Page 428 of DATE
Florence had never seen snow before.
In that moment, she suddenly recalled the farewell, when he had looked at the shadow of the window.
To this day, she had never stepped foot into the Palazzo Pitti, as if guarding some secret.
The light snow passed as swiftly as a drizzle, not even leaving a trace on the ground.
Yet the timing felt perfect, as if it were a silent response.
The queen took the white cloth again, wiping the tombstone, letting the long wind carry the fine snowflakes as they flutteredby.
"Thank you for everything you've given me," she whispered. "I will never forget."
This surname... will forever remain alongside your name, becoming an immortal existence.
——
Spain suddenly erupted into a civil war.
Earlier in the spring of this year, the people had been busy with the booming maritime trade, but likely due to excessive fiscal overreach, a large number of workers were deprived of their wages for the reason of "not being devout enough."
The outbreak of this war spread quickly like wildfire, even to the point where the Inquisition's buildings were torn down one after another.
Previously, in this country, even those who followed the 'Protestant' faith were persecuted like heretics. But by this time, many Catholics, along with Protestants, took up torches, moved statues, and bound the inquisitors to the executioner's scaffold.
Queen Isabella attempted to use her forces for more extreme suppression, but neither crossbows nor swords could control the wild, beast-like uprising of the people.
Some people spontaneously shouted slogans for the Renaissance and the promotion of Protestantism, while many others silently and angrily sought revenge on their past tormentors.
The rebellion lasted nearly fifteen days. In the end, many churches closed their doors, too scared to let anyone in, and the monks, who had previously been used to domineering, remained silent, like frightened ducks awaiting slaughter.
During the furious resistance, militias led the crowds into castles, looting gold, silver, and various luxury items bought with the people's taxes—even stealing the kitchen's bone dishes and rolling up all the carpets to take away.
France immediately closed its border with Spain and began to emulate Italy by reducing taxes for its people, but the parliament began to have intense debates, protesting that they had abandoned too many benefits.
The English, never forgetting to stir things up from across the channel, allegedly took advantage of the chaos to seize several Spanish merchant ships.
With Spain caught in a state of anarchy, Portugal attacked, almost as if they had already planned it—without waiting even a single day.
No one knew that these events were part of a conspiracy by the Five Nations Alliance. It was truly the queen herself who smashed her own crown to pieces.
It is said that Queen Isabella finally died a tragic death in a church, her blood drained, only to be discovered by the Pope.
By the beginning of this autumn, immigrants started arriving from all four directions of the Americas.
It was rumored that the empires had signed labor contracts with the African natives—although the wages for the workers were less than half of what European workers earned, it still led to competition among various African tribes, and some local chieftains even fought over it.
Alcohol and food became highly popular commodities, and shipping routes flourished as a result.
Asians sailed west, selling large quantities of porcelain, silk, and low-cost mechanical products, while Europeans headed south with beer, cheese, and olives. Ships carried ever-increasing numbers of Africans northward, while immigration to the Americas also continued to rise.
At first, the English were puzzled by the large number of Europeans in Italy’s colonies. However, when they discovered the prisoner marks on the laborers, they finally understood and shifted their prisons to the colonies.
The development of the Americas was happening at an incredible speed, almost as if it had set sail on a ship with favorable winds.
In Florence this autumn, the sunshine was brilliant.
Hedy, once again, was so busy that she forgot her birthday. The two children were already running around the palace, even trying to add little mustaches to all the saintly figures under the guidance of Botticelli. Raphael and Michelangelo chased behind them, feeding them, while Niccolò brought them sweets in various forms.
