When the assassin Bogdan Zerajić fired at the Habsburg governor in Bosnia in 1910, he could have sparked the global conflagration that erupted four years later with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. But Zerajić missed his target and turned the gun on himself. Meanwhile, unrest simmered across other regions of the multi-ethnic Austro-Hungarian Empire, particularly among the Czechs, who were awakening to their national identity.

Through dramatic re-enactments from these hotspots, this episode chronicles the tumultuous decades when ethnic fault lines within the Habsburg state became increasingly pronounced. The Ottoman Empire's retreat from the Balkans primarily benefited Russia, which shifted from being Austria's long-standing ally to its fierce strategic adversary—largely due to missteps in Habsburg Balkan policy. This pivotal shift set the stage for World War I. The national states we know today are direct outcomes of these historical developments.

Just a few years before the outbreak of World War I, the world is alive with revelry. Entertainment, consumerism, and sports sweep people into a frenzy of possibility—a world where everything seems achievable, except collective downfall.

In Vienna, merchant Emil Storch establishes one of the first comprehensive mail-order businesses, earning him the title of an early Jeff Bezos. Yet, the exuberance proves to be a dead end. Overextended, Storch loses everything in the postwar inflation. Similarly, the fate of daring cycling pioneer Cenzi Flendrovsky is equally tragic. Her passion for promoting the sport captivates the masses, but her life is cut short at just 28 by the consequences of a cycling accident.

The prewar years bring the world its first taste of a globalized abundance society. Yet, this euphoria is short-lived. The outbreak of World War I catches Austria's peace-loving society off guard. Overabundance gives way to scarcity, and the dividends of peace quickly evaporate. As history shows, war and prosperity have always been incompatible.