Ambrosius

Vienna, Schönbrunn Palace.

Today, a minor archduke arrived here. He was about to become an observer sent by the Austrian Empire army to Brazil, and one of the purposes of his trip was to bid farewell to the current head of the House of Habsburg.

His name was Karl Ambrosius, but as a country nobleman, poverty limited his imagination.

Consequently, having entered the imperial palace for the first time, he got lost.

Yet, as a member of the House of Habsburg, he had his own pride and would never bow his head to anyone.

His wandering gaze soon drew the pointing fingers of noblewomen and maids.

"Oh, who is that?"

"You can tell at a glance he's a bumpkin."

"Though he's a countryman, he's quite handsome. Who's going to stop him and show him the ropes?"

A group of women erupted into laughter, but a sharp-eyed maid noticed something and warned them.

"Look, that's the imperial crest."

Suddenly, the women who had been teasing him fell silent, then scattered in a flurry.

Some had given up, but others were even more excited.

What they did not know was that the family of Karl Ambrosius owned only 150 acres of land and did not even possess a carriage, meaning they could not provide the kind of life these women desired.

Archduke Charles, the largest landowner in the Austrian Empire, owned three million acres; the gap between the two was 20,000 times.

Ambrosius finally found someone he could ask for directions: a young woman walking toward him with a child tucked under her arm.

In this palace, anyone capable of doing such a thing must be a member of the imperial family, Ambrosius thought to himself.

"Thalia, can't you ride a horse? Tucking me under your arm like this is so uncomfortable," Franz complained.

"My little Archduke, I am merely an unfortunate tutor and nanny. If I were to ride a horse in the palace today, you would be collecting my corpse tomorrow. I wouldn't be able to collect the money you owe me from our games," Thalia replied, her chest heaving as she grew annoyed with Franz.

Yesterday, Thalia had been notified that Emperor Francis II wanted to see Archduke Franz today.

Thalia had arrived at Franz's room very early, but the latter said he wanted to take a nap.

Seeing there was still plenty of time, Thalia readily agreed, only to fall asleep in Franz's room herself.

When Thalia woke up, she discovered that the appointed time had already passed.

Thus, she had no choice but to force-march while carrying Franz.

As Thalia was hurrying along, a man suddenly flashed out from a corner, knelt on one knee, reached out to take Thalia's other hand, and said, "Hello, beautiful lady, I would like to—"

Before the man could finish his sentence, Thalia kicked him square in the face.

"I would not! Goodbye."

"Thalia, someone actually hit on you," Franz teased.

"You little brat," Thalia squeezed Franz tightly.

"I just wanted to ask for directions, is that so hard? The way my old man taught me to greet people isn't working at all," Ambrosius sighed.

Finally, a passing guard told Ambrosius that the Hall of Mirrors was not in Schönbrunn Palace.

Consequently, Ambrosius hurried toward the Hall of Mirrors.

Inside the Hall of Mirrors, upon the throne, sat an old man and a young boy; the old one was Emperor Francis II, and the young one was the child he had just seen.

Franz even waved at this poor fellow.

Ambrosius was very excited to see the Emperor and began to recount his stirred emotions.

However, Francis II had no interest in listening.

Instead, he took the resume handed over by the imperial steward, which surprised him somewhat.

This unkempt-looking bumpkin (his face was a bit dirty from being kicked by Thalia), who had never seen the world, had received such high evaluations at the military academy.

What was even more baffling was that the person who made the evaluation was none other than the legend of the Austrian military, Archduke Charles—his own brother, and one of the people he detested most in this world.

Although Francis II and Archduke Charles were not on good terms, he knew very well that his brother was arrogant and would never praise anyone lightly.

To earn the praise of Archduke Charles was enough to prove that the young man before him possessed exceptionally outstanding abilities.

Franz also saw the evaluation from Archduke Charles, and Franz still remembered the evaluation Archduke Charles had given his own eldest son, Albrecht: "Giving him two corps is murder."

The implication was that Albrecht had the ability to command at most one corps.

Yet, in history, Albrecht was a general who won every battle, and in the Battle of Custoza, he led 80,000 Austrian troops to crush the 120,000-strong Italian army personally commanded by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy.

Being a military observer seemed to be a waste of his talents.

An Austrian military observer usually meant a government-funded vacation.

After some deliberation, Francis II decided to follow the cabinet's advice.

He would be granted the rank of major general and sent abroad as an army observer.

Upon hearing the result, Archduke Ambrosius could not help but feel dejected.

Still, this was good enough for him; without this thin thread of bloodline, he would likely never have reached the rank of general, even one without real power.

Most graduates of the military academy had to start as captains, so he was already far ahead of the others.

Ambrosius had another purpose for this visit: to ask for help in arranging a marriage.

His family was extremely poor, making it impossible for him to marry a proper princess, and since his own bloodline was already diluted, if he were to marry a commoner, his descendants might lose their noble status entirely.

Even though his family had fallen into decline, he and his father still placed great importance on their bloodline and could not accept the prospect of their descendants no longer being nobles.

Of course, Ambrosius had his reasons for confidence; his grades at the military academy were excellent, and Archduke Charles had even said he would become a pillar of the Austrian Empire in the future.

Ambrosius considered himself a general with a limitless future; although he lacked money now, he had a bright career ahead, not to mention that he was a student of Archduke Charles.

However, Ambrosius also knew that His Majesty the Emperor and Archduke Charles were at odds, so he dared not bring up that connection, instead requesting the patriarch's help solely as a junior member of the family.

Yet, Francis II did not care in the slightest about the affairs of Ambrosius.

He waved his hand, signaling that he could leave to take up his post.

But before he had taken two steps, Ambrosius stopped and turned back to say.

"For the sake of Empress Theresa, for the sake of God, I beg you, Your Majesty—even a princess who is disabled or ill would suffice."

The ancestor of Ambrosius was an offspring of Empress Theresa, which was the only reason he held the status of a royal family member.

As for the various nations, there were indeed some princesses who were disabled or ill, but even then, their families would demand a hefty dowry.

And Francis II happened to be a very stingy emperor (perhaps because he had paid too much in war reparations).

The actions of Ambrosius left Franz stunned; he could not understand how a perfectly fine person had suddenly turned into this.

In truth, Franz had underestimated the obsession people of that era had with status and standing.

Franz looked at Francis II in confusion, thinking, Does Austria have a system of bestowing marriages in addition to bestowing official positions?

Francis II had seen such things many times and was long since unfazed.

He said slowly and deliberately, "You are still young, and the current financial situation of the Austrian Empire is poor. Now that young people have real talent and learning, many great families are willing to provide a generous dowry for their daughters. You still need to work hard."

In short, he was not going to interfere; go find someone who can give you money yourself.

The disappointment of Ambrosius was written all over his face; he chose not to continue pestering the Emperor and opted to leave.

Watching the back of Ambrosius as he departed, Franz decided to help him.

Perhaps it was time to put the traditional skills of the House of Habsburg to use; a brand-new colonial plan began to take shape in Franz's mind.

This is a transitional chapter, laying the groundwork for the plot to come; please look forward to it.