章 156: The Terms of Surrender

May 22nd, 1939 – Winter Palace, St. Petersburg

The gilded corridors of the Winter Palace seemed eerily quiet, as though the very walls sensed the despair that gripped the empire. Tsar Ivan IV sat alone at the head of the long, polished table in his private study. A faint chill lingered in the air despite the season, the once-grand chamber feeling as cold and lifeless as the waters where his navy now rested, shattered and defeated.

A sharp knock at the door shattered the silence. Ivan's head jerked up, his eyes bloodshot and wild. 

"Enter," he barked, his voice harsher than intended.

Prime Minister Konstantin Petrov stepped inside, his demeanor as cautious as ever. His thin frame was almost swallowed by the opulent surroundings, but the weight of the envelope in his hand seemed to ground him. The golden seal of Valoria glinted ominously under the flickering lamplight.