Victory

Primo's inspection soon came to an end, and he informed Vittorio Emanuele II of his final choice for king.

Yes, Carlo had emerged victorious from his competition with Amadeo and was about to become Spain's new king.

What had allowed Carlo to win this contest was, more than anything else, his support for reform and Garibaldi's praise of him.

When Juan Primo de Rivera had drawn up the list of candidates for the Spanish throne, he had remarked with a sigh, "Trying to find a king in Spain who supports democracy is like searching for an atheist in heaven."

Although a constitutional system had nominally been established during Isabella's reign, Queen Isabella still held a great deal of power, and the Kingdom Government was thoroughly ignorant and feudal.

Primo had grown weary of such intense absolutism. While searching for a new king for Spain, he had repeatedly stressed the necessity of reform and democratization.

A king could hold power, but he absolutely could not monopolize all power.

In this regard, Carlo, who had been in contact with Garibaldi, a former supporter of republicanism, clearly held the greater advantage.

Amadeo had no real flaws, and he even held the advantage in age. If Spain had been stable, Amadeo would undoubtedly have been the ideal candidate for King of Spain.

But Spain was now riddled with holes and scars, and Amadeo was powerless in the face of its current state. If Spain was to undergo deep reform, ruler and ministers had to be of one heart and one mind, jointly driving comprehensive reform.

In this regard, Carlo held a greater advantage than Amadeo. Even if Carlo's support for reform was not as resolute as imagined, Primo could still force reforms through by monopolizing military and political power.

After all, a nineteen-year-old king was easier to control than a twenty-five-year-old one, and that was extremely important for Spain's reforms.

There was also Garibaldi's assessment of Carlo.

During his investigation into Carlo and Amadeo, Primo discovered that Carlo's relationship with Garibaldi was closer than he had imagined.

Not only had Garibaldi published several articles in the Italy Sun, but his second son, Giotto, was also Carlo's court guard.

His willingness to let his son draw close to Carlo also meant that, in Garibaldi's heart, Carlo was at least not the sort of Prince who was arrogantly conceited and unable to see the situation clearly.

Combined with the Italy Sun's previous influence over Spain, it could basically be concluded that Carlo had long anticipated Spain's Election of the King and had already begun preparing in advance.

Primo himself still wanted to work with an intelligent king. If possible, there was nothing wrong with forging a close relationship like that between King William I of Prussia and Chancellor Bismarck.

Several decades ago, Prussia had also been a country France could invade and humiliate at will. But after several decades of reforms, Prussia had leapt to become one of the strongest nations on the European continent, and its war with France was also a key focus of Primo's attention.

Primo did not expect reformed Spain to become as powerful as Prussia. What he hoped for was to see Spain achieve revival and once again take its place among Europe's first-rate powers and the Great Powers.

Primo was still quite confident about this. If a monarch who supported his reforms could be welcomed, perhaps Spain's revival would not be a dream, but a reality visible twenty years from now.

Carlo's feelings were complicated.

Although winning this competition had always been what Carlo hoped for, when he suddenly learned that he was to become King of Spain, he felt somewhat nervous and hesitant.

No joke, in 1869, making Spain rise again was absolutely the most difficult task among Europe's major powers.

Spain had begun with a bottomless pit. Internally, Republicans, Reformists, Conservatives, and Carlists were constantly causing trouble for one another; chaos never ceased.

Externally, Britain and France would not allow Spain to become too powerful either. If Spain wanted revival, Britain and France would be the first obstacles in its path.

This was absolutely a hell-difficulty start, no less difficult than Poland counterattacking Germany at the beginning of World War II.

After slightly adjusting his mindset, Carlo still decided to go to Spain, and he would go with unwavering resolve.

Since he had transmigrated into this world, how could he face this opportunity if he did not boldly fight for it once?

Besides, Britain and France were not absolutely invincible, and mainland Spain was at least still very safe.

Neither Britain nor France could allow the other to occupy Spanish land. At most, they would only obstruct the expansion of the Spanish Navy and its colonies.

In any case, Spain was not the only nation that needed colonies now, and Spain certainly would not be the one leading the charge against Britain and France.

For Carlo's first five or even ten years governing Spain, the most important matters would still be resolving Spain's internal conflicts and carrying out reforms to raise Spain's overall national strength.

After this competition ended, Carlo met with his brother Amadeo.

Setting this competition aside, Carlo and Amadeo had a fairly good relationship. Though they were not as close as Carlo had been with the late Prince Oddone, they were not merely brothers in name.

Amadeo congratulated Carlo on becoming King of Spain with a smile. Though there was a trace of regret, he did not feel much resentment.

Naturally, Carlo would not take the initiative to make an enemy of his own brother. During the crucial stage of Spain's reforms, Italy would be one of Spain's important allies.

Whether it was his old father governing Italy now or Crown Prince Umberto inheriting the throne in the future, Carlo wanted to maintain good relations with Italy.

After all, Italy could also be considered a retreat. If Spain truly proved beyond saving, then at worst he could flee back to Italy like Amadeo had in history and become a carefree Duke.

Carlo's eldest brother, Crown Prince Umberto, had also come to congratulate him.

Crown Prince Umberto was the heir to the throne and therefore had not participated in this competition. Since he had been designated Crown Prince from birth, he was fairly friendly toward his younger brothers.

In his father's office, Carlo met the old king, who seemed somewhat reluctant to part with him.

"Child, I truly did not expect you to prevail in your competition with Amadeo. But no matter what, I must still congratulate you. You are about to become King of Spain." Vittorio Emanuele II looked at Carlo with a complicated expression, his face carrying a trace of surprise and some reluctance.

"Have you met Primo yet? When do you plan to go to Spain?" After offering Carlo his blessings, Vittorio Emanuele II immediately threw out two questions in succession.

"Not yet, Father. If possible, I would like to go to Spain earlier and understand everything about Spain as soon as possible." Carlo shook his head and replied.

First update, please support! (The earlier calculation of travel time between Rome and Madrid was incorrect and has been revised.)