As telegram after telegram went out, news of the attack on the Suez Canal swiftly spread across the world. Europe's already tense situation now became even more impossible to contain.
That very evening, the Vienna Government held a press conference and declared that it would fight the mastermind behind the attack to the bitter end.
Though it was not stated outright, everyone understood that aside from the British, no one else could possibly bear the title of "mastermind behind the scenes."
The investigation team had only just set out, and before the Vienna Government had reached any conclusion regarding the canal attack, the people of both nations had already begun bristling with drawn swords.
Armed conflicts were no longer limited to South Africa. Battles of varying scale had erupted in East Africa and the Malay Peninsula as well, with the total forces committed by both sides already exceeding one hundred thousand.
Such large-scale clashes had erupted without a declaration of war. Once again, the governments of the two nations had refreshed Europe's understanding of just how outrageous political maneuvering could be.
According to an unnamed statesman: "Worthy of a hegemonic power indeed. Ordinary countries simply do not possess such 'cultivation'—such thick skin."
At Vienna Palace, Franz was presently locked in a fierce chess battle with Friedrich, that hopelessly bad chess player. The turmoil outside had not touched this place in the slightest, as though it had transcended the mortal world.
Transcendence was impossible. At such a critical moment, there could not be the slightest relaxation. But it was true that they had not been affected by the Suez Canal disaster.
The reason was simple: whether the Suez Canal was blocked or not would have little impact on this war.
To borrow a line from the media: "The Mediterranean Sea