NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 694 Exploration Major & ABBE
6th June 1660
Imperial Capital, Bengaluru
People were hurrying in and out of the headquarters of Bharatiya Internal Pragya with stern and dignified expressions on their faces. Some accidentally bumped into one another, but they didn't even have the patience to argue. The scene almost matched the hubbub normally seen in the Mangaluru Stock Exchange (MSE). On the top floor of the headquarters, Selvan was looking at the wall.
The wall had various portraits attached to it, with circles of multiple colours drawn around them to specify the level of the suspect. Additionally, many more details were attached to the wall in the form of small slips that were pinned. They contained names, personal details, and recent actions of the suspects, with red threads attached to them, connecting one event to another. Selvan looked at all the details like an infrared camera with 360-degree vision. Suddenly, his eyes locked onto a target. Looking at the portrait and once again reading the details, his brows wrinkled. He came in front of a portrait of a European man with only a single eye. 'So this guy is one of the service providers, huh?'
"Deesha, come here." Selvan quickly walked towards a table, flipped through the documents, and then ordered, "Have agents A-25, A-32, and A-12 watch this man carefully. I'm 90% sure this guy is a service provider, but I need the proof."
Deesha, the secretary of Selvan, nodded and accepted the order.
Selvan continued to stare at the wall with his hands tied, a frown visible on his face.
"tsk."
"These service providers are becoming too many."
"Maybe I should propose His Majesty to expand the force." He looked annoyed. Although he could still easily handle these people, the sudden rise in espionage operations over the last few weeks made him restless.
Service providers are the Europeans in the Bharatiya Empire who stay in the country most of the time, and their whole job in Bharat is to build relationships with as many influential merchants and people as possible and provide intelligence services whenever there is a suitable buyer. Sometimes the buyer is from Europe, and sometimes it is a diplomat. Overall, service providers are the key middlemen between the intelligence operations of all the European countries in the Bharatiya Empire.
---
Simhasana Bhawana
Vijay wasn't aware of the sudden increase in espionage operations in the Bharatiya Empire, but even if he was, he wouldn't care much because stealing outdated technology that is already being manufactured by private enterprises on a large scale happens all the time. But stealing cutting-edge technology from Sri Ranga Industrial Tools or any other military-certified manufacturer in the empire, he was not too worried.
He had made betrayal nearly impossible for engineers and scientists working on these projects. Their families were guarded round the clock, and no single person knew all aspects of the technology. Whether it was the steam engine, the Kabbina Converter, or 5th-generation machine tools, even the designers knew only how they were made, not how they were mass-produced and assembled.
Not just Europeans, but even Bharat's allies and citizens had almost no chance of stealing its technological secrets.
Stealing information about the steam engine was even more impossible, as production was confined to Nagpur. The city was becoming the most secure in the empire, with nearly 90% of its population being military or intelligence personnel. Nagpur had become a hub for all three intelligence organizations and multiple military units, including an entire regiment.
Suddenly, a knock was heard, which caught Vijay's attention.
He set aside the document he had just signed, which authorized increased military support to the Middle Eastern battlefront by boosting weapon and ammunition shipments to Lachit Borphukan, and looked toward the door. "Come in!"
It was Ganesh. "Your Majesty, Admiral Gangadhar is here to see you."
"hm!" Vijay paused for a while, looked around the table to see if he had anything urgent to handle, then nodded. "Bring him in."
"Right away, Your Majesty."
Moments later, Gangadhar entered the office with a smile on his face. He came in front of Vijay and gave a salute. Vijay gestured for him to sit down.
"Your Majesty, the construction of the Navy has been completed. All 832,000 tons of the Bharatiya Empire's greatest war machines are now under your control."
"Do you now want me to split the fleet in order to find bases in the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, or should we wait?"
Vijay smiled. 'So it's finally done. Bharat has the largest Navy in the world.' After nearly a decade of effort, the Bharatiya Empire had finally produced a world-class Navy, not afraid of anyone.
Then, thinking about the question, he shook his head. "It is not necessary to venture into the Pacific Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean, we're not too familiar with these waters. Instead, we must first explore some islands in these oceans that align with our strategic goals to transform them into military bases."
"The Atlantic Ocean is simple enough since most Europeans travel through that route. There shouldn't be any difficulty in finding an inhabited island on the western coast of Africa. But the Pacific is too vast and too untraveled. We'll have to wait until we have enough talent in this area."
Thinking of talent, Vijay remembered someone. He looked toward Gangadhar and asked, "Has the Spanish explorer returned from New Spain yet?"
"No, Your Majesty. He should arrive in a few weeks!"
" What about the talents that were sent to Portuguese and Spain to learn, when will they be returning?"
" In a month, Your Majstty, July to be exact"
"Hmm!" Vijay leaned back in his chair in deep thought. "After Marc Anthony returns, don't send him on another trip. Instead, start a new major in the Naval Academy and have him train students in navigation and exploration."
" The graduates from Navigation University can get familiar with Pacific Voyage after they come back "
"It's time for the captains Marc Anthony trained to lead voyages by themselves."
Gangadhar hesitated. "Your Majesty, wouldn't it be too soon? After they return, it will only mark their third trip!"
Vijay didn't deny it. He nodded. "Yes, it is too soon, but we don't have time. By the end of 1662, we must have a functional overseas military base for our navy in both the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans. To make this happen, talent is indispensable."
"And moreover, the risks for these captains could actually be reduced."
"Oh? How so, Your Majesty?"
"It's very simple, actually. Since the next trip to the Americas will be taken over by Brown Logistics Company, have them find someone experienced in navigation and exploration using their connections in Europe. Even though the person may not be as brilliant as the Spanish explorer, following an already discovered route shouldn't be too much of a problem."
Gangadhar thought for a while and nodded. He had a vivid impression of John Brown, the brave man who had decisively mortgaged nearly half of his company to buy a Guwahati-class armed merchant ship and secure permission to use the Pacific trade route.
"Your Majesty, why do you think the people born in the empire are not as brave as this Irish Bharatiya?"
Vijay shook his head in amusement. "It's not a problem of bravery but a lack of experience."
"John Brown has unique experience running a trading company in Europe, where most of his trades were facilitated by naval transportation. After the incident, he came to the Bharatiya Empire, facing great challenges and risks. Upon arriving, he funded the design of a ship, established Brown Logistics, and invested a lot of money in developing the Southeast Asian trade route. After the Southeast Asian economy connected with the Bharatiya Empire, he obtained a lot of benefits and still is, having already become one of the major logistics companies in the Bharatiya Empire."
"Now, when the offer to buy the Guwahati-class armed merchant ship along with its crew and permit for the trade route was put forward to all the major logistics companies in the empire, while everyone hesitated, he might have already seen the Pacific trade route as a breakthrough for his company. For a man who has experienced so many setbacks and crossed so many dangers, the dangers we see might not even be visible to him. Maybe he only sees the profits that could potentially be obtained by running a ship traversing the Pacific Ocean and connecting the Bharatiya Empire with the Americas."
Gangadhar nodded in understanding. "It makes sense."
Find your next adventure on My Virtual Library Empire
"All right then, Your Majesty, I will take my leave."
Vijay was about to agree but suddenly thought of something. "Stationing the navy in three different oceans is currently impossible, but you can make preparations beforehand. Have the navy split into three fleets—the fleet stationed in the Indian Ocean should be based in Chagos, the fleet going to the Atlantic Ocean should be stationed in Madagascar, and the fleet going to the Pacific Ocean should be stationed in Samudra Nagari."
Gangadhar thought for a while and acknowledged, "I will get it done, Your Majesty."
"Good!"
---
Vijay had the rest of the day free, so he went to a nearby public school because today was the first day that the All-Bharat Bar examination (ABBE) was held for aspiring lawyers of the Bharatiya Empire.
Entering the premises of the campus, which was tightly guarded by military personnel, Vijay met up with the observer of the empire, Kishore Balabadra. He was currently ensuring that all security measures were properly implemented.
Seeing Vijay arrive, Kishore quickly bowed slightly and did a namaskara.
"So, how many people are writing the exam?" Vijay asked, looking at the hundreds of people sitting on the field.
He could tell there was at least a few meters of empty space between each person, and he was very impressed.
Kishore Balabadra looked towards the examinees. "All over the empire, nearly 20,000 applicants have signed up, Your Majesty."
"Good, good!"
"But isn't this arrangement a little inconvenient, making them all sit on the ground?".
Kishore looked at the examinees and nodded. "It is, Your Majesty, but there was nothing we could do about it. The date for the examination was decided too suddenly by Minister Bhuvan, and I was not left with enough time to prepare the logistics for the exam. I am sure by next year, I will be more prepared."
"Hmm!" Vijay was not surprised, as he suspected something similar the moment he entered. Knowing how Kishore operated, making the examinees sit under the sun was not something he would normally do.
Moving on to other things and looking around, he became curious about how the paper would turn out.
"Hey, Kishore, do you know who prepared the question paper?"
Kishore shook his head. "No, Your Majesty, but I heard that it was prepared by seven different lawyers working in seven different high courts."
Vijay was curious. "Let me see the question paper!" he asked.
Kishore Balabadra immediately became embarrassed as he lowered his head. "Your Majesty, the seal has not been broken yet."
Vijay's eyelids jumped. Normally, when he asked for something that was not too out of line, people usually followed his command. But looking at Kishore Balabadra, who looked like he would rather die than open the seal a few minutes early, Vijay couldn't help but smile.
He once again felt like there was no better job for Kishore Balabadra in the empire. 'This guy is practically born for being The Observer, though it will be interesting to see if anyone can take his place in the elections,' Vijay thought, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
Kishore, seeing that His Majesty did not say anything more, let out a sigh of relief. It's not that he didn't want to follow His Majesty's orders—wait, forget it, he definitely did not want to follow His Majesty's orders. If someone made a request that was out of order, he would not accept it no matter what, even if that person was His Majesty.
Moments later, Vijay finally got the question paper after the students had received it, he quickly skimmed through its contents and was very impressed.
It was not too difficult for a person with basic knowledge of the law to pass, but it was extremely difficult to get good grades unless the examinee was brilliant. This was for the best since the ranking would determine the calibre of a person, allowing law firms to gauge the potential of each examinee.