Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.
Crown Prince Karl had been in a terrible mood lately. As the younger brother of the old emperor, the grandson of Archduke Karl Ludwig, and the nephew of Archduke Ferdinand,
after his uncle Ferdinand's unexpected death, he had naturally become the sovereign of the United Kingdom of Germany, one of the world's most powerful nations and heir to the ancient Holy Roman Empire.
Although he had never received a formal monarch's education, and the German state he was about to take over remained trapped in a war with no end in sight, Karl often worried whether he could bring this storm-tossed nation, beset by powerful enemies abroad and constant turmoil within, safely ashore.
But that did not diminish the fact that Emperor of Germany was the lofty position every member of the Habsburg family dreamed of.
Even the cheap title of Emperor of Mexico had people scrambling to claim it, let alone Emperor of Germany.
Yet—
Rudolf had returned.
His cousin-uncle, missing for many years and rumored to have committed suicide for love, had returned.
It would not necessarily have been a bad thing if he laid down this burden now. Though he felt some relief, a trace of unwillingness remained buried in his heart. A man who had abandoned his duties to his country and family, eloped with his mistress, and disregarded the family's honor—what right did he have to return and seize Karl's throne?
He picked up his five-year-old son, Little Otto, gently patting the boy's back as he tried to convince himself to put the greater good and the family first. But before the temptation of the throne, anyone who could truly remain unmoved would be a living saint.
"Your Highness!"
An attendant hurried over in tiny steps and whispered into Karl's ear.
Karl