Of Pride and Power - 44. Chapter 38: “Discover each man’s thumbscrew”

Many fantasy stories often feature a powerful protagonist who achieves their goals through abilities, items, or allies by the tale's end. While I admire characters like Rimuru, Souma, and to some extent, Ainz, real human leaders don’t follow such predictable patterns. My foes and rivals could never have anticipated the chaotic conflicts that unfolded. Yet, I achieved a breakthrough amidst the chaos. My ability granted me full access to the history of humankind in my timeline up to the late 21st century, excluding details regarding the cores.

By examining these records, I reached some conclusions. Throughout history, humans have never operated without desires, hope, and ambitions. The truth, often obscured by arguments and diatribes, is that the outcomes people loved or hated often arose from random chances influenced by trivial human emotions. All the events I am about to describe can be summed up by a famous poem from my timeline: "The best-laid plans of mice and men oft go awry, and leave us nothing but grief and pain, for promised joy." Once you accept that chaos is reality, no plan can ever faze you.

On August 20th, 1572, I began my journey to Paris. The triplets, Robert, Puck, Eddie, and a small contingent of royal marines accompanied me. It was reminiscent of when I first set out on my journey to Somerset. Jamie was excluded from this procession due to the potential danger, and I knew I could leave my young son and heir safely in the care of Edward and Ambrose within the fortified industrial city of Bristol. However, England could not avoid sending a delegation to Paris after we agreed to deals that recognized the independence of Le Havre under Duke Louis Bourbon, along with other diplomatic exchanges. An English group of appropriate ranking had to go to Paris to fulfill our end of the marriage negotiations. It would have been a diplomatic affront to the French royal court if no one of high standing had gone to Paris since they sent Prince Francois to London.

The same issue arose with my partner. Robert urged me to send him alone, but his position was not legally recognized, unlike mine, which the Treaty of Calais cemented to formally legitimize my reign against rivals like Mary Stuart in Scotland. While many consorts of kings and queens were allowed to act as diplomatic representatives in marriage negotiations, none were of the same gender as the reigning monarch. Technically, I was identified in our official treaties as a "male" ruler under the formal Latin terms "Rex," "Princeps," and "Imperator," as there was no gender-neutral term for a ruler in the archaic Roman language used in formal treaties during the 16th century. Sadly, outside of England and the Netherlands, gender and marriage equality between same-gender individuals were unthinkable. Like in my era, such concepts were derided and shunned, despite many opponents to such practices engaging in extramarital affairs, including naming bastards as heirs and homosexual activities with impunity. These people were a disgusting cadre born from false equivalency and exceptionalism within noble social circles.

Thus, in the eyes of the French, Robert held the rank of an Archduke within my royal court—the highest noble rank—but his presence did not represent the English royal family as he lacked any blood connection to me, unlike some incestuous royal couples in Europe. Either Jamie or I had to go to France, and I was not going to allow my six-year-old son to be anywhere near Paris or France, given what I knew about that date in my history. Despite the relative peace, I prepared for plots and assassins by choosing my escorts carefully. The triplets were veteran warriors and commanders who had fought in many wars by this point and were at their peak. Puck had not become a settled househusband after his omega conversion and the birth of my nephew, Richard. He continued as chief royal toxicologist and pharmacist, along with being the chairperson of the Royal Pharmaceutical Guild. With the advent of industrial chemistry, Puck, with some assistance from Robert and me, made a fortune with the recreation of Orlistat, a derivative of natural lipstatin from the bacterium Streptomyces toxytricini. In my timeline, English chemists working for GlaxoSmithKline created this first-of-its-kind weight loss drug, ushering in an era of popular pharmaceutical solutions. In contrast to our failed foray into textiles and fashion, the English pharmaceutical industry was an unplanned success, as you know. The pharmaceutical monopoly that we enjoy today was already well underway by 1572. As a result, Puck had been busy managing and delegating production. He was begging for a dangerous and exciting adventure after years of battling farmers, guild-managed industrial complexes, and distributors. My poor brother Edward and brother-in-law Ambrose had to look after our sons Jamie and Will, along with their son Richard, during our absence. I offered to grant them anything they wanted upon my return as compensation for making them babysitters.

Ambrose wanted a role in England’s civil order to prevent future incidents like Radclyffe’s coup; essentially, he wanted to become Home Secretary for the newly formed law enforcement agencies across England, with the prefix name of “Metropolitan Police of.” Ambrose had a good sense of honor and justice, as shown by his past actions, including notifying me about Robert’s treatment and saving Edward from certain death, so the job suited him. As for Edward, he wanted a military commission with the newly built and unproven Royal Air Fleet, which surprised me. I knew my younger brother had developed an interest in aviation after the war against Queen Mary and France, including flying several single-propeller planes, but this request would require much more fine-tuning. Few people would recognize him as Edward Tudor instead of his new identity as Edward Wimbledon after two decades, but I had to be mindful.

With domestic affairs settled, my first destination was Calais, where Frances would be stationed with the elite Aelfric Guard of the Royal Marines. This elite division, formed after the northern rebellion and Radclyffe’s coup, was England’s fast-response military option. They had a few tricks and tools that would surprise foes who doubted them due to the army’s small size. I spent two additional days preparing contingency orders for Frances and the garrison forces in Calais and Picardy before leaving my territory.

On the afternoon of August 22nd, my group began its journey by motorcar caravan, composed of four touring motorcars and a truck carrying spare gasoline tanks. England and its territories had made significant strides in the last two decades with industrial advancements and reforms, but we were still far behind the standards of my timeline as we integrated military technology into commercial use. A single motorcar required gasoline every 100 miles and 6 gallons for each refill. The motorcar could accommodate five people, including the driver if you wanted to maximize fuel and weight.

As in the early era of personal vehicles in my timeline, there were no rest stops in my territory to refill gasoline-powered vehicles, so travelers in such vehicles had to carry enough fuel to reach their destination and return. This seriously hampered the utility of motorcars compared to the railroad system, which had seen much wider use throughout England, Wales, Cornwall, and recently Scotland. In terms of comparative fuel efficiency, we were able to produce advanced diesel piston engines on locomotives that could run on four gallons of diesel per mile and carry nearly 500 people. For the same distance, railroads used 0.8 gallons of diesel per passenger, while motorcars used 1.5 gallons of gasoline per person. In my timeline, a similar fuel efficiency difference between trains and motorcars in the early 20th century led to the rail systems of England and Europe becoming the most developed in the world. Combustion engine designs improved later in the 20th century, narrowing the gap in fuel efficiency, but only partially industrialized nations without infrastructure, like my homeland of the United States, focused on road development instead of railroad development. These considerations were key factors in why road development for motorcars was underdeveloped in 1572 in Calais and Picardy.

Paris was 178.3 miles from Calais, but there was no direct route from Calais to Paris after Calais was ceded to England, so the detours required an additional 100 miles or six gallons worth of gasoline for a scenic route to Picardy. We drove down an old dirt road that connected Picardy to Artois, where my caravan was escorted by the French army near a border checkpoint.

Passing by the French countryside, I could see that technological advancement was underway with gas lantern lighting and radio towers, reminiscent of my timeline’s early 20th century. Water towers and pumping stations were being erected around villages near the major roadway toward Paris, which I knew would bring about higher living standards with fresh, clean, and cheap water for the masses. Though France was nominally allied with my rivals, I was impressed by their civil engineering successes without the benefits of special abilities or generational administrative talents like Secretary of State William Cecil and more recently, Chancellor Nicholas Bacon. While I could introduce countless industrial technologies and advanced weapons, the adoption credit belonged to people like them. The failure of the simultaneous coup and rebellion in 1569 was attributed to their efforts. When commoners had water, warmth, and weather-proof shelter, they would not want to give it up for ideology or God. Add to that the fact that such developments required refined resources and workers, who were also commoners, and a virtuous cycle is created. That was why the quality of life improved so rapidly from the last quarter of the 19th century to the first quarter of the 20th century across various nations, regardless of political ideology, economic model, or religious affiliation. As we developed along this path, I knew what the results of their investments would be.

By 1572, running water was available to 90% of the British Isles, and electricity reached 70% of the population. In my timeline, the introduction of running water and electricity began in the 1900s, with around 5% implementation in the United States. By the 1930s, the rate had reached 70%. Despite their flaws, many French leaders pursued the betterment of their nation as a central goal of domestic policy, a point of similarity with England.

We arrived on the outskirts of Paris on the morning of August 23rd, 1572. As a diplomatic delegation, we were given priority entry into the city. However, I requested that the French guards allow others to enter and exit the city ahead of us—a seemingly innocent gesture that was a precaution for my security.

While waiting to enter Paris, two courtiers, Adeline and Bethanie, carrying infants, demanded an audience with Eddie through a public spectacle. They stormed in front of the armed guards and pointed at the motorcar carrying Eddie.

Adeline, who was nursing her baby, was the first to speak. “Monsieur Seymore, I demand you acknowledge your son, Thomas.”

From the opposite direction, Bethanie lifted her naked, crying baby into the air and screamed, “Please, Monsieur Seymore, acknowledge your son, Edward.”

Eddie’s reputation for fathering several illegitimate children from various affairs was well known, and I had publicly admonished him for being an irresponsible lothario. A paternity suit against the English ambassador to France might have been scandalous, but it was not unusual. Even now, decades later, several young omega men around Will’s age have made paternity claims against Eddie, and DNA tests have confirmed their children’s biological connection. Eddie is fortunate that child support laws weren’t codified until later; otherwise, the Seymore estate might not have retained any property at all.

In response to the two women, Eddie feigned embarrassment and dismissed their claims. The French guards kept a close eye on the women as Eddie handed them notes denying paternity—notes that the guards probably assumed contained coded messages as they intercepted them. Although the courtiers' spectacle was a covert act, it signaled the involvement of someone other than English agents. Adeline and Bethanie were well-known in noble circles as favorites of several high-ranking male nobles, including Eddie, but their true loyalties lay with their mistress, Elisabeth of Brandenburg-Küstrin, wife of George Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach, and a member of the Hohenzollern family.

One of the lesser-known details of European history, in either timeline, is the elaborate network of spies within the German nobility across major royal courts. Unlike traditional female roles held by nobility, German princesses from one of the 39 states, including Imperial Habsburg Austria, were far more than housewives; they managed state affairs, including espionage. While I did not doubt that the two babies were likely Eddie’s illegitimate children, they were merely tools for my ruthless allies, as neither boy was seen again. Francis later informed me that both infants were strangled by their mothers during the ensuing events and presented to the French authorities as proof of their loyalty.

The presence of the women conveyed Elisabeth’s hidden message—a prearranged signal that there was movement in the French royal court against my delegation. Knowing this was a trap heightened everyone’s alertness, especially Eddie, who, despite his hope that our fears were exaggerated, was less conflict-oriented. Nevertheless, we had to enter the city and allow their trap to unfold. I suspected Henry III was acting like his elder brother during this timeframe, despite the diplomatic overtures and appearance of factions within the royal court. All the conciliatory treaties and gifts in recent years were merely lures for a honey-pot scheme. Additionally, Bethanie’s presence suggested that the Guise family, under Henri de Lorraine, was also plotting something. Bethanie was a favorite of Charles de Lorraine, Henri’s younger brother. Despite the potential future cost of the deal with the Hohenzollern family, their established spy network lived up to its reputation and complemented our intelligence operations perfectly.

After the commotion subsided and Eddie assured the women of compensation, it was our turn to enter Paris. As we crossed the city gates, my vision distorted slightly, as if I were looking through prescription glasses meant for someone else. My analytical abilities were unaffected, so I attempted to identify the cause. However, none of the usual suspects—radiation, magnetic, or gravitational forces—appeared to be the culprit.

On a whim, I grabbed Robert’s hand and signed to hide my question in case we could be overheard, “Something is wrong in this city. Can you try making rust?”

I handed Robert a silver pocket watch, which he took in his hand. After several seconds, he returned the watch to me without any sign of oxidation.

Robert smiled at me and said pleasantly, “Looks like we’ll be on time to meet King Henry’s men at Tuileries Palace.”

He held my hand, betraying only a slight tremble. “I can’t use my abilities. Are we in trouble?”

I smiled back at him and signed, “I can still use mine.”

I realized that whatever was affecting Robert’s abilities must align with mine. All of my abilities are fundamentally connected to the interaction with information, whether it’s encyclopedic knowledge on various topics, the transfer of my knowledge and experiences to others, or the manipulation of matter based on probability—something akin to real quantum teleportation. According to the AI system at Avalon, known as the Three Sisters, my abilities are based on phantom energy, a theoretical concept related to negative energy. Beyond the fantasy religions of “New Age” beliefs and pseudoscience health routines from my timeline, such a large amount of tangible negative energy should only be perceived by human beings amid a rip in the fabric of space-time. If such an area appeared in our universe, various laws of physics would become malleable. If the area were flooded with phantom energy, and the cores were rigged to control physical constants, it could explain the distortions in my vision and Robert’s issues. A controlled area within a space-time tear should be impossible, but the cores and our presence in the 16th century proved that it was possible to exceed human technical limitations. However, maintaining this kind of controlled space would be extremely costly, even for several fully charged cores. My analysis estimated that the current energy density could not be sustained under the present power source for more than 21 hours and 17 minutes.

As we headed toward the Tuileries Palace, which had been built by Catherine de Medici recently in 1568, I was excited by this turn of events. I hadn’t anticipated such a unique trap, but it offered an intriguing opportunity. Even as our motorcar traveled down the Rue Neuve-Saint-Louis, I used the phantom energy to manipulate small things, like freezing a geyser of water at a nearby fountain for a few seconds or causing a gas lantern to burn a day’s worth of fuel in seconds. Time was not on their side.