Chapter 1: Situation

"The prince regained consciousness!"

"Oh God, thank you!"

"I have to punish those yellow monkeys right now!"

It thrilled me to see some of the tourist attractions in St. Petersburg and I retired to bed after having a moderate amount of vodka. At first, I didn't understand where the voices were coming from. There was a sign on his door specifically stating not to interfere. Though this was just some inconvenient noise.

I opened my eyes with the same thoughts and filled my eyes with foreign uncles in many black uniforms.

What, is it like a hidden camera in this hotel?

"Your Majesty's safety proves that God's protection is with the Russian Empire! Oh, thank you."

Prince? Russia? The Russian Empire was destroyed 100 years ago. What are you talking about?

My first thought was that I had to stop the noises that aggravated the mild hangover headache.

"Please keep everyone quiet."

"…"

It scared me to hear my voice, and the surroundings became quiet when did that.

Uh, it turns out that what I just said is Korean, right?

When I looked around, it seemed that I was not in a hospital. It was too flashy for a hospital inpatient room, and from what I guessed when I looked out of the window. I seemed to be in a ship moored in a port rather than a building above the ground.

Besides, there are no Asian features among the group, all of them bore distinctly Caucasian features.

"Where is this?"

The surrounding group erupted as soon as I asked this question.

I couldn't understand it well, but I picked up several remarks such as "The Prince has lost his memory!" and "We have to show those monkeys the taste of cannons right now."

All the words of the surrounding people were not in Korean, despite this, strangely, I could clearly understand all of their words.

It was the stranger in the mirror that caught my confused eyes. My appearance in the mirror was unfamiliar, a stark contrast to the familiar appearance I had held for the last 32 years.

"Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov..."

In other words, Nikolai II.

I remained utterly puzzled, then successfully tried to fall back into a deep sleep.

Last night's dream came to mind.

A dream in which Nikolai II, the last tsar, urged me not to repeat the same mistakes as he did.

Is that the cause?

No way, is this real?

I still doubt whether this is real or not, but I thought I had to find out what the situation was right now.

"First, tell me what the situation is right now. In summary, short."

Then one of the surrounding people, who had a nice mustache, continued to talk carefully.

"Yes. His Majesty the Prince. What is the situation now... … ."

Hearing his words, I visited Japan on the way to Vladivostok to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the Far East of the Siberian Railway, and on the way back from sightseeing in Kyoto, a Japanese patrolman struck me with a Japanese sword. I avoided fatal injury, but I suddenly lost consciousness during treatment.

Is this the Otsu case?

To summarize the current situation, it seems, in reality, that I have become Nikolai II. It was too realistic to be a dream, and the pain I still feel in my head is screaming that this was not a dream.

No, isn't this too much? I have possessed the body of Nikolai II. Why? I am just a Korean who has no relationship with the Romanov Family.

The thought that I had to take responsibility for what would happen in the future of the Russian Empire was blinding.

"That… Your Majesty?"

"Well?"

"Are you still muddled by your memories?"

When I heard of what had happened, a person who seemed to be an admiral was around me if I was anxious when I realized I was showing an expression of agony.

If I have lost my memories while I am in charge, it would be natural that I'm destined to go straight to Siberia.

"Don't worry. I am fine. I apologize, but I want to be alone for a while. Will you all leave me for a moment?"

"Of course! Majesty! We'll have a guard at the door, so tell us if you need anything."

The admiral said, with a reassuring expression. Nikolai seemed to have escaped from going on a one-way trip to Siberia, so it's natural to be relieved.

Having had my time alone, I was still stunned, but I decisively accepted this situation.

I was curious about what happened to my original body, and I was worried about my parents, but at the moment there was no way I can do anything.

Besides, I also thought that I might be able to return to my original world in the future if I accepted Nikolai II's request.

Originally, the Otsu case known in history ended with the compassionate King Nikolai II. Not forcing any harsh demand on Japan, but it will be a little different this time around.

Japan's still a third-class country that has just begun modernization. The Russian Empire was a much more powerful country, a superpower that competed for supremacy with Britain, at least on the surface. An empty powerhouse for those who know the truth.

While trying to figure out how to drain Japan with this incident, I heard a knock.

"What is it?"

"It is said that Takehito wants to meet His Majesty. What should I do?"

"Tell him I am not in a condition to meet anyone. And convey that the responsibility for this case lies with Japan!"

Knowing that there will be a war between the Russian Empire and Japan shortly, I had to take this opportunity to prevent the growth of Japan.

This is because, for Russia at this moment, various established Institutions have started to anticipate that Japan will soon enter the major powers and establish a colonial empire, so it is possible to change the history of the defeat of the Russo-Japanese War, one causes of the Russian Revolution, only when Japan's power is removed.

Fortunately, now that Japan is still weak, I could happily worry about what to choose and punish them with. I have the right and power to ask for anything from Japan.

* * *

Shocking news that an insane sergeant assaulted the Russian prince and caused him to lose consciousness reached Tokyo on the same day. Tokyo was overturned.

No, attacking a prince who belongs to a country comparable to England? With this in mind, isn't Russia coming into Japan? A sense of fear overwhelmed Japan, and the chief executive who had to deal with the situation remained stressed as he looked to pass the responsibility.

"Who on earth is in charge of security for this visit?"

"The general manager of the security is also in charge, but where the hell is the Kyoto police chief?"

"Rather than the army, if Russia attacks our Japanese empire with this incident, can we overcome it?"

"Of course, our Imperial Army, whom the Sun God and His Majesty's Majesty bow, will never see defeat. However, it will be a very difficult fight."

When Iwao Oyama, the Minister of the Army, answered quietly, the hall quickly became quiet.

They already knew. Japan, which had just started modernization, cannot overcome the powerful Russian Empire. The difficult fight Iwao talked about meant that if the Russian imperial forces landed on the Japanese archipelago, they could not win.

"What is the opinion of the Navy's minister?"

Masayoshi Matsukata, who is in charge of the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, asked Schenori Kabayama, the Minister of the Navy. He already knew the answer, but in the current situation, he needed an attitude of knowing and asking.

"Honestly…"

After speaking only this word, Schenori remained silent. It was taboo to talk about defeat before even a war, but it was because his conscience as a soldier remained to say that he could win.

Masayoshi thought, rubbing the greasy temple. This unprecedented incident that took place six days after he took office could break the lifeline of Japan.

"Priority."

It was Akiyoshi Yamada, who was in charge of the Justice Minister, who broke the silence and opened his mouth.

"Would it be the first to punish the guy who did this act of violence? I think the prince's anger would be relieved to some extent if we punished him with extreme methods, in the sense of showing sincerity to the Russian Empire."

"But?"

"The problem is that our Japanese law does not have provisions regarding attacks against foreign imperial personnel. In the case of harming our emperor or the royal family, we can claim a great crime and seek the death penalty, but will the old man, the chief of the Supreme Court, accept the sentence without related provisions? … ."

"In this case, you just have to kidnap that bitter fool and shoot him with a pistol. We are not ready for war yet! On behalf of the Prime Minister!"

"What does the Russian legislature say by the Foreign Ministry?"

"That… So far, nothing has been said. Perhaps the construction observation is waiting for orders from the Russian home country."

As my goal is to advance to that vast continent, I thought that someday it would collide with Russia, but I still thought it was a distant future.

Masayoshi felt her headache intensifying.

He had been inaugurated as a cabinet member for only five days, and he was uncomfortable about what kind of crime he had to commit in this situation.

"in short…"

The man, who had been silent until now, opened his mouth.

"If the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court refuses to impose the death penalty we demand, wouldn't we just have to proclaim martial law and push it? Isn't that right, Prime Minister?"

His name was Hirobumi Ito, a name that Koreans would not know.

Although it did not happen at this point, his words, which left a strong mark on the merger between Korea and Japan, such as the Eulsa Wolf Treaty and the first implementation of the Korean Ministry of Information and Communication, had a powerful influence on the establishment of modern Japan.

"Our current state is a national emergency. It should not happen that a single mindset spreads its wings forward and blocks the path of the Japanese Empire in flight. Judicial independence is only possible when the state remains intact. Therefore, I propose to proclaim martial law."

"One is to declare martial law."

While the crowd got noisy, and Ito again proclaimed martial law, a secretary rushed into the conference room.

"Sorry! An urgent specialist came up and made excuses. The pro-King Takehito, who had just received the Russian Crown Prince from Kyoto, sent a telegram saying that His Majesty the Emperor would come to Kyoto. And the Emperor's Majesty, who received the telegram, gave the order to arrange an emergency train going down to Kyoto."

Upon receiving the report, Masayoshi found herself rather relieved. Even in this case, I felt that my heavy shoulder was getting lighter as I thought that the Emperor, not myself, would be in charge of this situation.

Masayoshi said as she looked around her cabinet, seeing that laughter that wasn't appropriate for this situation would come out.

"Okay. So, first, it's better to arrange a train for Your Majesty to go to Kyoto, rather than to establish martial law. And I will have to think about how His Majesty the Emperor can appease the Russian prince."

#Author's words

In the Otsu case, a Japanese policeman named Tsuda, a Japanese policeman, attacked Prince Nikolai II when he visited Kyoto with a Japanese sword.