Otto von Habsburg, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, became a key figure in founding the European Union. Yes, the EU. The so-called beacon of modern democracy had Habsburg fingerprints smeared on its genesis.
"Who better to unite Europe," the system said coldly, "than those who once ruled it?"
Otto's children didn't live in crumbling castles or wear jewel-encrusted crowns for tourists. They lived in discreet Swiss mansions, ran NGOs with immaculate reputations, sat on the boards of energy consortiums that spanned the continent, and whispered into the ears of intelligence think tanks in Brussels. They didn't have ceremonial thrones anymore, but in exchange, they had something far better, influence without accountability.
