The matter was settled, and the King of Italy was welcomed to stay the weekend in Tyrol, to get a feel for the world Bruno intended to create.
Meanwhile, Bruno returned to his palace, his home. By now, after eight years of dedicated construction, and all the money and labor Bruno could pour into it, his family's future home was nearly complete.
At most, 10% of it was still under construction.
The estate grounds served as an operational fortress, symbolic as a capital, luxurious as a home, functional as a seat of government, yet were still growing in the depths and fringes, just as Bruno's empire is.
It was a residence built to survive the end of the world if need be, and its ongoing construction was dedicated primarily to those purposes.
