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* * *

Siberian Prison

One day, as I sat in solitary confinement lost in meditation, a man came to visit the red revolutionary.

“Trotsky! Long time no see. We’ve been in the same prison, yet I hardly saw you.”

It was Stalin who had come to see Trotsky.

“You have an aura about you. I heard the remaining revolutionaries were sent for all sorts of experiments and died in horrendous states.”

Some were worked to death on large road constructions, others were used in biological experiments involving dangerous radiation. Many died, depleting human resources.

While it was claimed to be a sacrifice for the advancement of humanity, from a revolutionary’s perspective, it felt like a horrific revenge.

However, Stalin simply stared blankly into the void with a face enlightened beyond measure.

“Those who are alive must keep living, don’t you think? When I became a eunuch and my wife turned her back on me to fool around with someone else in this prison, I often found myself wishing to live.”

Even if that was what the princess intended. Stalin truly wanted to live.

Therefore, he only wanted to see how far this Russia, untouched by the Bolsheviks, could reach.

“Ha, a communist eunuch as a priest, what a contradiction. I don’t even know where to begin.”

Trotsky couldn’t help but snicker at Stalin’s priestly appearance.

“Religion is the opiate of the masses.”

But now, one of the key figures of the Bolsheviks, Stalin, was in such a state.

A priest, how laughable!

“Don’t laugh too much. Look at present-day Russia. Look at Europe. The very reactionaries we labeled are now united under Russia’s leadership, and worker welfare policies are being implemented, they say.”

“Ugh.”

Europe is becoming unified, and Russia’s robust worker welfare policies have been adopted throughout Europe, stifling the second and third revolutions.

A society where revolution was no longer necessary had formed.

Thus, worker welfare had indeed improved.

“The princess has triumphed, and we have lost. That’s the conclusion. Perhaps keeping us alive thus far is to show that.”

“Are you saying you are satisfied with life now?”

Trotsky, despite his reluctance to accept it, asked while looking at Stalin, who wore a benevolent expression as though he had reached a state of enlightenment.

Stalin once thought he wanted to keep resisting, but this wasn’t the way.

“Well, I did have a desire to act out more, but seeing my condition and the victories being achieved by Russia’s actions, I slowly became a sage. Of course, being a former revolutionary, I’d rather not admit that on the surface.”

Yes, of course, Stalin still didn’t want to admit it.

But the reality was that no matter how he looked at it, the princess was right. She was declaring victory.

“Comrade Lenin has passed away.”

“We dissolved the Duma and turned it upside down in our desperation to seize power first. And without legitimate trial, we stabbed and killed the Tsar’s family.”

The motivation behind the Bolsheviks seizing control of Russia cannot be denied, even with the Civil War.

However, in this history, that wasn’t possible, and it was likely that Lenin came to power also due to the impulse that the Bolsheviks could do whatever they wanted!

“—That’s it.”

“Don’t say it’s all for the workers. How many workers and citizens were killed during the Civil War by the Bolsheviks? We merely aimed for power and failed.”

Stalin shook his head, staring into the distance as though at a mountain.

Seeing the world changed by the princess, Stalin began to question whether the revolution had any meaning, all while feeling detached.

“Koba, that is a denial of our revolution!”

“Isn’t reality like that? The vengeful princess managed to ascend to the Tsar’s throne, and the captured Bolsheviks were treated inhumanely and perished. A world was opened where communists are now treated like bugs by the princess. Yet, the Russians are praising Anastasia. Honestly, if we had won that civil war, would we have truly claimed Russia?”

To seize control over Russia, they would have had to employ terror.

Yes, just like Germany did.

The citizens who had opposed the Bolsheviks and had once cooperated with the White Army would all have been killed.

As ruthless as how the White Army retaliated against the communists.

And that very Germany has now collapsed, with a new empire rising.

“What brings you here to speak such things to me?”

“Though I wanted to meet an old friend to chat about various things, I’ve heard rumors the princess is soon coming to the prison. She’s likely looking for you.”

Before coming here, Stalin had heard the guards at the prison chatter.

And indeed, the topic of conversation was the Tsar of Russia.

Stalin, even in the prison, had been compassionately aiding many criminals, not just Bolsheviks, as a priest.

Anastasia probably wouldn’t come to kill him now, but Trotsky would be different.

“Koba, are you telling me to submit to the princess? To beg for my life from her?”

“Of course, I don’t want to lose my last remaining friend. But that’s not what I mean.”

“!!”

Stalin knew Trotsky well.

He was a man who lived and died for the revolution.

To plead for his life from the princess ultimately meant abandoning the revolution, and that would mean Trotsky’s death.

Living like that wouldn’t be life at all.

“I’d be killing you in another sense if that’s the case. You’re practically the last remaining revolutionary. I don’t know if this will be our final meeting, but you fight the princess with conviction, with your beliefs.”

He had already lost all of his motivations.

From the start, Stalin wasn’t even a perfect revolutionary like Trotsky.

Yet, Trotsky had been captured by the Okhrana after living as a revolutionary until the end.

His personality was eccentric, but he was still a shining red star.

After their meeting, Trotsky was soon whisked away by the prison guards to somewhere unknown.

And then…

“This is the first time seeing you in person.”

Now, he faced Anastasia, who had become the Tsarina.

* * *

Trotsky had apparently suffered quite a bit as he now looked quite aged.

Age-related, but isn’t it a bit strange that he wasn’t assassinated unlike in the original history? Shouldn’t he be thanking me?

“This is the first time seeing you in person.”

“Ha. Seeing you still look youthful makes the saint claim true. So, have you finally called to kill me?”

“Hmm. Well…”

Honestly, I have no intentions of killing you.

If I wanted to, I would have done it by now. In fact, you’re more of a priority that I almost forgot.

Actually, I don’t particularly want to kill you.

Strictly speaking, I am merely possessing Anastasia. I am not the real Anastasia who lost her parents.

“Are you wishing for me to grab your skirt and beg for my life?”

“I’d love to see that, but I don’t mind either way.”

It’s not bad at all, but it’s not something I’d force myself to wish for.

“Then, oh witch, what was the reason for summoning me? Are you planning to horrifically kill me here? Will you execute me by gun like your father faced the people’s trial? Or perhaps shoot me like Comrade Lenin?”

What an absurd label, calling me a witch.

Where can you find such a pretty witch as me?

You’re just trying to insult me. It’s unfair.

“Surprisingly, no. While you clearly killed my siblings and parents, strangely, I don’t feel much of a thirst for revenge. It’s because you made it possible for me to set Russia right. On one hand, you caused the KFC revolution in America, which led to a temporary stagnation of its growth.”

“Are you saying that in the end it was all in your palm? Are you mocking me?”

“Mocking? No, I’m honestly grateful.”

“If you’re not going to kill me, just throw me in a cell. Why summon me here?”

Suddenly, I wonder what the original future envisioned by the Bolsheviks would have been.

“Are you not curious about the future if I had simply died back then?”

“Ha, I can’t burst my eardrums, so I don’t have much choice, do I?”

Come on, you’re an adult, so stop whining and just listen. It’ll be interesting.

“It’s simple. Originally, the policies I implemented during the Civil War would have been those the Bolsheviks pursued first. The divided White Army would have initially dominated with European support but then gradually been pushed back. Ultimately, the Red Army would have won, and the Bolshevik regime would have safely established the Soviet Union.”

From the start, the chances of the Bolsheviks ruling after the revolution were little at best.

What the Russians wanted was the fall of the Tsar’s regime, not necessarily to embrace communism.

“That sounds lovely to hear.”

Even while being sarcastic, he’s still listening intently.

Being no fool, he must recognize that my predictions have been correct all this time.

Though difficult to believe, he will want to hear it once.

“After that, Lenin will be assassinated, and following the power vacuum, Stalin will come to power. You will flee to Mexico and establish a new international, but that’s all. Eventually, you will meet your end by an ice pick sent by assassins from Stalin.”

“Are you saying it’s thanks to you that I lived a long life?”

Could he have never suspected he would die at Stalin’s hands?

“Stalin’s Soviet Union wasn’t all that stable either. He purged countless rivals and committed various blunders that led to famine in Ukraine, causing many parents to resort to cannibalism to survive. Moreover, that great purge sparked another war with Germany, causing millions to die. Yet, in the end, they emerged victorious in the Second World War and rose to be a superpower along with the United States.”

It’s strange how they are a superpower yet still underdeveloped.

Of course, my Russia is different.

“Oh, that sounds good to hear.”

“But eventually, it all crumbles. Ultimately, it was just a facade, and the USSR never solved its fundamental problems. The USSR fell apart, and by the 2000s, only the Russian Federation remained, invading everywhere under some strange dictator. While the Chinese Communist Party and North Korea remain communist regimes, both are dictatorial and the countries are in ruins.”

“Are you trying to say communism is contradictory?”

No, I wouldn’t deny it.

Even if I’m a fervent anti-communist, I still see the need for communism depending on the era.

Of course, I believe it’s only for the purpose of raising awareness in the present age.

I don’t want to see the world crumble because of communism.

But now, no matter where communism occurs, it can never surpass the societal system of the Rome Treaty Organization.

Didn’t Goebbels of Communist Germany acknowledge that? In the end, it would spark a war.

If Communist Germany would do that, could communism easily emerge in the future?

As soon as it erupts, the Rome Treaty forces will pummel it. Even if not, communism will inevitably fall if you look at the Rome Treaty.

Communist Germany knew they would lose, hence opting for war as a gamble.

“In the end, it’s the same for communism; stagnating leads to decay. No, it’s rather a different ideology. It’s a system that’s likely to decay far quicker than a monarchy, which you despise. Yet Trotsky, you won’t live long enough to stabilize a communist system like me.”

Whatever you do, the Soviet Union will eventually rot away.

Hearing this, Trotsky clenched his fists and trembled with anger.

He couldn’t say a word, though. Any nation, in its nascent stage, enjoys a golden age.

This applied to European nations, Korea under Goryeo, and Joseon in its early days was not so bad.

Communism is just that.

It serves as a necessary evil in the beginning, but after some time becomes meaningless. There is no perfect ideology anywhere.

This is all dictated by necessity.

In one era, a monarchy may be needed, in another era, communism, and in yet another, liberalism.

Among them, communism serves as a cautionary ideology for the world. It only needs to establish this position.

“Yes. Does that even hold any meaning now? What do you want to say to me, a defeated imperialist?”

In fact, I am not Anastasia!

While I want to declare this and tease him, I don’t have the intention.

“I hear you’re quite the master at frying chickens; here’s a choice for you. Would you like to change your identity and rise as a chicken entrepreneur?”

On this side, everything regarding Trotsky’s chicken techniques is already fully acquired from the KFC headquarters, so there’s no problem.

However, if Trotsky wants, I could arrange for him to fry chicken appropriately.

Regrettably, Trotsky isn’t the type who would wish for such things.

“Those chickens! I’m a revolutionary! Not a chicken fryer! Yes! You’ve turned me into a madman obsessed with chickens! I’m a revolutionary! I’m not some guy doing a chicken revolution!”

Trotsky flailed his arms in exasperation.

He was so worked up that the guards waiting outside rushed in. Unlike earlier when they stoically listened to me, he was genuinely angry.

Is it really that infuriating?

If branded a thoroughgoing communist, he would’ve been dead by now. Ugh, tsk tsk.

“Whether you realize it or not, your chicken saved many black people, and you’ve made a name for yourself as a human rights activist. Above all, chicken is quite popular in Russia right now.”

“Huh.”

“In a different sense, you’ve achieved a real revolution.”

Trotsky was shaking in rage.

He had many things to say, but couldn’t quite vocalize them.

“Or should I just exile you? I can provide you with plenty of money to live elsewhere.”

“Are you really not going to kill me?”

What’s so surprising about that?

I could use it for vengeance on my family! But at this point, isn’t it a bit much to talk about revenge? After all, it was those Ural Soviet types who killed them. He didn’t come here to kill the Tsar’s family himself.

Killing now for vengeance is meaningless. Justifying it doesn’t provide any thrill.

 

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