Carolus Rex Chapter 2 - Karl's Diary (Patreon)

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By the grace of God, I have returned, though more lost than ever. Once more I live. I thought that I would never return to see my parents.

The dreams at night have made things clear for me: I have been returned, and with the tools to change my fate. If there truly is a Lord above, and He cares for His children, then surely He must be Swedish.


27th of June, Anno Domini 1685, Tre Kronor Castle, Stockholm, Kingdom of Sweden.

Today is my third birthday, which means it has been four years since my death and return, though only one since my revelation. After a year of both excellence and piety, I managed to persuade queen mother to hand me my own paper and ink, privately, only for myself. However, reaching this point has been an ordeal, and one of my own making.

As soon as I had my first dream at the age of two, too much had changed for my young mind. Not only did I gain access to the knowledge my own dream-self had amassed over the years, and with it knowledge far beyond my time, I also acquired my dream- self's memories, and with them knowledge of the days to come.

Such a drastic change had been too much for a toddler to handle. When I saw the faces of my parents that day, knowledge of their tragic fates overwhelmed me.

The crying tantrum would have been understandable for a boy my age, if undignified for the crown prince of Sweden. However, attempting to advise mother on her health and father on politics had been poorly thought out. As I know what the future holds, I wished to fight my fate with every fiber of my being. Yet it only scared mother and made father suspicious.

An exorcism could be avoided, for we are not brute catholics, yet it still took a year of quiet obedience until I was allowed this journal. As it turns out, the wheels of history reverse not on command.

Beyond these few slivers of paper and specks of ink right before me, nothing has changed. Father is still father, stern but playful. He disapproved of my new writing aspirations. As a real man, one should be out and about, hunting and the like, just like him. Luckily, mother managed to remind him that three year olds make for lousy hunting companions. Though mother is also still mother, kind and silly and quietly suffering.

However, this is no time to give up. If nothing else, this journal alone is proof enough that changes can be made, just not by a suspicious boy of three. For now, I have thus decided to strive for continued excellence, until father and mother approve of me as not only their son, but also a man to be trusted. To change my future, and theirs, I will need to grow up soon.

I shall use this part of the journal to catalogue my progress, and another to write down important information from my dreams.


7th of October, 1685

Mother has given birth to my third, younger brother, Fredrik. She has not handled the birth well and looks as pale as her sheets. Again, we all seem cursed to repeat our old paths. This year, before I received my journal, brother Gustav died in April. Child fever, the doctors said. Brother Ulrik died in June, only fifty days apart. Ulriksdal Palace shall never house its intended owner.

Once again, I will do my best to avoid emotional attachment to my newest brother, for he as well is destined to not be long of this world. It will be another heavy blow to mother, who is already weakened from the constant births.

As father and mother seem unable to control their baser instincts, I have told them of ways to ease mother's birth. If they are so determined to have more children, it should not be at the expense of mother’s health.

Further, I have also explained precautions in handling my newborn siblings, to save or at least prolong their lives. However, no one will listen to a young child over experienced doctors, even though the methods of the doctors are ridiculous. In the end, my attempts to save my brothers have gained me only a vicious talking-to, and a grounding. Worse, all my hard work as a good son has been made moot.

From now on, I shall ignore what cannot be changed, and focus only on my studies. My brothers seem cursed to die ignorant of the world. Only fifteen days left until brother Fredrik shall perish.


22nd of October, 1685

Brother died today. Everything has returned to its natural path. Rather, it appears nothing has ever left said path. I managed to gain permanet access to the library today, since I have done well in my physical studies. I do not believe it will change anything.


There is nothing else to report.



14th of January, 1686

I have gained my first ally. My older sister Vige has begun to show interest in me since a few weeks ago. It appears children are more open to fantastical tales than adults. In fascination of my strangeness, she has begun to copy my strict training regimen.

Maybe with this alone, her fate can be improved. If nothing else, she should be happier if she could rely on her own abilities to prove herself, rather than having to lean on unreliable men all her life. Not to mention, her companionship eases my mind during the grueling training. However, I fear more than ever that what I do is mere child's play as well, that all of it is futile.

Maybe God is not Swedish after all. Maybe the devil is a Dane.


8th of April, 1686

Mother is pregnant again. Despite the loss of three sons in a year, my parents still ignored God’s guidance and failed to control their urges. Mother has been blessed with fertility, and cursed with frailty. Every year, she bears another child, and every year, her constitution weakens.

I have decided to spend more time with mother. If I stay near her, I may yet influence her habits and strengthen her health, like I have done with sister. Shall I fail, at least mother would not be so alone in her final years.


15th of May, 1686

Against the advice of the doctors, mother has begun to follow me in some light movements around the inner yard. Moderate exercise should support her weakened body, and mother's smile seemed a bit fuller than before. Today, the sun shines brighter than ever over our frosty world.


26th of June, 1686, Drottningholm, Lovön.

Maybe out of jealousy due to my recent closeness with mother, father insisted that I join him on his hunting trip. Mother did not object for once, though it seemed she was eager to do so. We traveled to Drottningholm Palace, where father likes to govern during summer.

The hunting trip itself was largely unremarkable. Father was as usual, braggadocios and self-assured like a boy half his age. Due to my own immaturity, I carried no rifle and rode no horse. Instead, I simply sat back and made sounds of wonder in response to father’s deeds and stories. Once more, I am reminded that there is no greater bliss than to see one’s family happy.

However, in the evening, as I was fortunate to experience the splendor of the newly rebuilt Drottningholm, I learned the real reason for our trip. For the first time since the start of my dreams, I was to meet grandmother, whom even father calls the Queen.

Grandmother is scary.

Behind her superficial kindness sit stern, probing eyes. I was presented like a new horse to a prospective buyer, and was also treated as such. Though her eerie eyes scanned me without pause, I could still see the wrinkles around them curve in kindness.

Grandmother spoke to me all evening, and asked many probing questions about politics, religion, and the strange rumors surrounding my person. Through my dreams, I am somewhat aware of grandmother’s habits, and it seems my answers were sufficient. Grandmother seemed warmer as the evening progressed. With some luck, I may have found a new ally, someone far more powerful this time.

It was also decided that my studies were to begin officially. Grandmother will send a teacher in the coming days.


1st of July, 1686, Tre Kronor

My new teacher is my old teacher. Bishop Erik Benzelius once again has been tasked with my education, just like in my first life. However, he has been given his diocese a year sooner this time. Once again, he received the honors just before he began to teach me.

I cannot help but suspect foul play from father or grandmother, an attempt to increase my teacher’s authority by gilding his status.

His curriculum is as expected. Benzelius will train me in religious and moral matters, and maybe in dialectics. He may neglect most other subjects. Of course, such arrangements suit me just fine. I have long made my own study plan, fortified with knowledge of the future. I shall rely on the bishop in matters of God, and on myself in matters of mortals.


9th of July, 1686

Today, mother brought me along for an excursion outside the castle. In her own words, being cooped up with only books and teachers would do me no good. They are rich words from a woman with such a sedentary lifestyle. However, I did not complain or talk back. After all, mother did bring me to her sponsored orphanage in central Stockholm today. Indeed, I relish the chance to see mother's operations.

Mother has always been the kindest soul. Her loneliness from father's frequent trips has led her to project this kindness onto others. At first, it was only a few orphaned children in the streets of Stockholm. Through accumulation over the years, the charitable work has grown so much that it now requires organization.

In this humble orphanage, and in several other places throughout Sweden, Mother and dozens of her servants and courtiers are in charge of thousands of poor in various circumstances.

The trip to mother's orphanage has opened my eyes. To mother's delight, I sat and told stories to the children my age, or even older, who accepted my tales without question. As I thought, children are the easiest to influence.


21st of July, 1686, Uppsala Palace, Uppsala

I have been had.

Since my teacher was the same as in my last life, I did not give it any thought. As a result, I failed to realize the political plot which had formed around me.

As a priest, Benzelius focuses his teachings on religion. That much has been in line with grandmother's wishes, who educated father in the same manner: Focus on his religious and athletic education, while ignoring the rest. That much hadn’t been a problem. Father had also turned out fine after all.

The problem was that mother hadn’t been so much as informed, much less consulted, in regards to her son’s education. Thus, as a form of protest, she decided to interrupt my education with a trip to the orphanage. Though in response, the bishop spent more time on my lessons, and I was no longer allowed to leave the castle. This slight has been too much for mother.

I understand that this is a grander issue, and my education is merely the spark which ignited the flames of conflict. Now, the conflict between mother and grandmother has been fully revealed, yet it runs much deeper than just my studies.

Mother is the queen, yet grandmother is eager to retain her strong position in court. Mother wishes to spare the victims of the Reduction, yet grandmother was its initiator. Worst of all, grandmother hails from Gottrop, and mother from Denmark.

For the sin of being born in the wrong place, mother has been made to suffer ever since her coronation. Thus, I understand mother's decision to take me and Vige with her to Uppsala, in protest. We left without informing father and arrived this noon. Here, we shall await father's apology to mother, and an end to the pointless power struggle.


24th of July, 1686

In a shocking turn, father and grandmother have decided to travel the country, rather than pursue mother in penance. As mother has been in a poor mood, I have begun to tell her uplifting stories. Their success has been mixed.


26th of June, 1686

Still no news from father. However, I have now taken to teaching mother how to count cards at Blackjack, as well as winning strategies for other games of chance. As grandmother often forces mother to participate in her gambling nights, against mother’s will, the lessons have greatly lifted her mood. It feels like we are preparing for battle.


9th of August, 1686

Father and grandmother have finally arrived in Uppsala. Their attempts to appease mother with empty phrases have been misjudged. Their attempts to guilt me into convincing mother ‘for the sake of her own health’ will not work either.

Father and grandmother should show some sincerity soon, or this may become an issue of national importance. Luckily, I know from my dreams that father loves mother dearly, and that grandmother values family above all else. Only, father will not put his wife above grandmother in her presence, and grandmother would not want to appear weak in front of father.

Surely, we will be able to resolve the conflict in time. All that is needed is some separation between the old queen and the current king.


15th of August, 1686

Father and grandmother left without result, as expected. However, both had several long talks with mother in private. Based on mother's mood, it seems our self-imposed exile will not last much longer.


3rd of September, 1686

Grandmother arrived today, by herself. We shall see what happens.


4th of September, 1686

We are getting ready for our return. Mother and grandmother spent a long time talking, and grandmother also asked about my progress while in Uppsala. More importantly however, I could hear them exchange bets and money all day. Maybe grandmother was intimidated by mother's new-found gambling skills or maybe they have come to some kind of compromise, but our exile appears to be over.


5th of September, 1686

Mother informed me of the new agreement. It appears as if things will return to normal. Bishop Benzelius will remain as my teacher, but mother will be allowed to take me to her possessions as well, and the number of lessons will be reduced again. It feels like an uneasy peace.


22nd of September, 1686, Tre Kronor Castle

Due to mother's advancing pregnancy and constant poor health, many things are inconvenient for her to handle by herself.

As a result, many of mother's charities are administered by her courtiers. After much convincing, mother has agreed to leave the affairs of several orphanages to me. My firm stance in the last conflict should have been a great boon in this regard.

Mother has always possessed a charitable and kind soul, one which has attracted many to her side. I shall enhance her virtues with my own purpose and determination. The combination will surely result in many great things.

Already, I have handed in a detailed curriculum of my own making, one to be taught to every orphan. The young people under mother's wing shall learn to provide for themselves. More importantly, the most excellent among them shall enjoy wisdom far beyond our times. They will become my arms and my eyes, and the bedrock upon which we shall rebuild the Kingdom of Sweden.


23rd of September, 1686

Today, one of mother's chambermaid has complained to mother about the curriculum, calling it unreasonable and even unchristian. However, I have already convinced mother that her wards will have a better future if they learn useful skills. I also had my syllabus approved by my teacher, Bishop Benzelius, in advance.

Though of course I had to convince the man. While teacher is pious, he lacks in ingenuity what he has in fear of God. The bishop struggles to teach me, since much of my knowledge is so advanced, even on religious matters.

His concerns shine through in his actions. Rather than insist on imparting inadequate knowledge, he aims to teach his inadequate pupil the rightousness of any God-fearing Lutheran. I am eternally grateful that he has striven to guide me on the right path, rather than simply call all with different thoughts heretics, like the Catholics would, aunt Karoline be damned.

Instead, teacher has seen my talents and now covers my actions, provided he remains convinced of my moral virtuousness.

Either way, with teacher's support and mother's blessing, no obstacles shall remain for the implementation of the new curriculum.


30th of September, 1686

I have officially taken control of three orphanages under my care.

Through unannounced inspections, my mind has been drawn to the issue of the cursed curriculum once more, though the source of my troubles is unusual. Mother's own servants, maids and courtiers have proven a real obstacle in the implementation of my plans. They fail to follow my orders. Worse, some would call my demands unreasonable.

Some may simply consider me a child and pretend to play games with me, without harming the smooth operations of the charities. However, I suspect others to have more nefarious reasons to deny me true administrative power. Through this incident I have discovered that mother's side has been infected with insects. Her kindness has drawn them like wasps to sugar. Before mother gives birth and returns to her work, I shall aim to smoke them all out.


3rd of October, 1686

Work on mother's books has only just begun, yet the hive has already been stirred. Since the servants have failed to prevent my taking of control, they seem bent on preventing my readings of the orphanages’ financial reports. Although they treat me like a child whenever it behooves them, they are clearly scared of my abilities.

At first they tried to placate me with faked and incomplete documents, then claimed to have lost the originals upon my probes. When threatened with severe punishment for their tardiness, they finally relented and handed me the real documents. Now, I can finally get to work. Soon, we will know what these people have to hide.


4th of October, 1686

The wasps still have not given up. Father has returned early from his troop inspection, no doubt alarmed by their call. Him and mother had an argument over my education. They rarely fight, so they are not used to it. Father argued that I should focus on my studies rather than play around with the queen’s court. Mother argued that father is away too often, so he cannot accurately judge my abilities.

In the end, I was the one who ended their fight. I argued that administering the orphanages on my own would be good practice for the future. Handling a few servants is easy after all, much easier than handling the millions of citizens under father’s care. I also laid out a detailed plan for administration to show my competence. It is good that common practice in these times is to treat children like small adults, or my behavior would have drawn far more suspicion.

In the end, father agreed, but he insisted that I keep up with my studies, and that I follow him on his work as well. I suspect grandmother might also get involved in my education in the future. Times might get busier, but there are many things that have to be done, and I am used to hardships. First, let's take a look at those books.


12th of November, 1686

Work has been progressing slowly, since my commitments have increased. Taking over mother's work and following father to learn how to be a king and how to hunt has already been enough effort, but I have to teach sister as well. Luckily, Vige is as bright as I remembered from my dreams, so rather than a burden, I have seen it as a welcome distraction.

Even so, working on my own has been too slow, yet there is no one else I can trust with this work. Today however, in a twist of good fortune, grandmother has sent a few of her servants to support my review of the orphanage books. I understand that this is yet another political move, aimed at weakening the influence of mother's court by branding them as corrupt. However, I am no longer ignorant. I shall make good use of them so long as our interests align.


22nd of December, 1686

Work is done, just in time for Christmas. As expected, there were many bad christians among my mother's court, who took advantage of her generosity. Many have taken money intended for charity to finance their own lavish lifestyles. Some of them are part of mother's inner circle.

Rather than tell mother, I plan to deal with them myself. With Christmas coming up, mother would forgive all their sins, but I believe that sinners should be punished. I intend to wait for a while, as mother is about to give birth again. I will not burden her until she has recovered her health. I had to threaten grandmother’s people so they would keep their silence for now. As I have split up their work, none of them have the full picture. I hope their silence holds until I am ready.


28th of December, 1686

Brother Karl Gustav was born yesterday. If nothing changes, he shall die on the 18th of February. Mother looks weakened, yet no weaker than she did last time. Maybe, my efforts are taking hold at last. But hope is a dangerous drug. I shall remain cautious in my optimism.


8th of January, 1687

The new year has come and gone, and mother has recovered well. Finally, it is time to burn the hive. I shall show no mercy to these sinners. None who have stolen from the kingdom shall be spared.


9th of January, 1687, morning

An uncomfortable dream forces me to reconsider my plans. It appears I would continue handle crimes in a similarly uncompromising manner many times in the future. Often, this would lead to problems. No man is without sin, after all. I will take this dream as God’s guidance and plan the cleanup of mother's people more carefully.


16th of January, 1687

The dirty deed has been done. The worst offenders have been punished. This includes two of mother's confidantes.

Lady Anna Maria Clodt has been the worst, corrupt to the core, vain and greedy for power. She was also the one who instructed the maids to obstruct my efforts and tattle to father, according to testimony from the servants. After consulting with mother, the lady will have to pay some compensation to mother's estate, and shall be removed from court permanently. Luckily, she was never closest to mother in the first place, so the impact on mother's mood was limited.

Lady Sophia Amalia Marschalk has been suspicious as well, but there has been little concrete evidence. Thus, she will be spared beyond a minor fine, much to mother’s delight. On top of that, several lower servants will also be removed, with some of them to face corporal punishment.

In contrast to the worst offenders, the most honest of the servants have been rewarded. The rest, I will let off with a light warning for now. This seems to be a more effective method of leading people, at least that is what my dreams tell me.


18th of January, 1687

Father, and by extension grandmother, have been unhappy with my lenient ruling. However, I have been entrusted with authority in this case, so my decision shall be final.

In response to their nagging, I have argued that teacher Benzelius has been lacking in many aspects. I shall take a second teacher, Doctor Urban Hjärne, who is one of mother's confidantes and a great master of the natural sciences. Grandmother once told me that politics aims to achieve a balance of interests. I plan to do just that.


22nd of January

The punishment method of the orphanage staff has shown shocking results. The servants left over show more loyalty, and the ones who were rewarded are more firm in supervising the others. Finally, my curriculum has been implemented smoothly.
For the first time, I feel like I have truly changed something in this world. There may be hope yet.


19th of February

Brother is weak, but yet he lives! Every day of life gives more hope, yet I fear to lose my caution in the process. I shall continue to pray for his survival.


21st of February, 1687

Brother died today, three days later than expected. Mother is crying. I shall not be deterred. Things have already begun to change, if only in increments. With enough stubborn effort, I shall turn these pebbles of change into an avalanche.


24th of February, 1687

The winter has been particularly cold this year, which reminds me of events yet to come. A catastrophe is about to arrive, yet none but me are aware. To prevent a disaster from befalling us all, I have sent out one of mother's more trustworthy people, to find the flower that shall save Sweden.

Hermit's Notes:

My PC still hasn't arrived, so here is another chapter from my phone. These chapters are a lot less finished than I remembered, so they take more effort to make postable.

This one was a bit unusual, but from the next chapter, the novel would slow down and have a more orthodox style. Though since the next chapter is barely started yet, I won't be posting more of this, at least for a while. If my PC doesn't show up tomorrow, I'll post chapter 1 of something else.

Also, I apologize to all Danes reading this.