading in a market.

The problem was that some people didn’t like the fact that the merchants of Venice, who had made a lot of money by compromising with John, were ignoring ‘John.’

—Bang!

“Shut up!”

The eyes of the great merchants who attended the meeting looked at one person.

The person who was angry with them was not Enrico Dandolo, who was directly related to John, but Doge Orio [the elected leader of Venice].

Doge Orio said.

“I said it during the last Crusade. Merchants must keep their word. Those who have benefited from Prince John’s deals are trying to change their supporters with this opportunity!”

“Isn’t that credit useless to someone who is about to go bankrupt?”

While one of the great merchants and the Doge were fighting.

Just then, a man came into the conference room with an urgent voice and said in a loud voice.

“Everyone, we have a big problem. An incident has occurred in England.”

“Finally, a civil war!”

“Is it time to release the munitions?”

Toward the merchants who were making so much noise, he questioned the messenger who had just entered. Information is life to a merchant.

“Henry II’s illness was not a lie. The ruler of England is actually….”

As the man reported the latest news.

At first, the many old and young merchants who had been listening to the messenger with serious expressions.

“….”

After a moment of silence with blank expressions.

“Puhahahahahaha.”

“Hahahahahaha.”

“I’ve never experienced such a funny thing in my life.”

They began to laugh as if a storm had blown in.

Of course, this incident in England was a very serious matter. Of course, it was just a ‘comedy’ to the people of the Republic of Venice watching from afar.

The people who had been fighting until just now just laughed. England made them laugh.

* * *

—English Territory, Aquitaine—

Aquitaine, England’s finest territory, where the hot sun shines.

“The weather is nice today.”

Henry, who resembled his father and younger brother Richard and had strong bones, had recovered.

Now he could walk without crutches.

Anyway, after taking a walk, the young King Henry summoned his bastards, as if something had changed in his mind.

“My sons.”

Bastards are illegitimate beings.

So, the young King Henry could never say the word ‘son’ on the official line, but he still called them.

—Yes, Your Majesty.

The young King Henry’s bastards looked at their biological father with sullen faces.

‘I, who hated the King who gave birth to bastards, also created these unfortunate children.’

The young King Henry, who was momentarily self-deprecating as he looked at the bastards, asked the bastards he had given birth to with a French woman.

“Can you… make my daughter Victoria queen? Can you accomplish the task that my maternal grandmother Matilda [Empress Matilda, who fought for the English throne in the 12th century] failed to achieve?”

“…We are bastards.”

“Wouldn’t it be difficult for our mothers if we, who are lowly, do something?”

The young King Henry’s young bastards hesitated and answered, and the young King Henry smiled bitterly at their expressions and said.

“That’s enough. Go back.”

He chased away the bastards he had given birth to.

Hunting was still too early, but after looking at the scenery of Aquitaine Castle, where his maternal grandfather, the late Duke of Aquitaine, had walked.

The young King Henry looked at the portraits of his family.

The name of Henry I was written, going back to the ‘branch’ on his grandmother’s side.

“What was my great-grandfather thinking at times like this? Great Henry I, tell me the answer.”

The young King Henry’s great-grandfather, Henry I.

A great ruler of the William dynasty, he was a ruler worthy of the name of the great king who laid the foundation for England with his strong charisma.

Perhaps he is a great man who can be said to be No. 1 among those with the title of Henry, like his title Henry I. But the only weakness of Henry I is that he could not have an heir like the young King Henry now.

So, the young King Henry was getting tired.

At that time. Someone approached the young King Henry’s room.

“Your Majesty….”

“Call me Your Highness. After all, the empty co-king position is not important.”

The young King Henry sneered. What good is the empty co-king position that his damned father gave him to show off? I would rather be the Crown Prince of England.

The young King Henry asked calmly.

“So, what’s the news?”

As the young King Henry asked, a knight knelt down and said.

“It’s an urgent message from the Angevin territory.”

“An urgent message?”

The young King Henry was filled with emotions. No, it was hard to express his feelings with just one emotion.

If the word ‘urgent message’ came out like that, the thing he wanted might be achieved, and he had to move actively to new variables.

“Tell me calmly. What happened to our good father.”

Something must have happened in the Angevin territory.

It was something he had wanted so much, but at the same time, it was unbelievable.

How could his father, Henry II, who was such a terrible person, show his weakness so easily? But now that he heard it, it didn’t seem to mean that.

Soon, the young King Henry II, who had heard the news in detail from the knight, said without showing any ‘change in expression’.

“Is that all?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I want to be alone for now.”

After sending the knight out. The young ambitious man.

“Hahahahaha. Hahahahahahaha. My father has really gone senile.”

Laughed.

* * *

—Ireland—

The appearance of Ireland, the symbol of peace where the waves crash, did not seem so busy. This is also something I achieved with tearful efforts.

Originally, a policy should be carried out smoothly no matter what happens.

Now, the upper class of Ireland knew the dangerous atmosphere of Europe like the Balkan Peninsula in World War I, but they never showed it and were faithful to domestic affairs.

First of all, they began to raise Jesus’ little disciples in Sunday school. It is inevitable to protect the pure childhood of these children and, at the same time, transform them into Angevins [supporters of the Angevin dynasty].

Sunday school, which started with the distinction between classes (distinction of status), is proving the fact that ‘Safe Zone is safe!’ and is a great success.

“You have a strong arm to overcome any trials that may come~”

“In the sky a long time ago~”

“You were born to be loved~”

Sunday school started with fresh hymns. At the same time, they focused on counterintelligence activities to find ‘suspicious’ people.

In order to protect the desire for young children to become Jesus’ little disciples in the sun, they must identify spies who try to interfere with Sunday school with evil intentions.

Sunday school may seem easy, but this is also a ‘business’ that requires sincerity and effort. Core technology must not be plagiarized!

Fortunately, I, who had suffered so much from foreigners since I was the Count of Mortain, began to thoroughly identify spies.

A delegation came from the Kingdom of France.

I realized what Philippe II was thinking when he called the delegation. He has so many unfair things in his own way.

Of course, no high-ranking aristocrats came. I think I know why. It hurts my pride to reveal the appearance of sending a great aristocrat in this situation.

[The Kingdom of France has nothing to do with this matter.]

The lower-ranking aristocrat from the Kingdom of France showed an attitude of ‘Oh, that’s not our business’ after all sorts of flattery.

Of course, delegations continued to come to show off friendship, or ‘We have absolutely no bad intentions.’

Spain, the Holy Roman Empire, Poland, the Eastern Roman Empire, Hungary. And so on. Diplomats came from all sorts of countries in Europe.

“I came to learn about the peace in Prince John’s territory.”

Oh, really.

“I came to see the advanced civilization called Sunday school.”

You’re kidding me.

“You have created an advanced civilization called the Three Estates [a system of social hierarchy]. Prince John is a really great person.”

Of course, there are many delegations that give external reasons, but I, who am tired of the world, cannot think of this as simple curiosity.

“What’s the matter with our territory?”

At first, I muttered, wondering why these things came to me and not to my brothers Henry or Richard.

“That’s because Your Highness’s power is the weakest.”

“I see….”

Peter told me straight. That means ‘We are the easiest to deal with.’

“Well, I can’t just see it in a bad way.”

“That’s right. Thanks to you, Your Highness, we have a budget for the Angevin creation plan.”

“That’s a good thing.”

Still, there were some good things. Because customers poured money into our similar hotel Ireland, which is friendly and has excellent quality of goods.

Today, Ireland worked hard to make money. But even if it comes in like a company employee’s salary, it will be spent again soon.

When I was trying to live as positively as possible.

Godfrey, the best bastard Henry II had, came to me with an urgent face and said.

“Your Highness, we have a big problem.”

“What’s wrong?”

“The truth about the rumors about Henry II the Great that have been circulating has been revealed.”

Godfrey barely opened his mouth, which he couldn’t bear to open, to my question.

“Ha….”

I was more dumbfounded by my father’s ugliness than a makjang drama [Korean term for an over-the-top, dramatic storyline]!

In fact, when my father first said he was sick. I just thought he was ‘acting’.

To be honest, this is a normal reaction considering our father’s karma, and my clever brothers all accepted it that way.

But our clever father, Henry II, really fell ill.

He collapsed while holding a young lady from the Angevin territory, which is currently popular. But he was lucky enough to avoid dying from exhaustion.

This is something that even the peace and tolerance of the great aristocrat Safe John cannot shield.

I’d rather die. You damn old man!

This absurd news was soon known even in the peaceful island of Ireland, and my wife and mother also found out.

“As expected, the Henry guys in our family are all trash. They can’t even take care of their lower bodies. I wish their eyes were gouged out like Samson [Biblical figure known for his strength, who was blinded by his enemies], or their dirty things were cut off like Uranus [Greek god whose genitals were severed by his son].”

“Mother… John is here, you’re saying too much.”

“Mary, what’s too much? I’m ashamed, I’m ashamed. Such ugliness when Guillaume I is dead.”

Listening to my mother’s words, there is a moment when I think of someone… the ruler of France.

Achieved great achievements.

But he loves money so much.

He’s old, but he likes young and pretty girls.

Then he becomes an ugly old man at once.

As a person who was a Korean-French mixed race in his previous life and likes the history of the Bourbon dynasty in France, I think I know exactly who it is.

Isn’t this completely like Henry IV’s last years [King Henry IV of France, known for his political acumen and also his numerous affairs]?

Our father’s last years will be ‘ugly’ like Henry IV, the founder of the French Bourbon dynasty. I’m serious. I’m so embarrassed that I feel like I’m going to die.