Franz cast his mind back to one of Elisabeth’s letters. She had been clear on one thing in particular: You had to stand firm in your convictions. Otherwise you had nothing. Franz had never met anyone like that. The court was full of people jockeying for position, vying for his attention, changing their convictions to get what they wanted. There was a purity in how Elisabeth saw the world, and it was how Franz wanted to see things. She believed he had the strength necessary to stay true to his convictions. He hoped she was right.

Around him, his advisors were still speaking, a general pressing his hand to the hardwood table they were all arranged around. “It’s imperative that we strengthen our forces.”

Von Bach, Franz’s financial advisor, chimed in. “If I may, sir, this year’s military expenses have already placed a heavy burden on our budget. Entering the war would leave no money for anything else.”

Von Bach cast a significant glance at Franz, and Franz knew what it meant: There would be no money for the plans Franz had quietly, secretly been making to improve Habsburg. Plans for a railroad—a way to connect the empire from end to end. No more multiday carriage rides over bumpy half-finished roads. He’d build those up too—the roads. But the railroad—that would be his crowning achievement. He could feel the greatness of it in his bones, the way it would measurably improve so many lives. Solve the hunger problems, ease the unrest. He wasn’t naive enough to think it would fix everything in an instant. But it would show the people that he was making a start, that he was serious about change.

And Elisabeth—he couldn’t wait to tell her. He’d been holding back in his letters because he wanted to see her face when he outlined the grandeur of the plan. Wanted to see her face when he told her it was all because of her. He’d had vague notions about how to improve Habsburg before, but it had been Elisabeth who’d made them feel real to him. He didn’t want anyone to feel the kind of unfulfilled longing he’d been suffering for so many months. The railroad was an answer to that. It would bring people close, connect them across the miles. Connect them to each other and to the things they all needed. Food for their tables, wood for their hearths.

It was yet another reason to stand strong against the war.

One general raised a sarcastic eyebrow at Von Bach. “What do you need the money for this time? A home for old widows?” Laughter rolled through the room.

“Gentlemen,” Franz broke in, his voice stern. He was gratified when the laughter died immediately in their throats.

The warmongers tried another tactic. “Your Majesty, what could be more important than the defense of the empire?”

A tired argument.