Chapter 63: America
History and reality have diverged in my memory. It’s clear we’ve entered the Industrial Revolution, and it has even achieved certain results. For instance, if the printing press wasn’t popular, how could so many exquisite maps be casually discarded here?
But here in Granada, it still exists. Castile and Aragon haven’t merged, and Spain hasn’t come into being, yet it has reached at least the mid-stage of the Industrial Revolution. What is going on?
Wait a moment. It suddenly occurred to me; the very first thing that made me suspect this other world was still Earth was Baron Juan, the Lord of the City, mentioning the Iberian Empire.
And then, I heard the Herald shouting, “Iberian Empire, Kingdom of Castile!” coupled with the entire Iberian Peninsula on the map in front of me being colored yellow…
Hold on, has the Iberian Peninsula been unified? Does this mean all four kingdoms are subordinate to this so-called Iberian Empire?
It seems I recall a period of unification on the Iberian Peninsula. I think Portugal and Spain were jointly ruled by an emperor named Philip II, but it certainly wasn’t a joint rule of four kingdoms, especially with a Crescent Moon nation mixed in.
Could this be a case of “drawing maps to claim territory”? I couldn’t help but look suspiciously at the first page. Was the uniform color of the Iberian Peninsula map meant to express the determination to unify the peninsula, hence coloring the entire map the same, but in reality, they haven’t conquered it yet?
“Older Brother Jayad, do you know who the King is?” I asked.
“Mmm, I hear about it often. The announcements always mention the Queen at the end, Isabella V. They say she’s very beautiful,” Jayad replied.
Isabella V? I’ve never heard of her. She probably didn’t exist in my previous life.
“What about the Emperor? Does the Iberian Empire have an Emperor?” I asked again. Since it calls itself an empire, it must have an imperial throne to be considered one.
“I hear that from the heralds frequently too. I think major edicts are issued in the Emperor’s name. It should be Philip XII,” Jayad said.
“Huh? It’s already the Twelfth?” That’s another name I’ve never heard of. And with so many kings and emperors reaching the twelfth generation, I can’t tell who’s who at all.
Besides, Jayad only heard things second-hand. I’m not sure how accurate the information he provided is, so I can only continue looking at the atlas.
Turning another page, the next map is of Africa. It’s messy with many different colors and numerous small countries. I can’t recognize their names, and I believe Jayad wouldn’t have heard of them either.
However, I can roughly make out a large area of blue in North Africa labeled “France,” indicating French colonies? The southern part of Africa is also marked “Britain,” so they are likely British colonies.
The large expanse of land in the middle is colorful, with several locations marked with red military flags. I don’t know what they specifically mean. It seems they are warning people of danger there, but their exact meaning is unclear.
That’s all I can comprehend. Flipping further down, it’s a map of America. The New Continent has already been discovered. I remember in my previous life, it was discovered through the voyages funded by Spain, which Columbus made.
However, like Africa, America is entirely colorful. The United States that I’m familiar with doesn’t exist; instead, it’s divided into several parts. One part is marked “France,” which I just saw, and another “Britain.” There’s even a large section labeled “Iberia.”
