Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

The Bharatiya Citizenship Act put forward by Vijay did not cause any waves among the people of this society because the bill had nothing to do with them; they were already citizens of the nation, after all. The European merchants visiting the empire for trade had some frequent discussions among themselves about the bill, but no one actually considered immigrating to Bharat.

People like John Brown, who ignored traditional differences and were brave enough to travel from England alone to a foreign country, were rare. Hence, even though the merchants read the Bharatiya Citizenship Bill, they were not particularly interested. If they ever needed to emigrate somewhere, they would choose the Americas, since the people there were more similar to them.

Maybe the only person who was excited about the bill was John Brown. He was still worried he might have to pay the 30% extra for the ships he had ordered, but thankfully, this did not seem to be the case.

He had gone to the panchayat yesterday to get his temporary citizenship and was amazed at how quickly it was arranged. He believed it was due to Naveen Ambani’s help, so he kept Naveen’s favour in mind.

Unfortunately, John Brown did not know that the reason his citizenship was processed so quickly was that his case had reached His Majesty the Emperor. For this reason, the Citizenship Database Management Department sent the temporary citizenship directly to the Panchayat in Mumbai.

Naveen, overseeing the construction of the merchant ships, had unknowingly earned John Brown’s favour. Maybe this is what people call fate.

John Brown is looking at the empire’s map, stroking his chin, and thinking about where he should settle down now that he can buy a home of his own.

He liked staying in Mumbai, but it was too far away from his work; he could not travel such a long distance frequently. He considered some parts of Anuradhapuri (Sri Lanka) but was still hesitant.

He also thought about the Nicobar Islands; he had heard that His Majesty had started building a large port in the Nicobar Islands, and Andaman was also an option since prior development had taken place there.

If he chose Sri Lanka, he would benefit from the full infrastructure of the Bharatiya Empire, making his life much more comfortable. However, if he stayed in the Andaman Islands, it would provide him with a tremendous advantage, as he would be able to make decisions quickly by gathering intelligence from Southeast Asian countries faster due to his close proximity.

In this way, even if future competitors emerged on the mainland, he would have an advantage in terms of intelligence.

"So it is decided then: Andaman it is."

John Brown chose future prosperity over his current comfort.

---

12th July 1657

Vijayanagara State, Hoisala City

Shouts were heard in an unremarkable two-story building spread across several acres on the outskirts of Hoisala. It was a martial arts gym. Students around the age of 20 practised their skills with serious expressions on their faces, sweat dripping and soaking the ground. The moves were decisive and crisp; you could tell at a glance that these kids were all talented and deadly.

In the same building, in the inner courtyard, the sound of a sharp sword cutting through the air could be heard.

A man with his long hair tied to a bun was practising with his sword. The moves were precise and ruthless, with every action aimed at vital parts of the human body; there were no flowery actions, and each sword strike was followed by a deadly counterattack. The moves came like continuous gunfire, one after another, not giving the opponent a chance to react.

The strikes grew faster and faster, and finally—

"Shing!"

The dummy, made of hardwood, was beheaded with a final sword strike. The man sheathed his sword, touched the ground, and did a namaskara.

"Katappa, His Majesty has called for you."

Suddenly, a boy who was practising martial arts in the gym ran into the courtyard, crying out in joy.

Katappa’s eyes widened, and his hands couldn’t help but shake. He had been dreaming of this moment for as long as he could remember; his only wish was to serve His Majesty, the Emperor, who had taken such good care of his family.

His name was Katappa Naidu. He was 28 years old, about 6 feet 5 inches tall, with a sturdy and lean build. The only unusual thing about him was his hair, which, although abundant, was prematurely greying. From his chiselled body, he might look like a 25-year-old man, but from his hair, someone might mistake him for a 50-year-old.

Fifteen years ago, Vijay’s father, Sriranga Raya, had found Katappa begging for someone to save his sister.

At the time, Sriranga Raya felt a little pity and lent a helping hand by having the royal physicians treat the girl. Although the girl could not be saved due to her terminal disease and the backward state of medical technology, Katappa was grateful nonetheless.

For that reason, he vowed to serve the royal family for the rest of his life and made an oath to sharpen his sword for the day the royal Deva Raya family would need him.

----

Back in the Royal Capital of Bengaluru,

Vijay wrote down on a piece of paper, "Raya Security Company," and then noted the director as Katappa Naidu.

Knowing about this hidden card of the royal family, Vijay still couldn’t shake the feeling of the coincidence; sometimes he couldn’t help but wonder if he was stuck inside a book, And his every move was left to the whims of the author.

However, before he could think any further, he felt a pain in his head and forgot what he had been thinking.

"Wait, what was I thinking? ... Anyway, what’s next? It’s the Raya Philanthropy Group—hmm, let Ganaraju manage the Raya Orphanage as always. I’ll focus on the Raya Study Fund. Hmm, this should do."

"Ganesh, hand these documents to Baskaracharya."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Vijay chose Bhaskaracharya to manage the royal family’s assets. Bhaskaracharya is the son of Nirmalacharya, the chief priest devoted to the royal family. Nirmal Acharya had two sons, with Bhaskaracharya being the second.

Traditionally, Bhaskaracharya would have learned the Vedic arts and taken up the priestly profession, continuing the family’s seven-generation tradition of loyalty to the royal family. However, while Bhaskaracharya inherited the family’s loyalty, he did not inherit their talent for the Vedic arts.

For this reason, he was quite disliked by his father and older brother, who were both talented in the Vedic arts. Fortunately, the old butler, Ravichandra Rao, discovered that Bhaskaracharya had a great talent for management, so he began training him.

From that time onward, Bhaskaracharya moved from one department to another, from one ministry to another, gaining all the managerial experience he could in both the executive and legislative fields. It was not until Vijay directly called for him that he left his job under a minister of state.

The minister took quite a liking to his abilities and wanted to keep him, but Bhaskaracharya was determined to be of use to His Majesty.

---

Bhaskaracharya had his office on the outskirts of the Royal Capital Bengaluru, but he was not disheartened because his location was actually only a few hundred meters away from the Shaurya Royal Palace, the personal palace of the royal family. Bhaskaracharya knew that His Majesty had located him there with future considerations in mind.

"Mr. Bhaskar, His Majesty passed this on to you," Ganesh handed over the sealed document and simply turned back to leave.

Bhaskaracharya chanted the Ganapathi Mantra before opening the document for auspiciousness, as he began his first task in his new job as the manager of the royal family’s assets.

Opening the document, he found a list of names along with detailed explanations about each one.

Bhaskaracharya glanced over the list of companies and noticed that there were eight group companies under the royal family.

The Raya Heavy Industries Group has seven companies under it: Raya Armory, Raya Iron Works, Raya Shipyard, Raya and Shetty Paper Mill, Raya Mobility, Raya Printing Services, and finally, Raya Machinery.

The Raya Lite Industries Group has three companies: Raya Textile, Shri and Shrimati Apparel Company, and Raya Floor Processing Plant.

There is a separate group to manage the palaces, fortresses, and land of the royal family, and this is overseen by the Royal Property Management Group, with each property managed by individual managers.

Raya Entertainment Group has six different companies under it: Raya Publishing Services, Kavya Artistic Holdings Company, Raya Artistic Holdings Company, Raya Theatre Group Company, Raya Entertainment and IP Management Company.

Under the Raya Financial Group are the Raya Royal Bank, the Raya Investment Management Firm, and one more company for which Bhaskaracharya did not see any explanation. He thought His Majesty might not yet be planning to establish this company and moved on.

Under the Raya Science and Technology Group, there is the Intellectual Property Holdings and Licensing Company and the Raya Research Centre, a fully owned research institute funded by the royal family.

Bhaskaracharya was amazed by this. As far as he could see, His Majesty had put in extra effort to make the research institute work. In his explanation, His Majesty stated that the Raya Research Centre could attract researchers from all the major national research institutes in the empire, whether it be Nalanda, Takshashila, or the Academy of Sciences.

---

Vijay was currently in the process of establishing multiple institutes for the nation and was meeting with Raghavendra Bhatt, the Minister of Education.

Although almost all of the institutions to be established would fall under the executive branch of the government and be managed by the Imperial Committee, with no direct control by the elected government, Vijay still informed the Minister of Education to receive legitimacy, at least in name.

"Raghavendra, so this is the plan. What do you think?" Vijay was seated in a chair opposite Raghavendra Bhatt, staring curiously at the minister.

Raghavendra flinched a little but took over the document, reading through the details of the newly established institutions. His brows wrinkled. "Your Majesty, I naturally have no opinion on the universities you believe the nation should have, but I do not know what these universities are focused on."

Vijay smiled and lowered his leg. "The Nalanda Institute of Fundamental Sciences will be responsible for the most fundamental aspects of our world, whether in physics or mathematics. This institute will be tasked with discovering the basic laws and workings of our known material world."

Raghavendra started writing down notes to avoid forgetting.

"As for the Takshashila Institute of Human Exploration, as the name suggests, it is an institution dedicated to researching new ways of exploration for humankind."

"Under it, we will have the Gagana Aerospace Institute, responsible for designing and developing rockets for both military and civilian use."

"Rockets?"

"Hmm, haven’t you witnessed the rocket launcher used by the military? This is a bigger version of that, but it can be used to hit the enemy at a further distance, or it could also be sent straight upwards."

"Oh, I understand, Your Majesty."

"Next up is the Bharatiya Space Research Organization (BSRO), which is responsible for studying space and has the lofty ambition of reaching the moon one day."

Raghavendra was immediately stunned.

However, Vijay did not even pay attention to his expression. "Next is the Bharatiya Samudra Submarine Research Institute. This institute will be responsible for researching vehicles that could be used underwater. This is also an ambitious and distant project that will help us greatly in understanding our oceans and furthering our knowledge about our world."

"The next is the Institute of Archaeology, which, as the name suggests, will be responsible for archaeological findings related to our civilization and other ancient civilizations."

"The last institute is the Bharatiya Institute of Mānacitra vijñāna (Map Science). This will be responsible for mapping all sorts of geographies, whether on land, on water, or, if possible, in space. This institute is solely responsible for creating and managing maps."

Raghavendra Bhatt, after understanding the functions, formally signed the document for the establishment of these institutes.

Due to fund constraints, the institutes will be established with funds from the royal family, in exchange for granting the royal family 5% to 15% equity in each institute, as well as other small benefits.

The fund constraints are naturally true, but they are not a significant issue for the government if Vijay orders the funds to be provided. However, Vijay actually denied Jagannath Mohan’s request to provide the funds, as he wanted to own a small percentage of all these research institutes.

Vijay had a sly look on his face while watching the Minister of Education leave. "Even if the royal family loses the throne, they will firmly hold the technological development of the empire in their own hands." Just because Vijay removed the hierarchical succession of the throne doesn’t mean he didn’t do anything for his dynasty.

The current technological hold of the royal family on the empire is enough for them to live happily for a long, long time.

With the Raya Research Institute, which constantly obsorbs talent from all the major research institutes of the nation, scientific inventions from the Raya Research Institute are bound to be numerous, continuously providing resources to the Raya family even after his passing.

With the foundation provided by Vijay to his descendants, the Raya family is destined to have the longest continuous history.

The reason Vijay put family reorganization on the agenda in such a hurry was that the privatization of state-owned companies had begun to impact large-scale enterprises. Most of the medium-scale enterprises in the empire had already been privatized, and it was now time for the large-scale enterprises to undergo the same process.

Vijay did not have to reorganize his family’s assets immediately after the war because most of his previous companies had become large-scale enterprises; the empire was directly managing these properties, and the longer the empire held onto these assets, the greater their value would become.

However, now that the privatization efforts for large-scale enterprises had started, he took the opportunity to complete the reorganization.