Wind of War

In Barcelona, at the court of the Kingdom of Aragon, the life of a great ruler, Alfonso V, was nearing its end.

His health had been deteriorating for several years, and not long ago, news arrived from the Provence front that King Charles VII had led his army to a great victory over the main forces of Aragon, helping Duke René of Anjou (Good King René) reclaim all the southern Provence ports, including Marseille.

This news caused Alfonso V to be overcome with anger and anxiety, and he vomited blood and fainted on the spot. Since then, he had been bedridden, with his health showing no signs of improvement.

Alfonso's brother, King Juan II of Navarre, was currently engaged in a struggle for the Navarrese throne with his beloved son and heir, Prince Carlos. The nobles of the Kingdom of Aragon had to expend great effort to persuade him to come to Barcelona to preside over the situation and temporarily oversee state affairs.

On this day, Alfonso V, who had been in a state of semi-consciousness, suddenly regained his spirits. He ordered all the nobles who were awaiting news to be summoned to his sickbed; among them were the great nobles of the Kingdom of Aragon and representatives of the Kingdom of Naples.

Juan II stood sorrowfully at his brother's bedside until Alfonso V produced a will that had been prepared long ago, asking him to read it aloud and sign it in front of everyone.

Juan II was puzzled as to why the signing process was added, but he still complied with Alfonso V's wishes, unrolled the will, and began to read it aloud.

"The throne of Aragon, inherited from my forefathers, rightfully belongs to my brother Juan, while the throne of Naples, which I seized with my own hands, I shall leave to my son Ferdinando. This is my final wish, and I ask all of you to abide by it… Wait, brother, this… this isn't right, is it?"

Juan II anxiously questioned Alfonso V, as both the crowns of Aragon and Naples should rightfully belong to him.

That Ferdinando was merely an illegitimate son of no standing. Juan II, of course, knew his identity and had even taken great care of this nephew. Who would have thought that such an illegitimate son would try to seize one of his kingdoms?

This was clearly contrary to proper etiquette.

At this moment, Alfonso V sternly rebuked him: "Juan, this is my kingdom! What I give you is yours; what I do not give you, you shall never seize!"

He was like an aging lion, sweeping his clouded eyes over everyone present: "This is my final entrustment. Do you all understand?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Whether Aragonese or Neapolitans, everyone present expressed respect for this decision.

Even though Juan II was anxious and angry, the current situation was that he could not refuse his brother's request. He could only reluctantly sign his guarantee on the will, swearing that as long as he lived, he would not attack his nephew to seize the Kingdom of Naples.

A few days later, Alfonso V passed away, and the Kingdom of Aragon and the Kingdom of Naples were thus divided.

The Neapolitan nobles gathered to discuss the future of the Kingdom of Naples.

"We should continue to unite with the Aragonese so that we have enough strength to resist foreign aggression."

These were the Unionists.

"We only recognize the rule of Alfonso V, not the King of Aragon. It would be better to follow the will and let his son inherit the throne."

These were the Independents.

"Why not invite His Majesty René back to reclaim the throne?"

These were the Anjou faction.

This dispute stemmed from the War of the Neapolitan Succession, which began long ago.

After the last queen of the Anjou-Durazzo Dynasty of Naples, Joanna II, passed away without leaving any heirs, two claimants emerged for the Neapolitan throne: Duke René of Anjou (Good King René) and King Alfonso V of Aragon.

The two engaged in several fierce battles in the Italian region. Initially, Alfonso V suffered a crushing defeat and was himself captured.

But at this moment, Duke of Milan Filippo intervened in the war, ransomed Alfonso V, and formed an alliance with him to jointly confront René.

Finally, in 1443, Alfonso V defeated René and was crowned King of Naples.

Over a decade passed, and the Neapolitans generally held a great fondness for Alfonso V. Only a small number of nobles loyal to the Duke of Anjou were suppressed; they hoped that the Duke of Anjou could return to Naples to rule.

Among the nobles who favored Alfonso V, the Unionist faction was weaker than the Independent faction. The Independent faction hoped to break free from Aragonese control; they were unsure if the next King of Aragon would treat the Kingdom of Naples as equally as Alfonso V had.

After a fierce parliamentary debate, the Unionist faction was defeated by the Independent faction, and the Neapolitans resolved to welcome their new king.

As for the Anjou faction? Due to initial joint resistance from the other two factions, they had to be the first to withdraw from the debate.

However, the Neapolitans, who were eagerly awaiting their new king, did not know that a messenger had secretly boarded a ship and departed from Naples (the capital of the Kingdom of Naples), heading north towards Provence, where the war had just ended.

Alfonso V's illegitimate son, Ferdinando, ascended to the throne of Naples, becoming known as Ferdinand I.

The sensational news of an illegitimate son ascending to the throne quickly ignited public opinion. The entire European continent was abuzz with this "amusing" story, while those with keen insight had already detected a hint of something amiss.

Austria, being relatively close to Naples, was among the first to receive this news. Spies stationed in Italy relayed the information back home, and Eyczing reported it to Laszlo during a Privy Council meeting.

"What? Alfonso V is gone?"

Laszlo's first concern was this; Leonor would surely be very sad. Alfonso V was her uncle and had treated her very well; their marriage was arranged by Alfonso V himself.

Now, with such a close family member having passed away, how could one not feel grief?

Eyczing nodded slightly, reminding him, "His illegitimate son Ferdinando has inherited the throne, Your Majesty. This is a signal."

"Yes, Italy is about to be in chaos again… It has only been quiet for a year."

Laszlo sighed lightly. Contentious successions always brought war, and this time would surely be no exception.

Good King René would not be indifferent to such an opportunity. With his formidable rival Alfonso V gone, this was a golden chance for him to make a comeback and reclaim the Neapolitan crown.

The newly enthroned King Juan II of Aragon, it was unknown whether he would join this war to contend for the Neapolitan throne that rightfully belonged to him.

What Laszlo and the Privy Council needed to consider was how Austria could profit from this succession crisis.

"Tell me your opinions."

Laszlo looked at everyone.

There were only a few participants in the Privy Council meeting: Adolf, Aeneas, Jacob, Eyczing, and himself. They held the highest power in Austria, and even in the entire Habsburg Dynasty.

"Your Majesty, this war seems to have little to do with us."

Adolf had no interest in the conflict occurring on the Italian peninsula. He only wanted to know when the Emperor would decide to dispatch troops to eliminate the heretics in Bohemia.

Under Laszlo's persuasion, Adolf had reconverted to Catholicism. Now, in his view, the Cup faction was even more detestable than heretics, because he had once been betrayed by these scoundrels.

It was just that His Majesty seemed to have been indulging in pleasure recently and was not very concerned about purging the Hussite remnants. He could not help but remind him: "Compared to caring about foreign affairs, isn't the Hussite problem more urgent?"

Laszlo pondered for a moment and said, "You have a point, Adolf. What happens over there indeed has little to do with us. As for Bohemia, how is the army's re-equipment progressing?"

"One legion of the Independent Army has already been re-equipped with firearms, but the two hundred firearms are slightly insufficient in number. The 부족한 parts are temporarily replaced with crossbows."

"More firearms will be delivered later. Once the army is fully re-equipped, we should set off for Prague."

Laszlo was full of ambition. Although Rosenberg could check Iri in Bohemia, it was a pipe dream to completely overpower Iri and the Cup faction he led. In the end, military conquest of Bohemia would be unavoidable.

However, if the gates of Prague were to be breached by his cannons, the Bohemians would not have an easy time of it.

Jacob reported promptly: "Your Majesty, my suggestion is to prioritize economic development at this stage. Austria's tax revenue next year will definitely exceed five hundred thousand florins, and this is the figure excluding the Imperial Bank's income."

"Very good."

Laszlo was happy to make money. Such a distant place as Naples was not worth Austria expending much effort on.

However, Eyczing raised a different opinion at this point.