The Nation Is the People
The nation is the people themselves.
Hitler scanned his surroundings with weary eyes that seemed to hold no soul.
This Slavic land did not appeal to him much either. The woman they called the Tsarina of Russia even showed respect to Jews. Truly. Of course, she accepted anyone with talent regardless of nationality, and Russia was in such desperate need of manpower that it could not afford to be picky. Looking on the bright side, it meant he could sweep every last Jew out of Germany. But that Germany had turned red instead of Russia.
What should become of Germany now? Was the remnant in East Prussia the only answer? He honestly did not want to follow that incompetent Kaiser. Was it not precisely because of the Kaiser’s incompetence that the Germany that should have been great had ended up in this sorry state?
“They said anyone who wants to stay and serve in the Russian army after possibly seeking asylum from the White Army should remain, so I plan to stay here.”
Military service, huh. That wouldn’t be so bad. At least this Russia was in better shape than Germany. Although they had once been enemies, after the Red-White Civil War broke out, the treatment German volunteers received on this Russian soil had been quite generous. Perhaps it was thanks to the enormous supplies the British had poured into White Russia to use them as pawns. There were even Russian women who would kiss passing German soldiers on the cheek.
But accepting that kindness and actually serving in the Russian army were two different matters.
“I hear the Russian army now calls itself the Saint’s army and is steeped in pride. Looks like you want to become one of the Saint’s soldiers too.”
“Anastasia the Tsarina is quite beautiful, after all.”
The princess of their own country whom he had glimpsed once by chance. She was far more beautiful than even Luise. Moreover, the sight of her wearing a uniform and personally stepping onto the battlefield could only be described as the goddess of war itself.
Yes. And yet… in the end, she was still the princess of a Slavic nation. She had nothing to do with Germany.
Right at that moment—
“I was told this is the German volunteers’ quarters. Is Adolf Hitler here by any chance?”
A Russian White Army officer in a green uniform had come looking for the German barracks. And he was specifically asking for Adolf Hitler.
“I am Corporal Adolf Hitler.”
“Her Majesty the Tsarina took a liking to your drawings. What do you say? Would you like to have an audience with the Tsarina?”
An audience with the Tsarina? For what reason should he meet the Russian Tsar?
“Looks like you caught the Saint’s eye. Shooting that Bolshevik bastard must have been the key.”
“Congratulations, man. The Tsarina is incredibly beautiful, you know.”
The German soldiers around him congratulated Adolf Hitler, but he himself felt strangely conflicted. They spoke so lightly. Their own Germany had just collapsed, yet here they all were acting like this.
Adolf Hitler brushed himself off, stood up, and followed the White Army officer to the temporary government building in Moscow, where he was granted an audience with the Tsarina.
She really was young. A member of the imperial family who had returned as a woman, captured the hearts of the people once more, and revived the Tsardom. She truly stood in stark contrast to the Kaiser in East Prussia.
“It is an honor to meet the Tsarina of all Russia. I am Corporal Adolf Hitler, dispatched as a German volunteer.”
“So you are the one who caught that Stalin fellow. Did you receive a medal from the White Army? I understand the Black Baron awarded medals to German soldiers.”
“Yes. Capturing the Bolshevik was nothing but luck.”
“Have you decided what you will do going forward?”
“I have not yet made a decision.”
As Hitler answered, he lowered his head. To have to say such things to the Russian Empress. No—more importantly, why had she summoned him? He was curious about the reason. If the Empress had called for him, it could not be for some trivial matter.
“Then I have a proposal for you. Would you happen to have any interest in industrial design? Or perhaps architecture?”
“Pardon?”
What kind of sudden proposal was this? Industrial design—what on earth did that even mean? Architecture? Out of nowhere?
When he looked closer, he saw drawings scattered across the Tsarina’s desk. They were the sketches he had drawn haphazardly to forget, even a little, about his homeland of Germany—which had fallen to the Reds—and Austria, which was no longer great. The Russian officer must have thought they were impressive and taken them, and now they had ended up in the Tsarina’s hands.
“As you can see, this civil war has caused enormous material damage and left ruins everywhere. We must rebuild the buildings, and I happened to see your drawings.”
“Hmm.”
“Your drawings are magnificent. I would like the buildings in these sketches to rise proudly over those collapsed ruins. What do you say? Would you not like to fully exercise your talents?”
The person called the Tsarina was a woman Hitler found impossible to read. Of course, it was ridiculous for a mere German volunteer to evaluate another country’s monarch, but still—wasn’t this a bit strange? She had beaten the Reds to a pulp, yet she pursued policies that carried the stench of Bolshevism.
Adolf Hitler pondered for a moment. His future looked bleak at present, and he needed to do something. So he accepted the Tsarina’s proposal.
I had simply thrown the idea out there, but Hitler actually accepted it. I never expected him to say yes.
The Hitler of the 1920s. He really doesn’t seem like a villain at all. Even if he would become one in history.
If the path to Nazism is blocked, perhaps this is inevitable. One small snowball I casually rolled has led to the German Revolution, after all. If I were to call this a “Raise Hitler” game, then the road to becoming Führer has been completely sealed off.
I’m curious what this man will be able to accomplish from now on. He does have an exceptional talent for speech, after all. He’s the kind of person who can captivate the hearts of Germans.
But the Hitler standing before me now… how should I put it? His face looks utterly soulless. The way he simply does whatever I ask makes him seem no different from a Hitler whose soul has already died.
“If you simply do your job well, I will promise you anything as your Tsarina. Whatever you need, I will help. There are communities of Germans living within Russia, after all. Helping Germans is not difficult.”
I gave the example of the Germans living along the Volga River. In truth, some of the German volunteers seemed interested in settling in the Volga German regions. They could not return to mainland Germany now under Bolshevik control. Going to East Prussia where the Kaiser was would only mean dying in fights against the Reds, and Austria was a defeated nation as well. So instead, they chose to become one pillar of a German region within the new multi-ethnic Russian United States.
“You mean the Volga Germans?”
“Indeed. During this civil war, they too suffered oppression between the Red and White armies. I have established them as the Volga German Republic, a constituent republic of the United States.”
If the Kaiser came, it would feel completely like a Russian vassal state. He probably won’t come precisely because he dislikes that. Besides, the Volga Germans are descendants of those who migrated to Russia long ago, so they likely wouldn’t suit the Kaiser’s tastes anyway.
“I see. I will keep that in mind.”
When you say you’ll keep something in mind, it’s honestly a little scary. You’re not planning to create some kind of Lebensraum in Slavic lands with that tiny handful of Volga Germans, are you?
“Do you have anything else to say?”
“Your Majesty has established a United States, yet in doing so, it has become a multi-ethnic nation that even includes Jews. I am curious as to why Your Majesty chose to create a United States.”
Ah, I see. So that’s it.
Hitler wants to know the path he should take. That’s why he’s asking for advice from me, the one who caught the Bolsheviks and now sits here. He wants to hear my ideology.
If this were a single-ethnic nation like Korea, it might be different. But Russia is currently a multi-ethnic state. It is impossible to discriminate against Jews alone here. If you want to hide a tree, you hide it in a forest. Within a United States that embraces many ethnicities, Jews can simply blend in.
“It is multi-ethnic, but ethnicity itself is not important. Ethnicity is nothing but an illusion.”
“You say ethnicity is an illusion?”
Why does he look so shocked?
“The nation is more important than ethnicity. No matter which ethnicity one belongs to, if they work for Russia of their own will and take pride in being Russian, then they are Russian. Yes. One could say that the nation called Russia itself is the ethnicity. The trees called ethnicities gather together to form the forest called a nation. All ethnicities becoming Russian, building a future based on capitalism—that is precisely what this Russian United States is.”
A country where anyone would want to become Russian. Anyone at all. Even if their skin is dark, if they live in Russia and proudly declare themselves Russian, then they are Russian. That is the kind of country I am building.
“Then what does Your Majesty think of Germany?”
Ah, so that question comes. Yes, of course it does. I am curious what kind of influence my ideology will have on this Hitler.
“It has been consumed by the red plague and fallen into chaos where it can no longer distinguish between ethnicity or nation. However, the Austrian Empire still remains, does it not? If Austria takes the lead as the foremost nation of the German ethnicity, makes everyone want to become Austrian, and integrates Hungary, Slovakia, and others once more to purify communist Germany, that would not be a bad path either.”
“The nation above ethnicity. I see. Then treating Czechs and Hungarians as honorary Austrians—”
This guy seems to have taken it in a slightly dangerous direction. Surely not…
“Has this been of any help in determining the direction you should take?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Then for the time being, I will work here before returning to Austria.”
Hitler left my office with a renewed sense of purpose.
Yes. It’s good to work hard at anything. I’m curious how Hitler will change. One thing is certain: the chances of the current Hitler becoming like the one in actual history are very low.
Austria. With only Czechia remaining, no matter what he does, it will be difficult to build it up to the level of Nazi Germany. Besides, the Hitler of real history had too many lucky breaks in a row that caused him to run wild. I’m not sure whether fighting communist Germany would be easier or harder. The Reds are terrifying, after all.
Wait. If Hitler goes to Austria and seizes power… I could station him at the very front of the line against communist Germany, couldn’t I?
Now then, there is another person I will be meeting soon. During the coronation, many Russian nobles attended and shed tears over Russia’s revival. Among them, the biggest figure of all is—
“Prince Yusupov.”
Yes. Prince Felix Yusupov. The Yusupov family possesses an enormous fortune. In rebuilding the new Russia, it’s only natural that I should extract some of that money, isn’t it?
This man was originally exiled after incurring the wrath of Nicholas II for the crime of executing Rasputin.
“I never imagined Your Highness the Princess would ascend to the position of Tsarina with such dignity.”
“Well, that’s how life is. Even a girl who knew nothing would change when faced with the deaths of her family and her own impending death, wouldn’t she?”
I never expected to be here either. If this man heard my true circumstances, he would probably be shocked. If I told him I’m not even the original Anastasia, he’d probably laugh, wouldn’t he?
“While Your Majesty fought, I only ran away. I apologize.”
“Wasn’t it unavoidable? Honestly, if you had stayed and been executed by the Reds, that would have been a problem in its own way. If you lack the ability to fight, running away to plan for the future is the right choice. Thanks to that, you were able to return like this, weren’t you?”
“Your Majesty…”
Why is he so moved? The reason I summoned you is because you’re rich. I have things I want you to do.
“There will be much for you to help with in the future, Prince. The new Russia is carrying out reforms, but it is still weak. Since you have had your property returned, please contribute to the national budget.”
“That goes without saying. I will help.”
Yes, yes. Since you survived thanks to me, you should offer up some of that wealth. In real history, this man could only take jewelry with him when he went into exile. But here, he even got his property returned. Later he went into exile abroad and failed at a fashion-related business with what little capital he had left. At this point, shouldn’t he do whatever I tell him?
“Also, I have thought of a business item.”
“A business item?”
He’ll be shocked when he hears what I have to say.
“In other words, a way to make money. I came up with something rather interesting. Since there are still many starving citizens in Russia, I thought of creating simple meals to solve that problem.”
“Please tell me.”
Yes, yes. That look suits you. As expected of someone with property scattered throughout Russia. I heard this man’s Yusupov Palace in Yalta was used as Stalin’s residence during the Yalta Conference.
What I’m about to tell this man is… In my previous life, in a ruined world, I once studied ramen because I wanted to make it. The manufacturing process and such. Of course, I eventually reached the realistic conclusion that it would be better to go farming for cup ramen whose location I didn’t even know. Still, I never thought that knowledge would be used like this.
“So, what it is… is…”
Prince Yusupov’s eyes sparkled as he listened to me.
“Oh. Such an attractive idea.”
“However, whether you can actually produce it is another matter.”
Separate from being rich, what matters is whether he has the will to do it. I’m already being well taken care of in Duma, but I can at least offer ideas like this.
“It doesn’t seem bad at all. I will give it a try.”
“If the ingredients are prepared, I can demonstrate it myself.”
“No, how could Your Majesty… If you prepare the recipe, I will gather people and have them try.”
Yes. If he responds like that, I’m grateful. In real history, Korea’s ramen technology received free technical support from Japan’s Myojo Foods to create its first ramen. But in this world, we don’t know what will happen to Japan, and Korean ramen from my original world was popular in Russia as well. So wouldn’t it be fine to take the idea first and make it here?
“Very well. I will prepare the recipe separately.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
War will break out eventually. For that day, we must spare no effort in resource development.