Struggle in the Steam Age

At four o'clock the next afternoon, Lawrence drove to the center of the city in a carriage. Because the Schönbrunn Palace where the ball is held is located in the center of the city. It is a castle-like palace surrounded by moats and towering walls.

In fact, the palace is generally used for official receptions, handling government affairs and as the emperor's residence. The ball is often held at the Double Tree Palace outside the city. But now considering that the rebellion has just ended, the Hunting Palace and Double Tree Palace, which was built in the suburban forest area, might not be suitable for safety reasons.

Therefore, this ball was arranged in Schonbrunn Palace, which has the highest security and is easier to defend. Although the hall of this palace is a bit small, it is absolutely no problem to hold a private small-scale ball.

Sitting in the carriage to Schonbrunn Palace, Lawrence, who was dressed in a black tuxedo and a top silk hat, stared intently at the ruins of the buildings outside the window. Fortunately, the order in the city has been restored now, and those citizens are working with some workers to rebuild these buildings damaged in the war.

Fortunately, after the rebellion broke out, the rebels concentrated almost all their heavy firepower and superhumans on the Palace Square in an attempt to break through the palace's defense line. Therefore, most of the buildings are only damaged on the facade, and there is no serious structural damage. Therefore, except for a very few buildings that were completely destroyed, other buildings are also very simple to repair.

After looking at the scene outside for a while, Lawrence looked away and began to think about His Majesty the Emperor Joseph I of the Holy Visby Empire as the host.

Unlike most kings and emperors, the Holy Visby Empire did not develop to this level through a lot of wars, but expanded its territory through various marriages. It is a well-known motto among the royal family that, let others go to war, and you, happy Visby, marry! What Karigos, the God of War, gives to others, Sune, the Goddess of Love and Goodness, will give to you.

This empire has also developed step by step from a small earldom in the western mountainous area to today because of the marriage, and this His Majesty Joseph I can be said to be the most powerful one in this royal family for hundreds of years. Even the emperor, who was privately called a soldier by many people, was not at all like the ancestors of the royal family.

Beyond that, everyone says the power of unicorns runs in the blood of the country's royal family. It's just that except for a few people, only every emperor can awaken the power of unicorns.

Of course, this power doesn't necessarily manifest itself as a Warlock. For example, this Joseph I is a blood warrior with the power of a unicorn, who can have strong vitality and the ability to boost morale on the battlefield. Legend has it that as long as he waved his banner on the battlefield, courage would surge from the hearts of those warriors who could see him.

For these reasons, the capital of the empire, Vendobona, not only has the Rose Church, a large religious site of the Church of Love and Goodness, which is one of the largest in the entire Old Continent. Moreover, a small temple built purely of white marble to worship the unicorn goddess Lurui was built in the small woods in the suburbs.

Every year during religious festivals, the emperor would go to these two temples to offer sacrifices and show respect to the gods. Even though the emperor loves war very much now, he is no exception in sacrificial activities.

During this rebellion, the Rose Cathedral in the city was not damaged in any way, and at the same time, it sheltered a large group of innocent citizens. And when the carriage passed the Rose Cathedral, which was built with a special rose-red stone and carved with various beautiful reliefs on the outer wall of the building, Lawrence saw the church staff and some clergymen distributing porridge to the homeless returnees, while others organized those in the same neighborhood to clean up their streets.

"Sir, we are almost there, please get ready." A few minutes after leaving the Rose Cathedral, the royal carriage driver who was driving ahead suddenly turned his head and said to Lawrence.

At first, Laurence thought he would have to rent a carriage or walk to the palace to attend the ball. But then he realized that he was thinking too much. Because an hour before the agreed time, the palace sent a carriage to the referee to pick him up. Fortunately, he habitually prepared in advance, so he didn't let the carriage wait for him for too long.

The carriage ran smoothly through the cobbled streets of the capital, and after turning a few turns, they stopped for a while at a checkpoint for inspection, and then the carriage continued to drive towards the destination.

At this time, the scenery on both sides of the road also changed, from neat rows of sycamore trees and cast iron lamps to olive trees and marble street lamps. At the same time, the road changed from four lanes to two lanes.

But even with two lanes, the road is not too congested. It even seemed more empty than the four lanes just now. Lawrence could even hear the rustling of the wheels of his carriage on the flagstones.

After driving for a few more minutes, the carriage began to slow down slowly, and finally stopped. Then came the driver's voice from ahead. "Mr. Lawrence, we are here now, please get out of the car."

"Thank you." After getting out of the car, Lawrence pressed the brim of his top hat to the driver, and then turned his head to look at the square in front of him. Although it was still a battlefield a few days ago, after the royal family used extraordinary power, it was completely repaired here, and it looked the same as before.

In the welcome of the stone carvings and silk flags on both sides of the square, Lawrence came to a small door on the side of the castle. Two male servants in tuxedos embroidered with the royal family logo were there to welcome the guests, and beside them were four fully armed extraordinary warriors who put their hands on the weapons at their waists and looked around vigilantly. In Lawrence's eyes, , the warriors and servants exude several magical auras.

"It's no wonder that despite the outbreak of the Industrial Revolution in this world, the nobles still hold a lot of power. At least the background of this extraordinary power is not something that the rich can easily obtain." Lawrence thought after discovering that almost all of these people were carrying magic items. , and at the same time handed out the invitation he had received to the servant.

"Dear guest, you are welcome to the ball tonight at Schonbrunn Palace." After checking the invitation card in Lawrence's hand, a servant with a very decent smile on his face pressed his right hand on his left chest and bowed slightly He bowed, and then stretched out his hand in a please gesture. "It's a great honor for you to spare time to attend this dance, please follow me."

"Then I will trouble you." Lawrence put his right hand on the brim of his hat and bowed slightly, then followed the servant along the corridor like a palace.

In this ancient empire, the various movements and language when entering the ball are basically stylized. All but a few words are fixed. Fortunately, Nora read enough complicated books, and she was able to guide Lawrence on the spot through the spiritual connection, so that he would not make a fool of himself in this kind of field.

According to Nora's command in the dormitory of the referee, Lawrence followed the manservant along the corridor into the castle with a smile on his face while keeping quiet.

Maybe because he came earlier, he didn't go directly to the dance scene, but to the lounge. After he passed through a heavy ebony door, the footman ushered him to a sofa. At the same time, the other two maids placed tea and snacks on the tea table in front of him just as he had just sat down. The whole process seemed so elegant and decent.

After all this was done, the servants returned to their respective positions after bowing to Lawrence, apparently to reserve this room for the guests. However, because the lounge is a bit small, the other two or three guests have not come yet. So Lawrence was the only one left in the whole room, which looked empty.