The Rise Of Australasia

Although there is an even faster way to travel, which is the airplane that has already become popular among the upper echelons of various countries.

But airplanes are not omnipotent. Moreover, for Arthur's safety, his means of travel will still primarily be by warship in the short term.

After returning to Saint Arthur Castle, Arthur immediately began to busy himself with another matter, that is, the engagement of his eldest son, William.

The engagement involves two royal families, one of which is Arthur's eldest son, indicating that the scale of the engagement will certainly be very grand.

The engagement is scheduled for October, and the Danish fleet is already en route, expected to arrive in Australasia by late September.

William's engagement ceremony will be held at the Palace of Nations in Saint Arthur Castle, presided over by Archbishop Steed himself, and representatives from other countries have been invited to participate.

Although it is just an engagement ceremony, its scale is by no means small; the event is expected to cost over 2 million Australian dollars, and the army, navy, and air force will be mobilized.

Of course, Arthur takes his eldest son and heir to the throne very seriously.

This engagement ceremony, apart from bringing William into the public eye, also serves to build momentum for him.

After all, as the second King of Australasia to succeed Arthur, William must also have his own impressive qualities in order to be better accepted and recognized by the people.

To maintain the kingdom's standing and ensure the royal family always reigns, preparing the next king is very important.

One of the reasons why Arthur wants William to marry early is to have grandchildren soon, whom he can then raise himself.

Arthur may not have control over the distant future, but he wishes to personally mentor the third-generation heir.

By doing so, he at least ensures the continuity of royal authority for three generations or more, which is his primary task as both the Monarch of Australasia and the helmsman of the royal family.

Even though it is just a prince's engagement ceremony, it has attracted participation from many countries.

After all, this prince is no ordinary figure, having been confirmed as the heir to the throne of Australasia, the 100% next King of Australasia.

Although Arthur's actions already have the implication of weakening royal power, it still doesn't change the fact that Australasia is currently a powerful monarchy.

Facing a royal family that controls a country's power, few nations can afford not to curry favor, unless they are archenemies or adversaries.

Even though Peter and George are still in Australasia, their respective countries, the Kingdom of California and the United Kingdom of the West Coast, have sent their blessings, with officials from both kingdoms personally attending the ceremony to show their regard for William.

Besides that, all major powers have also sent representatives, expressing their emphasis on Australasia and respect for the royal family.

Along with countries that have marital ties with Australasia, and many others with some connection, dozens of nations managed to gather.

This undoubtedly acknowledges Arthur's high status within the European royal families. As he grows older, particularly after helping Greece to restore its monarchy and currently assisting Portugal to do the same, Arthur has won the favor and admiration of many European royal houses.

What does this represent? It signifies that their thrones are secured. For a royal family of a country, succession is more important than power.

If succession cannot be ensured, what good is the power held in one's hands?

Although Arthur is not so old, he is indeed one of the influencers within the European royal families.

If we had to name a few individuals able to unite all European royal families, then Arthur would undoubtedly be among them.

Such a status is akin to that of Queen Victoria, who reigned and managed for decades.

Actually, when you think about it, the current influence of Australasia can be considered quite vast.

The Philippines, Kalimantan, California, the United Kingdom of the West Coast, and El Salvador, these five countries are akin to puppet states of Australasia.

Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Tsardom of Russia, these four countries have very close marital ties with Australasia.

These alliances also constitute no small force. Although they don't rival the vast influence of the British, they are definitely in the top three in the world, and can be considered to hold substantial power.

Speaking of engagements, they practically signal that marriage is imminent.

According to the agreement between Arthur and the Danish royal family, after the engagement of William and Princess Alexandrine is completed this October, their wedding will be held in Australasia next winter (July), adding another member to the Australasian royal family.

Of course, as part of the marriage settlement, Arthur will gift the Danish royal family a battleship as well as a bounty of valuable supplies and equipment.

Included in this is a hefty sum of funds, and they will surely not fall behind other nations in display, which provides Arthur with the confidence as the head of the royal financial group.

To be honest, it is only because the exchange and acquisition of information isn't as convenient as it could be. Through the conglomerates controlled by Arthur, one can almost confirm Arthur's status as the wealthiest man in the world.

Of course, the truly richest are hidden from view. The wealthiest that ordinary people see, like Arthur, are merely representatives promoted by such figures, and not the actual wealthiest in the world.

Legally speaking, Arthur's wealth also includes the whole of Australasia, which holds immense value, doesn't it?

Returning to the battleship gifted to Denmark, it is actually a decommissioned St. Vincent-class battleship from Australasia.

This class of battleship, being a dreadnought, theoretically falls behind the times already.

However, for a country like Denmark, such a dreadnought could still serve for some time and would represent the most potent firepower they could possess.

Even if Arthur were to gift them the most modern battleships, Denmark might not necessarily be able to afford the maintenance costs.

After all, when the size of the country is taken into account, possessing a powerful battleship could ironically be a bad thing, possibly arousing the envy of neighboring states.

Naturally, the technology of the St. Vincent-class battleships is also part of the gift.

This also includes some outdated airplane technology and actual airplanes. Even though these technologies are behind the times, they are still considered advanced for Denmark.

Arthur's goal is quite simple, to strengthen the power of Denmark as much as possible and nurture them into a steadfast ally.

Of course, such a relationship based on a single generation of marital ties is fundamentally unachievable. However, given Denmark's special geographic location, it is worth Arthur's substantial investment of time.

If he could control Denmark and Finland, it would essentially mean the Baltic Sea would be under lockdown, representing a significant threat and deterrence to other Northern European nations.

At the same time, Denmark could also serve as Australasia's bridgehead in World War II, potentially influencing the European situation during the war to some extent.

If missiles were deployed in Denmark, then the European battles in World War II would certainly be spectacular. Continue reading on My Virtual Library Empire

To better accommodate the guests at the engagement ceremony, Arthur generously mobilized Australasia Airlines to ferry all visitors to Australasia at no cost.

This might be a substantial burden for other airlines, but for Australasia, the leading manufacturer of the world's most advanced airplanes, this is considered just an extra cost for fuel and maintenance, hardly worth mentioning.

Of course, there are exceptions, such as the guests from the Island Nation.

Whether Arthur forgot or it was for some other reason, the Islanders were not included in Australasia Airlines' list of guests to be received for free, and the airline would not take the initiative to add them.

Before September arrived, Queen Mary returned to Europe with William and Anna to prepare for William's engagement ceremony.

This visit to Europe was relatively fruitful, culminating in William's alliance with the Danish royal family through marriage.

As for Anna, who still had not found a suitor she favored, Queen Mary could only say that things will take their natural course.

After all, the Australasian royal family with its ample funds, didn't care about the impact of Princess Anna's marriage, be it with nobility or commoners.

If Princess Anna truly fell in love, granting a few more Titles of Nobility would also be perfectly acceptable.