ch 9; Head or Tail (4)

There is a slight misunderstanding that I'm absolutely opposed to war, since I even abolished the Ministry of War in the war climate, and denied war as a solution pushed in the beginning by the newly formed oligarchs. There are various reasons only relevant at that time for these, yet one thing is clear.

 

I do hate war. 

 

But to say I would reject every war proposal is simply illogical. 

 

While I'm not fond of it, if things come to shove, I would even advocate a total war. However, my stance is that such extreme and resource-draining resolutions should be avoided if possible. 

 

But if there are instances where I'm forced to accept war as the answer, I have to stand myself in the most advantageous headstart possible. Not to mention, there has to be a clear objective: must I choose war over anything else. Only when the condition mentioned above had been achieved, only then, would I click the war option.

 

Now, again, as a modern person who was equipped with various knowledge, I understand the severity of choosing war, amongst other available options. Thus, my aversion. In times where resources are scarce and we had no choice but to bring external actor, opting for war would bring more disadvantage rather than advantage. 

 

There's two big reasons.

 

One, is obviously consumables including (especially) food. 

 

Grain that should be for normalizing our market would be depleted and soon empty in no time. It is safe to say that we, the Vedora Kingdom, can't expect a normalized output soon, as the people responsible for producing our grain are still recuperating. 

 

And second, is dependency. 

 

The Empire, being a superpower, must know our internal situation and the reason I put grain on the first list, top priority, in my request. Then, they must also know that if they want us to become their hunting dog in regards to pouring the oil of war in the south, they have to expend more grain to be able to effectively use us. 

 

The free grains did sound generous, but what about after the war? 

 

I'm obviously not naive enough to not predict the post-war situation where our country is sucked dry by the vicious vampire called war. Down to the bones and marrow. Recovery? Impossible. We'll be left with nothing but husk afterwards, yet there's still this clause of repaying our borrowed grains to the Empire. 

 

Can this country endure that? Ha, no way. 

 

With that, independence will be removed and we won't be able to do nothing but clinging hard to the Empire. 

 

This brings us a question; knowing all this, can I possibly reject the Empire's covert demand? 

 

I'd say, 50:50. 

 

"Let me advise you." Ludwig began, "The Empire has detected an unusual movement in the neighboring country, and I believe you yourself have discovered a separatist movement in your own yard, so I won't elaborate on that."

 

Going straight for the sore spot, huh. I know, I know it all, you bastard. Why do you think I pulled that gamble, luring you out for negotiation for all to see like this? It's literally a puppet show. A mirage designed for maximizing your name to the fullest. 

 

"Ah, is that so? I know half, but I guess my small kingdom's covert motion can't be compared to the vast Empire. I learned new things, thanks to you."

 

"Yes. And since you pulled quite a trick to use our Empire as your shield amidst our busy schedule, along with those outrageous demands, I implore you to strongly reflect our proposal. Give and take, no?"

 

Damn, they found out huh. Well, no matter. Thankfully he still didn't catch my little ploy of putting high stakes to hid my true objective. 

 

"Hahaha, pardon my little trick then. The situation has escalated too much for me to care about a little fallout. Though, 'give and take', huh. What a good saying. Is it your own saying, Sir Ludwig?"

 

"No. It's a famous saying from our Supreme Commander."

 

"Oh? Sir Siegmund? A product of the star of our generation, then! Good, good."

 

"Indeed."

 

Hahahaha— 

 

We both laugh but honestly, there's a rain of cold sweat on my back. With that short exchange, I could confirm that Ludwig did receive instructions from that ex-Supreme Commander. This spiked the difficulty by a lot. And it also seems this Ludwig guy admires Siegmund to the point of practically worshipping the guy. Total pain in the ass. 

 

That means I can't take a hardcore route of completely ignoring the Empire's stance and focus on taking the grains with me. The moment I did that, there's a chance Ludwig would blow up everything and abandon this negotiation entirely. 

 

Huu, calm down.  

 

Still. There's still some cards I could play here. I'm not entirely out of options. 

 

Do you really think I would leash myself to you voluntarily? No way, friend. Don't take me for a pushover. 

 

Think, Philip. Think. What kind of maneuver could let me escape this check?

 

Let's summarize a bit. 

 

I pull the Empire into the negotiation table as an intimidation card so that the soon-to-be enemy is wary and lets me tackle my internal situation in peace. The Empire, knowing this, moves unpredictably as a little retaliation for getting tricked, but the real motion is the covert proposal which uses the fact that we're, superficially speaking, an allies, and I had established myself as the weaker party because of my request in this alliance. 

 

My purpose is always the grain. Normalization of internal situation, and the Empire for some reason wants to increase my weight class by waging a conquest war in the south. But it's clearly a bad time for war even though the movement of neighboring countries looks suspicious. 

 

Can I explicitly decline? No. Too risky. 

 

However, can I possibly negotiate to give myself an advantage? 

 

Possible. 

 

But at what point should I approach this? At what angle? 

 

Wait… wait, wait, wait. Why can't they just force feed me from the beginning? Why are they, as the upper handed nation in this paper alliance, did not aggressively pushing us onto the path of war from the get go? Hm? 

 

There's something… I could see myself grasping into that tiny light. But it's frustratingly elusive. 

 

"To be perfectly honest, I'm not a person entirely absent of ambition. However, I'm a pacifist, you see? Looking back at the most recent history of this kingdom, an expansionist ambition looks quite misguided. I have no choice but to see war in a clear negative light."

 

"It is inevitable. This situation is clearly different from your predecessor, isn't it? Back then it was driven by greed; today, circumstances."

 

"Yet, we haven't been able to completely solidify our own turf. And give and take, was it? We've already indebted one with this grain issue. How could we shoulder another burden when things are clearly still in crisis?"

 

"...then, I assume you can't move recklessly before consolidating the internal? Even after the Empire's help?"

 

"Unless you commit an army here, there's no guarantee I could be of any help without tackling this country's critical issue."

 

After parroting, cycling around the same conclusion with different words, Ludwig looked at me in dissatisfaction. Meanwhile, I slowly sipped the now-cold tea, savoring its sugarless taste. 

 

Jackpot. 

 

This is it. 

 

Racking my brains, I recall a particular report about the international climate a few days ago. With that, a perfect explanation and whole cause and effect finally clicked in place like a puzzle piece.

 

"I understand the Empire's stance. I truly do. With geographical disadvantage, you must be extremely anxious about the possibility of the west joining the fray. Furthermore, there's a rumor that there's already a new hegemon in that dog-eat-dog region."

 

"!?"

 

Ha! To think I'm so slow at catching it. Yes… of course they won't be aggressive on us. In this time where the west's warring state period finally ends, and the diplomatic mission in the north reached a stalemate, we're a genuine option in their eyes. 

 

No, to be exact, they are extremely wary of the image seen by their target of alliance, the Ferjya Federation. With the west completing their warring states period, the Empire, alarmed, must be heightened their effort to court the Federation. And if words came out that they were acting aggressively to their southern allies, the talk of opposition could gain momentum. 

 

With a few grains, they already forge a subordinate relationship under the guise of an alliance, making us their hands and feet to control the south in its entirety. 

 

With the south region clinched tightly in their reins, they could threaten both north and west. Simultaneously opening two fronts to the enemy's territory is a clear advantage. Thus, a subtle threat. But clearly, it's either they lack resources to commit aggression, or still gauging whether we are capable enough as their allies. 

 

Evidently, I think the first option is the most likely. 

 

The biggest clues lie in their inability to immediately grant my first grain request. If they were truly capable of expending more resources, at the first glance my proposal would be stamped without much deliberation. 

 

Hmmm, now I know their motives, shall I try to reap more benefits? Hehe, don't worry, friend from the Empire, I bet this counter-proposal would be good for you too. 

 

"However, Sir Ludwig, I happened to have an idea most ingenious. Dare to hear?"