292 – Divide and Rule (2)
As soon as the ambassadors saw me, they pretended to be happy and welcomed me, as if I had met an old friend.
“Oh, sir, are you the famous Marquis Peter Yeager? Although we have never met on the battlefield, I have heard from Major General Fleur, who was close to me, that Sir fought very bravely.”
“When I was appointed to the Reich Empire last year, His Highness the Archduke of Austria told me to hand him this sword to Lord Jaeger if I ever meet him. You don’t have to decline, it’s a tribute to the 7th Guards Division and your bravery. “It’s not a bribe.”
“As the count of the Albino Canton of Switzerland and ambassador to the Reich Empire, I was defeated in a bloody battle on Lichen Hill last time. We salute him for his bravery and strength. “It is truly an honor to see you here in person.”
They are smiling at each other, but in fact, as soon as they meet me face to face, they probably feel like their skin is growing out of disgust and their allergies are getting worse.
I fought a fierce war with the country to which those noblemen belonged as enemies on the battlefield, and achieved a great victory, so it would not bother me at all if I became friendly with them out of generosity.
No, when I think about what the Reich Empire I belong to was ripped off by those thugs…
Personally, I am willing to bring a luxurious birthday cake worth about 50 gold to their birthday party.
But the reason I can have such peace of mind is because I achieved a perfect victory. If I had lost like them, I would have gritted my teeth with a sense of inferiority.
As if to prove this, the ambassador to Warsaw, who suffered the most severe defeat by the most recent empire, kept his mouth shut even while others were offering good words to protect their country’s fragile pride.
So, I went to greet the Ambassador of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw with good intentions.
“Ambassador Sendler, nice to meet you. “It is truly an honor to meet Lord Sendler, who is renowned even in the Empire for his outstanding artistic ability, in person today.”
When I extended my hand for a handshake, Sendler gave my right hand a firm squeeze.
Out of all the people here, he is from the country that suffered the most recent defeat, so I think he’s planning to challenge me with this.
Common sense tells me, a sword master, that a civil servant in his 50s would not be able to defeat me with my grip strength, but you dare challenge me to such a petty fight.
I wanted to show my anger by clenching my fist as hard as possible, but in times like this, it would feel worse to just ignore it.
I smiled leisurely, showing that I wasn’t in any pain, and Sendler’s face showed his irritation when he saw my smile.
“Ah, it is an honor to meet Sir Peter Yeager like this. Although I have never personally participated in the battles of Glopino and Gryffino. “I heard many rumors from my acquaintances who participated in the two battles, and he seems much stronger than I heard.”
“It is an honor for our family that the Ambassador evaluates us so much.”
“I too am honored to meet you, the captain, who deserves to be called the greatest commander on the Europa continent.”
In this way, the ambassadors and I exchanged compliments that weren’t just compliments such as “Are you good or me?” For about 30 minutes, and when the mood warmed up, we made a full-fledged proposal.
“I would like to continue to have good-will and friendly conversations with you all, but since you are all very busy, I will now get to the point. “The empire would like to sign a five-year peace treaty with you.”
As soon as the ambassadors heard what I said, they smiled with 100% sincere joy, not the fake smile they had shown so far.
If they were a potential enemy country, or if they failed, they would join hands and beat the Reich Empire like neighborhood drums.
Now that I, the captain of the Imperial Army, raise both hands and mention the ‘peace treaty,’ he must be happy that the time has finally come to defeat us.
In his heart, he is like a man who thinks about marrying a girl with a pretty face just by chance touching her, and is steeped in the pink delusion of hearing a single peace treaty, sharing the territory of the empire, and then being promoted to the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs. That’s it.
However, perhaps it was because they thought that shouting ‘NO’ and saying ‘f*ck our empire’ right away was a poor thing as a diplomat, but everyone acted as if they were deeply interested in my story.
“It is very interesting because it is a peace treaty.”
“Peace is better than war, Lord Jaeger.”
“hehehe, when I was young, I had a romantic dream of war, but as I got older, I realized that peace was the best.”
Inwardly laughing at the pretentious words, I handed over the draft of the peace treaty to everyone.
“This peace treaty stipulates that the Reich Empire, the Kingdom of Stockholm, the Grand Duchy of Austria, the Grand Duchy of Czechia, the Duchy of Switzerland, the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, and the François Republic will not take any hostile action against each other for five years. “If a country violates this provision, the remaining six countries will mobilize their troops to militarily punish the country that broke its promise.”
There have been various types of peace treaties on the continent of Europa.
Marriage alliances premised on marriage, peace treaties guaranteed by sending each other’s princes or nobles as hostages, religious peace oaths vacating the authority of the Deusian Pope, etc.
However, there was no one like me who proposed a peace treaty that would tie up several countries at once.
Because, in a continent where the culture of backstabbing each other was so developed, there was a lot of prejudice about how it could be trusted if the treaty was not one-on-one, but was aimed at several parties.
Having experienced the world community of the UN in Korea, I was convinced that a treaty concluded between many people would be more effective than a one-on-one treaty.
Like I said, if there is someone who breaks the treaty, the rest can rush in and impose the sanctions of justice.
I know from history that after the launch of the UN system, the frequency of wars around the world decreased significantly.
Ambassador François Henry asked after hearing my proposal.
“It is quite a fascinating story that our six countries are signing a five-year peace treaty. In particular, it is impressive that everyone joins forces to punish countries that violate the treaty. If everyone keeps the treaty, everyone can enjoy peace, but if anyone breaks the treaty, they will be attacked by all five countries and the country may be on the brink of ruin. The justification of violence by the majority is impressive. If any country here goes to war with any of the five countries, the country that breaks the treaty first will definitely lose the war. “A situation will be created where countries that comply with the treaty will just have to divide each other on the battlefield where victory is guaranteed.”
“That’s correct, Ambassador Henri.”
“But if a country like Warsaw or Czechia violates the treaty, it will be difficult to cede the territory even if the Francois Republic sends troops there. How will you compensate for that?”
I think they’re trying to find a loophole here, but there’s no way around it.
“In that case, we will separate from the imperial territories an amount equal to the number of territories that the Francois Republic should have originally acquired in return for its performance in the war. For example, if you set up a major that allows you to gain 1 duchy’s worth of territory in a battle with the Grand Duchy of Czechia. Since the Empire faces the border with Czechvia, it also claims ‘one dukedom’ that the Francois Republic should have, and gives it a corresponding amount of territory. “This offer is also valid for ambassadors from other countries.”
Joseon and the Ming Dynasty were countries with very strong centralization, so it is impossible to imagine a transaction in which territory was given and sold like this.
In this era, when Europe’s feudal tradition remains strong, territory and fiefdoms can be traded as needed.
“Aren’t we all people who need peace anyway?”
Everyone nodded as if they agreed with that statement.
Countries such as Czechia, Franconia, and Switzerland lost territory after fighting a war and are having a hard time recovering devastated territories, making up for decreased income, and overcoming the shock of population decline.
The empire also needs time to completely make the territory it absorbed through ongoing wars its own and restore the lives of its people to their original state.
This is a win-win agreement that benefits everyone.
While all the ambassadors were nodding their heads at those words, Ambassador Henry threw his white glove towards me and said,
“But do you know that, Sir Peter Yeager?”
“What do you mean?”
“You don’t seem to know because you just keep winning, so I’ll tell you a little bit. The side that asks for a peace treaty is always the weak one. So why would we give up on a situation where if we join forces now we could destroy the empire? So just wait. “I will prepare a terrifying offensive that even the power and ability of the Lord cannot withstand.”
…… When a peace treaty is first proposed, there are bound to be threats, criticism, and crazy people who make a fuss and demand better conditions.
So I wasn’t surprised when something like this happened.
Meanwhile, the other ambassadors also got up from their seats as if they had been waiting.
“I agree with Ambassador Henri! “Our Principality of Switzerland will follow suit!”
“The Kingdom of Stockholm also actively supports that opinion.”
“The Grand Duchy of Czechia will follow the views of the François Republic.”
I guess they all agreed that if I asked to sign a peace treaty, they would all shout NO and put pressure on the Reich Empire.
Otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to all come together like this.
From the empire’s point of view, this is a huge crisis, but I was not at all embarrassed by this situation.
Because the relationship between these children is about believing in their desire for each other’s benefit, so if only one person is left out of this…
Because it can destroy this damn thing’s unity.
And the target I can easily target now is probably the ambassador of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, who suffered tremendous damage by losing the entire coastal area of one principality due to this defeat.
The reason why I thought so is simple.
How scared would he be of me, and how would he be gnashing his teeth out of revenge?
That also means that my threat will work very well.