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* * *

The genuine Tsarina of this country. Tsarina Anastasia. That very Tsarina is cheerfully approaching Sergey while holding the medal herself!

“Sergey of the Tsvetkov Gun Factory. Ah, sorry about that. There are so many people named Sergey. There’s even the poet Sergey, you know, quite a variety.”

Honestly, it’s a rather common name.

It’s truly unfortunate. There must be millions with the name Sergey.

Of course, it doesn’t matter whether the name is common or not.

After all, I’ll be able to receive a medal.

“Not at all!”

“I heard you’re a master of ammunition classification. Ammunition is the soul partner of a soldier. The more hardworking young laborers like you are, the more the country develops. So, I hope you’ll continue doing great work. Now, members of the National Duma, let’s give a round of applause to Sergey of the Tsvetkov Gun Factory, whose future is bright!”

With the applause of the Duma members, the Tsarina personally pinned the medal on Sergey’s chest.

A medal that bears the face of the Tsarina, truly a family honor, one that would be a treasure passed down through generations!

As soon as the medal was pinned to the oily shirt on his chest, Sergey bowed deeply in gratitude.

“Is that a question?”

“I like your straightforward answers.”

The Tsarina patted Sergey on the shoulder a few times in encouragement before moving on to the next person.

Watching the Tsarina’s back, Sergey thought to himself.

Indeed, her appearance and aura confirm that the female journalist was indeed the Tsarina.

After all, how could one not recognize the atmosphere of someone seen up close?

Though it wasn’t television, the medal ceremony was being broadcast through the radio.

And then—

“Is the Tsarina personally presenting the medals? Maybe this old man should work hard too?”

“I will too! I will receive one next time!”

The reaction to the medal ceremony was explosive.

The war hero, the Saint of All Russia, Tsar and the Great Khan of the Mongolian Steppe, the de facto sole heir of the previous Tsar, personally awards the medals.

For the subjects and nobles from the Tsarist era, who would shout “long live the Tsar!” no matter what, this was a highly anticipated event.

“We commoners can have an audience with His Majesty!”

“Let’s work hard for our mother, Tsar!”

Even the commoners, who had been deeply moved by Anastasia’s promises of various reforms and policies during the Civil War, were inspired and worked even harder.

“With the Tsar personally comforting the workers, what are the workers doing? Work like the mechanical parts of a machine!”

There was also the role of the man named Alexei Gastev.

In actual history, he was ultimately purged during the Great Purge, but under the new regime of the United States, he was evaluated as an accelerationist who encouraged laborers even more.

Internationally, the evaluations of the Tsarina’s medal award ceremony were starkly divided.

First, in Japan, which considers Russia to be an ally of the empire, there were discussions about the medals.

“Even so, it seems a bit much for His Majesty the Emperor to personally present a medal.”

“Well, if Russia is looking over its laborers due to the Civil War, maybe that’s understandable. But we?”

“Really, loyal subjects wouldn’t cling to something like a medal!”

Of course, there were just discussions.

After all, subjects living in the capital wouldn’t care for a medal, and it was only natural for anyone to follow suit.

“Well, we don’t have to worry about the laborers.”

“There’s no occasion for a monarch to present a medal under a republic.”

England and France, of course, just looked on like spectators across the river.

“Ha, does that Tsarina know what we’re trying to do?”

The Communist Germany had to abandon the Lifschitz and Luxemburg medals, which they were concurrently producing.

After all, the Tsarina, an imperialist leader, couldn’t have her medals imitated in a country for workers.

* * *

The medal awarding ceremony ended.

I really can’t understand how many people have the name Sergey.

Even the people who received the Tsarina Anastasia medal are all named Sergey.

Especially, that Ilyushin fellow was Sergey Ilyushin too.

There was also the poet Sergey Yesenin.

Of these two, Sergey Ilyushin was awarded the Tsarina’s medal for his outstanding work in aircraft design on the recommendation of Igor Sikorsky.

In the Moscow Writer’s Association, the poet Sergey Yesenin was awarded for his contributions to the development of Russian poetry, thanks to Ivan Bunin’s recommendation.

Honestly, I was thinking about giving a serious address, like a principal’s speech on Monday morning.

But there were just too many!

So, Tsarina Anastasia went ahead and personally awarded medals to dozens of people.

The remaining medals were distributed by Maria and other Kremlin spokespersons.

The news about the medal awarding broadcasted widely on the radio, so I was curious about the reaction.

So, I sent Maria to find out.

“What’s the reaction?”

“It’s truly amazing. That’s the only thing I can say.”

“Really amazing, huh?”

Well, if you say that, how would I understand? Hearing only that, I’d go, “Ah, I see,” without truly comprehending.

“Could you be a bit more specific?”

The reason I want to hear about the reactions is that.

If public sentiment is a total mess, that can’t be good.

At the very least, I need to gauge the response before deciding to keep or abolish the medal.

Personally, I think abolishing it might be fine.

If the reaction is bad, and they start saying it’s too communist, that’s no reason to keep this system.

Nobles are in no position to object anymore, so I’m not worried, but there’s just this thing.

At this point, in the Russian Republic, there are only Tsar fanatics.

As monarchists exist, if there’s talk that my actions are too communist for a Tsar, that wouldn’t be good.

“Everyone in Russia must already know about Your Majesty’s radio broadcast? They must have heard about the medal awarding on the radio. Everyone’s clamoring to work in factories.”

Everyone’s eager to work in factories.

This smells a bit fishy.

“Is that okay? Really? It’s not just Moscow?”

Moscow is the city with the Tsar after all.

It’s entirely natural for tsar fanatics to be more numerous there than in other areas.

“To begin with, what’s the problem with His Majesty personally presenting medals to honor the Tsar that all of Russia respects?”

That’s true. To begin with, the Lenin Medal wasn’t properly awarded here, was it?

If that’s the case, then there shouldn’t be any issue.

“Whew.”

Did I perhaps stir up unnecessary trouble?

I wonder if someone is out there threatening me with a knife?

You know those power holders? The ones who manipulate public opinion from behind the scenes to please themselves.

It doesn’t matter, but still. Isn’t this a bit too communist?

It definitely smells a lot like communism, but hmmm.

Let’s think positively. After all, I’m the Tsar. The Emperor.

Unlike that base communist idol, bald-headed Lenin, I’m a member of the noble Romanov family.

If I present a medal, it’s akin to receiving something from an idol.

“Well, there’s one interesting point.”

“What is it?”

“I heard that Communist Germany was planning to create their own Lifschitz Medal, but after hearing about Your Majesty’s medal, they abandoned the idea.”

“Oh, is that so?”

So, I’ve cornered that market; that’s not so bad, right?

“Don’t other countries have such medals?”

“In Britain, there are various ranks under the British Empire Medal, but at least there are no cases of one being awarded to mere factory workers. Moreover, they don’t even bear the face of the monarch.”

“Oh, really?”

I don’t think I ever heard of them awarding a medal to a basic factory worker.

That would mean I’m the only monarch directly awarding a medal to a mere factory worker, right?

“Yes. Moreover, Your Majesty is the most esteemed among existing monarchs.”

Right. I risked opposition from the National Duma to present those medals.

Just the day before the medal awarding, the National Duma said things like, “Does it make sense for the Tsar to meet with a mere laborer?”

“Well, if that’s the case, that’s great for me.”

How about the reactions from other countries?

“Do you know what the reactions from Britain and France are?”

“According to reports from the Okhrana, there hasn’t been much of a reaction from Britain and France. In Japan, there was a discussion at first, but it fizzled out.”

There was a discussion in Japan? In Japan?

“How do you know there was a discussion in Japan?”

“They said it jokingly from the Japanese ambassador to Russia.”

Hmmm, they consider themselves our allies, and we consider them our allies.

And since I’ve given them something positive, they’re likely to be in a favorable state toward me.

As proof, the Moryaku is currently confidently stationed at the Southern Manchuria Governor’s Office, facing Northern Manchuria.

If the Japanese ambassador is saying such things, it seems they regard Russia as a near-equal ally.

It would be a great position for backstabbing later.

“Well, if those esteemed subjects of the Emperor can work well without medals, I guess that’s how it goes.”

“Your Majesty seems to know Japan well.”

Can I say I know it well?

The crazed Empire of Japan exists because of the Emperor.

That’s how significant the legitimacy of the Emperor is.

“Oh, about the Southern Manchuria Governor, Mutaguchi Renya. I saw him in Northern Manchuria, and his loyalty to that Emperor of theirs is remarkable. Plus, a dynasty that has lasted for thousands of years. It would be weird if they didn’t have such pride.”

Even Korea, with its deep royal history, has changed its royal family several times.

In contrast, Japan has maintained its dynasty even without the Emperor’s authority.

Well, the Emperor’s influence has increased a bit since the Meiji Restoration.

“Oh, really?”

“Well, I don’t know how it will end up later. Just saying.”

If the Second World War progresses according to the original history, should we preserve the Imperial Family or not?

That’s something to think about.

It could be fun to play with the Japanese by keeping the Emperor around, but for Mutaguchi Renya to establish a regime, they probably need to keep a puppet Emperor.

Our Hirohito might need to die, though.

“Your Majesty, speaking of which, today is the day for evaluations.”

“Oh, right. I should go see the National Duma.”

I wonder what the Duma’s reaction will be?

* * *

The National Duma was in chaos, filled with hopeful anticipation.

The first to approach me was the White Army’s Ungern, displaying an extremely betrayed expression.

“Your Majesty. Why wasn’t Your Majesty’s medal the first one we received?”

Oh, right. I see now. That sort of reaction was possible.

The Roman Nationalist Party is basically Anastasia’s fan club. Ahem.

I found myself subconsciously taken aback by the intensity of that energy.

“U-umm, was it that desirable?”

Well, it’s not something to covet that much.

It’s just one medal. It’s only about ensuring the laborers work smoothly.

If the reaction is that proactive, then I feel a bit awkward.

“Your Majesty, please bestow Your medal upon the commander too!”

“Well, that’s for laborers, and I’ll create a separate version for soldiers and National Duma members. So don’t be too pushy.”

“I’ll be looking forward to it.”

This moment felt a bit frightening; is everything okay?

Why does this feel like an idol fanboy obsessed with merchandise?

“Alright, what are the actual results from the medal system?”

“Your Majesty, thanks to the medal, the efficiency of the laborers’ work has dramatically improved.”

Georgy Lvov answered my question.

“Is that so?”

“Yes, some are even trying to work overnight.”

Well, that’s a bit much.

“If they’re working overtime, that’s not what I want. Please pay special attention to welfare. If they want to work, they should do so conditionally. So, gather people to work late-night shifts only if it’s necessary for the company. Of course, this applies only to those companies that genuinely need night shifts.”

If they want to work so badly, they should do it on conditions.

Well, that ultimately applies only to places where night shifts can happen. Which means that it’s the same as saying that they’re talking about rotational shifts, not all-night work.

To begin with, I’m saying to only do as much as needed, but for the sake of wanting one Tsar medal.

“Got it.”

“Your Majesty, there’s important news.”

“Really?”

Important news? What could that be?

Usually, when there’s a good piece of news, the next one isn’t so good.

“Britain has expressed pity for Communist Germany and has sent at least engineers and personnel to revive their industries, and has somewhat reduced the Treaty of Versailles.”

“Is that so?”

Those lunatics finally did it.

They’ve sent engineers and personnel?

While being part of the anti-aircraft agreement, how could they pull such a stunt?

 

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