Chapter 29

Chapter 29 < The Fate of Columbus. >

Fortunately, the Golden Parrot survived.

He had only collapsed from hunger and exhaustion.

But one thing was clear: he would have surely died without their help.

They did not speak the same language, but the tribespeople took great care of him.

They generously provided him with food and meat, which was not an easy thing to do for a stranger.

It was something unimaginable in the place where the Golden Parrot had lived.

“Th-thank you…”

The Golden Parrot was deeply touched by their kindness.

Time passed.

He regained some mobility and began to understand their language a little bit.

Thanks to that, he learned many things.

‘Ah, this place is abundant in food.’

That was why they could help him without any burden.

And another fact.

‘This place was also subjugated by another empire.’

He thought it was strange. This place was not as backward as he had heard. It was not inferior to the place where he had lived.

They even had stone-paved roads.

He spent his days learning their language and the language of the Wakan Tanka Empire, as they called it.

When he could speak a bit, he asked the chief’s wife, Swift Wind, who had been looking after him, about everything that he was curious about.

“What kind of place is the Wakan Tanka Empire? Why don’t you hate them?”

“Hate? Hoho! Why do you think we should hate the empire?”

“Huh? Isn’t that obvious? Invaders are all the same. They are devils who are greedy for exploiting the weak tribes!”

“You’re wrong. The empire is not that evil.”

It was something that the Golden Parrot could not understand with his common sense.

The invaders of the Triple Alliance, who had Tenochtitlan as their capital, had mercilessly oppressed many tribes.

So he thought that all invaders were the same.

But he was wrong?

Seeing his expression, she smiled faintly.

“Sure, they conquered many tribes by force at first. They showed no mercy to those who resisted to the end.”

She recalled the past.

The invaders were strong.

The warriors who faced them directly suffered fatal damage.

“But then…”

“Listen to the whole story before you judge.”

She cut him off and continued.

“They finally reached the other side of the sea. But then something strange happened.”

“Something strange?”

“Yes. For some reason, they stopped invading other tribes. As if that was their destination.”

By then, the nearby tribes had formed an alliance against the empire’s threat. Even those who hated each other joined forces.

They gathered, but suddenly the fight stopped. The empire’s warriors only defended themselves and did not provoke any conflict.

“We thought they were taking a breather. That they would soon move to subjugate everyone around them.”

“So what happened? Did you attack first?”

He became more interested as he listened. The Golden Parrot was captivated by her story.

“No. If we fought them head-on, we would have surely lost. We prepared for guerrilla warfare.”

The alliance thought that the empire’s warriors would definitely attack them.

But they still had a chance.

They knew the terrain of this area very well.

With the help of the terrain, they could overcome their disadvantage in weapons.

“But one day, the empire’s warriors came with an interpreter and asked to meet us.”

“They asked to meet you? Did they come to make a declaration of war?”

“Not at all. They wanted peace.”

The warrior from the empire said that they only needed a way to go to the other side of the sea. That they had no intention of oppressing other tribes.

He asserted that the various tribes and the empire could coexist peacefully.

“Did you believe them?”

“Of course not at first.”

It was very common in intergroup relations to discard previous promises like old shoes when the situation changed.

The alliance tribes also thought so.

But they did not have the strength to fight a full-scale war with the empire right away.

So they chose to coexist with them for now, while keeping an eye on them.

“But as time went by, things changed subtly.”

Rumors spread.

There were various constructions going on in the areas occupied by the empire, and anyone who worked there could easily get food, clothing, and various amazing devices.

“Most people snorted at first.”

They thought it was a lie.

But the rumors persisted even as time passed. They should have naturally disappeared if they were false.

Then some people were tempted.

“They worked in the areas occupied by the empire and returned with the same rewards as the rumors. Without a single wound.”

High-quality meat and delicious food that they had never tasted before.

And clothes and shoes that were the same as those worn by the empire’s people.

Bowls made of something called pottery and various necessities.

They gave them all these things just for helping them with their work.

And this support continued. Every time they went to work, they received the same rewards.

“From then on, more and more tribespeople started to go to the empire’s territory.”

The empire accepted them all.

They paved roads and built residential areas.

They helped build ships at the shipyard and learned skills.

Some became sailors and lived on ships.

The more they learned skills, the more the empire paid them.

Then some tribes even wanted to submit to the empire.

The empire welcomed them generously.

Many tribes moved to the empire’s mainland. They heard from them regularly.

Most of the supply between the mainland and this area was handled by people from their tribes.

“They said that everyone was equal under His Majesty the Emperor. That the mainland was a splendid place and that nothing unreasonable happened there.”

“Huh… I can’t believe it.”

“I thought it was a lie at first, too. But now I know it’s true. Many young people from our tribe became Wakan Tanka Empire’s people, and I can trust their words.”

There was such an empire?

An empire that treated even weak tribespeople equally?

The Golden Parrot’s heart suddenly started to beat faster.

“His Majesty made all this happen. I already respect him very much.”

There was no trace of falsehood on her face.

What kind of person was the emperor? How could he make even the conquered tribes respect him sincerely?

‘At least he seems different from those devils.’

Until he came here, he had only one goal.

To survive.

But now that he had survived and escaped, it was time to think about how to live from now on.

“Can I become an empire’s citizen too?”

“Of course. Anyone can become an empire’s citezen. There are just a few restrictions.”

“Restrictions like…”

“Abandon other beliefs and serve only the spirits that the empire believes in. And learn the empire’s standard language. Go to elementary school and learn letters and numbers.”

“And then?”

“That’s it.”

“That’s it? Huh, really.”

Very simple things.

There was nothing like serving the empire for a certain period of time.

“How about it, did my words help you a little bit?”

“They helped me a lot. Thank you for telling me so kindly.”

The Golden Parrot bowed to her gratefully.

He asked other people about the empire as well, but the answers were similar.

And then.

The Golden Parrot made up his mind.

‘I’ll become an empire’s citezen.’

He had nowhere to go back anyway. The Golden Parrot decided to see for himself what kind of place the empire was.

‘And if possible…’

He wanted revenge on those devils.

The Golden Parrot’s eyes shone coldly.

*

“Hooh. An interesting fellow.”

The existence of the Golden Parrot reached Kim Ki-woo.

A man who had escaped from the Aztec Empire.

He had crossed such a harsh road alone. His hardships were evident in his eyes.

He wanted to meet him once. He also needed to know the exact situation of the Aztec Empire.

“Yeah. He’s learning standard language now?”

“Yes. He has come to the empire now, and one teacher is exclusively teaching him standard language.”

“Hmm. Then tell him to come see me after he becomes proficient in standard language. I’m curious what kind of person he is.”

“I’ll deliver that.”

He would be able to solve all these curiosities when the time came.

He was not in a hurry, so Kim Ki-woo decided to wait patiently.

‘By the way, how is the Panama area doing?’

It had been quite a while since the Panama area had stabilized.

Kim Ki-woo looked for a report on Panama on a whim.

‘I gave them enough, so they better be stable.’

Kim Ki-woo had invested a lot of money in the Panama area.

He had no intention of squeezing the colonies like the modern imperialist countries.

It was pointless to squeeze them and accumulate resentment. That would only lead to fierce resistance in the end.

It was better to use the natives’ labor and pay them fairly.

‘Their consumption market will increase as they become richer.’

Anyway, the empire monopolized the supply to the natives. There was no need to compete with anyone else.

It was like expanding the economic territory.

Thanks to this policy, many tribespeople in Panama gradually entered under the empire’s rule or chose to naturalize.

And with their labor, trade with the South American continent was becoming smoother.

‘The Inca Empire…’

Kim Ki-woo had learned something late.

The Andean natives’ words that there was no Inca Empire.

It was a wrong statement.

They just didn’t know about its existence because the Inca Empire hadn’t invaded their area yet.

This misunderstanding was quickly resolved.

As he traded with more southern tribes, he saw that many tribes had already submitted to the Inca Empire.

Of course, it wasn’t as if the Inca Empire had occupied most of the Andes as Kim Ki-woo knew it.

That meant that the current time was estimated to be around the mid-15th century. He felt like he was getting closer to the 16th century in an instant.

‘The day I see Columbus’ face is not far away.’

Kim Ki-woo had already prepared a scenario for Columbus’ discovery of America. But when he realized that he had less than 50 years left until he arrived, he revised his plan.

‘Sorry, but the discovery of the New World will be delayed.’

As long as Kim Ki-woo was alive, Columbus’ fate had changed.

Columbus would die without setting foot on the American continent.

After delivering only the horses and diseases that they brought.

Of course, other Europeans would reach the American continent through various routes later…

But as long as Kim Ki-woo was alive and alert, they would not be able to settle properly on the American continent.

‘I will decide when the two continents will interact.’

Based on that time, the history of the earth would change completely.

< The Fate of Columbus. > The End