On the viewing platform of the police academy, Joseph stood in a pristine blue-and-white uniform of the Paris police force. With a warm smile directed at the instructors and cadets before him, he raised his voice, "First, congratulations to all of you. You will become the honorable police officers of France!
"Yes, at thi...
2025-03-02 20:04:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe Duke of Orléans immediately thought of the Paris Angel Company, created by Joseph.
He wasn’t very familiar with the shop, having only visited once to buy his mistress a VIP card worth a thousand livres—mainly because the woman had pestered him about it for several days.
However, he had heard that the noblewome...
2025-03-02 20:03:01 +0000 UTC View PostAfter finishing breakfast, King Albert I took Charles for a leisurely walk along the pathways of his estate.
The estate was modest, and even the villa where they had breakfast was only slightly larger than an average house. It made King Albert I seem more like a farmer than a king.
Of course, this was merely his estate in Antwerp.
...
2025-03-02 18:04:01 +0000 UTC View PostGeneral Gillis was commanding the troops at the frontline.
Rather than directing a battle, it was more like staging a performance, setting traps, and using deception. The plan was exactly what Charles had proposed: to feign the destruction of Fort Wavre.
The plan sounded simple, but implementing it proved to be somewhat challenging. Last n...
2025-03-02 18:03:01 +0000 UTC View PostSabastine said, “The sword wielded by the Golden Ram Herolf, known as Treading the Seas, is renowned across the Seven Seas.”
“This magical rapier has only one attribute: controlling seawater!”
“The higher the transcendent rank of the wielder, the greater the amount of seawater they can control.”
“With Herolf’s transcendent rank, a single thrust of this...
2025-03-02 16:06:01 +0000 UTC View PostCharlot mustered all his strength and shouted, "Ha, good thing it’s not a transcendent weapon, or I'd be dead for sure!"
Sabastine, momentarily stunned, hurriedly reminded him in a hushed voice, "Don’t shout so loudly! Herolf the Golden Ram might hear us."
Charlot didn’t respond, his gaze fixated intently on Saint Michael City.
After a moment, just as disappointment crep...
2025-03-02 16:05:01 +0000 UTC View PostTwo days ago, Joseph acquired a small, near-bankrupt bank and promptly renamed it the French Reserve Bank. The entire process of renaming and registration was completed swiftly, thanks to his connections in the court.
With the bank’s storefront and staff already in place, operations began as early as yesterday.
Th...
2025-03-01 20:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostIn 1717, the legendary financial magnate John Law founded the Mississippi Company to address France's colossal debt. He secured exclusive rights to manage the Louisiana colony from the French government, and soon after, the company began issuing stock.
Rumors of abundant gold mines in the Mississippi River Val...
2025-03-01 20:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe next day, Charles was awakened by the sound of artillery fire.
It didn’t take much thought to identify it as the German “Big Bertha” heavy artillery.
The Germans typically refrained from firing at night; accuracy during nocturnal bombardments was too low, and the “Big Bertha” shells were far from cheap.
Instead, they ...
2025-03-01 18:02:13 +0000 UTC View Post“Your Majesty!” General Gillis urged anxiously, “This concerns all our lives…”
“There is no room for discussion, General!” King Albert I interrupted decisively. “I believe the vast majority of Belgians would make the same decision as I have. They would never hand over Charles. Never!”
General Gillis grumb...
2025-03-01 18:01:07 +0000 UTC View PostSabastine paused momentarily, then reached out to pat Charlot Mecklenburg’s head and said, “I don’t think he’s pretending.”
Charlot replied, “A dignified Saint rank like him wouldn’t change his expression even if cursed at for days and nights. My insults were so weak—how could they have driven him to vomit blood?”
Sabastine glanced into the distance. There was only...
2025-03-01 16:04:04 +0000 UTC View PostIf Charlot Mecklenburg had said such a thing before going to Saint Michael Island, at least half the generals in Menielman Soumet’s military council would have scoffed: “Idiot!”
Sabastine might even have pointed at Charlot's nose and bluntly declared, “Get this fool out of here.”
But ever since Charlot returned from Saint Michael Island, not a single general under Menielma...
2025-03-01 16:03:00 +0000 UTC View PostDubois, being slightly older, was deeply aware that the core of enhancing a military’s combat effectiveness lay in its organization, training, and logistics. Without hesitation, he took out a sheet of paper and a pen, whispering as he jotted down the points the Crown Prince had just mentioned regarding military reform.
"Establ...
2025-02-28 20:10:01 +0000 UTC View PostA grand fountain refracted delightful rainbows under the sunlight.
Before Joseph could speak, André couldn’t restrain himself and asked, “Your Highness, I really want to know—how did you manage to make the Prussians retreat?”
Over the past few days, he often recalled the moment when, prepared ...
2025-02-28 20:09:00 +0000 UTC View PostGallieni didn’t realize Charles was missing until night had fallen.
The entire day, he had been scrambling to organize reinforcements for Antwerp.
At that time, the French army was pursuing the Germans along the entire front. The regular army was on the battlefield, leaving behind only newly trained or still-in-training recruits. Sen...
2025-02-28 18:10:00 +0000 UTC View Post"You don’t know Charles?" General Winter looked at General Gillis, his expression tinged with surprise.
General Winter quickly realized why this was the case. Ever since the German army broke through Belgium, General Winter and everyone here had been trapped within the German encirclement. Telephone lines were cut, and communication re...
2025-02-28 18:09:01 +0000 UTC View PostMenielman only selected a portion of the strongest sailors. After all, she was part of the Imperial Navy of the Fars Empire and had no interest in notorious pirates, preferring instead to recruit her crew from among civilians.
Once Menielman finished her selection, Charlot Mecklenburg began his own "rapid recruitment."
In just three days, he completed a task that would typically tak...
2025-02-28 16:02:01 +0000 UTC View Post“It’s a pity we couldn’t conquer the first level of Saint Michael City. Otherwise, the wealth obtained there might have exceeded that of the lower six levels combined.”
Charlot Mecklenburg's thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of High Priest Auguslatin, who descended from above with a cheerful expression. The High Priest smiled and said, “Mr. Mecklenburg, congratulations ar...
2025-02-28 16:01:09 +0000 UTC View PostJoseph’s eyes lit up instantly, but to be safe, he continued to ask, “Do you know anything else about him?”
Dubois felt slightly vexed. It seemed that the one being commended today was supposed to be him, yet His Highness kept asking about Alexander...
Still, he patiently replied, “Your Highness, he comes from a...
2025-02-27 20:08:01 +0000 UTC View PostSince taking over the family business, Delaude Laborde had never been as restless as he was today.
The manager of Laborde Bank had brought him terrible news: the French government—specifically, the Crown Prince responsible for financial loans—intended to terminate their cooperation.
In the current grim state of Fr...
2025-02-27 20:07:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe evening sky over Antwerp brightened slightly as a ray of sunset pierced through the clouds.
Twenty-five kilometers east of the fortress, in a basin formed by rolling hills, General von Beseler, commander of the Third Reserve Corps of the German First Army, stood on high ground, silently observing the horizon through binoculars.
"Boom!" ...
2025-02-27 18:08:00 +0000 UTC View PostGeneral Gillis suddenly let loose, voicing his discontent without reservation:
“We have always done our utmost to fight the enemy, Lieutenant, even shouldering responsibilities far beyond our means!”
“From the King providing intelligence to your country, to refusing the Germans’ so-called ‘harmless passage’ and declaring ...
2025-02-27 18:07:00 +0000 UTC View PostMenielman Soumet led the fleet back to port, accompanied by Tumisan and Sabastine, whose faces showed faint joy.
Tumisan had brought some members of the Orc Assassin Alliance to join Menielman, hoping that the Empire’s First Rose could help him realize his ambitions.
Sabastine, a female pirate, had once been impressed by Zimourman Axel Robin’s charisma and followed him when he p...
2025-02-27 16:10:01 +0000 UTC View PostHerolf, the Golden Ram, was in a hurry to return to Saint Michael Island. His magical alchemical warship sailed swiftly, leaving the rest of his fleet far behind. Meanwhile, Menielman Soumet's fleet had already isolated Herolf’s magical alchemical warship from the twenty-odd regular ships under his command. By the time Herolf realized what was happening, it was too late—under the pressure o...
2025-02-27 16:09:01 +0000 UTC View Post"You've done an excellent job!" Joseph said approvingly as he looked at Froyent. "Continue recruiting students. Additionally, select those with outstanding abilities and ambition to form an 'elite class' for focused training."
"Also, although the police academy is newly established and can make d...
2025-02-26 20:06:00 +0000 UTC View PostÉtienne pondered for a long time before deciding to personally visit the Palace of Versailles tomorrow to gather information. After all, this loan was a crucial business deal for Havret Bank.
Although he had promised the Duke of Orléans to delay the disbursement until the last possible day, it did not mean he...
2025-02-26 20:05:01 +0000 UTC View PostCharles had always thought that the plane was flying through clouds, though he had noticed the strange scent in the air.
Before long, the pilot lowered the altitude, piercing through layers of thick mist. Suddenly, the fiery explosions of artillery shells seemed to erupt just below, their blasts shaking the wings of the plane. It was then t...
2025-02-26 18:06:01 +0000 UTC View PostIn the lounge beside the airfield, Grevy and Armand sat across from each other at a table.
They sipped coffee leisurely while watching the airfield, where an Avro two-seater aircraft was taxiing along the runway before taking off into the sky.
“Brilliant idea!” Armand raised his coffee and slightly tilted it toward Grevy acros...
2025-02-26 18:05:01 +0000 UTC View PostCharlot stood at the port, gazing at the vast sea for a while.
The diary in his arms remained silent; he knew he had not yet gained full control of Saint Michael Island.
The ships still docked at Saint Michael Island were mostly in the hands of second- and third-tier pirates, slave traders, and underground merchants. These individuals did not believe anyone could successfully rebel on ...
2025-02-26 16:08:01 +0000 UTC View PostHigh Priest Auguslatin wasn’t truly angry with him—what was the point of being angry with a mere pirate vice-captain?
In any case, those seven Radiant Arrows were undoubtedly High Priest Auguslatin’s masterpiece, obliterating the unfortunate vice-captain on the spot, leaving nothing but "void."
Of course, the seven Radiant Arrows didn’t reach the level of disintegrating matt...
2025-02-26 16:07:01 +0000 UTC View Post