Chapter 46: The Visit of Prince Joachim

Just from that alone, it’s hopeless.

In that case, I have no right to be surprised either.

“But still, there’s a chance. Isn’t Germany supporting us right now?”

‘Come on, no way. ‘

‘That’s just wishful thinking.’

‘And honestly, I’m not that enthusiastic about it either.’

‘It’s not like he’s some big-name figure that would catch a Korean’s eye.’

‘It’s not like he’s Hitler or some historically notorious figure who grabs everyone’s attention. He’s not someone with that kind of influence.’

‘Marriage with someone like that?’ Absolutely not.

‘If I’m really going to get married, there are certain conditions that need to be met.’

‘First of all, if I marry a foreigner, he has to settle down in Korea.’

‘And at the very least, until I’ve had children, he needs to serve as a pro-Korean representative in my place.’

‘Since I have to drag Korea up no matter what, once we have a child, he’ll be the one raising them.’

“Now that I think about it… yeah, it’s a bit much.”

‘But what can I do? Unless the person I marry is also a Korean reincarnator, I can’t trust anyone else. And if he was going to run back to his own country after all this, he might as well have never come here in the first place.’

‘Why the hell would I go through all that effort to fight off the Japanese?’

Besides, even after all that chaos, there are still closed-minded people, and the great powers know this.

They’d rather negotiate diplomacy with me than others.

“That’s totally impossible. We should just have a marriage between the two royal families instead.”

I shook my head.

Let’s break this down—’if someone from Daehan genuinely wants to marry me, that in itself is almost an insult to the royal family.’

‘No one in their right mind would ignore the fact that the current power lies with the Manchurian army, and that I hold significant influence within it.’

‘Lady Eom already doesn’t look at me kindly. If this happens, she’ll openly treat me like a power-hungry minister.’

‘If marriage is seriously on the table, it needs to be turned into a state marriage for the royal family.’

Although, the chances of that happening are practically zero.

“Isn’t it about time you head out?”

“Ah, right. I have to go meet that little prince in person.”

“Yeah, let’s go. Where is he arriving?”

“At Jemulpo Port, which has developed quite a bit recently.”

Jemulpo Port.

It expanded after the Three Nations War, as foreign interest in Korea increased and more people began visiting.

Since he wants to meet me, I should go greet him myself.

It’s the proper thing to do.

***

“It is an honor to meet the sixth prince of the German Empire. I am Ok Jinseo, the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Korean Empire. This here is His Excellency, the Minister of State.”

“Nice to meet you. I am Lee Beomyun, Minister of State of the Korean Empire. It is an honor to meet a prince of Germany.”

Lee Beomyun was also present at the scene.

It’s a royal visit, after all.

This level of reception is expected.

“Pleased to meet you. I am Admiral Karl Wilhelm Heinrich Kuper of the German East Asia Squadron. It is an honor to meet the esteemed Count Ok and the Minister of State.”

‘Even the admiral of the East Asia Squadron came?’

This clearly shows their intention to pay attention to our navy in some way.

“Whoa. He really looks exactly like the photo.”

‘Wow. He’s seriously just a kid. Am I really supposed to deal with this brat?’

‘Even if I’m just acting as a guide, trying to make Korea look good to a child doesn’t really sit right with me.’

Of course, he might be a “kid,” but he looks to be in his late teens.’

Still, from my perspective, he definitely feels like a brat.

“You mean the photo?”

“I heard there’s no one in the West who can match your looks. I also heard you actively participated in battles.”

Prince Joachim handed me a European newspaper.

My photo was in it.

Since there’s no photo editing or filtering in this era, pictures pretty much reflect reality.

Yeah, the person in this photo does look quite Western by the standards of this era.

In Europe, people are seeing only the figure known as Ok Jinseo.

‘Well, I guess I am kind of beautiful.’

‘Maybe it’s because of my royal Goryeo bloodline? No—this face was crafted by that old man, part of the fictional character he created. So it’s only natural that it turned out this good.’

‘Maybe that’s why the whole “Joan of Arc” comparison makes sense.’

‘Just my existence alone.’

‘My exotic, non-Eastern appearance helps sell the image even more.’

‘Especially in France—they’d hype me up like crazy to feed their own national pride.’

***

[The Saint of Korea accepted the French military advisors and turned her artillery unit into Asia’s version of the French army to defeat the Japanese!]

[The Saint of Korea is a pro-French patriot who admires and wants to emulate Joan of Arc!]

[The Saint of Korea lived in Europe as a child and can speak multiple European languages fluently, like a Habsburg!]

Stuff like that was all over the French newspapers.

Look! France turned a woman from a crumbling minor power into a saint!

Honestly, it’s not even that far-fetched.

Especially now that Germany is showing interest in us as a potential balancing power—France will promote me even more to brand Korea as pro-French.

Britain may not like it, but now that they need to counter Russia’s southern expansion from Okinawa, they can’t let us switch completely to the Russian side.

Even if we’re smaller than Japan, we’ve still shown the capability to conduct near-great-power-level warfare, having defeated Qing China, which was once our suzerain.

Of course, we’d need to march all the way to Beijing for a solid claim, but for now, Britain will likely choose to remain silent.

“There’s really nothing too impressive. I simply did what was necessary for my country. But still, I’m honored that my actions are known even in distant Europe. It seems the Kaiser of the German Empire is quite interested in our country.”

‘Otherwise, there’s no reason a prince would come all this way to see us.’

“I personally asked to meet the governor of Shenyang.”

‘He’s interested in me personally?’

‘That might make things a bit awkward for Lee Beomyun. Though, since I’m also acting as an interpreter, I was bound to be the center of attention.’

“I see.”

From Germany’s perspective, it makes sense.

They’ve probably sent envoys before too.

And I don’t particularly mind.

“Unfortunately, our country lacks the advanced technology and military power of the German Empire, and we haven’t fully modernized yet. We’re still considered an uncivilized nation. So I’m afraid there’s not much I can show you. But we’re doing our best to move forward and modernize.”

‘We need to show ourselves as open and progressive.’

‘Let them see that we’re serious about modernization. This isn’t just some bratty prince on a curiosity tour.’

Behind this boy prince stands the German Empire.

And the people accompanying him are all military representatives.

“I’m aware. But I wanted to see the country where the so-called Saint of Korea lives. I didn’t come as an official representative of Germany, but simply out of personal interest. So there’s no need for the Minister of State to trouble himself.”

“Oh my, how could I possibly stand idle while a great nation’s prince visits? If you insist, I’ll leave this to the Foreign Minister.”

“No, Prime Minister, don’t just dump this on me.”

From Lee Beomyun’s perspective, it’s probably easier to let me deal with this brat rather than doing it himself.

“Why are you being so embarrassingly shameless?”

“Don’t all Koreans just look like talking monkeys to you, except for me?”

“Thank you, Your Highness. Unfortunately, His Majesty the Emperor is currently in the middle of a war and is holding the funeral for the late emperor, which was delayed due to the chaos. As such, he cannot personally greet you. I hope you understand.”

Honestly, I didn’t want to show him something so precious either.

To be blunt, showing something that precious to royalty would be disgraceful.

Unless it was at least halfway decent.

“I don’t mind. I came to see Joan of Arc, after all.”

‘Seriously? The Crown Prince of the German Empire came all the way here to see Korea’s Joan of Arc?’

‘Wouldn’t Empress Eom throw a fit if she heard about this?’

Something feels off.

Yeah, this is definitely strange.

I need to humble myself before I get caught up in something messy.

“Your Highness, I truly appreciate your kind praise, but Korea has had far greater generals than myself. I was merely lucky. The French just happened to elevate my reputation.”

“A general greater than General Ok?”

Don’t compare me.

I had the cheat of being immortal.

‘If we’re talking about the greatest general in the 500-year history of the Joseon Dynasty, now the Korean Empire, it could only be Admiral Yi Sunsin.’

“Admiral Yi Sunsin was a general who fought Japan centuries ago, winning every single naval battle he fought. Unlike me, who had the support of Russia and France, Admiral Yi achieved 23 victories in 23 battles without even receiving proper support from his own country.”

I need to name someone greater than myself here.

Yi Sunsin isn’t just some inflated national pride—he’s recognized in world history for his naval prowess.

I should make that clear now.

“Isn’t he just some minor figure who made a name for himself in Asian naval battles?”

“To a civilized nation like Germany, he may seem unimpressive. But he was a far greater person than I am.”

He was the complete opposite of someone like me, who had cheat powers.

The great powers like Germany might find him boring, but I plan to explain everything in excruciating detail so they won’t bother visiting again.

“As you wish, I’d like to hear about this man too.”

“Very well. I’ll tell you his story.”

If he really wants to hear it, then I’ll tell him.

So thoroughly that next time he’ll say, “Father, I don’t want to see Count Ok again.”

But I’ll say it gently and politely, without seeming rude.

***

Around this time, Empress Eom was in a truly foul mood.

The Crown Prince of Germany had come to Korea, yet he hadn’t even shown his face to the Emperor and was just playing around with that woman, Ok Jinseo.

‘Was the Crown Prince of Germany mocking the royal family this blatantly? Not even a glimpse of him! And again, it’s Ok Jinseo! That woman…’

“Could it be… they’re romantically involved?”

“I don’t believe it’s anything like that, Your Majesty.”

As usual, Lee Sangjae, the Chairman of the Privy Council, had been summoned against his will to bear the Empress’s fury, and he let out a heavy sigh.

‘How could she still not grasp the situation?’

The Korean Empire needed to open up more to the world now.

‘How long did she plan to cling to royal authority?’

And it wasn’t like the imperial family was particularly competent either.

They were only able to maintain their current position thanks to Ok Jinseo.

“Chairman, are you taking the side of a young woman who was only recently freed from prison thanks to the Minister of Foreign Affairs?”

Lee Sangjae furrowed his brows.

It wasn’t about taking Jinseo’s side—he would’ve said the same even if it were someone like Lee Beomyun.

The monarchy had never been weaker.

The former emperor allied with the Japanese to fight Russia, only to end up dying at their hands.

The military rose up as the Manchurian Army (the Sapo Corps) for revenge and defeated the Japanese, but the justification and public support had gone to the Manchurian Army.

In such a climate, it wasn’t even the crown prince but an imperial prince who had ascended the throne.

‘Did she really think a return to absolute monarchy was still possible?’

They should be grateful that a German prince came to visit at all.

Rather than trying to sow internal strife by undermining the Foreign Minister, she needed to let go of the idea of autocracy and move toward constitutional monarchy.

Even though Korea’s name had gained recognition through recent events, Germany still viewed this as nothing more than a vacation for their prince.

“But he’s royalty, isn’t he? Shouldn’t he at least…”

He had tried to phrase it nicely, but this wouldn’t do.

“Your Majesty, we won the war, and Russia may now be paying attention to us, but this was all thanks to Minister Ok Jinseo.”

“There it is again. Ok Jinseo.”

This wasn’t the time to keep name-dropping Jinseo out of suspicion.

The Korean Empire may seem neutral now, but it was clear that the great powers would bare their fangs again and come for them.

Complete independence was still far from reality.

“Moreover, the Foreign Minister is fluent in the languages of Europe. There’s no one better suited to assist the German prince during his stay.”

“But still… couldn’t he have come to see His Majesty the Emperor?”

Empress Eom’s voice trailed off.

Perhaps she still felt indebted to the former emperor.

Understandable, but her obsession with royal authority was almost pitiable.

“This world now belongs to the Western powers. And Korea isn’t even on their radar. If they say they only want to see our people, then that’s all there is to it. Even Qing China, once our superior, is practically a colony now. The only reason we’re not in the same position is because of Count Ok.”

Lee Sangjae looked at the situation with cold realism.

‘If not for Ok Jinseo—if she hadn’t saved the Russian crown prince—this nation might very well have become a Russian colony by now.’

‘Yes, it was unfortunate that she was a woman, but her abilities could not be dismissed.’

“Then what, we just wait?”

“I’m sure even Germany has a sense of etiquette. And I’m certain the Foreign Minister will soon request an audience with His Majesty.”

After all, the prince’s visit wasn’t even official—just a personal trip.

No need to provoke the situation by demanding formality.

Besides, Germany might become a close ally of Korea.

Empress Eom slammed the table with her palm in anger.

“They’re all being played like fools! All of them! That woman’s got them wrapped around her finger!”

“Everyone was dancing to Ok Jinseo’s tune.”

“Sure, she was just a woman—she wouldn’t dare covet the throne—but this was going too far.”

“If she was so well-versed in European affairs, fluent in their languages, and close with their diplomats and leaders, then she should be using that to serve the imperial family.”

But Empress Eom had to swallow her fury, desperate to repay the favor she owed to the late emperor by strengthening the monarchy.