638 – Sea (1)
In life, we often encounter unexpected situations. It is no different from a country that is revered as a saint.
He often throws stones to the point of causing huge ripples in the lake, but there are cases where other people throw stones as well.
Of course, even in that case, the butterfly effect caused by me is probably a flaw if it is a flaw. Anyway, why am I saying this?
[The Empire of Minerva. Garrison withdrawal from the Starbirk region!]
Star Birk is an area that the Minerva Empire can never give up. The troops stationed in the area withdrew.
As everyone knows, the independence movement is in full swing in Starbirk. As the Great Depression was slowly receding, the mood gradually intensified.
So far, it’s the Maishal estate, but it’s because attention is focused on it, and Starbirk is also hoarding its metallurgical strength.
So there was a bit of uneasiness, but out of the blue, he was the first to withdraw from the Minerva Empire.
[Many countries, including Starbirk, are perplexed by the news of the sudden withdrawal of troops.]
[Will Starbirk be able to achieve the independence it so longed for? Or the psychological warfare of the Minerva Empire?]
[The Minerva Empire is only saying that it is time to strengthen its internal stability…]
Because he is so out of the blue, many media say that it is a psychological warfare of the Minerva Empire, a means to make people careless, and so on.
From the perspective of the empire, I didn’t blindly believe it because it was Starbirque, the sweet fruit itself. Actually, that is natural.
If the troops were to be withdrawn, the lord of the region would also be bitten. Only the garrison troops withdrew immediately.
[People in the Stabirk region are getting a positive reaction despite their bewilderment.]
[However, in order for Stabirk to be properly independent, the establishment of a government is a priority…]
[Star Birk is in confusion because he has lost what he has to fight for. What is their future?]
However, this action alone caused great confusion in Starbirk. When the target to fight disappears, the direction is lost.
Originally, he would have developed his strength little by little while resisting the Minerva Empire until the end. I would have raised my voice from then on.
From Starbirque’s point of view, the Minerva Empire must have struck first to secure a clear justification.
But what is this? The garrison that was predicted to fight withdraws first?
The Empire of Minerva also gave up a lot, but Starbirk was in a great confusion about its direction.
[The Minerva Empire still does not recognize Starbirque’s independence and remains silent.]
[He said he would watch it right now in Starbirk.]
If you look at this, you could say that the Empire is engaging in psychological warfare. Just because the garrison is withdrawn does not mean independence.
On the contrary, you can reassure them in this way and then stab them in the back. I know this is a strategy that has been used quite often since ancient times.
If you only read the media, you’d think they were plotting in the Minerva Empire. I actually thought it would.
However, what the empire was decorating was a big picture that far exceeded expectations.
“The Empire will advance by sea.”
“Sea?”
That’s what Lina, who hadn’t seen in a while, said to me. The words that the Minerva Empire will turn its eyes to the sea.
I asked for additional explanation because it was a story that I could not help but wonder about. Now in her drawing room, it’s just me and her.
Afterwards, Lina quietly put down the teacup she had lifted. Cat-like eyes stare at me with a clattering sound.
“The sea you are thinking of is correct. It is an environment with all kinds of dangers, and in the worst case, deaths. The Empire has decided to turn its attention there.”
“Did Starbirk give up completely?”
“It’s like giving up halfway.”
Lina answered my question coolly. If I didn’t remember my previous life, she would have wondered about giving up Star Birk.
But it is the sea. A sea of infinite possibilities and potential. Since ancient times, the one who controls the sea has ruled the world.
You don’t have to go far to see the UK. Unlike its tiny mainland, England dominated the world.
I had colonies all over the continent, and even the best invention, ‘America’, was born in the hands of the British.
Of course, he doesn’t get very good reviews because he often acts out of spite. This is true not only in Britain, but also in other powers.
“But even this is not certain. Obama gave me a week. I have to convince him within that time.”
“If that’s the case, you shouldn’t have come looking for me, but someone else. Who was it… Marquis Goats?”
My father-in-law, the person I met at the social church of the Dmitry family. Unlike Marquis Martius, the commander in charge of the sea.
Befitting a sailor, he has tanned skin and an old face. I was impressed with his unique voice and boldness.
Especially, I know that the combination with Marshall went well. Did he say that he was so engrossed in firepower that he was shooting cannons around?
I told him to bring vegetables and fruits if he wanted to prevent scurvy, but now I’m not sure.
“I only know the history, but I know very little about the sea. There are even monsters here? How do I solve that?”
Wherever you go, that monster is always a problem. Even so, the sea is an environment where you can often see ‘God’s Wrath’.
It took hundreds of years for even the earth to navigate the sea safely.
If the wrath of the gods and the monsters overlap, it will literally outweigh the disaster.
“It doesn’t matter. What we’re looking at is the potential, the future.”
“It’s the future…”
“If more factories are built in the future, production will increase and the population will naturally increase. But the empire is still saturated. Unless we advance to the sea, the only answer is war.”
Exactly. Even if I consciously conveyed the knowledge of my previous life, I am foreseeing the future.
Before navigation and shipbuilding developed, medieval Europe was busy fighting each other.
Mediterranean was dominated by Muslim forces, and the North Sea was dominated by Vikings. There was no reason for the navy to be strong.
More than anything else, the problem is that the weight class of the Minerva Empire is too big. If you press down with the army, everything will be solved, but there was no need to raise it.
It is both funny and sad that the Qing Dynasty collapsed because of that. Even if the weight class was large, it was too big and there was no one to compete with, so I could not use it and was dominated.
“We can keep the Kingdom of Terse across the sea in check, and as the trade network expands, our economic power will increase. Even Albenheim doesn’t have a strong navy. There’s no reason to check it.”
“Wouldn’t it be better if I said that to His Majesty the Emperor?”
“The question is whether or not there are merits until giving up Starbirk.”
The territory of the Minerva Empire is similar to Earth’s China. It’s the same even with a huge desert in the west.
However, the territory of Stabirk, which serves as a Korean Peninsula, boasts a much larger size than the Korean Peninsula. Potential must be high.
Is it an advantage to turn your eyes to the sea while giving up on such a place? Lina seems to want this.
“More than enough. England ruled the seas and conquered the world.”
At this, I answered as if asking something. As someone who knows history, it is very common sense.
But it seems not to Lina. As if she knew this, she said with a subtle smile.
“It’s like that for you. It’s like that for me who knows the truth about you. But isn’t it for our Obama Mama?”
“Ah. That would be difficult to explain.”
“That’s why I came to you. It’s okay since Marquis Gotts is an expert on the sea, but you can tell me about the potential.”
This is a more difficult issue than I thought. In the first place, the situation between Britain and the Minerva Empire was very different.
Britain could not cope with the overflowing production, so colonialism, or imperialism, developed. The Age of Exploration before that laid the foundation.
The Empire of Minerva, on the other hand, is a bit different. Factories are not fully operational to overflowing with productivity, nor are the territories concentrated on the sea side.
‘Is it because of me?’
Since there have been so many such cases lately, I naturally start to doubt myself. In fact, it seems to be so.
But since Lina asked for it, her answer must be sincere. I thought for a moment as I took a sip of tea.
The potential of the sea is so limitless that it is difficult to describe it in words. Even if it is not England, if the naval power is strong, most of the countries hold hegemony.
Moreover, merchants in the past thought that the sea did not block the land, but the land blocked the sea.
The result was the ‘canal’. In particular, the Panama Canal is a large-scale construction to the extent that it was made while digging a ‘mountain’.
“I think you should look at the map first…”
“I knew that and brought it.”
Lina showed me the map she was holding in her hand. She laughed out loud at her iron-clad look.
Then I roughly cleared away the refreshments on the table and unfolded the map. It was a fairly well-kept map, so there were hardly any parts that had turned yellow.
“This is the location of our Minerva Empire. The country under the sea is Terse Kingdom. Albenheim is to the east and Machina is to the northwest.”
“That’s not quite right, is it?”
“Don’t think ordinary people can see a map of the world like your world. It took at least 7 years to make this one.”
A map is a very important thing regardless of the East and the West. Not to mention the military, geography tells us the strengths and weaknesses of a country.
That’s why only high-ranking people can carry detailed maps. Since Lina is the princess, she must have that right.
I took a closer look at the crude but well-crafted world map. I’ve only heard of it, but it’s my first time seeing the world on a map.
“Hmm… Is this the Principality of Belua? The only land route to Terce Kingdom.”
I pointed to the part in the middle like a bridgehead. Because of that one land, the sea is surrounded by land like the Mediterranean Sea.
“That’s right. It’s a very important point for other countries, including the Empire. A factory will be built with the support of the Empire.”
“Did you ever think of digging a canal here?”
It’s not just spit out at will, it’s historical evidence. If they just drilled through there, the empire would be able to reap many times the profits they have now.
The waist of the Principality of Belois is also quite thin, so it would be possible to pierce the canal, but I wonder why it wasn’t done.
“What is a canal?”
“Huh? You don’t know what a canal is?”
“I heard that the Suez Canal was used in Blood and Steel. I also know that it was supplied with it.”
Lina blinked her big eyes, raising her doubts. I was taken aback when I saw that.
How far from the sea do you not even know the canal? I should have known since when even trade preferred land to sea.
I think it’s because of the preconceived notion that the environment was created by the devil. This is why science is seriously unbalanced.
“What is a canal like…”
He explained this step by step. I said last time that navigation was still in the Middle Ages, but I need to correct it.
Only ‘navigation’ remains in the Middle Ages, everything else is in the ancient era. Come to think of it, there were almost no records of naval battles occurring even during the Tribal Wars.
So when I explained to Lina what the canal was like, she told me with an expression that she had heard something strange.
“Your world is full of crazy people? How do you think of digging a hole to connect it to the sea?”
“There is also a canal dug into the mountain. What?”
“Who made that?”
“America.”
“··· ···”
Lina nods her head as if she understands something. After that, she laughed dejectedly and then muttered a small murmur.
“······Yes. So you must have thousands of weapons to destroy the world.”
“So are you going to open it?”
Lina’s answer to my question was a masterpiece.
“Although it seems that it will go down in history as a crazy b*tch… I have to do it.”
Certainly, he is serious about state affairs. In the future, there will be only days left for the empire to develop.
“But do I have to dig all of that with a shovel?”
“Tell the dwarves to sell with money.”
“Your language is real…”
Why?