Ch.631Episode 23 – The Spy Who Returned from the Cold Country

In this diplomatic district, there are countless events, but among them, the Kiyen Empire’s ball was an especially distinguished occasion that could be counted on one hand.

This was because the event was hosted by none other than the Smirnoff Imperial Family.

Generally, when people referred to imperial balls, they typically meant either state commemorative events held in the name of the Prime Minister’s Office led by Prime Minister Stolypin, or private social gatherings hosted by imperial nobles. These were the two common types.

In contrast, the imperial family’s ball boasted a caliber entirely different from these two events.

Why? Because no one knew when it would be held.

Unlike state commemorative balls, imperial balls were strictly held on an irregular basis, so opportunities to attend didn’t come often, and invitations weren’t extended to just anyone.

Above all, since the Smirnoff Imperial Family directly organized it, it was held on the most splendid and magnificent scale, and the number and status of participants were jaw-dropping.

However….

“It seems we’ve been invited to that charming venue, of all places.”

“Hmm, to my ears, it sounds exactly like a perilous adventure awaits us.”

Camilla and I had a calm conversation while looking at the ball invitation with its gold-embossed edges.

Episode 23 – The Spy Who Returned from the Cold Country

An official invitation came from the imperial family. The recipients were Camilla and me, two people.

“If we were overseas, it might be different. But since we’re staying within imperial territory, it’s awkward to decline.”

“What’s the purpose of this ball? Since it’s an irregular event, I assume it’s not to commemorate a national holiday.”

“Officially, it’s to celebrate Crown Prince Valery’s birthday, but… considering the foreign reception schedule that the Kiyen Foreign Ministry is planning for the second half of this year, it’s essentially a rehearsal.”

Camilla, with her arms crossed, raised her eyebrows and asked:

“So it’s preparation for the Crown Prince’s diplomatic debut disguised as a birthday party?”

“That’s right.”

However, if there was an issue, it would be the fact that Crown Prince Valery and the three princesses, who hadn’t gathered in one place since reaching adulthood, would all be attending this event.

For reference, this was information that Ambassador Abbas in Petrograd had just obtained.

I shared this information with Camilla without hesitation.

“All attending?”

“Events hosted by the imperial family fundamentally operate on the principle that all imperial family members participate. Naturally, that includes the Grand Duke. That’s why nobles, social dignitaries, and diplomats consider this event important.”

But the truly important point was elsewhere.

When I quietly handed over an aluminum container, Camilla looked at me with a puzzled expression before emptying its contents onto her palm.

Tiny films smaller than a fingernail.

“Microfilms. Quite a classic method.”

As she carefully examined the films one by one, she suddenly glanced in my direction.

“Before I check, could I get a spoiler about what these materials are?”

Hmm.

I casually sipped my coffee and answered.

“…A short summary of the Kiyen version of ‘Stalin Is Dead!’?”

*

Absolute power has collapsed.

The long reign of terror by Emperor Nikolai VI of the Kiyen Empire, who had been a symbol of eternal immortality, ended with a sudden illness.

It was an outcome no one had anticipated.

And that’s why the atmosphere was extremely cautious.

Consequently, the Abbas government had maintained a cautious stance for the past year. After I first reported on Emperor Nikolai VI’s condition, the government mobilized all available resources to monitor the imperial family’s movements.

Human intelligence networks in Petrograd, as well as scientific and magical information assets from the homeland, were fully mobilized, and cooperation from reliable allies was scraped together.

And after gathering a wealth of information,

One of the completed results was these films.

“What you’re looking at now is a kind of character encyclopedia. Like character documents printed from a fandom wiki for a drama? If I were to make an analogy, that’s the feeling.”

“Huh, quite a fresh comparison. I understand perfectly.”

Camilla inserted the film in the right direction, turned the dial a few times with a click, put her eye to the eyepiece, and began making interesting nasal sounds.

“This seems far from ordinary for drama character documents… How did you collect all this?”

“It’s complicated to explain.”

How would I know about intelligence gathered by different departments over more than a year?

I vaguely explained the parts I knew and brushed off the rest as too complicated to discuss.

“Well, some of it was collected by legwork from this embassy. And some was apparently discovered by chance while pulling TELINT (Technical ELINT), but I don’t know the details.”

“Has the technology in this neighborhood already advanced to that concept? Wasn’t that concept introduced after the end of the First Iraq War?”

“The target and direction are similar, but since it’s technology analyzing magical waves rather than pure scientific information, I’m not sure if it can be compared to the NSA.”

How could you simply compare a place where people fly around on brooms, carpets, and airships with a place that launches satellites into space?

Anyway.

Sitting on the desk, I tapped the film reader and began to set the tone.

“You know what happened in the Soviet Union after Stalin’s death, right?”

Nod, Camilla silently moved her head up and down.

“It seems something similar is about to happen.”

Swish.

As I carefully pushed one film with my finger, Camilla unwrapped the one marked “No. 2” and took it to the reader.

Click, the dial turned continuously.

Camilla’s eyes slightly furrowed as she read the information in the film.

“…I didn’t know Elizaveta had this side to her. From what I heard from the professor, I thought she was a decent person.”

“But you had some inkling, didn’t you?”

“I heard it might rain, but I never imagined it would pour down this heavily.”

Who could have imagined that Princess Elizaveta would be performing rain rituals, praying for a downpour on the empire?

Camilla’s prim expression as she looked at me from the end of the table seemed to be asking just that.

I squeezed my plump cheeks with my hand, repositioned the reader, and said:

“I’ll brief you quickly, so keep watching. It won’t take long.”

“Ep-“

In the Kiyen Empire without its master, only the Crown Prince could succeed to the throne.

However, to the imperial family members who could claim the throne, Crown Prince Valery’s political position seemed quite unstable.

Having lived as the heir under Emperor Nikolai VI’s nose, he was certainly not an opponent to be taken lightly,

But when looking for aspects superior to oneself, there didn’t seem to be any.

If one mobilized various resources and external assistance, it was worth “challenging” him.

At that moment,

Princesses Elizaveta and Margarita began a power struggle against the Crown Prince.

The Abbas government analyzed that this race for the throne had intensified about two years ago, or at the latest, 1 year and 8 months ago.

“The general structure that the intelligence authorities have identified is a ‘three-way battle’.”

Crown Prince Valery – Princess Elizaveta – Princess Margarita.

A fierce internal power struggle is unfolding around these three.

“The conflict hasn’t surfaced yet. At most, they’re gathering people and engaging in psychological warfare? Not at the stage of arrests or purges.”

“I see none of the factions has gained the upper hand. It also sounds like the princesses’ political influence is threatening to the Crown Prince.”

“You’ve assessed it correctly.”

In fact, the two princesses, Elizaveta and Margarita, had long formed powerful factions.

According to the Foreign Ministry’s understanding, Elizaveta had successfully recruited some of Petrograd’s central bureaucratic organization and senior members of the Imperial Parliament.

Princess Margarita had successfully recruited regional parties from the west, local officials, civic groups, and academic-industrial-research personnel.

The background for why the two princesses could show such aggressive expansion in such a short time was simple.

Elizaveta had her husband, a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, strong connections from her family that dominated the bureaucratic society, and the security police providing powerful intelligence.

Margarita had the full support of her maternal grandfather, who reigned as king in the western region, and broad support from the western business community.

“However, Crown Prince Valery is not someone to be taken lightly. He doesn’t wear the title of Crown Prince just for show.”

“What cards does he hold?”

“Imperial bureaucrats have either been filled with the Crown Prince’s close associates or been recruited by his side in the past five years. The palace ministers operate under a separate organizational system from the Kiyen administration, so even Elizaveta’s family essentially has no way to intervene.”

“So it’s the Crown Prince’s home ground. What else?”

“The headquarters and all military units defending Petrograd. Two of the five security agencies, the Imperial Guard responsible for the frontline protection of the imperial family, and the Reconnaissance Command, which oversees all intelligence activities and special operations units of the Kiyen military, are under Valery’s control.”

“Hooo….”

“For reference, Valery has been Crown Prince for quite a long time. Almost comparable to Prince Charles.”

That’s why the military elders and the upper echelons of the government-controlled parties tend to favor the Crown Prince.

It’s not that they particularly approve of the Crown Prince’s policies or have personal affection for him.

It could be summarized as: ‘The Emperor has designated him as the successor for decades now, so perhaps it’s time to promote him as the next Emperor without issue?’

Of course, when Emperor Nikolai VI was alive and well, anyone who said such things would be sent to a camp, regardless of whether they were a general or a noble.

Until about 10 years ago, people were dragged away for talking nonsense under the influence of alcohol, but who would have imagined that in just 5 years, imperial family members would be breakdancing in front of foreigners, shouting, “I’ll succeed my father!”?

Anyway.

I briefly summarized the current three-way battle structure.

1. It’s true that either Elizaveta or Margarita could push aside the Crown Prince and become Emperor at any time.

2. But trying to oust him in one go is difficult because Crown Prince Valery’s guard is too strong, and if necessary, the Crown Prince could also mobilize loyal military units to crush the princesses.

3. Even if they managed to depose Valery, both Elizaveta and Margarita would not escape criticism for usurping the throne of the legitimate heir. This means that even after succeeding, they would face condemnation and sanctions from the imperial people or the international community as traitors.

So here’s the question.

To form a safe confrontational structure with the Crown Prince, who holds some military power, and to dilute the risk of rebellion, who should one join hands with?

“Hmm….”

Camilla stroked her cheek with a deeply contemplative expression.

And in a very profound voice, she gave an answer close to the correct one.

“Making a non-aggression pact with the enemy most likely to stab you in the back first…?”

“……”

“What? Was I wrong?”

“No, that’s not it. But when you say it like that, it makes me feel like I’m the Soviet Foreign Minister coming to negotiate with Hitler.”

That was it.

Although it wasn’t an exact analogy, the background of Princess Elizaveta’s approach to the Abbas government resembled Camilla’s comparison to some extent.

Until just a few months ago, we had planned to simply watch if a family fight broke out in the empire.

Then, once a winner was determined, we would impose trade sanctions or make unofficial interventions depending on the situation.

Now everything has been overturned because the princesses have made sudden proposals.

This was precisely the point that Prime Minister Abbas and the ministers found perplexing.

“To be honest, even our cabinet didn’t anticipate this. Who would have thought that an imperial family member would drag in an enemy government just to gain some power?”

“That means there’s no turning back.”

We looked at each other and laughed in disbelief.

With this, Princess Elizaveta had drawn the clearest line in the sand.

“Once involved with the Abbas government, it will be difficult to escape punishment, even for an imperial family member.”

Camilla, looking at the film, tilted her gaze slightly.

“Even if the Abbas government doesn’t actually support Princess Elizaveta?”

“It doesn’t matter. Under imperial criminal law, whether it’s rebellion or espionage, preparation, conspiracy, or assembly alone are all punishable. If imperial overthrow charges are applied, even her status as a princess becomes useless.”

Would Elizaveta not have known this?

Of course she would.

At this point, it’s a declaration of war—she’s willing to fight the Crown Prince even if it means death.

“Princess Margarita, who is likely to come meet me, probably has similar objectives to Elizaveta. Best case scenario, she receives our information, military, and diplomatic resources to defeat the Crown Prince.”

Even if not, it would be beneficial to secure a promise from the Abbas government to exchange generous coronation gifts instead of causing trouble when she ascends to the throne.

Camilla, looking at the film marked “No. 3,” muttered as if she understood:

“Hmm…. Then there’s a high probability that Margarita will attempt to make contact at this ball. As a relative latecomer compared to numbers 1 and 2.”

“In a place where unfamiliar faces are more common than friendly ones, it wouldn’t be strange to mingle with anyone.”

Perhaps because of her background in conflict studies, Camilla seemed to perfectly understand the unfolding situation.

Or maybe her insight from her internship with British intelligence was shining through here.

Either way, we began to formulate various plans ahead of attending the ball.

“Given that the invitation came from the imperial palace, it seems the Crown Prince invited us… What do you think their intention is in calling us?”

“Don’t overthink it. The Grand Duke and the Crown Prince are blood relatives, and you’re the Grand Duke’s protégé. They probably just invited you along. The issue is Princess Anastasia.”

I frowned slightly while examining microfilm “No. 5.”

“I still can’t figure out what her intention was in approaching me.”

“Why do you think that?”

“…When you think about it, it’s strange.”

Elizaveta, who has her family’s backing despite her maternal family being purged.

Margarita, who persistently pushes toward the center with support from her grandfather’s family and the western business community.

Valery, who has his legitimacy as Crown Prince and political acumen in recruiting the military.

These three individuals had each built their power in their own way and were power players engaged in a struggle in central politics.

In contrast, Princess Anastasia had the least power and the most unstable political support base.

She had essentially been pushed to the periphery of the succession battle.

Yet this unremarkable imperial family member….

“How on earth could she have used a method that allowed her to give instructions to the Kiyen Foreign Ministry?”

“……”

“The Foreign Ministry is a core institution that competes for the top one or two positions in the power hierarchy in any country.”

No matter how I thought about it, it wasn’t a normal phenomenon.

Camilla silently looked at my face without responding.

“…Since when have you been suspicious about that?”

“Well. It’s like an occupational disease.”

You’ll soon be like this too.

After patting her shoulder as a sign of encouragement, I left with a joke.

“Anyway, Camilla, be careful of Princess Anastasia. You never know when she might approach you.”

“I appreciate the advice. But I assume you have solid grounds for it?”

“Well, apart from intuition, I don’t have any concrete evidence yet…”

After walking a few steps, I suddenly turned my gaze, and there was Camilla, sitting hunched with her chin resting on her hand, looking at me. With a prim face, appearing indifferent to worldly matters, yet still with those endlessly transparent eyes sparkling.

Meeting her gaze, I smiled and replied:

“Isn’t that just the nature of our work?”