Chapter 54
Chapter 54
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Defections and the Dawn of Peace
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Inside the Holy Nation, factions had begun to emerge that were abandoning the war.
This fact carried enormous implications.
The Holy Nation was a force united by religion and faith.
It was a power born purely from the voluntary loyalty and cooperation of individual nations.
With no binding contracts or treaties to force war upon its subordinate factions, the Holy Nation could only watch helplessly as they defected.
Of course, that voluntary loyalty and cooperation was undoubtedly bolstered by the authority and violence derived from the Holy Nation's national power.
But that was merely one pillar propping up the Holy Nation.
If they failed to demonstrate omnipotence as the 'god' directly exercising influence, the depth of that faith was bound to grow shallow.
In a nation where god is the master, if the master misbehaves, the house collapses.
That's why democracy is so great.
PATO citizens believe they own this country.
And they're right.
Even shareholders holding a tiny stake in the publicly listed PATO stock are owners, after all.
In truth, they'd held out far longer than anyone could have expected.
It was just that the endless war, the mounting casualties, and the devastation ravaging their homelands had finally tripped them up.
The Empire kept surging forward without end, while the Holy Nation's soldiers dwindled moment by moment.
Even the Holy Nation's own troops now knew the truth: the machines could revive infinitely as long as resources held out.
The Prophet had forcibly bound them together through his own power and charisma, holding the line until now.
In fact, during this entire war, the Prophet hadn't suffered a single defeat in battle.
As the commander of the Holy Nation's entire fleet, he simply avoided battlefields where defeat was likely—but choosing the battlefield is a skill in itself.
Even when the Holy Nation was on the defensive, they wouldn't have endured without the Prophet.
The vastness of space as a battlefield simply imposed limits on any individual.
Just like how, even on Earth's surface, a one-man army general might shine, but their impact on the overall war remains negligible.
Yeah, good job holding out, Prophet. Some things just can't be done, though.
Once the Scorix Clan formally withdrew from the war through individual negotiations with the Empire, other races began defecting one after another.
"Let's call it quits now..."
Watching the endless parade of envoys shuttling back and forth for peace talks with the Empire really drove home just how vast the Holy Nation truly was.
Or rather, it highlighted the Empire's sheer might in holding its own against so many nations.
Maybe it's time to wrap up this honeypot operation.
Even if we kept supporting the Holy Nation to prolong the war, with so many nations defecting, a handful of mercenary groups couldn't restore the balance of power.
Moreover, the defecting nations were precisely those forming the border between the Holy Nation and the Empire.
Those who'd shed more blood than anyone, whose homelands had been destroyed more than any others.
If all those nations pulled out completely, the Holy Nation and Empire would no longer share a border.
The Holy Nation-Empire frontier was already shrinking by the moment.
These nations had withdrawn precisely because they wanted no more war—would they even permit military fleets to pass through?
Even if we wanted to keep fighting, reality would throw up all sorts of obstacles.
Shall we go see how our Prophet is reacting?
"Go!!!!!! Losing one's faith is...!!"
Oh.
Better come back later.
Even from the opposite side of the star system, the psionic waves crackling with fury didn't exactly promise a pleasant reception.
And finally, with the last nation withdrawing, the Holy Nation and Empire were no longer bordering each other.
As the war ground to a stalemate and the Prophet's sky-piercing rage finally subsided, diplomats from various nations sprang into action to broker peace.
And naturally, their footsteps led straight to...
"Could the Lushaka Kingdom connect us with the Talatulan side?"
"Can PATO mediate the dispute with the Empire?"
PATO shareholders, are you hearing this?
This is the stature of the alliance you've joined.
"Of course. Tell us the terms, and we'll see what we can arrange."
As the galaxy's foremost pacifists, it's only natural we'd lend a hand.
Count Nananna, the Empire's envoy, was a household model.
The kind designed for chores like cleaning, cooking, and lubrication.
Given the need for a friendly image in such work, its face display was outputting emoticons to convey emotions.
>:/
They're sending a machine like this for diplomacy?
Aren't diplomats supposed to maintain a poker face?
"Independence must be secured all the way to the Kalanari-Sorotec Hyperlane."
The tone matched his resolute expression.
"Independence for the Holy Nation's satellite states seems feasible, but..."
"These are His Imperial Majesty's orders."
Still, why were these previously gentlemanly fellows suddenly acting so tough?
The Holy Nation, contrary to expectations, had swiftly agreed to peace talks.
Maybe their heads had cooled enough to finally grasp the situation properly.
They'd even expressed willingness to pay reparations and promised no retaliation against the defecting nations—straightforward concessions across the board.
The sticking point was the Sorotec Star System.
It was the one system the Empire kept demanding be granted independence or outright ceded.
An utterly ordinary fringe star system, but the problem was its location: right in the Holy Nation's heartland.
Passing that demand straight to the Holy Nation might send the Prophet marching across the intervening nations straight to the Empire.
Never seen that towering pride bend like this before.
Reparations? Fine. We declared war first, after all.
Defectors? Infuriating, but understandable. Accepted.
They're being this cooperative, yet we're supposed to hand over territory with no justification or reason?
"This demand is unreasonable. You know that too, Count."
The Holy Nation could still wage war.
No matter how endlessly the Empire churned out troops, the astronomical resource drain remained unchanged.
Prolonging the war would burden the Empire too.
Short of assassinating the Prophet, they'd have to punch through an entire star system—and if he was defending it, they couldn't.
The Empire's stalled offensives throughout the war proved that.
And so, the Prophet had acknowledged the Empire's strength in pushing him back and accepted defeat.
Though he still refused to admit they had souls.
Anyway, if the Empire wanted to grind through decades more attrition and eke out a win, we wouldn't stop them.
If they at least shared a border with the Empire, maybe—but this was some remote hinterland with no connection whatsoever.
"These are His Imperial Majesty's direct orders, so concessions are difficult..."
:O
Then go complain to your emperor.
I'm not even from the Empire—telling me 'His Majesty's orders' changes nothing.
"I'll check with headquarters."
:'(
Bring some reasonable demands next time.
Count Nananna seemed to recognize the absurdity too, slinking off with a glum expression.
Fortunately, the next visit brought a brighter face.
:>
"Here are the Empire's revised demands."
Hmm. Not much different from what the Holy Nation had already accepted.
"This should be acceptable to the Holy Nation. Thank you for your significant concessions."
"Not at all. I'm honored to help put an end to this long strife."
;)
But Count, why do your expressions keep printing sideways?
I get that it's text-based, but with the Empire's tech, vertical emoticon rendering shouldn't be an issue.
Why does a machine need expressions anyway?
"Ah, you mean this display. All factories switched to war production, so household models were discontinued."
We only had old stock left—haha.
That was the explanation.
"C-Couldn't it be transferred to another model? Don't you have plenty specialized for war?"
Like Knight models.
There were tons of those during the last tour?
:[
"Albarak diplomat."
"Yes, speak."
"Are you suggesting I inhabit the body of some brute who only knows how to fight? I'll overlook it this once since you wouldn't understand. It's the height of rudeness—mind yourself going forward."
"Ah, yes. My apologies, Count."
Doesn't it feel the same as shoving it into an old model?
What even is machine society?
In 2271, the war between the Holy Nation and the Empire finally came to an end.
The treaty terms were tantamount to a Holy Nation defeat.
The Holy Nation would pay reparations to the Empire and grant independence to its satellite states—formerly de facto vassals—freeing them from Holy Nation influence.
Strip away the minutiae, and that's the core summary.
A war thirteen years long—long if you think about it, short in the grand scheme.
If it'd been confined to a single planet, striking the far side would've taken under a minute, ending it in a flash.
Even with two empires wielding interstellar travel tech, the galaxy was simply too vast.
The war's outcome reshaped the Holy Nation-Empire border dramatically.
The minor nations that had broken free from Holy Nation influence.
Honestly, from my perspective manipulating the Lushaka Kingdom, races controlling just one or two star systems barely qualify as nations.
Perhaps that's why: these minor powers banded together into unions.
The Ozutlan Holy Union.
After all that, they still go with Ozutlan?
Setting aside the Holy Nation's hegemonic ways, their societies apparently weren't ready to abandon faith just yet.
Didn't seem like their faith cracked—they just wanted out to cut their losses...
They're unrelated to PATO anyway.
To reach the Holy Union, you'd have to pass through Holy Nation or Empire space—and it's too damn far.
These were the folks who called PATO 'the other side of the galaxy' when I visited the Holy Nation.
We'll deal with them if a good opportunity arises someday.
And so, the war ended.
But an end is an end—there's still work to do, right?
This Sorotec Star System that even the Emperor covets.
Wonder what delicious secret it's hiding. Let's take a look.