In 1871, the unthinkable happened: King Krist Sobiesław of Novoselic's Duarchy died after an unfortunate accident. An unpopular ruler, Krist was known as Der Arbeiterfresser (The Worker-Eater), for his mandate of ridiculous production quotas for his military pet projects:, chief among them Der Eiserne Drache (The Iron Dragon), a landship that could house five dozen men.

Nobody knows the exact circumstances of Krist's death. Some say he fell down the largest staircase in Novoselic (11,674 steps, the mountain staircase of the back entrance to Grohl Palace). Others insist that food poisoning took him. Whatever the circumstances, Kurt, his 17-year-old son, took the throne in 1872, and was a much better ruler, promising better rights for workers, and recognition of homosexuals and eonists.