Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology
Chapter 890 - 890: The goal of the Holy Roman Empire (1/2)

A few months before the fall of Budapest

A grand flag fluttered in the wind, with an insignia of a black falcon clutching a silver key on a gold and red quartered shield. Beneath it stood a noble butler in aristocratic attire, warmly welcoming a distinguished noble couple with a smile.

"Welcome, Lord Baron, Baroness. It's a pleasure to receive you both."

"Please proceed further, Charlie here will guide you inside."

"Thank you for the hospitality, kind sir!"

Suddenly, with a loud and high-pitched sound, a blazing arrow flew into the sky and blew up, causing a fountain of colours to gush out as if to hug the ground. The butler, looking up, his eyes glistened as he muttered with emotion, 'The day has finally come for the cub to succeed the old lion.'

The brilliant bursts of colour drew the gazes of both the baron and baroness to the evening sky, leaving them, as well as the nobles arriving behind them and the servants, enamoured by the beauty of the blooming fiery trees set against the backdrop of the setting sun. As the couple entered the majestic palace, accompanied by young Charlie, laughter and cheerful chatter filled the air, creating a cosy atmosphere for socialising.

The house of Falkenstein und Altenmark is a noble family that in the past produced several Dukes and also controlled key trade routes in the Alps and the Danube. Once upon a time, they were the closest family to gain elector-level influence and become one of the royal families in the Holy Roman Empire. But unfortunately, the family split up, and it went downhill from there. However, the influence and respect commanded by the family still existed. So in respect, all the major noble families of the Holy Roman Empire showed up at the banquet celebrating the young patriarch of the Falkenstein und Altenmark family taking over the position of the patriarch and inheriting the title of Viscount.

A few minutes later, when the ball was about to start, the royal carriage bearing the insignia of the Habsburg Dynasty came to a stop in front of the palace, making everyone who was on their way to the palace for the ball become momentarily silent and stand still in their places. In the surprised eyes of everyone, the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Leopold I, himself got down from the carriage wearing an exquisite blue and red noble dress as he walked towards the palace.

All the nobles, even if they had a little friction with the royal family, respectfully bowed to the emperor and made way. Leopold gestured with his hand with a smile as he walked forward, accepting the respect from the nobles with grace. In fact, coming to the banquet was not in his itinerary, but as he was getting frustrated and unable to come up with a battle plan to fight against the Russians, he thought that coming to the banquet of a family who had supported him from the beginning could clear his mind.

After Leopold entered the palace, the ball officially set off, with noble ladies and gentlemen dancing with each other in extreme grace to the soulful music of violin, cello, and lute.

Leopold held the hand of a young and beautiful baroness and danced the ballroom dance with the light of passion gleaming in his eyes.

Looking at the soft and alluring figure in his arms, 'I made the right choice coming here. Not only is my mind completely relaxed, I even bagged this tasteful beauty,' he thought with a gentle smile.

Time passed slowly, and all the major nobles sat together in front of a gigantic table, talking in loud voices as they were already a little drunk.

"The Russians deserve to die. Their appetite is simply insatiable. How dare they expand to the Balkans? Arent they afraid that they'll choke by eating too much?"

'Hiccup!'

"Haha, Lord Duke, why would the Russians choke? They are simply fire-breathing dragons, devouring and burning down everything in their path. Have you ever heard a dragon choking because of too much food?"

"Haha!"

"While it may be so, gentlemen, we cannot allow the Russians to grow too much, as it will threaten our Holy Roman Empire. We must stop them no matter the cost."

"What Lord Earl said is absolutely true. There is nothing scarier than having Russia as a neighbour. Can someone rest peacefully if there is a dragon at their doorstep?"

"Thankfully, His Majesty, along with several dukes, have already started to prepare, mobilising the army to take on the giant bear."

Everyone looked towards Leopold, and Leopold did not accept or deny, which was a form of acceptance in itself.

However, just then, a low but young voice reverberated throughout the hall.

"Why do we have to fight the Russians when we can cooperate with them?"

All the gazes were immediately attracted by a young man who was barely 25 years old, wearing noble, ornamented clothes, who had a look of doubt on his face as if he really could not understand why they could not cooperate with the Russians.

This immediately caused sighs of disappointment and anger in the nobles.

If they knew that the new patriarch of the Falkenstein und Altenmark house, Viscount Ruprecht von Falkenstein, was such a fool, they wouldn't have come to the banquet.

"Ruprecht, are you asking this question out of ignorance, or are you trying to humiliate us by asking why we do not cooperate with the bloodthirsty barbarians in the east?"

Grand Duke Heinrich von Humboldt questioned, not mincing his words, as he was already drunk.

Other major nobles looked at the young man with a similar accusatory gaze, and that included Leopold I.

Ruprecht immediately felt the pressure mounting on him as all the major nobles stared at him with dissatisfaction. He knew if he could not explain himself now, the situation of their family would get worse and worse.

"Um, my lords, I do know about the enmity between us and the Russians. I also know how dangerous they are, but..."

"If you really know, then why would you suggest such a thing?"

"Ah!" He cursed the drunken noble for interrupting him in the middle and continued, "Because it is logical and it is the most advantageous for the Empire, my lords."

Heinrich, who was about to stand up and accuse the young man once again, immediately became silent as he really got intrigued, "How so?"

"It's simple, really. We don't want to be the henchmen of the Western powers. Everyone knows they're using us to handle the problems in Italy, and now the Ottomans and Russians, just because of our geographic position. As the only major empire in Central Europe, who else could take on this task of being mercenaries better than us?"

His expression was a little lost, frustrated even. Everything he was saying now might be extremely disrespectful to a lot of nobles, or even the emperor, but he decided to let his heart out today, or else he felt like there would be nothing left for him to call home in a few years.

"Haha, it's ironic to say this now, but during my forefathers' time, our geography was our greatest asset, something that strengthened our glorious fatherland. But today, I don't think it's controversial to admit that's no longer the case. We're being dragged into conflicts without a choice, unable to develop or recover in peace after the Thirty Years' War. The wounds of other European nations have long since healed, and now they're ready to act on their ambitions once more. They've realised the world is their playground, no longer confined to Europe."

" But we, not to mention healing, our wounds are continuing to fester. It is for this exact reason that I implore everyone to not wage a war on the Russians for the sake of slowing them down, but to think of plans where we can benefit."

"Thanks to His Majesty's foresight, we've pulled the French in to contain the Italians, showing that we have the ability to flip the table."

"However, this is not enough. In my humble opinion, we must, once and for all, send a stern message to the Western Europeans and show them that we are not to be manipulated. We are the Glorious Holy Roman Empire, the strongest nation this continent has ever seen."

He clenched his fist tightly, the tension in his body sending faint vibrations that those around him could feel. His passion was palpable. Some nobles, whose thoughts aligned with his, felt their blood surge as the haze of intoxication began to lift.

"Now that the Russians have taken control of Moldova, they're conscripting more grey animals to steamroll their way to Constantinople. Investing our efforts in stopping them is simply uneconomical. It will cost us countless lives, enormous sums of money, and spark internal unrest, all for the benefit of the Ottomans and the Western Europeans. We will gain nothing, even if our objectives are met."

"Instead, I propose another plan that not only allows us to win, but to win big, expanding our Empire by hundreds of thousands of kilometres."

No one refuted him anymore. The top nobles like Heinrich and the other Dukes and Archdukes knew in their hearts that what the boy was saying was true, no matter how reluctant they were to accept it. As for the minor lords, since the bigger nobles did not speak out, they wouldn't say anything either.

To be continued...

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