Pope Augustus

A flood of information surged through his mind, and Augustus suddenly felt his vision go dark, stumbling and almost falling.

Fortunately, he managed to grab the back of the chair in time and sat down.

He closed his eyes for a while, and when he recovered, he noticed that the room was already filled with sunlight, and the sun was almost at its zenith.

He realized he had been standing there all morning.

Augustus organized his thoughts and began to ponder: What could he do in this familiar yet strange world?

Having just arrived and already holding a high position, there was so much he could do.

For example, he could nip the future Northern Lion, Gustavus Adolphus II, in the bud, eliminate the twenty-year-old Richelieu prematurely, or even change the direction of the Thirty Years' War…

Thinking about how he could soon stir up trouble in this era, Augustus felt a surge of excitement.

But then he thought, no, what was the point of doing that?

How would it benefit him, his country, or the world?

What he should do and how he should do it were clearly more worthy of thought than what he could do.

His pursuit was not just about feeling good, though if conditions allowed, feeling good would be even better.

His advantage relative to this era was not unparalleled wisdom, not courage that surpassed all others, not unique charisma, nor ideological concepts far ahead of the times.

Rather, it was his ability to make a rough prediction of future developments and gain a relatively accurate understanding of events, based on his knowledge of people, events, and backgrounds from a higher perspective.

If he were to foolishly eliminate familiar people, prevent familiar events from happening, and turn this world into an unrecognizable mess, it would undoubtedly be like blinding himself, wasting his advantage for nothing.

In a pure contest of power and cunning, Augustus did not believe he could consistently outperform everyone.

Therefore, besides directly benefiting the Papal States, he should change history as little as possible to maintain his advantage.

However, development is always the top priority, and anything that conflicts with the development of the country must give way to development, even if it means defying fate.

The original historical process was not unfavorable to him; on the contrary, with the great powers constantly warring among themselves and undercurrents stirring within, there were many opportunities.

If he could seize these opportunities and fully utilize them, there would be infinite possibilities.

Would the Thirty Years' War happen? The answer is yes.

The Thirty Years' War was not essentially a group of Bohemians impulsively throwing two royal governors out of a window, starting a war.

Rather, it was a war that erupted because of long-standing grievances between Protestants and Catholics, and an inability to reach a compromise on their interests.

It's just that history is rewritten, and the fuse of this war might no longer be the Defenestration of Prague, this war might not last thirty years or be called the Thirty Years' War, and the course and outcome of this war will also change.

But such a war will certainly occur.

Augustus admitted he could not prevent the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War, nor did he need to.

France, standing with the Protestant alliance, spared no expense to aid Sweden against the Holy Roman Emperor, and even eventually entered the fray directly as an old Catholic power to attack the Habsburg Dynasty.

Why was all this? The threat from the Habsburg Dynasty was simply too great.

If a great nation like France was so wary of the Habsburg Dynasty, how could the Papal States rest easy?

The congealed blood from the Sack of Rome still stained the steps of St. Peter's Basilica.

Historically, popes becoming puppets and dying mysteriously were not uncommon.

If he helped the Habsburg Dynasty easily win the Thirty Years' War, he might not even be able to secure a corner for himself, wouldn't that be handing a knife to others to kill himself?

If it weren't for the unique nature of the Papal States, which needed to maintain Catholic influence to ensure its authority and interests, and could not allow the Protestant sphere of influence to expand, then as an ordinary Catholic country, it would rather see the Habsburg Dynasty utterly defeated, and might even act like France, becoming a 'filial son' of Catholicism.

Significantly weakening the Habsburg Dynasty could only be achieved through war, and even the Thirty Years' War's weakening of the Habsburg Dynasty was far from enough.

However, he could neither openly side with the Protestant alliance nor allow the Habsburg Dynasty to truly suffer a crushing defeat.

This was truly a headache of a problem.

Fortunately, there was still plenty of time before the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War, barring any unforeseen circumstances, to prepare thoroughly.

Strengthening national power was an urgent matter; otherwise, with the Papal States' current meager strength, it could not influence anything.

The Pope's call to arms, with thousands of devout followers bravely facing death, was a matter of centuries ago.

Glancing at the map and seeing the pitifully small territory of the Papal States, Augustus shook his head helplessly.

Without expansion, no matter how much reform, legal changes, or upheaval was undertaken within this small territory, it would be futile; the gap with great powers would remain a chasm, as determined by the nation's sheer size.

Expansion, but where? South? Naples and Sicily were under Spain's control, an impenetrable fortress, absolutely impossible, at least for now.

West? Tuscany, ruled by the Medici Family.

Thinking positively, this should be a relatively reliable ally; thinking negatively, it wouldn't be convenient to strike.

East? The Ottoman Empire, attacking them with the strength of a single nation would be like a moth flying into a flame.

North? Any action would easily attract external interference, and he might end up losing everything, so he had to be cautious.

Looking at the European nations now: Spain was deeply embroiled in the Netherlands Revolution and simultaneously facing hostility from England and France; France was internally unstable and also had to contend with the Habsburg threat; England lacked strength, was also internally unstable, and its king was against war; Denmark, no matter how much it struggled now, had almost no influence in the Italian region; Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and Russia were all entangled in conflict, likely not very concerned with Italian affairs; Austria and the Ottoman Empire were currently at war and temporarily unable to intervene.

What a heaven-sent opportunity!

When else could he stir up trouble if not now?

Oh, right, the Ottoman Empire and Austria were originally supposed to cease hostilities in a year; he needed to find a way to ensure they continued fighting.

He didn't want them to stop fighting and turn their attention to him as soon as he made a move.

Once he had an idea, he wanted to find someone to share and discuss it with, but after thinking it over, his head drooped again.

He was alone and had no one he could trust.

Faol, forget about this matter; if he called him over, he would probably explain until his throat was dry, and it would be useless.

I am truly a miserable Pope.

Oh, right, the letters to Karl and Duke were sent out months ago, and there's been no news at all.

He didn't know if the letters had even arrived; even if they didn't want to come, there should at least be a reply.

If either of them could come, he would at least have someone to discuss these issues with.

He had no confidence at all with just these grand and empty musings.

"Dong~dong~dong," a few stiff knocks sounded at the door.

This shouldn't be Faol, Augustus judged.

"Your Holiness, there are two people outside looking for you; they have your personal letters," a voice he didn't recognize came from outside the door.

No way?

What a coincidence?