Two Vials of Poison-Choose One

March 3, 1931, St. Petersburg, Tsardom of Russia.

The renowned Tsar Nicholas II was already sixty-three years old. His political career, like his age, had entered its twilight years.

There was no need to say more about the war that was already nearing defeat. For Nicholas II, the most fatal problem was that the Empire's succession had been severed from this moment onward.

As March arrived, Crown Prince Alexei announced that he was critically ill. After holding out for so long, Crown Prince Alexei, who suffered from hemophilia, finally collapsed on the road of fighting against the disease.

This was the cruelest blow Nicholas II could have suffered. Even if he won the war, his throne had effectively lost its succession.

Because Nicholas II's younger brother had married an immoral widow, the position of Tsar could only be passed down to Alexei.

But after Alexei became critically ill, the only heir who still held any hope was Alexei's sole daughter, Princess Xiyianna.

In peacetime, having another empress in the Tsardom of Russia would not have been a major problem. After all, the renowned Catherine the Great had also been a woman, hadn't she?

But the problem was that Tsarist Russia was not in peacetime. Moreover, Princess Xiyianna was only two years old. Having a two-year-old girl inherit the throne of Tsarist Russia was tantamount to pushing the succession of the Tsardom of Russia toward extinction.

Although Princess Xiyianna had not inherited Crown Prince Alexei's hemophilia and was perfectly healthy,

a princess offered no help whatsoever when it came to inheriting the throne. This also meant that the Tsardom of Russia was currently trapped in unprecedented internal and external troubles.

Thinking of this, Nicholas II could not help feeling somewhat envious of Arthur. Arthur did not have many descendants, but three