In this episode of The Countdown of Monte Cristo, King Louis XVIII receives a final round of reassuring lies. With Napoleon already on the march, the king and his ministers indulge in the fantasy that their greatest enemy has been “converted”—not to faith, but to royalist values.

As court figures jockey for favor, Louis quotes Virgil, references Scipio, and finds more joy in marginalia than military reports. Meanwhile, Dumas builds the tension beneath their obliviousness.

Key Events:

•Louis XVIII mocks Bonaparte’s ambitions with literary allusions

•Minister Dandré delivers a report claiming Napoleon dismissed veterans in support of “the good king”

•The king and court interpret the rumor as proof of Napoleon’s moral turnaround

•Duke Blacas remains skeptical and urges the king to question Villefort directly

•The date—March 3—reveals the bitter truth: Napoleon has already landed in France

SEO Keywords:

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