Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 023
Chapter Title: Engagement
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The engagement between Franz Stefan and Maria Theresa had already caused a massive stir even before its official announcement.
Rumors spread across the Holy Roman Empire beyond Vienna without needing any spies, and naturally, they reached French ears as well.
France had stumbled slightly in the recent War of the Spanish Succession, but it wasn't a devastating blow.
They remained one of Europe's strongest powers—a fact acknowledged objectively by everyone, not just the French.
Louis XV, the young King of France who had just turned sixteen, had recently dismissed the Duke of Bourbon as prime minister and appointed his former tutor, Cardinal Fleury, in his place.
He still lacked the experience to lead the government alone and needed the help of his ministers.
Fortunately, Cardinal Fleury was mild-mannered and made stabilizing France his top priority, so he never clashed with the king.
The boy king Louis XV also deeply trusted his former tutor, the current prime minister, and didn't hesitate to seek his counsel.
And lately, their discussions had naturally centered on the sensational engagement news from Vienna.
"...If this engagement goes through, does that mean Lorraine will likely fall to the Habsburgs?"
"It seems that way. If Archduchess Maria Theresa inherits the Habsburgs, then François Étienne—Franz Stefan—could become Holy Roman Emperor."
"I hear François Étienne is pro-French and can't even speak German properly... Is there no advantage for us there?"
"From the information we've confirmed so far, François is indeed psychologically close to France. However, lately he's reportedly fluent in German at a native level and on extremely good terms with the Habsburgs."
Louis XV clicked his tongue lightly.
"Was appointing Count Polignac as ambassador a mistake? What the hell is that guy doing?"
"According to Count Polignac, Vienna's intelligence network was already compromised before he arrived. A significant portion of the information on François Étienne has proven false."
"Then the info that he's favorable toward us could be false too, right?"
That was precisely the main headache plaguing the French ministers right now.
This wasn't just one or two pieces of bad intel; virtually everything was wrong, leaving no doubt that the network was corrupted.
Figuring out what was true and what was false was impossible.
That was also why they hadn't dismissed Count Polignac yet.
Replacing even the ambassador would plunge Vienna's Cabinet Noir into even greater chaos.
"I agree we need to clarify that first and foremost. Even if the engagement happens now, the actual marriage is at least three to five years away. We have plenty of time to prepare countermeasures."
"If François is favorable to us, what should we do?"
"According to what Count Polignac heard directly from him, François is open to ceding Lorraine to us in exchange for something else. If that's true, we could negotiate a deal."
"Handing over a territory in northern Italy instead might work... but would they accept that?"
Lorraine's central role in disputes stemmed from its strategic value.
France wouldn't invade Lorraine first in a war just for fun.
"...If his words turn out false, we'll have to consider appropriate countermeasures."
"Right. Let's make our nation's will crystal clear first. That seems the top priority."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ You don't always have to do something to help the organization.
Sometimes, not doing something saves it.
Wasn't my desperate persuasion to keep my brother off the battlefield a perfect example?
I protected his honor, saved the Habsburg future, and spared countless soldiers' lives.
The biggest gain from Lorraine was redirecting my brother's career aspiration from general to governor.
But I couldn't just talk big and ignore it, so I actually brought Wolf Wertheimer to the estate and introduced him to my brother.
"Say hello. You'll be seeing each other and working together countless times from now on."
"Greetings. I'm Wolf Wertheimer, in service to Lord Franz. I'll teach you the basics of company operations and how commerce really works."
"...Uh, sure. Looking forward to it."
Wolf obliged without protest.
He figured my brother was above average anyway, and indeed, my brother had solid talent in administration and commerce, so they'd benefit each other.
Our family seemed oddly disconnected from the military.
How did both brothers end up specialized in administration over combat?
"By the way... Lord Franz, if you're entrusting administration to your brother, what about the Ostend Company's shares?"
"Put them under your name for now through proxies to grow as much as possible without drawing attention. Then, when my brother or I judge the time is right, we'll take them over and sort the shares."
"Understood. I'm already connecting with Jewish merchants closely tied to Antwerp and Amsterdam. They never pass up a chance to make money, so no issues there."
The Ostend Company's base was in the Austrian Netherlands—modern Belgium and Luxembourg.
Antwerp, the logistics and finance hub, carried the most weight, inevitably drawing scrutiny from the neighboring Dutch Republic.
As discussed endlessly before, the best move was rerouting most exports through Dutch Jews, labeling them as Dutch goods.
Of course, if the Dutch cracked down hard, it'd get caught, so we needed to talk to them beforehand.
"Oh, right. Lord Franz, I almost forgot—this is for you."
I took a document crammed with numbers from Wolf.
"What's this?"
"Current profits from platinum jewelry processing and future projections. Sales now are pure profit since no material costs, but once stock runs out, we'll need imports, so margins drop."
"Can't be helped. Securing a mine would've been ideal, but impossible from the start."
"Yes. Even cheap fake silver could make counterfeit coins, so Spain would never yield the mine."
Still, platinum jewelry profits were beyond imagination.
Orders were backed up through the year after next, with bribes flooding in to jump the queue.
"Spain might start messing with ore prices soon, but that hurts both sides, so they'll hesitate. We need to discuss it firmly."
In original history, Spain's Gibraltar failure next year would strain Habsburg ties, disrupting Ostend operations.
Business success draws interference from Europe's pirates, the British Empire—inevitable, and Austria alone couldn't fend them off.
At minimum, the Dutch and Spanish needed to back us.
I pocketed the document and patted Wolf's shoulder in thanks.
"I was planning to talk to the Spanish ambassador anyway, so we'll handle this then."
"Yes! Oh, and while we're monopolizing platinum refining now, other nations are researching it. In ten years, won't they figure it out?"
"Probably."
Even maintaining a small operation to prevent leaks, if feasible with current tech, the secret would spread eventually.
I pegged it at ten to fifteen years, like Wolf.
But with a bit more thought, we could delay it five years minimum.
Lowering my voice so no one could hear, I revealed my killer prepared plan.
"Prepare this now: in about ten years, release a new platinum refining method. Add arsenic—makes it much simpler."
"...Pardon? Then why the hassle now...?"
"Arsenic simplifies it but leaves residues, weakening strength. Quality drops, bad for health. Perfect inferior substitute."
When intel shows others nearing the right path, dangle a convincingly wrong answer nearby.
Focus shifts there, deeming arsenic the solution.
"Brilliant. If they produce inferior platinum jewelry, ours gains value. Scholars waste time on arsenic... Perfect."
"But arsenic platinum will have demand too—preempt that market for max profit. That's why I'm telling you now: prepare ahead. You know what to do?"
"Yes. Leave it to me!"
Wolf bowed sharply, while Charles watched in awe and admiration.
To instill brotherly respect, words alone weren't enough—needed real demonstrations like this.
So, grow strong while I'm gone.
With that, I ended my brief hometown visit and returned to Vienna.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ About ten days later.
Upon arriving in Vienna, I met French Ambassador Count Polignac before anyone else.
"I heard you visited Bohemia and Lorraine. Honored you came straight to me after such a long journey."
"Not at all. I wanted to stop in Vienna first, but family insisted, so I had to loop back."
"Family comes first. You did what you had to."
Count Polignac stared into my eyes without losing his smile.
To an outsider, it looked friendly, but it was his "no lies slip by" earnest mode.
Different from our last meeting at Eugène's banquet.
He was clearly wary of me as if I were a foreign ambassador.
"I need to head to the palace soon, so I won't drag this out. You've heard about my engagement."
"Haha... Yes, congratulations indeed."
"As I mentioned at the banquet, France can't ignore it. My parents worried too, but I assured them it wouldn't happen."
"...Won't happen?"
The count calmly sipped his coffee, smile unwavering.
"What I said at the banquet still holds."
Clink.
He set down the cup and nodded lightly.
"Your father... I mean, the Duke of Lorraine accepted that?"
"Of course not. I told family marriage is years off anyway, and we'll avoid clashing with France at all costs."
"But without territory exchange, conflict's inevitable."
"Exchanges have many forms. Timing could be now or after my death; negotiations decide."
The count sipped silently, probing my intent. I continued sincerely.
"Frankly, as I said before, this controversy exhausts me. Can't even choose my own engagement, let alone marriage."
"...I understand the frustration."
"Father values the territory, but to me? A headache for generations—better sell high. Fund something more valuable than Lorraine."
Thanks to platinum success, Polignac didn't object immediately.
"So, trade territory for cash?"
"No, obviously take another territory plus premium. Lorraine's a strategic hotspot."
"Hmm... Valid point."
Lorraine's iron ore matched 80% of France's output.
They'd see through my bluff if they knew, but luckily, neither Austria nor France grasped the scale yet.
They knew it was plentiful but not quantified.
"And count, from my actions, you see I'm pragmatic. I'll earn more money, build influence in the Empire."
"You're already doing so. As Your Highness, you'll excel further."
"I think so. So, I'll delay actual marriage, build my own power."
Ho. Polignac let out an impressed sound.
"...No marriage within three years?"
"I swear to God, absolutely not."
Even if Theresa was my wife in a past life, she's twelve in three years.
No way I'd marry a twelve-year-old, history books or not—love or no.
Delay marriage, build forces, exchange territory on solid terms.
Polignac, not fully convinced but accepting, dropped the fake smile.
Then gravely reconfirmed the stakes.
"I support Your Highness's decision. But if your mind changes, I can't side with you."
"Count, I'm no fool. I know flipping now means disaster."
War.
France, dead set on Lorraine, would invade once it joins Habsburgs.
"I'm not bold enough to toy with France and Austria both."
"Understood. I trust you'll keep your word."
No formal binding, but breaking it means war—too obvious to risk lightly.
But fine. When the War of the Polish Succession erupts, France breaks it, not me.
Finally, I showed genuine goodwill, pulling out my prepared gift.
"With platinum pressure from home, a small token."
"...Hm? This is..."
Peeking into the elegant box, his eyes flickered.
A platinum bracelet—silver-like yet distinctly beautiful, elegantly restrained.
"For His Majesty. Heard he dislikes flashiness, so emphasized subtlety. Say you procured it specially; normally waits till next year."
Evidently hounded by France, even his poker face twitched.
Design perfect for Louis XV's taste, all credited to him—he could strut as ambassador.
"Hahaha, Your Highness's thoughtfulness warms me. I'll convey your sincerity."
"I trust only you, count."
I shook hands as he treasured the box, taking coffee beans in return.
Franz Stefan is France's good friend. Now and always.
So, let's stay friendly—until France attacks first.
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