Chapter 79. Alternative Timeline
The Viscount’s Bedroom, Ironwood Castle
“So, how was your first day running things as regent?” Miller asked softly as Francesca climbed onto the bed with an exhausted sigh, snuggling comfortably into his arms.
“There really isn't an easy solution to any of these issues... We desperately need to come up with something unexpected,” Francesca replied, staring up at the dark ceiling.
“I heard about the Council formally submitting a counter petition to cancel the dissolution request,” Miller noted.
Francesca let out a quiet sigh, her fingers idly tracing patterns against his chest. “We already knew something like this would happen anyway. The moment they figured out Lord Jeckson was operating as your spy... using that revelation to cancel the trial was a complete no brainer for them.”
“Yeah... we expected our first attempt at dissolving the Council to fail, but I certainly didn't expect that we would provide them with the ammunition” Miller sighed in return.
“Tomorrow, I was thinking of visiting the Council members one by one at their individual estates to have a direct dialogue with them... to see what it is they truly want,” Francesca shared, adding thoughtfully, “After all, minor initial hostility made sense when an outsider like you took over as Viscount. But their continuous, self-destructive defiance is completely illogical. If the Viscounty falls into total ruin, they stand to lose everything as well, yet they keep pushing anyway...”
Miller gently patted her head. “I tried taking that exact approach right after I first became the Lord. It didn't really lead anywhere at the time, but... I suppose there is certainly no harm in you giving it a try as well.”
“Hmm...”
Miller hummed quietly, holding her close while staring up at the ceiling. He fell into deep thought for a few long seconds before speaking up again.
“I was thinking... You mentioned that butterfly effect concept before, right? How Lord Ivan never personally stepped foot in Ironwood during your previous life as Francesca... right?”
“Mm-hmm...” Francesca nodded, already guessing where his line of thought was heading.
Miller continued, “Yet Duke Leoncraft always intended for the trade embargo to happen regardless... So, what could I have possibly done in your past life to handle it? According to your recount, I was still functioning as the Viscount even after my three year period of political immunity expired.”
“That... is actually a brilliant point,” Francesca realized aloud, softly playing with strands of his fiery red hair in her hands.
“So I was thinking,” Miller said, sitting up straight on the mattress and looking down at her, “even with your perfect recall memory, it isn't easy to mentally track every single correlation and subtle change caused by your altered actions. We should physically write them all down to compare!”
Francesca sat up right beside him, her golden eyes sparkling with sudden clarity and intent.
“You are right...! If we write everything down, I can utilize my future knowledge far more effectively!”
With a quick, affectionate peck on his cheek, she turned and called out toward the door for the maids to bring a blank ledger and pens.
Miller smiled warmly, his eyes softening as he added, “Yeah...”
Spreading out the open book on the bedsheets with pen in hand, Francesca began plotting out a structured timeline, starting at the very beginning.
“The first thing I did differently in this timeline... was choosing to leave the Capital for the Ironwood Viscounty. That exact choice is where the entire butterfly effect should truly begin.”
“That makes complete sense. Lord Ivan would not have had any pretext to come to the Ironwood Viscounty in the first place,” Miller nodded in understanding. “He used visiting you on Moonlight Day as his excuse, after all.”
Francesca continued writing, “Then there is Miss Maria...”
Like that, the two of them spent several hours carefully combing over every detail. Francesca recalled the events of the past timeline while Miller helped her organize and write down the parallel developments side by side in the book. It wasn't until the moon hung high and full in the dark night sky that they finally put down the pen.
“So... if we look at it like this: since I wouldn't have come up with the community Julian coop or the cable cart project on my own in the previous timeline, I most certainly would have diverted our newly trained mercenaries into taking contracts early,” Miller noted.
Drawing a neat circle on the paper, he added, “I would have canceled the traditional winter leave for our troops, keeping them deployed to continue taking mercenary commissions throughout the winter freeze.”
“Yeah... that is certainly what you would have done to secure enough Shella to purchase the inflated goods,” Francesca mumbled softly.
Suddenly, a brilliant spark ignited in her mind. Her eyes widened as she quickly scribbled down a new entry. “That’s right...! I only started actively managing the household a full year after our marriage in the past life, so I never realized this connection until now!”
“‘Holy Civil War’...?” Miller read the newly written words aloud, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. “What is that?”
“The Northern Central Church and the Central Church suffer a catastrophic falling out over the standardization of ritual practices and their over-reliance on the competing Imperial Prince factions,” Francesca wrote rapidly, clarity dawning on her face. “The war between the two religious sub branches raged for the next two years across the southern regions.. filled with heavy skirmishes, proxy battles, and high-profile assassinations!”
Miller looked up at her. “With the Central Church continuously ignoring the Northern Central Church's grievances… even going so far as altering ceremonial garments to match the standardized uniforms of the Southern Region due to the war with the Jin Kingdom… a schism was completely inevitable.”
Snap!
Miller snapped his fingers as the missing piece of the puzzle clicked into place. “That’s it! If a full-scale religious civil war broke out right as I ordered the Ironwood Mercenaries to take on extra commissions... then I would have made more than enough Shella to keep the territory afloat!”
Francesca nodded eagerly. “Exactly! As one of the two strongest combat forces in the Empire, every noble family and church faction would have paid exorbitant amounts for your contracts, making it entirely possible for the Viscounty to survive on that income alone...”
“Though many of our citizens would have still suffered or starved under those high prices... Ironwood as a government entity would have held immense wealth and military leverage,” Miller concluded, analyzing his past self's moves. “Because the Viscounty relied entirely on my mercenaries for revenue and protection, the vassal Council couldn't do a single thing to unseat me even after my three-year immunity period ran out.”
Miller turned to her, his crimson eyes gleaming with intense interest as he asked the question:
“So... when does the war break out?”