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Of course, abandoning Greece as the Emperor of Eastern Rome is a different issue altogether. Still, national interest comes first.

If we later draw Turkey, which has consumed Greece, into the Roman Treaty, then what else could it be but Rome?

“If that was the case, we would have fought over Turkey and Constantinople for a long time. Turkey can be drawn into the new Roman power later.”

By doing so, it would naturally become a member of Rome without the need for war.

The country would exist, but by permanently joining a single power and binding everything with Russia, isn’t that what Rome would be?

“So what will happen to Greece?”

“Let’s leave Greece be. Isn’t it cleaner if we let Greece be consumed by Italy and then let Turkey quietly condone it?”

After all, Greece was once part of the Ottoman Empire, right?

If later Italy stains Greece red, and we just pretend not to notice, would the international community say anything?

Churchill would have to fight the Commonwealth dominions.

“Hmm. But aren’t we being too kind to Turkey? If we restore Greece, they might become emboldened.”

“They might just say they’ll restore Constantinople with coaxing later.”

That’s not a bad idea.

It would give Turkey a legitimate reason to strike back later.

Turkey doesn’t have the power to take on Russia.

Conversely, it would be a prime opportunity for Russia to fully restore the Eastern Roman Empire.

“Then, when the time comes, we can just beat them decisively, merge the entirety of Turkey, and relocate the Turkish people back to the steppes where they originally lived.”

Surely, Turkey is descended from the Gokturk, right?

Turkey has been referencing the friendship between Goguryeo and the Gokturk while emphasizing its relations with Korea, so it should be true.

If we ever find ourselves at odds with Turkey, we need to use that as a pretext to relocate them.

If they come at us, we grab them all and relocate the Russians and Chinese to Anatolia and simply declare Byzantium.

“Indeed. Your Majesty has such aspirations.”

“Then, the complete restoration of Eastern Rome!”

But why do these crazy folks think that will happen?

I don’t think so right now.

I really don’t see Turkey doing anything that reckless.

Why would Turkey, knowing how well Russia is doing and even equipping itself with Russian weapons, aim at Russia?

I doubt it, right? Normally, those with anger management issues tend to submit in the face of overwhelming power.

“So that’s it. In the event that Turkey doesn’t listen to us and sets its sights back on Constantinople and Pontus.”

I really don’t think that will happen.

Atatürk is still alive, and Ilyinuy has never been someone to get too greedy.

The dream of rebuilding the Ottoman Empire would only be possible if Russia were weak.

Hmm. Honestly, even if we were to tear away Turkey entirely—

Management would be another issue, wouldn’t it?

Can a vast Russia exert administrative power all the way to Anatolia? That’s a different matter altogether. I wouldn’t be surprised if they simply keep it as an autonomous region anyway.

“Still, wouldn’t Italy become too powerful if they took Greece? It might not be a bad idea to get involved in war at this stage.”

“If Italy has thought it through, they wouldn’t just gobble up Ethiopia and Albania and then march straight into Greece.”

They might advance faster than in the original history. At the very least, for a while, they wouldn’t be able to do anything.

Even if they eat Albania, Germany will probably put the brakes on them.

Attacking Greece would be a future issue. Right now, isn’t Austria, which is reassembling as a combined robot, right in front of us?

Originally, it seems Italy could also pull it off in the original history, right? Just like when they cried out, “Help me, Germany!” In the original history, there was no Austrian Empire and a vulnerable Yugoslavia.

Even then, Nazi Germany had to postpone Operation Barbarossa. Would an invasion of Greece be so easily possible here?

Even if provoked, they wouldn’t do something crazy like attacking Greece right away.

They would probably try to swiftly deal with Austria first.

They might just take Albania initially and then prepare to advance into Greece, right?

Goebbels’s Germany would certainly prevent Italy from making a move.

“Have the American expeditionary forces been prepared for contingencies?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

For the time being, if we catch Trotsky, it would be problematic if they suspect us of being involved.

As soon as Russia sends reinforcements, Trotsky dies or goes missing, the KFC crumbles, and if Russia takes all the benefits, wouldn’t that be somewhat suspicious?

So, we had to ensure that at least a big army was prepared to keep the American Mackenzie from getting suspicious. We need to show that.

“Hmph. It’s a pity.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Ungern clicked his tongue, looking very disappointed about something.

When I tilted my head in confusion, Ungern boldly opened his mouth.

“Couldn’t we create a two-front line for Trotsky?”

A two-front line for Trotsky? Huey Long hasn’t even joined the fray yet. No, wait. We could use Huey Long, but we might not need to go through that route.

I see. Is Ungern talking about Canada right now?

He heard stories of Drozdovsky’s exploits in Spain and seems to have been itching to act recently.

Certainly, Canada would have the structure to create a two-front line. It’s a totally feasible development.

If Canada joins in and establishes a line to the north, that would be something.

If the west remains neutral, and Huey Long hasn’t entered yet, Trotsky will be forced into a one-on-one fight with MacArthur.

If only the northern front could be opened.

“General Ungern, are you talking about Canada?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Hmm, Canada’s intervention.

Does Canada have the military strength to intervene in the U.S.?

Even though Canada has a large territory, isn’t its population relatively small?

“If that happens, it would inevitably lead to Britain’s intervention. That would be a problem for us, and Churchill, who needs to reconcile with the colonial territories, wouldn’t accept it either.”

If Canada ends up intervening, Britain wouldn’t be able to abandon its dominions and would have to join in.

It would be like turning the tables on halting Britain’s intervention.

But wait. An idea suddenly crossed my mind.

“By the way, Canada is right next door, and their neighbor’s neighborhood is in ruins. Are they not mobilizing their troops or anything?”

In my view, that’s precisely the problem. Can Canada defend itself against Trotsky?

Well, Canada is under the protection of Britain, but considering how things are with Britain and the American Civil War, they won’t remain unaffected.

“At the moment, there are no troops. Apparently, there’s been some quarrel with the British mainland, hasn’t there? If Trotsky doesn’t touch them, they won’t interfere.”

“Hmm. Is that so?”

Canada likely can’t intervene.

While there are disputes about the interrelations with the British mainland, how would they intervene?

“In that case, how about advancing into Canada?”

“Into Canada?”

What’s the point of suggesting we go to Canada?

Ungern seems to be dreaming a bit too big.

“By the way, wouldn’t it be impossible to pressure Trotsky from above if Canada just gives us military transit rights? It’s just a matter of testing the waters with Canada a little.”

Well, that makes sense.

Honestly, it’s not entirely impossible. It would require a tremendous amount of effort, but if we go under the pretext of helping the U.S., we could naturally threaten Canada into granting us military transit rights. Hmm.

If we do it that way, Britain won’t sit idle. Just in case.

What if we offer to help with Canada’s defense instead of letting Britain’s Atlantic side obstruct us and seriously allow Trotsky to set his sights on Canada?

If, amidst the troublesome situation of interrelations, Trotsky makes a mistake and touches Canada—

Of course, that’s a far-fetched idea.

The reason I’m thinking about this is that our White Army wants to go to America! Squee!

“That’s not going to work. While I know the White Army is aiming for an American advance, it could lead to major powers, including Britain, stabilizing and nurturing Communist Germany.”

That’s why our prime minister personally stepped in.

Moreover, we can’t even be sure that it’s feasible.

Britain might say, “You started it first?” and break the anti-aircraft agreement, then support Communist Germany. The countries that have started to follow us under the anti-aircraft agreement could do the same.

I’m trying to change the image of Russia as much as possible.

“Hmph. To let this opportunity slip away.”

It can’t be helped that I feel regret.

To begin with, taking Alaska is already something to be cautious about.

Right now, the U.S. is present, and with the Commonwealth in chaos due to interrelations, it’s possible that Britain might pick a fight later over Alaska.

“Above all, Canada is a British dominion. Even if things are tense now, they can’t be overlooked as a part of the Commonwealth.”

Yeah. Regardless, this might be going too far.

Churchill can’t be unaware of what Russia is doing. He’ll undoubtedly try to stop Russia at all costs.

It’s pretty obvious. He’d think, “What are these Russians doing that’s so useless?” That’s what it means to think this way.

Even if there’s just a tiny chance, we might give my dear Churchill a reason to act.

Advancing into Canada would definitely cross the line. Regardless of it being Canada, they wouldn’t like having us exerting influence over them.

Rather, Churchill would try to reconcile with Britain again. Hmm, it would be better if a little more conflict erupts among the Commonwealth.

But if it escalates, that would be problematic. It feels like the world is trying to provoke Russia to go wild.

I’ll be completely honest. Initially, I absolutely didn’t want Britain to go through that mess.

So it looks even more appetizing.

Just look at how our White Army is intoxicated by Rome, hoping that Turkey will run amok.

If we see just a little more opening, everyone will suddenly want to advance to America.

Maybe in this place, we are but the second great edition. That way, it will simply mean a Japanese version of Russia.

“Make sure you don’t aim at Canada. We can’t plant flags on other households with Communist Germany in the picture.”

“The White Army will only follow Your Majesty’s will.”

That’s how it should be. Just like the Imperial General Headquarters of Japan, as long as they don’t go on a rampage.

“But is it really certain that Mutaguchi Renya decimated the Chinese United Army?”

What’s to trust in this?

“Yes. It’s really certain. The Manchurians in Northern Manchuria are saying that with Puyi’s surrender, the Daiching Rule is truly over and that we should crown Your Majesty as the new Great Khan.”

“Truly admirable friends.”

Well, right now, it’s Russian territory, but Manchuria is the home of the Manchu people; it’s their sacred land.

Even though he’s a mere figurehead, Puyi, the Emperor of Manchuria, probably doesn’t want to accept having bent the knee to the Japanese Emperor.

* * *

Forbidden City in Japanese-occupied North China

Around this time, Emperor Hirohito and the Imperial General Headquarters inside the Forbidden City were incredibly pleased.

They were more ecstatic than ever before.

After all, they had received a direct surrender from the descendant of the Daiching Rule Aisin Gioro, who had governed the continent for hundreds of years, though he was just a figurehead of the Chinese Empire.

Puyi had to hand over the emperor’s seat of the Chinese Empire to Hirohito as if it was passing a part-time job assignment.

Is this how my father felt merging the Korean Empire, a dynasty with a 500-year tradition?

As Hirohito settled into the Forbidden City, waiting only for the surrender of other warlords, he suddenly heard news that struck him hard.

In Southern China, this guy named Chiang Kai-shek had established the Nanjing National Government, declaring something completely different from the surrender of the Chinese Empire and saying he would fight against Japan.

The Chinese in Hebei didn’t welcome Japanese rule either.

With Mutaguchi Renya’s blitzkrieg, there was no time to stabilize the local area since the Emperor had reached the Forbidden City so soon.

Chinese people who had been proud of their Chineseness for a long time didn’t want to acknowledge being ruled by Japan, which existed at the eastern edge of the once vassal state of Korea.

“Damn Japanese, retreat!”

“I hate the emperor, but you should disappear too!”

Since they had received the emperor’s surrender, the Japanese leadership, who were to crush their enemies one by one and gain the surrender of various places, were completely in a frenzy.

Even now, various grievances and complaints were rising even in Korea, and they could not possibly slaughter all the Chinese in Hebei, leading to some compromise being necessary.

Ultimately, the Imperial General Headquarters had to make a decision.

“Your Majesty. Given the circumstances, we cannot avoid a prolonged war. We must march south to establish a puppet government in Hebei to secure the hearts and minds of the occupied territories.”

“To set up a puppet government merely because we’re afraid of the damn Chinese? Ahem.”

“If it wasn’t for that National Government over there, I would’ve considered it, but we need to advance south, and leaving the rear unstable is a problem.”

“Hm, is that really the best approach?”

“Wang Jingwei has reached out to us. We should appoint him as Prime Minister and crown Puyi as the emperor of the puppet state.”

“Well, that’s not a bad idea. Let’s accept the opinions of the ministers and crown Puyi as the emperor of the Qing Dynasty.”

The decision by the Imperial General Headquarters was somewhat more astute than in the original history.

In northern Hebei, Japan directly ruled, while Beijing and the remaining parts of Hebei, Shanxi, and Shandong were bundled to reestablish the puppet Qing Dynasty with Hirohito crowning Puyi as its emperor.

“You filthy idiots who can’t even consider the Middle Kingdom!”

Meanwhile, Wang Jingwei, who approached Japan, was almost assassinated by Dairi, a subordinate of Chiang Kai-shek, and in his desire for revenge, he burned with rage, refusing to recognize Chiang Kai-shek’s government and accepted the post of Premier for the Qing state.

Now, the name of the country didn’t matter to him.

The only goal was to eliminate Chiang Kai-shek with Japan’s help and unify the continent, choosing the path of reconciliation with Japan.

Chiang Kai-shek, head of the Nanjing National Government, swallowed his anger at the news of Puyi’s crowning as emperor and Wang Jingwei’s one-on-one negotiations with Japan, establishing the Qing state.

“That puppet kid Puyi is one thing, but how dare that Wang Jingwei! I will certainly drive out Japan and achieve unification!”

However, to battle Japan, he needed to improve the quality of the military.

Chiang Kai-shek was an anti-communist, but the 2 million troops he had prepared to fight against Japan had evaporated into thin air.

Those who had been acting like kings in their respective regions under regional autonomy scattered as soon as the Allied forces crumbled.

They were beginning to rally again around Nanjing, but if Japan’s military were to go on a maddened offensive, they’d have to abandon Nanjing at any moment, and since Chiang Kai-shek hadn’t completely taken over the command, there wasn’t even a place to relocate to.

As long as they had this rare opportunity now, absorbing the warlords weakened by this defeat might be possible, but unifying wouldn’t increase the military’s quality.

This desperate situation is something that even a three-year-old child would know. Therefore, they needed to raise their military power by seeking help from Western powers.

However, it was frankly questionable for Russia, Japan’s ally, to sell weapons.

The assistance of an anti-aircraft agreement member like Japan was out of the question. And with America devolving into the Three Kingdoms era, they didn’t even bear mentioning.

Then the only countries actively willing to help China were the communist nations opposing anti-aircraft agreement countries.

Though in the original history, Chiang Kai-shek felt hesitant about communism after visiting the Soviet Union, in this world, the Soviet Union has collapsed and Communist Germany has risen as the new communist force, and Chiang Kai-shek viewed them as a level of influence that he could even partner with to fight against a common enemy.

Thus, he only had one choice.

“I have no choice. Though I’m reluctant, I must grasp hands with the devil. Is Dairi around?”

“Yes, sir.”

“You’re going to Communist Germany. Request them to send advisors to strengthen our army to counter Japan and Russia in Asia. Just be sure to clarify that we will never become a communist state.”

“Sigh, to rely on those communist bastards for help. Our situation is truly desperate, but it can’t be helped. I shall take my leave.”

And so, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Dairi as an envoy to the German Free Socialist Republic, the stronghold of the red devils.

 

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