Chapter 529: An Unexpected Ultimatum
A week had pa.s.sed since the fateful day where the Austrian Royal Guard executed over a hundred individuals who were a.s.sociated with the a.s.sa.s.sination attempt on King Berengar von Kufstein"s life. Though the Princess had awoken from her slumber and survived her wounds, she was far from the condition to alk around and enjoy life the way she used to.
Berengar had taken extra care to ensure Henrietta"s safety as her muscles healed from the bullet wound. He commissioned an elegant wheelchair to cart the girl around in and personally took care of her needs.
By now the King"s wives were becoming envious of the time he was spending with his sister, despite this, they endured their jealousy as they were aware of the emotional turmoil their husband had gone through when he thought Henrietta was on the brink of death.
However, a Monarch"s duties were to his Realm and his people, and the attack on his life that had resulted in his sister"s injury needed to be answered in kind. For without dignity, a Monarch was nothing.
Thus, he had spent some time preparing a major speech to be delivered to the Austrian people. After which, the Kingdom"s agents would then spread the message to the people that dwelled within those North German States who swore their allegiance to the b.a.s.t.a.r.d of Luxembourg.
Finally, the day for this speech had arrived, and Berengar stood in the central plaza of the Kingdom of Kufstein, where just weeks before, a hundred and three criminals were executed under his orders. By his side was the Princess of Austria, who was in a wheelchair. Aside from this fact, she looked as beautiful and lively as ever.
The people gazed upon their King with curiosity. It was not every day that he would host such an event. They were curious about what he wanted to tell them. Clearly, it was an important matter. After enough citizens and foreign merchants had gathered in the town, Square Berengar spoke in an authoritative tone.
"I have gathered you all here today for an important matter. I speak not only to the people of Austria, but it is my intent for this message to be spread across Germany so that all of its people may understand what has transpired within my realm, and hopefully empathize with my plight.
Weeks ago, there was an attack on my life in the middle of a celebration. The intent of this event was to honor the men who have sacrificed so much in pursuit of Austrian victory against our enemies. Unfortunately, the a.s.sa.s.sin missed his target, and instead harmed an innocent, nearly claiming her life in the process.
It is a miracle of modern Austrian medicine that my sister sits here today before you all, both alive and well. Sadly, the attack has had serious consequences on her health, and for the time being, she requires a.s.sistance in the simplest matters of life.
Luckily, we managed to capture the would-be a.s.sa.s.sin alive, and thanks to the thorough interrogation conducted by my agents, we were able to ascertain the ident.i.ty of the man responsible for this terrorist attack! It is none other than the b.a.s.t.a.r.d of Luxembourg, Duke Hartman von Luxembourg!
This villain had conspired with hidden criminal elements of our society in an attempt to claim my life. In doing so, he nearly killed my precious little sister, who is completely innocent of the politics that have led to this unfortunate reality. Had my sister suffered such a tragic fate, I surely would have burned the Northern German States to the ground in my fury and grief.
Luckily for all of you, specifically the people of these lands, she has survived this ordeal thanks to the efforts of my physicians and their exemplary knowledge of medicine! Thus, I have decided to be merciful and give you all an option to redeem yourselves in the eyes of your creator.
Submit yourselves to my rule, and rise in rebellion against this scoundrel who harms innocent little girls! Drag him before my court, and I promise I will absolve you of the sins of your masters. If you do this, you will avoid a war with the South German Confederation, one which will surely claim the lives of millions of innocents.
For those of you who fear the might of your feudal overlords, fear not. I, as King of Austria, swear to arm those who submit to my Crown with the tools needed to overthrow your masters. This is my ultimatum to you, bring me this villainous coward who declares himself king of Germany, or suffer the wrath of my armies!
You have three months to decide on a course of action before I commit the forces of the South German Confederation to total invasion! Choose wisely, for the fate of you and your families hangs in the balance. Just know this, if I am forced to invade the North in pursuit of justice for the crimes committed against my family, I will be far from merciful!"
Having said this speech, Berengar grabbed ahold of Henrietta"s wheelchair and escorted her back to the Palace, leaving the Austrian people in a state of shock. They did not expect their bloodthirsty King to give the German people of the North a choice in the matter. Such a thing was indeed considered merciful when one took into consideration the brutality that their King had inflicted on other realms for far lesser charges.
As for Berengar, he wheeled Henrietta into his office, as he was too afraid to let her out of his sight, in case some complications with her condition arrived. Though such a thing was unlikely at this point, he had become an exceptionally worrisome brother ever since the a.s.sa.s.sination attempt.
Henrietta pouted as Berengar sat at his desk and began to draft plans. It confused her as to why he had brought her here. Ever the inquisitive young woman, Henrietta quickly asked the question on her mind.
"What are you up to, big brother?"
Berengar smiled. He would not hide his plots from his darling little sister, instead he placed down his pen and looked up from his work as he boldly declared his intentions to the girl.
"It is rather simple. I plan to expand the Royal Guard into a self-sufficient army. Currently, there is a single battalion that acts as the personal protective force of the Crown. However, after recent events, I have come to realize the need for a large, and elite militant force that is unquestionably loyal to the Royal Family."
Henrietta nodded her head in understanding, though she wasn"t one for military, or even political matters, she trusted her brother"s judgement. If expanding the Royal Guard aided in preventing another tragedy like what had happened to her, then she was all for it.
As for Berengar"s plans, he had devised the new and improved Royal Guard to be based upon Napoleon"s Imperial Guard, with a bit of influence from the Waffen-SS. Technically, the Royal Guard would be separate from the Army, and would exist as Berengar"s personal shock troops.
The King intended to split the Royal Guards into infantry, cavalry, artillery, sapper, and marine battalions. He also intended to follow Napoleon"s model of splitting them into three sections based upon experience. The young guard, middle guard, and old guard.
As far as their uniforms were concerned, Berengar designed a distinctive uniform for his royal guard. Rather than going with the route of a uniform based on the style that the Prussians used in the 1870s from his past life, Berengar took inspiration from the Bavarian Cuira.s.siers of the same time period. Naturally, he s.h.i.+fted the colors from blue and red to black and gold, which were the colors that his armies used.
Having finished drafting his plans for the restructure and expansion of the Royal Guards, Berengar walked over to his little sister and grabbed hold of her chin with his firm hand before kissing her on the forehead. After doing so, he made her a solemn vow.
"I promise I will not allow anything like this to happen to you ever again..."
Henrietta rested her chin in her brother"s hands as she closed her eyes. Despite being wounded so severely, she had finally gotten what she wanted deep down inside, and that was for her brother to spoil her. So what if they weren"t blood related siblings? In her eyes, Berengar would always be her precious big brother.
With the actions that Berengar had taken on this day, he had forced the Northern German States into a predicament. The people surely would not stand for an Austrian invasion, especially after all the success they had in wars these past few years. However, the proud Lords of the North would never willingly bow their heads to the Austrian King, thus Germany was on the verge of war once more, as two factions remained vying for the German Crown.. The b.a.s.t.a.r.d of Luxembourg, and the Tyrant of Steel.