"Carlo, where are you?"
A shout from high up in the luxurious palace interrupted Carlo's thoughts, pulling his soul back into the real world.
"I'm here, Father," Carlo quickly replied.
"Thank God, my child, are you feeling better?" A few minutes later, the voice came from far away and grew closer, and its owner was already behind Carlo.
Carlo turned slightly, still feeling a bit incredulous.
The well-dressed middle-aged man before him was the biological father of this body, the famous current ruler of the House of Savoy, the first King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel II.
"I'm much better, the medicine the doctor gave me was very effective." Carlo nodded obediently, but in his heart, he was thinking about how to talk to this unfamiliar father.
Victor Emmanuel II didn't notice Carlo's complex thoughts. Instead, he affectionately stroked Carlo's head and said earnestly, "It's alright, my child. Although Oddone is gone, you still have us, right?"
Oddone was Vittorio Emanuele II's third son, who received the title of Duke of Montferrat right after birth.
In Carlo's memory, this elder brother was very good to Carlo, their relationship far exceeding that of his two older brothers.
Unfortunately, when Carlo's soul arrived in this world, Duke Oddone of Montferrat was already critically ill and passed away soon after.
Due to the extremely poor medical standards of this era, the cause of Oddone's death was never determined.
Even a prince died so inexplicably, which made Carlo feel a slight fear of this real world.
For an ordinary person who has experienced advanced technology and society, personally experiencing life and technology from 160 years ago is truly tormenting.
Even though Carlo was Victor Emmanuel II's most beloved son, a prince of the newly established Kingdom of Italy, this couldn't offset the terrible feeling.
Seeing Carlo remain silent, Victor Emmanuel II gently stroked Carlo's head again. He forced a smile and said, "Everything will be alright, my child. Things will get better. I will not allow anything to take you away from me, not even God. I will protect you; you will be alright, I promise."
For Victor Emmanuel II, who was known for his deep piety towards God, this promise was both heartfelt and sincere.
Carlo naturally knew Victor Emmanuel II's reputation. He felt no aversion towards this kind, if somewhat unfamiliar, father.
"I'm much better, Father. Thank you for your concern, I'm alright now," Carlo said.
"That's good, child. May God bless you, and I will also be by your side." Victor Emmanuel II affectionately stroked Carlo's head again, then motioned for the attendant beside him to help Carlo back to his room.
Historically, although Victor Emmanuel II had six sons (only counting those born to Queen Adélaïde), only two did not die young, which could be considered having many children but little fortune.
Among them, besides Prince Oddone, who died young at nearly 20 years old, the remaining three children who died prematurely passed away unexpectedly during infancy.
Although Carlo's arrival in this world meant Victor Emmanuel II lost one fewer son, the continuous loss of sons during his middle age made Victor Emmanuel II especially cherish family affection.
And Carlo, now his youngest son, was the most beloved by Victor Emmanuel II. He was the noble Duke of Chablais from birth, with extensive property under his name, including large fields, several castles and manors, and hundreds of servants ready to attend to Carlo at any moment.
While Victor Emmanuel II was lost in thought, Carlo had already been helped into his room by two attendants.
Looking at the two maids, one pure and beautiful on his left, and the other with an alluring figure on his right, Carlo swallowed the words he was about to say.
Although monogamy was prevalent in the West, for nobles of high status, mistresses were not an unfamiliar concept.
Especially for the highest tier of nobility, if Carlo wished, young women wanting to become his mistresses could queue from Florence, the capital of Italy, all the way to Turin in the northwest.
At least on this point, Carlo was willing to admit that the world 160 years ago did have some pleasures.
Of course, mistresses were just an unspoken indulgence among nobles and were generally not publicly acknowledged.
For top nobles, maids were naturally a safer choice than mistresses and could be trusted in terms of loyalty.
Especially for some young nobles, maids were more suitable for 'enlightenment' education and were the preferred choice for most European aristocrats educating their offspring.
These two maids serving Carlo were chosen by Victor Emmanuel II as his 'enlighteners', combining the characteristics of pure and lovely with sexy and alluring, and both were very beautiful.
At first, Carlo enjoyed the massage from the two women, but the pleasure in his lower region instantly brought Carlo back to his senses. Turning his head, he saw that Anna, who looked pure and lovely, had already reached her hand into Carlo's trousers and was quietly teasing him.
"Alright, Anna." Carlo patted Anna's head, looked at her small, blinking eyes as she looked up, and finally smiled, "Not there yet."
"Okay." Hearing this, Anna nodded with a slight disappointment, and her hand also left that certain place.
"I want to be alone for a while." After enjoying the skilled massage from the two maids, Carlo finally relaxed a bit and instructed the two women.
Soon, the two maids left the room, leaving Carlo alone, lying in the room, lost in thought.
Carlo had more or less accepted transmigrating to this era. At least as a noble, there were many ways to enjoy life, much better than the life of hardship in later generations.
But the problem was, although the Monarchy was still the mainstream worldwide at the moment, it could only last for a few more decades.
After World War I and World War II broke out consecutively, they would deal a heavy blow to monarchies worldwide, causing monarchical nations to almost disappear from people's sight.
In later generations, apart from the United Kingdom, a monarchy where the monarch's power was virtually non-existent, people knew very little about monarchical countries, and could hardly name a few that still existed.
The Kingdom of Italy, where Carlo was, would become a republic after World War II, but during Mussolini's reign, the power and status of the Italian royal family were already precarious, and their abolition was just a matter of Mussolini's word.
Although he didn't know how he transmigrated, since he had started a new life with such a high starting point, Carlo naturally had greater ambitions.
To hold his future destiny in his own hands, Carlo had a new plan.