Dialogue with the United States

━The United States.

"Hmm. So if we simply stay out of the war and recognize your occupation ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of China and Japan, you'll join the fight against Germany?"

President Allan Benson of the United States chuckled as he spoke, unable to keep the corner of his mouth from twitching.

Just where did the war plans against Germany leak from? Do the Koreans have a spy?

Faces of the pro-Korean faction flickered through Allan's mind. Those bastards wouldn't have... No. Even they wouldn't hand over intelligence this classified.

...Maybe they aren't certain. Maybe this is a probe.

But the woman in the maid uniform sitting across from him looked as though she believed every word of it was fact.

After a moment's deliberation, Allan decided to ask directly.

"Where did you obtain that information? It could lead to some unfortunate misunderstandings. If you'd tell us, we'll be happy to deal with whoever's spreading such nonsense."

He smiled warmly as he said it, but not so much as a flicker crossed the maid's face.

"His Majesty has stated that the only window in which war with Germany ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠remains viable is right now."

Allan's thoughts tangled at those words.

Was the Korean Emperor always this sharp? He almost never appears in public, so it's nearly impossible to get a read on the man.

Thanks to those idiots in Japan, no one but Korean nationals was permitted inside the imperial palace anymore — a headache in its own right.

"War? I have no intention of starting anything so terrifying."

Allan decided to pull back once more and gauge her reaction.

"His Majesty has stated that the moment Germany grows any stronger, even a combined United States and Soviet Union will have no chance of victory. And America has no desire to live beneath Germany."

...His Majesty this, His Majesty that. She sounds like a cultist. But the argument itself was devastatingly persuasive.

The United States had reached the same conclusion — that Germany could be given no more time — and that was precisely why they had resolved on war.

It wasn't so strange that Korea had drawn a similar conclusion and anticipated that America would take the field.

The near-religious certainty still unnerved him, but if their Emperor had spoken, the maid's attitude was only natural.

Korea was famous for fanatical loyalty, after all.

As for an alliance with the Soviet Union — if war with Germany was coming, that partnership was essential. Nothing strange there either.

...A little strange, maybe. But they could simply be guessing.

"Very well. I'll admit it — we are preparing for war. And as you said, we have already concluded a secret alliance with the Soviets."

After several rounds of denial, Allan raised both hands and conceded the truth with surprising grace.

"As expected. His Majesty's words are always correct."

For the first time, a small smile bloomed across the maid's cold features. At that flower-like smile, Allan's expression went momentarily slack.

...Beauties get away with everything, no matter where they go.

"Ahem! In any case, let's return to the matter at hand."

Allan collected himself, exercised a little self-control, and cleared his throat.

"Yes. Korea's position is as I stated earlier."

"I'll be frank. Korean participation is exactly what we want. Likewise, we can maintain a friendly neutrality regarding your wars with China and Japan."

"That is welcome news."

"However — an official recognition of your occupations is something we cannot grant."

Do these people have no shame? Swallow two great powers like Japan and China and then demand official recognition?

Of course, joining the war against Greater Germany was no small matter either.

"And why is that? If it's the price of our entry into the war, I believe the American people would accept it."

Allan hesitated for a beat at the maid's words.

Thanks to that damned Hallyu wave, Korean favorability was punching through the stratosphere. Even if he recognized the occupation of two great powers, almost no one among the public would object.

But Allan was not convinced.

The people might accept it — but I fully intend to peel those lands back off you after I've 'temporarily' let you have them. That's why official recognition is a problem.

He couldn't say any of that out loud, so he worked his mind hard.

"Look, I didn't want to have to put it this way. We may be a democracy, but we're a capitalist nation as well."

Allan dusted off the howling of corporate interests he had been ignoring entirely.

Once the war began, the whole world was going to turn into a circus anyway. A little corporate damage could be overlooked.

'Mr. President! You have to stop the war between China and Korea!'

He'd been hearing that sort of thing fairly often, and Allan had ignored every word of it. The matter wouldn't even move his approval ratings.

No fool alive had failed to foresee that a war between Korea and China was coming someday. If they'd gone and built factories in China and signed contracts anyway, that was their own risk to bear.

He genuinely could not understand why people gambled with their own money and then demanded the government clean up the mess.

If Korea started crawling into Southeast Asia and India — the so-called factories of the world — that would be a problem. But they wouldn't go that far off the deep end.

They weren't Japan, after all.

Hiding those thoughts behind a face of genuine gravity, Allan spoke.

"Business leaders come to me with their grievances. Every single day they drone on about how much money a war in China will cost them. It's difficult to dismiss them outright. Looking the other way is about the best I can manage."

We're a democracy, you know. We have to listen to the people's voices. We're a little different from you. You understand that, right?

The maid understood the implication perfectly well.

"That... is a reasonable explanation. Though I am not sure how I should report this to His Majesty..."

As the maid's expression clouded slightly, Allan hesitated. A conscience he hadn't known he still possessed gave him a sharp little jab.

...Would it really hurt to just give it to them? The congressmen and governors probably wouldn't make much of a fuss, and the public would accept it.

Even if I hand them that much, once America has dismantled Germany we'll still crush Korea by an overwhelming margin.

The thought came so naturally that Allan had to snap himself awake.

Whoa. No. Absolutely not.

"So official recognition of the occupation is difficult. What about a policy of tacit acceptance instead?"

Allan — who fully intended to peel back every scrap of land he'd temporarily granted them, Manchuria excepted — said this with a look of pure goodwill.

Manchuria was the very cause of the war; Korea would never tolerate losing that, so he set it aside.

That was how it looked from Allan's perspective and from the world's. Reality was a little different.

Korea — or rather, the Emperor — wanted to devour all of China regardless of Manchuria.

"...I will need a little time to consider this."

"If that truly proves difficult, then once the war with Germany ends in victory, we can grant official recognition of the occupation. By then the business leaders won't be in any position to complain to me."

Allan's plan was to join hands with the Soviets the instant the war against Germany concluded and strip Korea of every inch of land he'd let them have.

He could make such a bold decision only because he believed America would overwhelm them.

In the United States there existed a fixed idea: Korea was certainly a great power, but nowhere near the level of the Soviet Union or America.

In truth, Korea was strong enough to obliterate a battered United States and Soviet Union both.

They knew Korea had many superhumans. What they did not know was just how strong those superhumans were — and that ignorance made thoughts like these possible.

Few understood it, but measured against the global average, Korean superhumans stood at a considerable remove.

Non-human races simply operated on a different base specification from humans.

"Would you grant me a moment?"

The maid, after some thought, decided this was not a matter for her to judge alone.

"Of course."

Convinced he had already shown more than enough generosity, Allan replied at his leisure.

They can't ignore the businessmen? What kind of nonsense is that?

Foreign companies that had crawled into China were vanishingly few compared to Earth-1. Few enough to ignore without a second thought.

From where I was sitting, they were almost certainly planning to stab us in the back.

Statistically speaking, once the US-Soviet alliance won a war, they turned around and swung their fists at the next available meal.

And it looked like we were that meal.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

In the game it had been pure probability — completely unpredictable. Here, the warning signs were already showing.

...Which means, put the other way, we can influence that choice, doesn't it?

For example: take the Soviets' hand and smash America across the back of the head.

Right after the war against Germany ended, several routes opened up. Among them was a war between the Soviets and the United States. More often than not, the Soviets struck first.

In other words, the Soviets already had at least a little desire to stab America in the back.

If we offered to take their hand, the odds of refusal were nearly zero.

There would be fierce haggling over how to divide the land, of course. The Soviets would probably end up with more territory, and more valuable territory at that.

By the prevailing perception, America and the Soviets were stronger than Korea. We'd have to make concessions.

But I planned to stab the Soviets in the back too, so that was no problem at all!

"Yeah. Go ahead with it as is. But tell them that once the war against Germany is over, they must grant official recognition. And that if they break that promise, things will get unpleasant."

I didn't actually need any of that, but just folding would look suspicious. A moderate threat would do nicely.

I was satisfied by the fire in the maid's voice. A warning delivered by someone who sincerely believed it would go a long way toward quieting any lingering suspicions.

I was already planning the backstab the moment the war against Germany ended, so as long as they didn't make noise about the occupation of China and Japan until then, everything was fine.

I'd only been trying to head off any unexpected intervention, accounting for the reality patch. I'd gotten everything I wanted.

...Isn't there a little more I can squeeze out of this? Just rolling over would look weird, so let's pry something loose.

"In exchange for delayed recognition, tell them that if China attempts a large-scale naval blockade, I'd like them to issue a warning."

I was satisfied by the full-throated vigor of her reply.

Hmm. Is the Diplomacy Bonus+ that comes with Moe Moe Nation mode not doing much?

Or maybe this result is what the bonus already bought me.