Chapter 829: A Chilling Toast

Berengar sat at the head of his table. Throughout the dining hall of his palace, many tables had been set up for his important guests from across the Reich, Europe, and the Mediterranean. He had spoken with many of them up until this point, but now, as the food was brought out to the tables, he had decided to make a proper toast for all to hear.

With the clink of a glass, the room was silenced, as all eyes gazed upon the Kaiser, who was dressed in his most regal attire. A smiled curved upon his lips, as he gazed upon the rulers of the western world, as if they were all beneath him. Because, in fact, they all were. It was this aura of confidence that prevailed throughout the entirety of his toast.

"If I could have all of your attention, I would like to make a toast. It has been ten years since I was first given any semblance of power in my life, and in a single decade, I have done more for this world than any man who has ever come before me. From a pitiful Baron, I have created an empire that has no rival in this world. Or so I would like to say...

I wish I could tell you all that the Reich had no true equal in this world. That from this day forward, we shall exist in a new era of peace and prosperity, not having to worry about things like external threats. However, this is not reality. Today I wish to announce that my agents have discovered a rising Empire on the other side of the world called Japan.

This is not an Empire built upon the outdated system of feudalism. Nor is this an Empire whose soldiers wield primitive weapons like swords and bows. No, this is an Empire whose military capability is at a near-peer level to the Reich.

Bolt action rifles, revolving cannons, breechloading artillery, steam powered warships, all the things that we have used to unite our Empire, and dominate the world, are in the hands of this Oriental Empire who is as we speak conquering their neighbors in a bid of military expansion.

On an Island in the far east, a woman was born during a time of war to a minor noble household. Through her own ingenuity and inventions, she had guaranteed peace and prosperity for her home, which attracted the greedy eyes of powerful men. In a series of wars, this young girl fought these men, which ultimately resulted in the unification of her people within a single Empire beneath her banner.

It sounds familiar, doesn't it? For the very same thing happened here in Kufstein throughout this past decade. Almost inconceivable that two people would rise to prominence in their sections of the world at the exact same time, through similar methods. I will tell you all something important. This woman is aware of our existence and has already shown signs of hostility to us.

Should this Empire bare their fangs against the Reich, it will result in a war with casualties the likes of which this world has never seen. It is because of this threat, veiled deep behind the fog of war, that I am announcing an immediate military expansion in this time of peace that we now have available to us.

Previously, the laws of conscription were established to ensure that the German Army was always capable of contending with any threat the Reich may face. However, I have been lax on these laws, primarily because I believed that there was no force on this Great Earth that could ever challenge our Empire.

However, with this news of an emerging industrial power in the far east, I have no choice but to fully enact conscription. Hence forth, every man aged 18-21 shall be conscripted into the Armed Forces of the Reich for a total of four years. We shall also be accepting volunteers aged 14-18 to serve part time in the armed forces should they choose to do so.

There are those of you here today who thought that by ending the threat of the Papacy and the stranglehold they had over Europe, we would be able to spend less on our military and focus on peaceful ventures instead. I am here to inform you that you are dead wrong. For the foreseeable future, I am increasing the spending of our national military budget on the Military from 10% to 15%.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is the end of an era. The horse, as an instrument of war, has become obsolete. To the cavalry that we have spent a decade and considerable cost raising. We shall disband their regiments, and incorporate them into the Infantry, who shall not march into battle on foot, but ride into the flames of war in the back of armored vehicles.

Our marines shall not row to the shores on wooden boats, but deploy on large assault craft, designed explicitly to carry men and vehicles onto the shores of our enemies. Germany shall own the land, sea, and skies of this world, and any challenger to the lands that we have claimed shall be laid to waste!

This means the new world, the entirety of it, is off limits to those petty monarchs here who think they have a chance to expand now that the papacy is out of the way. And to all of you, who think that because a rival to Germany has appeared in this world, that you can just switch sides and gain the support of the Japanese Empire. I want you to know that should you engage in such foolish action, I shall not stop until you and your people are crushed beneath the boot of the Reich."

After making this speech the room as silent, the news of a new, and powerful rival did not bode well for the Germans in the audience, and the threats that Berengar had issued to the other Kingdoms was enough to turn anyone's stomach sour, especially after they all knew the might of the reich.

Linde, who sat next to Berengar, glared fiercely at the man. Did he really have to go and sour a day of celebration by telling everyone that the peace they had fought a decade to achieve was only temporary?

The redheaded beauty could only sigh and take a sip of her wine. She was already aware of Berengar's strategies to counter Itami's rapid rise to power. However, that was not important, at the moment she decided to take the opportunity to inform Berengar that she had already cleaned up Arnulf's mess.

"You should know, the issue in the new world has already been taken care of..."

Berengar looked over at Linde with a hint of surprise on his face before asking for clarification.

"What do you mean? How did you take care of it?"

Linde ate a piece of her schnitzel with the graceful demeanor of an empress before informing her husband about what she had done while he was busy orchestrating today's event.

"It is simple. Nobody really knows what has happened, so in order to control the narrative, I dispatched my agents to the New World. The official story is that Arnulf was manipulated by the natives into attacking the Citizens of Berenwalde.

The savages lied to the man, and informed him that the Colony of Berenwalde was preparing to attack New Vienna, forcing Arnulf to send troops to investigate these claims until he could receive proper orders from you.

In order to close up this little lie, I informed the survivors of Berenwalde the only way to absolve themselves from the crimes of attacking peaceful soldiers of the crown was to corroborate my story, and to claim that the natives had given them false intelligence suggesting that New Vienna had planned to annihilate their colony.

As we speak, the citizens of Berenwalde are spreading the rumor that the Natives had planned from the start to instigate conflict between the two colonies, and that the only reason they survived was because you had given the order to retreat.

The survivors are also saying that Arnulf was betrayed by the savages and killed in cold blood. Before long, the anti-native sentiment will spread, and the people of New Vienna will be lining up to join the Colonial Army, so that they can personally avenge their fallen governor."

Berengar wore a handsome smile as he kissed Linde on the lips in front of the entire audience. None of them had heard what she had said, as there were a thousand conversations taking place, and she was particularly quiet as she spoke of her schemes. However, after kissing the woman, Berengar whispered something in her ears that only she could hear.

"I love how much of a devious little bitch you can be. As a special thanks for cleaning up my mess, I will reward you in any way you so desire after the celebration is over."

Linde merely smiled at the praise she had been given. Berengar often used words like bitch, slut, or cunt as terms of endearment towards Linde. As a hardcore masochist, she got off on it. However, if anyone else were to say such vile words to her, they would probably end up dying from a poison potato. Thus, Berengar and Linde enjoyed the rest of the celebration, before absconding towards their quarters and enjoying the night in each other's loving embrace.