Chapter 7

Napoleon's Genius Son - Chapter 6 (7/547)

(6) Versailles is peaceful, while Paris is on the brink of revolution.

In the year 1788, the French court is very peaceful.

That is, Versailles.

- Ripple.

The fountain flowed brilliantly in the sunlight.

"Ah, the coffee tastes good."

In a space that seemed like a paradise on earth, the queen drank her coffee.

Eugene, thinking it was somewhat like an old-fashioned commercial, stood still.

After all, a [valet] is ultimately one of the servants.

Though not a servant, he still had to run errands for the royal family.

In modern terms, it's similar to a personal secretary for a wealthy family.

However, there are differences.

Suddenly, as Marie Antoinette sipped her coffee, she turned her head slightly and looked at Eugene.

"Oh, you've been standing there all this time? Our valet, would you like a cup?"

This is like a wealthy lady, or rather a royal queen, offering coffee.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Then, what is the reward for such service?

Surprisingly, it's very capitalist.

The royal valet is one of the servants in the royal household and receives a salary from the royal treasury.

Eugene's special salary is 30 livres per month.

It's a large sum for a seven-year-old child.

Of course, compared to the Boigne family's debt, it's nothing.

Recalling this fact, Eugene approached and took a sip of coffee.

As expected of French coffee, it was quite bitter, close to the original concentrate.

Suddenly, the fountain shot up into the sky.

- Splash!

At the Petit Trianon, the queen smiled as she watched the fountain in her palace.

"Isn't it peaceful? Eugene?"

This is not something the queen should be doing.

Originally, at this time, the queen should be dining in front of the visiting nobles at Versailles.

To show the grandeur of the royal family, as if on display for tourists.

This is a norm established by Louis XIV.

However, after the Petit Trianon was built, the queen never left here.

She had disliked the Palace of Versailles since she first came to the French royal court at the age of 14.

After all, from getting dressed to even going to the bathroom, it's not pleasant with noble ladies following her.

Now, with 14 years of experience as queen and at the age of 32, this is why Marie Antoinette stays here.

In the middle of the day, she sees children playing in the garden she personally tended.

It's a truly peaceful scene.

Suddenly, Marie looked at the fountain and whispered.

"Versailles is like a battlefield."

"Huh? Ah, I've heard that the social circle is complicated."

"Yes. Your mother's reputation probably worsened because of that. Coming from the New World, she probably didn't know much about French court culture. When I see how diligent you are, I think your mother's bad reputation was all rumors."

It's surprising that she's sharing such intimate details with a newly arrived valet.

However, from what Eugene observed, Marie is surprisingly down-to-earth.

Of course, it could also mean that she feels more at ease talking to a young valet.

Marie, speaking of something that could be a weakness to anyone, said wistfully.

"I was the same. When I first came to this palace."

Eugene suddenly realized that the woman in front of him is a 'foreigner.'

It's understandable that she would retreat to the inner palace like this when tired.

The problem is that it's the year 1788, the era of Louis XVI.

Not the era of Louis XV when she first came to the royal court.

Then, a giggling sound came from the fountain.

"Ah! The fountain is refreshing!"

"Princess, you can't go into the fountain! You'll catch a cold!"

"So what? Oh, it's Eugene!"

The princess, Marie Thérèse, who was playing in the fountain, saw Eugene and ran over.

"Eugene, come in too! The water is clear! It's different from the big fountain in the outer garden."

"Hmm, Princess. Your current behavior is not befitting. Also, the water in the fountain is not very clean, as it's drawn from the nearby river."

"Why does a cute face say such things? Stop talking and come in as a valet should!"

Unfortunately, Eugene is still seven years old, and Marie Thérèse is already ten.

The governess, Madame Polignac, who was standing nearby, couldn't stop Marie either.

In the end, Eugene had to be stuck in the famous [Dragon Fountain] of the Petit Trianon.

"Phew!"

After standing solemnly, he flailed around in a way that looked quite amusing for his age.

Marie Antoinette, the queen, also clapped and giggled.

Then, the queen turned to look at the 'foster son' who was drinking coffee with her.

"Ha ha! Oh, how cute. Isn't it really peaceful, Armand?"

Armand, the foster son, nodded with a hidden expression.

"Yes, Your Majesty. It is. It's really different from 'outside.'"

Indeed, it's completely different from outside.

It's peaceful, prosperous, and also leisurely.

Of course, Eugene, who was being bullied by the princess, didn't feel that way.

Just as Eugene managed to escape from Princess Marie's hand and get out of the fountain,

- Click!

An unexpected person entered the Trianon and saw Eugene, who was all wet.

"Oh, Eugene? Hmm? What's the matter with you?"

Eugene hastily shook off the water and bowed.

Not being flustered in an emergency is also the attitude of a professional gambler.

It's also a virtue of a valet in this era.

"Your Majesty. I was just participating in the princess's play for a moment."

In front of the king, the princess seemed slightly more well-behaved.

"Oh, when did I? It seems Eugene accidentally fell into the fountain."

Usually, this would be a situation where a malicious princess is playing a prank, but unfortunately, that's not the case.

Moreover, the princess, blushing and turning her head away, pretending not to know, looked quite cute.

The king also chuckled and looked at Eugene.

"Is that so? I'll scold the princess a bit. By the way, I heard about it. You beat the Count of Provence yesterday, right?"

"Your, Your Majesty? That was just a game I joined in on a whim, like the Count of Artois."

"Ha ha! That's skill. Well, since I'm here, how about I give you a gift?"

It had been three months since Eugene became a valet.

Eugene had already started to be occasionally called to the royal games at the Palace of Versailles.

Nobles who think of gambling as a game would never be Eugene's opponents.

However, it's not a good thing for a child to be gambling.

Eugene was worried that the king might get angry, but he was smiling.

Suddenly, King Louis, who had been making a clicking sound, held out an object.

It's a high-quality pocket watch.

"I made this. You need to wind it well, okay?"

Eugene was really surprised and then bowed again.

In this era, a portable pocket watch is worth as much as a house.

Even if the king's hobby is watches, it's not something he would casually give away.

However, conversely, it means that he's giving something to a mere valet without much thought.

Just like the entire royal court is now.

"Your kindness is beyond measure, Your Majesty."

In August 1788,

The Petit Trianon inside Versailles is truly peaceful and carefree.

***

The distance from Versailles to the Rue Saint-Germain in Paris is about 20 kilometers.

"Ugh, I'm dying. Why do I have to help a valet go home?"

A seven-year-old child can't commute alone.

Naturally, he needs to ride a horse or at least a donkey.

The young Eugene was riding a pony.

It was quite a struggle.

Seeing Ipolite Charles, who came to pick up Eugene, grumbling, Eugene shrugged.

"What can I do? I'm not old enough to stay at the Palace of Versailles. And I can't sleep in the servants' quarters either."

"So you have to commute every day. You might as well ask for a room. The palace is huge, you know."

"That would be more dangerous. The envy of the valets and servants is already intense."

Today, during the fountain play, Armand's glare was there.

Jealousy, anger, resentment.

His eyes were filled with mixed emotions.

These were not just the feelings of Armand, who was forced to be the queen's foster son.

There were countless valets, maids, and servants who envied Eugene for suddenly becoming a royal valet.

"Soon, it will all be nothing."

Eugene, riding the struggling pony, grumbled.

The Palace of Versailles is enormous, the royal guards around the palace are tight, and the number of valets is in the thousands.

The pocket watch in Eugene's hand is an extremely precious item.

However, all of this will collapse within just a year.

No, it won't even last a year.

It's already August.

France is about to face an emergency this month.

A national payment crisis.

Just as Eugene was trying to recall when this crisis occurred,

"Ah!"

Eugene and Ipolite looked at each other.

"What's that sound?"

"Pretend you don't know. There are plenty of street robbers in Paris. We'll just get a headache if we run into them in an alley."

"Last time, when we caught a pickpocket, it was something about the light."

But Ipolite's words were not entirely wrong.

Paris is now stained with looting, robbery, and murder everywhere.

In fact, the national payment crisis occurred because of this.

Poor harvest, famine, cold wave.

The state of the national economy is a mess, and the finances are in ruins.

It's not as if 18th-century France is a welfare state that cares about the welfare of its citizens.

As a result, hungry citizens are constantly causing riots.

Robbery is a given.

At that moment,

- Thud!

In the middle of Paris, the road was blocked by a mixture of filth and mud.

In this era, Paris, of course, has no cleaners and is a mess.

With garbage and filth thrown directly onto the streets, it couldn't help but be dirty.

Today, it was particularly bad, making it difficult even for the pony to walk.

Ipolite clicked his tongue and shook his head.

"Oh, the road is a mess."

Eugene barely grabbed the pony's reins and said,

"We have no choice but to take a detour through the alley."

"Why is your house in the Faubourg Saint-Germain again? If you're going to live somewhere, why not near Versailles?"

"Oh, my mother asked for help. Just for a year."

Eugene smiled and turned the horse.

"Anyway, there won't be anything to help with after a year."

Hearing something strange, Ipolite blinked.

"What do you mean by that...?"

At that moment, a scream echoed through the street.

"Help!"

This time, it wasn't just one person.

"Help, someone!"

"My God! Get out of the way! Run!"

"Gun! Does anyone have a gun? Catch him!"

Dozens of people were running down the street.

This wasn't just a single robber.

It suggested that something on the scale of a riot or disaster had occurred.

Just as Eugene and Ipolite hesitated and stopped their horses,

Ipolite opened his mouth wide and pointed behind the crowd.

"My God. Is that a wolf? Is it the beast of Gévaudan?"

At that moment, Eugene also gaped in astonishment.

It's a wolf.

Even though he's not a shepherd boy, this is a situation where he can only say that.

After all, there are no sheep in Paris.

So why is a wolf appearing in the middle of the city?

"Damn, is this 18th-century Paris?"

Just as Eugene muttered a curse without realizing it,

- Howl!

The wolf's howl struck Paris.

The era when wild beasts threatened humans existed until the 20th century.

Especially in Paris, despite being the largest city in Europe, wolf attacks were frequent.

There was even a report of a giant wolf, known as the beast of Gévaudan, appearing in 1776.

It shows how chaotic the security was.

Even so, Eugene didn't expect to encounter a wolf on the way from the palace to the capital.

- Clop!

It's fortunate that they were riding horses at such a time.

Eugene and Ipolite hurriedly spurred their horses.

They could see a wolf chasing them from behind.

"Ride as fast as you can, Eugene! I can't help you!"

"Who doesn't know? I'm seven years old!"

"Alley! Ugh!"

The streets of Paris are complicated.

Ipolite, trying to avoid the wolf, ended up running down a different street.

Eugene desperately whipped the pony to avoid the wolf chasing him from behind.

Wolves never move alone.

They probably scattered in a pack to attack humans.

How could he avoid them?

At that moment,

"Ah!"

In front of him, a child fell and started crying in a corner of the alley.

"Oh!"

A fork in the road appeared in front of Eugene.

Behind him was the wolf.

The road split to the right and left.

On the right, a child was crying, and on the left, the road was clear.

A moment of choice.

At that moment, [Silver Letters] appeared in front of Eugene.

In the blink of an eye, the letters changed.

These were the letters he had seen since his childhood in his previous life.

They were the power of a transcendent being, presumed to have brought Eugene to this era.

Following them always led to winning in gambling and favorable outcomes for Eugene.

Going right would definitely save him.

But what about the child?

The child would be trampled by the horse or eaten by the wolf.

Eugene clenched his teeth and pulled the reins.

"At a time like this, a professional gambler... "

Despite his young hands, the familiar reins stopped the pony.

At the same time, Eugene barely stepped on the stirrup and jumped off the horse.

The wolf was running towards him.

Unlike the wolves he had seen in the zoo, this one was emaciated with sharp fangs.

Eugene pushed the pony towards the wolf with all his might.

"I'm turning the table!"

As the innocent pony fell, the wolf pounced on it.

- Howl!

It was a moment that would make animal lovers scream.

But for Eugene, the child came first.

At the same time, Eugene picked up a wooden stick lying in the alley and struck the wolf.

- Crack!

However, Eugene's strength was still weak.

The wood splintered, and the bleeding wolf bared its teeth.

It staggered but approached Eugene.

The decision was not wrong.

Because the wolf was no longer capable of proper hunting.

But it still had enough strength to hurt Eugene.

Eugene swung the broken stick and shouted,

"Back off! Yee! Damn wolf!"

At that moment, someone behind the wolf delivered the final blow.

- Thud!

The already dying wolf fell.

Perhaps it was already on the verge of starvation.

Before Eugene could sigh in relief, he was surprised to see the person who struck the wolf with a musket.

It was none other than the royal guard, Lazare Hoche.

"What are you doing here?"

"Hoche? What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way home. Didn't you know I'm a guard? Anyway, why are you fighting when you should be running away?"

Only then did Eugene slump to the ground.

"Thanks to you, I'm alive. And this little one too."

The child was still trembling and crying.

After catching his breath, Eugene noticed the streets of Paris.

Hoche wasn't the only one who had just finished work; wolves were being caught everywhere.

Mainly by royal soldiers.

But there were people who had been bitten or killed by wolves lying on the streets.

The fallen people were groaning