Chapter 122: On the Road to Hanover

Francisco finished his dinner quickly and returned to his room. Thanks to the agreement with the ambassador, he finally had complete privacy there. He sat at his desk and began writing immediately. Catalina slipped in quietly after him and sat on the bed, watching him with a soft, mesmerized expression as he concentrated.

He wrote for nearly two hours. When he finally stopped and looked beside him, Catalina was already asleep. Smiling faintly, he blew out the candle and prepared to lie down.

The moment the light vanished, Catalina stirred.”Did you already finish?” she whispered.

Francisco smiled and nodded.”That’s right. And thank you for watching over me. I got a bit obsessed… Now that I know independence is our only choice—for us and for the family—I have to start thinking about what kind of system the new country should have.”

Catalina’s brows drew together anxiously.”Do you really think it’s necessary? Is it truly… definite?”

Francisco exhaled heavily as he slipped into bed.”Yes. Inez is proof enough that the Spanish Crown already doubts me. If it weren’t for my grandfather, I’m sure I would’ve disappeared by now. And the truth is—we aren’t exactly clean. The armory in Antioquia, the slaves and immigrants we’re trying to attract to Medellín… all of that already shows our intentions. Even if we postponed everything, sooner or later those things will be discovered by Spanish soldiers. Unless I destroy the armory and stop the immigration, a conflict will happen.”

Catalina bit her lip.”Do you think it will happen while we’re in Hanover?”

Francisco understood immediately what she feared. He spoke softly, almost soothingly.”If you’re worried about Grandma María, you shouldn’t be. She’s far stronger than you think. And my father will do everything he can to protect her—and my little sister Isabella.”

Catalina’s expression eased, though the worry didn’t vanish entirely.”You’re right… Carlos and Isabella will protect her,” she murmured, trying to reassure herself.

Francisco kissed her forehead gently.”Let’s sleep. Once we reach Hanover, we’ll finally meet this famous grandfather. If he can guide our troops, we might actually have a real chance to win.”

Catalina nodded and closed her eyes. Francisco wrapped his arms around her, and the two of them fell asleep together.

The next day, they finished their preparations and set out for Hanover. The steady clacking of horseshoes echoed along the road, mingling with the noise of merchants traveling back and forth. When they finally reached a checkpoint, several soldiers stepped forward and began requesting documents.

Inez grew tense. Until now, all necessary papers had been handled before she even left the ships, allowing her to simply follow Francisco’s group without trouble. But here—on land—if Francisco denied she was part of their entourage, she could be left behind with no protection.

Francisco noticed the soldiers approaching and greeted them in flawless German.”Good day. These are my documents, and this is a letter of recommendation from my grandfather.”

The soldiers examined the papers silently. When one of them saw the signature, he stiffened slightly and said, “Please wait a moment. I need to speak with my captain.”

Francisco frowned but said nothing. Still, worry began creeping into his mind. Was his grandfather truly who he claimed to be? Had he unknowingly followed a criminal’s trail? Time dragged painfully. Though only five minutes passed, Francisco felt like an hour had gone by. Ever since buying several pocket watches in London, he couldn’t stop checking the time—opening the case every ten seconds only made his anxiety worse.

At last, an officer approached, flanked by several soldiers. The tense atmosphere only deepened.

The officer studied Francisco carefully.”Excuse me, sir, are you the grandson of Johann Friederich Krüger?”

Francisco nodded, distracted by nerves.

Seeing his expression, the officer quickly added, “There’s no need to worry, sir. We mean no harm. Everyone in these lands has heard of him. Since last year, one of his men visits us every month, asking us to send word if we ever encounter someone carrying his letter. We’re simply delivering that message.”

Francisco nodded in relief, but the cluster of soldiers around the officer still made him uneasy. The officer noticed this and scowled at his men.

“Move away. You’re frightening Mr. Krüger’s grandson. Don’t any of you dare worsen the situation.”

The soldiers reacted instantly—almost as if they had heard a demon’s voice—backing away from the carriage until they were a safe distance away. Francisco visibly relaxed.

“Thank you,” he said. “I’m sorry, this is just our first time in Europe. Seeing such imposing soldiers is… new for us.”

The officer chuckled.”Don’t you see Spanish soldiers all the time?”

Francisco gave a small laugh but didn’t reply. Inez, sitting next to him, frowned at the officer’s teasing tone, but after seeing the Hanoverian soldiers up close, she couldn’t bring herself to say anything. Having lived across Europe, she knew perfectly well the difference in training and discipline between these Germans and the average Spanish soldier.

The officer cleared his throat. “Well, let’s forget about that. Your grandfather left instructions. He wants you to meet him at Kastens Hotel Luisenhof. It’s a well-known inn here in Hanover—you can find it easily if you ask around. He’s been staying there since his retirement.”

Francisco nodded. “Thank you for the information.”He reached into his coat, pulled out several pesos, and offered them to the soldiers. “Take these—enjoy some drinks with your men.”

He knew perfectly well that the excellent treatment they received came only from his grandfather’s reputation. Building goodwill with these soldiers could be useful.

The officer looked mildly embarrassed but accepted the coins.”Thank you, sir. I’ll make sure the men know you treated them to some beer. I’ll also send a messenger ahead so other checkpoints don’t cause you trouble.”

Francisco nodded, and the carriage resumed its journey.

Meanwhile, at Kastens Hotel Luisenhof—the very inn Francisco was being directed to—Johann Krüger, his grandfather, sat in a private room. After months of waiting, he had grown calmer, though a subtle tension remained in his posture.

“I need you to hire more troops,” Johann said, frowning as he spoke to his aide. The man had chosen to follow Johann after he left the Prussian army—being a commoner, he admired Johann deeply.

“But sir,” the aide began hesitantly, “you already command a great number of men. Do you truly need more?”

Johann’s frown deepened. “What do you mean, ’a lot’? How many troops do we have right now?”

The aide pulled out a list, scanning it quickly.”At least five hundred left the Prussian army to follow you when you retired. Those men are the elite of Prussia. The Duke of Brunswick was furious to lose them—if not for His Majesty’s order, he might have tried to fight you for them.”

He continued, “Besides them, we’ve hired around a thousand mercenaries. Then there are the farmers and the people with no future who joined to earn some coin—another five hundred. Altogether, we command roughly two thousand troops.”

Johann nodded. “That’s not enough. I want to help my grandson and granddaughter become the rulers of that Spanish crown. We’ll need enough soldiers to seize those lands.”

The aide stared at him helplessly.”Sir… are you certain that’s what your grandson wants? Please don’t take it the wrong way, but you seem to be acting entirely on your own ambitions.”

Johann shrugged. “Who cares? I owe my daughter—and them—too much. Even if he doesn’t want it, I’ll make sure he takes that crown.”

The aide was left speechless. He honestly couldn’t tell whether the future young master was blessed or cursed to have such a grandfather. After rolling his eyes slightly, he sighed.

“Understood, sir. I’ll search for more men. But with the money we gained after selling all your property in Prussia, we only have enough supplies for one more year. If the young master doesn’t arrive in Hanover before then, we may need to make arrangements with the other states just to keep the army fed.”

Johann smiled confidently. “Don’t worry. He’ll come. Just wait.”

The aide had nothing more to say. Silence settled between them.

The aide was speechless. He didn’t know whether Francisco—the future young master—was lucky or unlucky to have such a grandfather. He rolled his eyes and said, “Sir, I understand. I’ll look for more men, but with the money you obtained from selling all your properties in Prussia, we only have enough supplies for another year. If the young master cannot reach Hanover within this year, we may need to make arrangements with the neighboring states just to survive.”

Johann smiled and said, “Don’t worry. He’s going to come. Just wait.”

The aide didn’t reply and headed toward the door—just as a horse galloped to the inn at full speed. A soldier from the checkpoint rushed inside and tried to run upstairs, only to be stopped by Johann’s men.

“Sir,” the soldier said, catching his breath, “I carry a mesage for Mister Krüger. His grandson has reached the checkpoint and is on his way here.”

The aide was about to step back inside when he suddenly felt the force of a giant shove pushing him out of the doorway. He fell to the floor, stunned. When he saw who had pushed him, he could only get up with a bitter expression.

Johann stormed downstairs and demanded, “Really? Did you truly see him?”

The soldier nodded rapidly, still out of breath. “Yes, sir. He has blue eyes and brown hair—though his features look more German than anything else.”

Johann’s face lit up, and he roared, “That’s good! That’s good! I’m finally going to meet my grandson!”

His voice was so loud that even the landlady flinched, startled by this towering man shouting with such excitement.

The aide, careful with his words, said, “Sir, shouldn’t you prepare accommodations for the young master? He’ll likely arrive in Hanover tomorrow.”

Johann snapped out of his excitement and nodded. “That’s right. You—” he pointed at the frightened landlady, “prepare some rooms.” Then he turned back to the soldier. “Do you know how many people are traveling with him?”

After drinking from a mug of water, the soldier answered, “Around thirty, sir.”

Johann frowned. “That’s a lot of people…” He hesitated. Paying for thirty rooms in a luxurious inn wasn’t cheap.

The aide quickly intervened, “Sir, you only need to reserve rooms for the young master Francisco here in the inn. The rest of them are likely servants. Two rooms should be enough—one for him and one for his close aide. The others can stay at a cheaper inn or even at the military camp.”

Johann nodded. “Let’s do that. Did you hear that, miss?”

The landlady nodded.

Johann then happily went back to his room, with the helpless aide following behind him.

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