IJSF: Time-Traveled to 1901, Changing History with 21st Century Tech

Chapter 25 - Discovery (2)

Lieutenant Arima passed the information obtained from Anastasia to the Space Force.

1. The Imperial family was executed in Yekaterinburg in July 1918. The location was the basement of the Ipatiev House.

2. Only the fourth daughter, Anastasia, was rescued and fled to Nikolayevsk with Chamberlain Rubanov.

3. Rubanov is severely wounded, Anastasia is lightly injured, and they are being protected by the Army's 7th Division.

4. Anastasia witnessed civilian massacres by the Japanese army while fleeing.

The telegram is encrypted using a cipher key developed by the Space Force. All transmissions are in Morse code. "Tone" represents "0," and "pulse" represents "1." The message is converted to binary code and sent as a long string of zeros and ones.

Although Lieutenant Arima initially considered not reporting about the civilian massacres by the Japanese army due to lack of evidence, he reconsidered and decided to transmit all information as scrutinizing the information was the responsibility of the headquarters.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"This is crucial! I must report to His Highness the Regent immediately!"

The execution executed in the basement of the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg in July 1918 aligns with historical facts. In 1920, aside from the involved parties and Red Army officials, no one else should know about this. So, Anastasia is real. History has already begun to change.

Sōryū schemed on how to make the most use of Anastasia's survival.

"Your Highness, a telegram has arrived from Lieutenant Arima in Nikolayevsk," Sōryū reported to His Highness, including his own thoughts.

"So, this Grand Duchess Anastasia is real, and her family has already been killed? What a dreadful thing... And is it true that our Imperial Army is committing massacres on the ground? This is not something to be overlooked if it's true!"

His Highness trembled as he held the report with shaking hands. With his knowledge from his past life, Sōryū knew that the Japanese army had been involved in the Siberian Intervention and was aware that Japanese atrocities might occur in Nikolayevsk. However, he had never read the details of the events in which the Japanese army had committed killings in Siberia.

"Yes, Your Highness. There is no evidence of massacres, but given the extreme circumstances, such events may have occurred. However, at present, we cannot confirm it. In any case, the situation in Russia is dire, with the White Army's fortunes waning and attacks by the Red Army occurring in Nikolayevsk. Therefore, I advise the evacuation of residents and the withdrawal of the Japanese forces from Siberia."

The Regent invited the Minister of the Army to verify the facts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Minister, how long do you intend to continue the Siberian Intervention?"

"Yes, Your Highness. I believe we must continue until the rights and safety of the residents in Siberia are secured."

"However, Minister. If attacks by the Red Army, like the recent one in Nikolayevsk, continue, it will become increasingly difficult to ensure the safety of the residents. This time, it was thanks to your foresight, Minister, that reinforcements were sent and the situation was resolved without major casualties. But it's doubtful that such fortune will continue. Perhaps it's time to consider evacuating the residents and withdrawing?"

"Yes, Your Highness. However, I believe it's not yet advisable to abandon the rights of the residents at this stage."

"I see. By the way, how are the battles with the Red Army in Siberia going? Have our forces suffered any casualties? And our troops aren't attacking the Russian people, are they?"

"Yes, Your Highness. Our forces are elite and strive to avoid conflicts with the Red Army as much as possible, so casualties have been minimal. While we will defend ourselves if attacked, we do not engage in offensive actions against the Russian people. It's inconceivable for us to attack the Russian people."

In reality, at this point, the Japanese army had suffered over 300 deaths and more than 1.000 injuries.

"I see, that's good. However, I've heard that the United States and Britain have already withdrawn their troops. Isn't it about time for our country to do the same?"

"Yes, Your Highness. I will inquire with the dispatched forces about the latest situation and make every effort to align with Your Highness' wishes, if possible."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Speak of your mind, Takashiro."

After the Minister of the Army left, Sōryū, who had been listening in, emerged.

"Yes, Your Highness. I don't think it's accurate to say that the Japanese army hasn't suffered any casualties. Furthermore, we cannot be certain that they haven't killed local Russian civilians. At the very least, I believe it would be wise to confirm. I suspect that some information has been reported to the Army General Staff, so it would be best to verify."

He then instructed the Minister of the Army to bring all telegrams exchanged with the Siberian Expeditionary Force. It was unprecedented for the Regent to directly review military communications, but he couldn't shake off his unease and felt the need to confirm directly. As it was customary to transmit telegrams using as few words as possible, the volume of documents wasn't extensive.

The Regent reviewed the documents with an officer from the Space Force.

"The next one after telegram 238 is 241... 239 and 240 are missing."

"Same here. There are gaps in several places. It seems they were intentionally omitted."

The contents of the telegrams were mostly about supplies and personnel rotation, nothing controversial.