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My book received an unexpectedly positive reaction.

“My War.”

I hear it has sold tremendously well domestically.

To be honest, I anticipated this to some extent, but there was something quite amusing.

“My War is sweeping the foreign market as well.”

Ivan Bunin’s words made my eyes sparkle.

A sensational hit overseas, huh? That’s somewhat satisfying.

“That’s unexpected.”

I merely wrote a novel based on my experiences.

The essential framework was laid down by me, but the proofreading and embellishment were all done by Ivan Bunin.

After all, I wasn’t originally a writer nor did I have any talent for writing.

Bunin’s contributions are considerable.

Anyway, since my experiences formed the core, isn’t it similar to me doing it all?

“It’s enjoying the greatest popularity in Japan.”

“Fools.”

Will they still find it greatly popular even after realizing they’ve been slapped on the back of their heads later on?

Still, they likely resonate with their own kind.

From their perspective, present-day Russia feels similar to Japan, especially with the Emperor directly leading the country’s political affairs.

The image of being an ally has already formed a sense of empathy.

Naturally, it’s not a situation where they can feel comfortable, and it makes sense they show interest in something penned by their Tsar.

Isn’t that a war hero? Considering I’ve risen to Tsar and restored the Eastern Roman Empire, they might see Russia as akin to themselves.

Moreover, unlike Western countries like Britain or the United States, they share a border in Asia, enhancing this connection.

“Speaking of which, Winston Churchill. He apparently sent someone to the writer’s association to collect the first edition copy.”

“That guy? If he wanted it, he could just grab it here.”

But then again, with Churchill’s pride, it’s not like he could just ask for one copy.

Doesn’t that make you even more curious?

Why would someone like him go out of his way to get a first edition copy?

Moreover, given that the writer’s association provided it, should I assume Churchill has someone backing him?

“No matter how friendly a nation or how high in rank, that would be a stretch,” I said, mentioning Edward Prince of Wales, “but there’s nothing they can do.”

“Edward Prince of Wales?”

There seems to be a rather unpleasant figure involved.

Let’s not assume Edward Prince of Wales wishes for anything from me.

“Yes. Perhaps that prince is a fan of Your Majesty?”

“Ha. Of all people, the prince?”

No, wait. Given his reputation, it wouldn’t be entirely impossible.

Looking at his preferences, he might be into married women?

If I were married, that would be a different story. I doubt he’d come looking for me.

If that was his intention, he could have come directly to Moscow or begged his father for a national marriage.

I wonder when he’ll meet Simpson, but surely he wouldn’t want to mess with me.

Even if he truly desired a national marriage, I have no intention of granting that.

If I intended to marry someone, I would’ve done it long ago.

I definitely do not want to marry a womanizer like Edward.

“Well, other than that, nothing much happened, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Well, that’s a relief. Prince Edward is the next heir to the throne. If someone like that is a fan of mine, then the future of both Britain and our Russia is bright.”

For now, it’s essential to build a closer relationship with Britain.

As an island nation, and with Churchill involved, Britain is unlikely to be drenched in red.

Since I can’t trust France, I’ve chosen Britain, and if Edward is my fan, at least during our conflicts with Communist Germany, things may turn out okay.

A pro-Nazi figure has become a pro-Russian figure with the absence of Nazis.

Hmm, this is interesting.

“Yes. While ‘My War’ hasn’t sold as much in Britain compared to Japan, if it’s in the hands of the heir, the situation would change.”

To be honest, I don’t hope for too much.

The important thing is that it’s sold well domestically.

Why is that important? Unlike during the revolution, I can infer that citizens of the United States would certainly support the Tsar, regardless of who may try to harm him.

I can now be certain that my popularity is significant.

This means that constitutional monarchy is becoming more secure.

Should I hold a fan signing event? No, that might be overstepping.

“Then, I look forward to your ongoing support, Minister.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

According to Ivan Bunin’s report, my book is selling quite well in the anti-air agreement countries.

That’s quite a good achievement.

If it’s even selling in Poland, it likely means I wrote something commendable. Or perhaps the state is making efforts against communism.

Surprisingly, the progress regarding France isn’t too impressive.

This might be evidence of the growing number of communes.

Selling the book seems to have been a quite good choice.

“By any chance, is Your Majesty interested?”

After Ivan Bunin left, Maria gripped both her hands tightly and smiled.

Being a woman, Maria seemed delighted, giggling at such stories.

Edward has a handsome face, but still, not quite right.

He’s a pro-Nazi figure and somewhat problematic.

Though there are no Nazis here.

“No. He has a thing for married women.”

Or perhaps ex-wives. In any case, it’s a bit unsettling.

If he truly likes me, that’s quite a big problem. Wouldn’t Churchill eventually sort that out?

I dislike clingy behavior and have no intention of getting involved with men.

If I were in good health, I could maybe find someone to pass my legacy to instead of turning it over to Vladimir. But if hemophilia shows up in my offspring, that would just be a hassle.

After all, OTMA suffered from hemophilia.

I wouldn’t want my child to go through such hardships.

Edward. He’s unlikely to end up that way either.

“Wow, into married women, huh? That’s ruthless.”

“Someone from Romania comes to mind.”

Well, honestly, if I say I’m not, given the decadence of the Russian Empire, I wouldn’t be outdone anywhere.

In any case, he won’t fall for me unless I decide to marry.

In a few years, he’ll likely meet Mrs. Simpson.

Conversely, if he gets too clingy with me, I might have to demand more from Britain.

“Speaking of which, Beria. Is he working on engine development?”

“Well, I guess he’d have to since I assigned it to him.”

When Beria returned, he was immediately sent to the research institute.

“Beria. Starting today, I’m appointing you as the head of the jet engine development team at the Romanov Aviation Research Institute. Get to it.”

“Y-Yes?”

“You can build it, right? You’re not planning to do it while being an Okhrana agent?”

“N-No! I will do it!”

Thus, Beria, who suddenly took charge of the jet engine development team at the Romanov Aviation Research Institute, is currently working diligently on the jet engine.

But didn’t he say he could do it because he has the blueprints?

Seems like he learned diligently beside Frank Whittle.

I trust Beria.

More precisely, I trust the trait that Beria possesses.

Whether for his career or to impress me, he’ll develop that jet engine earnestly.

One thing is for sure, if he indeed succeeds, he will become the Russian jet engine developer Lavrenti Beria.

As long as he doesn’t engage in any unnecessary antics, the controversy surrounding him being a pedophile shouldn’t exist.

“If it doesn’t work out, we can always hand the blueprints over to our aviation engineers.”

If there’s a framework, I’m sure our aviation engineers could paste some flesh onto it.

Beria has spent several years next to Frank Whittle, so he should find a way to do it.

“Let’s keep an eye on that. What’s this?”

“This is the test paper sent up from the National Duma.”

A test paper. They want me to evaluate it.

Looking at the contents, it’s pretty much a one-sided report.

It goes past familiar topics to something related to Southwestern Ukraine.

“I hear there are a lot of talks about Southwestern Ukraine.”

There are apparently recent anti-government protests in Southwestern Ukraine.

“Is it a consequence of the Great Depression?”

With the effects of the Great Depression, Southwestern Ukraine is, for now, still part of the anti-air agreement countries.

Since they’re in it, they’ll also be influenced by anti-communism.

Separate from that, southwestern Ukraine might no longer want to be a puppet state.

I thought they had gained independence, but with Britain in such a state, they’re only suffering.

“This could be quite advantageous.”

“Excuse me?”

“I might be able to decrease British influence in Southwestern Ukraine, even without a war.”

If the sentiment in Southwestern Ukraine isn’t good, it wouldn’t be difficult to manipulate things from the inside.

Such actions require a favorable approach.

Given that Southwestern Ukraine is fundamentally a puppet-state government, its limitations are clear.

They have to rely on British support, after all.

Hmm, should I have a chat in the Duma about this?

After all, this is something that will come up in today’s Duma.

* * *

Upon attending the National Duma, unsurprisingly, the conversation turned to Southwestern Ukraine.

“Recently, it seems they even held anti-government protests in Southwestern Ukraine?”

“Yes. It’s a consequence of the Great Depression. Some Ukrainians have been arrested by British forces for saying it’s better to be incorporated into Russia.”

That does sound quite serious on their end.

Southwestern Ukraine is at least the last trophy that Britain obtained from Germany.

The Baltic States aren’t even worth mentioning.

They still want to eat up Southwestern Ukraine.

With Churchill as a variable, I’m unsure what will happen to Southwestern Ukraine.

From a strategic viewpoint, does Ukraine currently hold any significance to Britain? Not really.

To keep Russia in check, it’s not impossible, but let’s go this route.

“Let’s encourage immigration from Southwestern Ukraine.”

“Encouraging immigration from Southwestern Ukraine?”

“To the east of Ukraine. As long as the British have any sense of conscience, they can’t complain about this.”

If it were a colony, it would be one thing, but they acquired it thanks to Germany, and it’s not being managed.

They wouldn’t apply colonial methods against fellow whites.

Given their own situation, are they really willing to burden themselves by trying to keep Russians close? If they push too hard, there might be a red stain, which would be a massive failure on Britain’s part.

For now, encouraging immigration from Southwestern Ukraine is the plan. We can gauge the response afterward.

“Hmm, but Britain…”

“If even within Southwestern Ukraine, voices arise about joining Russia, they seem inclined to rely on us, and if we just watch detached, the people of Southwestern Ukraine might start reconsidering. We must appear supportive.”

“Understood. I’ll give it a try.”

“Respond appropriately to whatever Britain says. I doubt they’ll say much.”

If they have any conscience, they won’t complain about losing people they cannot manage, right?

Unlike Britain, Ukraine has deep historical ties, often referred to as a little Russia.

How dare the Anglo-Saxon pirates comment on collaboration among brothers?

And such actions will assist Churchill.

A weak government that cannot criticize Russia’s actions will likely collapse.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Are there any other problems?”

“Half of the Bolsheviks involved in road construction have expressed their intent to defect. It seems there are too many defectors, bringing quite a bit of chatter.”

A group of Bolsheviks defected?

Isn’t that information already out there?

“Wasn’t that an issue brought up previously?”

“This time there’s quite a number, making it quite troublesome for the Ministry of Land and Transport. They wish to defect and demand workers’ rights.”

Oh dear, those madmen.

Do they think I wouldn’t understand their motives?

It’s all too clear why they’re acting this way.

“They’re the same ones who wouldn’t bend their will until they were locked up in concentration camps. Moreover, being worn out from road construction, they might be attempting to bide their time for a momentary escape. Even if they’ve defected, what’s to say they won’t cause various acts of terror internally when we fight against Germany in the future?”

These are literally hundreds of thousands of personnel.

Even though Russia is currently stable, there’s no guarantee those hundreds of thousands won’t cause trouble during a war with Germany.

What if they rise up and announce they’ve held out until now? What then?

The Bolsheviks constantly fled from oppression, seizing any opportunity to return and instigate a revolution.

Of course, even if the Bolsheviks riled up a bit, there’s no prospect of Russia falling now.

But we shouldn’t leave ourselves room for error for the future generations.

In the global view, the Bolsheviks aren’t being treated kindly.

“If that’s the case…”

“Through ideological inspection, exclude the first few, but the rest should be put back in concentration camps. They need to realize how wary we are of the Bolsheviks.”

With a scale of hundreds of thousands, any upheaval would be troublesome.

Even without Germany, we could consider slowly releasing them, but…

They might quietly receive orders from Berlin and create chaos internally.

To avoid future troubles, we must uproot all communist elements thoroughly.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“And I’ve heard the German army is ramping up their military build-up. Are the great powers letting this slide?”

As soon as the imperial officers begin taking command of the people’s army, France is sure to throw a fit. Right?

“France is protesting, but it seems they have their own urgent internal matters. Britain is watching from across the river.”

Germany’s playing such a gamble for a single reason.

They likely believe there won’t be a two-front war in the next conflict.

Honestly, the worst scenario for Germany would be getting beaten up between France and Russia.

Moreover, even with all their buildup, I get the feeling Germany is weaker than during the Empire days.

While other nations have weakened too, they can’t do anything about it.

“One problem remains.”

“What is it?”

“Hitler in Austria. He’s reportedly killed communist elements in Austria and Hungary at the concentration camps.”

What? For a moment, I doubted my ears.

Did I hear that correctly? Did he just kill all the communists?

 

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