November 14, St. Ye Katerina Fortress, Summer Palace.
Early in the morning, Tsar Nicholas V burst out of his room, loudly demanding an explanation from his servant, “How could there be thunder at this time?”
The servant looked troubled.
Nicholas V persisted, “Tell me! There shouldn’t be thunder in this season!”
Only then did the servant glance at the windows in the corridor.
Nicholas V rushed to the window, placed his hands on the sill, and leaned forward as if to press against the glass.
He stared at the source of the thunderous noise in the distance.
The servant explained, “That’s the Eternal Fortress at Karanskaya, with a history of one hundred years. It was built by military engineers of that time after the Conqueror retreated from Ye Fort, intended to forever protect Ye Fort.”
Nicholas V, with his hands braced on the windowsill, stared at the fortress being bombarded and murmured softly, “Forever protect Ye Fort… now it’s being destroyed by the enemy!”
The servant immediately signaled to a maid nearby, urging her to quickly find Her Highness the Crown Princess.
In recent days, with the Prussian Army’s approach, His Majesty the Tsar’s mental condition had become increasingly fragile, sometimes throwing tantrums, shouting uncontrollably, and only seeming normal in the presence of the Crown Princess.
Of course, this is how others saw it; in Nicholas V’s eyes, there was no Crown Princess, only his son Ivan Nikolayevich Andronov.
It was said that Crown Prince Ivan once dressed in drag and frolicked with others at a masquerade ball, and he himself had somewhat of an androgynous beauty.
But generally speaking, no one would mistake Olga Nikolayevna Andronova, the Crown Princess, for the late Crown Prince.
After all, Olga’s height and physique were far different from her brother’s, and although her face bore some resemblance, it was just that—a resemblance.
Everyone knew that Nicholas V was almost driven insane by the death of his son and the encroaching Prussian Army.
Now with the Prussian Army’s artillery shelling the Eternal Fortress within sight of the Summer Palace, there was no doubt that this would exacerbate His Majesty’s “illness.”
Right after the maid left, Nicholas V began to show hysteria, picking up a vase from the corridor and smashing it to the ground. Unsatisfied after smashing one, he charged towards a second, but two prepared maids lifted the table holding the vase and dashed away.
Nicholas V gave chase for a few steps before stopping, falling to his knees, his hands pressing against the carpet: “You liars! Liars! Saying the enemy would surely be stopped, that General Mud and General Winter would halt the enemy!”
“Has the mire come? It has, but has the enemy stopped? No!
“General Winter has also arrived; what’s falling from the sky? Snow! But has the enemy stopped? No! The enemy artillery has reached the Eternal Fortress! Eternal Fortress!
Or whatever fortress! The war has already been lost!”
At that moment, Marshal Boris and General Tukhachev arrived.
Marshal Boris said, “Your Majesty! The front line reports that the enemy is running out of shells, their offence is weakening. And although winter has come, it hasn’t reached its coldest yet…”
“Liars, liars!” Nicholas V interrupted Marshal Boris, “All of you are liars! You are deceiving me! Not a single word you said has come true! You are all liars! You’re a liar, Tukhachev is a liar, Belinsky is a liar, and that Rocossov, he’s a liar too! I want Rocossov executed, now, immediately!”
Nicholas V seemed to have thought of something and stood up, addressing everyone, “Where is Rocossov? He lied to me, said the mud would stop the Prussians, the winter would stop the Prussians, none of it happened!
“This empire’s iron barrier has stopped nothing! Instead, he impregnated my daughter!”
Marshal Boris: “As far as I know, the Crown Princess hasn’t conceived; she just had her period…”
“Do you think I’ll believe what a liar like you says? The only truth you’ve told so far is that the enemy is getting closer! I want Rocossov executed! Execute him!”
Just then, the Crown Princess Olga appeared; she spoke in a masculine tone, “Father, what’s wrong?”
Nicholas V looked at her and visibly calmed down.
“You’re here, Ivan,” he said softly, “Talking about your damned bad influence of a friend.”
His Majesty the Tsar gently took Olga’s hand, completely oblivious to the fact that the girl’s hand was much more delicate and soft than the Crown Prince’s.
Olga spoke softly, “Let’s go inside, it’s cold outside.”
“No, no, Ivan, I’d like to sit in your study, for us to have a good talk like old friends.”
As he spoke, Nicholas V pulled Princess Olga along with him.
————
In Ivan’s study, Nicholas V slumped into the armchair by the fireplace, dejectedly staring at the ground.
“The war is lost.”
Olga looked behind her, ensured the door was shut, then replied with a sense of relief, “Father, we haven’t lost yet, the enemy is at the end of its strength. Yesterday, their shelling across the entire line decreased significantly.”
Nicholas V: “That’s a trick! The enemy artillery has reached that damn castle! That castle that’s always in sight! That castle has become part of the Summer Palace’s scenery, and now it’s under fire! Under fire!”
After a brief outburst, Nicholas V curled up in his armchair, looking at the floor, “It’s all over, how do the generals not see that? What’s the point in fighting? The war is lost…”
Olga’s expression darkened.
At the state funeral, her father had been invigorated by her brother’s death, but now that fighting spirit had completely dissipated.
Olga thought to herself: If the spirit faded this easily, it cast doubt on her brother’s significance in her father’s heart.
She observed her father as if seeing him for the first time, her expression involuntarily disdainful.
——He was ultimately just a puppet propped up by others. The old nobility and old powers rallied around him, not because of his abilities but because of the crown on his head.
Suddenly, Olga realized just how terrifying and —— rebellious her thoughts had been.
However, a voice whispered in her ear, “Isn’t that how female emperors have always come to power in history?”
Olga shook off the thought and focused on playing the role of her brother, appeasing His Majesty the Tsar.
————
In the neutral zone far from the battlefield, the port city of Sofia.
The only agent of the “Krat Bureau,” Fyodorovich, was reviewing the latest newspapers from both Prosen and Ante. The top headline on the front page of Plosenia Daily, the official paper of Prosen, caught Fyodorovich’s attention.
The article conveyed a single message, that under the fierce offensive of the Prosen Army, the Ante Empire would soon surrender, just like Carolingian, and the citizens of the Prosen Empire could await the victory news. The great Prosen Emperor would hold a grand celebration.
Fyodorovich pondered over the report.
Experience tales at m v|l e’m,p| y- r
In reality, the Krat Bureau had no way to contact the remnants of the so-called Sanctified faction, and Fyodorovich didn’t even know if a Sanctified faction restoration organization truly existed.
He only knew that he was indeed a remnant of the Sanctified faction.
The copious intelligence issued daily by the Krat Bureau was actually all fabricated by Fyodorovich based on newspapers from various countries. Of course, as a writer, Fyodorovich, even when making things up, took care to avoid contradictions and sometimes even managed to make his stories corroborate each other.
Besides, Fyodorovich paid great attention to align the intelligence with the preferences of his employer, the Prosen Empire.
He studied the newspapers to gauge the views of the imperial high command, and even the Emperor’s opinions.
After seeing this front-page headline, he then took out an edition of a small paper from Ante, published in October, which mentioned that the Tsar’s health might be failing. After a moment’s thought, he began to write.
————
November 15, Eagle’s Nest.
Duke Redweitz entered Emperor Reinhard’s office with a buoyant step, saying to the Emperor who was studying maps with his generals, “Your Majesty! I bring great news!”
Reinhard looked up, “What good news?”
Duke Redweitz produced a document, “Our Krat Bureau has sent a new batch of documents, including three that corroborate each other. They are from a Sanctified faction supporter posing as a maid in the Summer Palace, a Sanctified faction supporter working as a furnace operator in the Summer Palace, and a Sanctified faction supporter infiltrated in Ante’s High Command.
“By synthesizing these three pieces of intelligence, we know that His Majesty the Tsar of Ante has been bedridden due to the war situation and can no longer manage affairs!”
Reinhard was startled, “Is that true?”
“Yes!”
The duke approached His Majesty and respectfully handed over the document.
Reinhard snatched the document and quickly scanned it, then put it down and leaned on the edge of the map table, gazing over the vast territories of Ante, “This is excellent, excellent. The Tsar was merely a glue the Secular faction had pressed into power. Now that the glue is at its end, even if Ante doesn’t surrender, they will fall into chaos! Our opportunity has come!”
The recently recovered Giles advised, “But the dire situation at the front won’t change.”
Reinhard, “As long as the enemy is in disarray, Von Maqi and General Hawk of the Third Armored Group will seize the chance! They will storm Ekaterinburg Fortress!
“Von Maqi’s cannons are almost striking the center of Ye Fort city, nearly hitting the Summer Palace! Victory is within sight, Giles! Do you understand? Literally within sight!”
Reinhard turned and paced beside the map, rubbing his hands together, “The remaining issue is dealing with the United Kingdom and the Federation. We’ll find a way, we surely will!”
————
November 16, 1300 hours, in Karanskaya, under Prosen control.
The divisional commander of the Prosen Armored Grenadier Division personally led his team to await outside the Eternal Fortress.
The snow on the ground had reached a thickness of three centimeters, and the world had mostly turned white, but a hint of black still asserted its presence.
The commander’s car of the Second Armored Group began its ascent to the gates of the Eternal Fortress but stopped halfway up the slope.
The driver immediately got out, opened the hood, and began to inspect the engine.
General Von Maqi alighted from the car and approached the engine. “What’s the matter?”
The driver, “There’s an issue with the lubricating oil; our oil isn’t suitable for the severe winter.”
“Fix the fault as soon as possible.” Maqi instructed, then strode towards the summit of the Eternal Fortress.
The grenadier divisional commander hastened to greet him, “General, we have the cannons ready for the bombardment of the Summer Palace, just awaiting your command.”
“Good, I want to take a look at Ye Fort, at the Summer Palace first.”
“Right this way, please.” The divisional commander hurried to lead the way.
Twenty minutes later, Maqi climbed to the highest tower of the Eternal Fortress and approached the window facing east.
He lifted his binoculars and looked toward that city, which had haunted the souls of countless Prosen soldiers.
Finally, the reticle of his binoculars aligned with the Summer Palace.
Maqi, “I hear the Tsar is still in the Summer Palace; let’s send him a grand present. Fire.”