Chapter 378: Blazing Flames of the Battlefield[R-18] (94)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 378: Blazing Flames of the Battlefield[R-18] (94)
I was spending time in Adele's office, staring blankly out the window as I organized my thoughts. Beside me, Adele was busily moving her pen, reviewing a towering stack of documents one by one.
“My love, is something troubling you?”
“No, it’s just…”
Building an independent nation. It wasn’t as simple as I’d thought.
The quest objective is clearly to establish an independent nation… but Adele doesn’t seem all that interested in it yet.
Our alliance with the five neutral nations that supported us was still intact, but that alone wasn't enough. Our justification, resources, and stability were all incomplete.
Just then, the door opened. It was Elena. Her expression was stiff.
“Adele, sorry. I have an urgent report.”
“What is it?”
Elena hurried inside and closed the door.
“A new bill just passed in the Earth Federation Council. It’s called the ‘Territory Control Reinforcement Act’.”
Adele’s face hardened.
“What does it do?”
“Simply put, it’s a law that restricts the independent actions of territories. Especially regarding military power and diplomatic activities.”
“Then, our Judgment Court…”
“It will inevitably be affected. The Federation is arguing that any ‘arbitration body must be approved by the Federation Council’.”
I let out a sigh.
“More political bullshit, in the end.”
“The problem is that Arsenos is showing similar movements. Their provisional council is discussing a bill to keep the neutral nation alliance in check. The contents are almost identical to the Federation’s.”
Adele’s eyebrow twitched as she gritted her teeth.
“…So, both factions intend to suppress the very power bloc that has formed around us.”
“That’s right. The forces we command—especially you, Seo-yun, and Colonel Sheryl, not to mention the other ace pilots—are too strong. It makes both the Federation and Arsenos uneasy.”
Elena added one last thing.
“Oh, and my uncle… he asked me to tell you he’s sorry. He said he tried to stop it, but he couldn’t do it alone.”
I spoke nonchalantly.
“Now that the war is over, our power is becoming an eyesore to them.”
Adele clenched her fist in anger.
“Why don’t we just declare full independence?” she said suddenly.
“Independence?”
“Yes. So that neither the Federation nor Arsenos can treat us so carelessly anymore.”
Elena looked worried.
“But that would mean creating a direct confrontation. We could end up in another war…”
“A war won’t happen. In their current state, neither the Federation nor Arsenos can touch us.”
I interjected.
“Well, most of their military forces were shattered. And it won’t be easy for them, considering how high Adele’s public support is.”
Elena still seemed unconvinced.
“But if we declare independence, economically…”
“We can solve that later. If we stay as we are, we’ll just be caught up in their political games. I think it would be better to make a clean break and become independent.”
I was starting to get interested. If I could complete the quest this way, it seemed like a good path.
“But will the other neutral nations agree? They’re all heads of state. I can’t imagine they’d be willing to give up their positions.”
Elena raised a valid point.
“We can persuade them,” I said with a shrug.
“Or force them.”
“My love…”
“I’m kidding. But looking at the current situation, I think most of them will agree.”
It seemed likely. With both the Federation and Arsenos applying pressure simultaneously, the neutral nations must be feeling a sense of crisis.
Adele’s eyes suddenly sparkled.
“Come to think of it, even if we become independent, rather than each of us maintaining separate nations as we do now…”
She continued seriously.
“What if we integrated into a single federal state? We would become much stronger, both economically and militarily.”
Elena shook her head.
“That would be even more difficult. The leaders of each nation would never give up their power.”
“That might not be the case,” Adele said confidently.
“Look at the current state of the neutral nations. Most are small, lack resources, and are in difficult economic situations. But what if we united as one?”
Adele turned on a holographic pad and displayed some data.
“If we connect each nation’s specialized industries, share resources, and integrate our military forces… we could become a great power that is in no way inferior to the Federation or Arsenos.”
“But the issue of power remains…”
“That’s why I’m proposing a federal system. We would guarantee each region’s autonomy, but diplomacy and national defense would be managed centrally.”
“That’s not going to work,” I said firmly.
“They might be on our side now, but we don’t know what will happen later.”
Adele looked puzzled.
“What do you mean?”
“A federal system ultimately disperses power. What are you going to do if the different regions start having second thoughts later on?”
I crossed my arms and continued.
“They’re sticking together now because of the pressure from the Federation and Arsenos, but what happens when that threat disappears? They’ll all want to go their own way.”
Elena nodded.
“Seo-yun is right. A federal system is too unstable.”
“Then what do you suggest we do?” Adele asked.
“Simple. Complete integration.”
I stated it clearly.
“One nation, one government, one leader. Clean and simple.”
“But the other leaders would never agree to that…”
“Then we’ll make them agree,” I said with a shrug.
“How?”
“We give them a choice. Join our independent nation, or get absorbed by the Federation or Arsenos again.”
Adele’s eyes widened.
“That’s too extreme…”
“What’s so extreme about it? It’s just realistic.”
I looked out the window and said, “There’s no middle ground in this situation. Either we become completely independent, or we become their subjects again.”
Elena spoke worriedly.
“But if we’re that coercive, there will be backlash…”
“Backlash? Then they can leave,” I answered coldly.
“The only reason we can even offer this choice is because we have power. Without power, you don’t get a choice.”
Adele thought for a moment, then spoke.
“…You might be right, my love. To be honest, I wasn’t confident about the federal system either. It’s too complex, with too many variables…”
Adele manipulated the hologram, bringing up new data.
“Then shall we try this? On the premise of complete integration, we give each nation a choice.”
“Specifically?”
“They can either fully join the independent nation, or maintain their current system and simply form an alliance with us.”
“An alliance?” Elena asked.
“Yes. In exchange for not joining the independent nation, they would receive diplomatic protection and economic cooperation. However, they wouldn’t be able to participate in important decisions.”
I nodded.
“That’s not bad. A kind of vassal state relationship.”
“It’s not exactly a vassal state…”
“Well, it’s similar enough.”
I smiled, satisfied.
“This way, only those who are truly committed to independence will remain, and the wishy-washy ones will drop out on their own.”
Adele asked cautiously, “But what if no one joins?”
“Then we’ll become independent on our own,” I replied nonchalantly.
“We’re the core of this whole thing anyway. The rest are just a bonus.”
Elena sighed.
“You’re really extreme…”
“Extreme times call for extreme measures.”
I looked at Adele.
“What’s it going to be? Are you going to do it my way, or are you going to keep dragging this out ambiguously?”
Adele hesitated for a moment, then nodded as if she had made up her mind.
“…I’ll try it your way, my love.”
“Good. Then, call a meeting.”
“Now?”
“Right now. Dragging this out will only create more complications.”
Adele quickly began operating her communicator.
“Convening an emergency meeting… Contacting all representatives of the neutral nations…”
I leaned back in my chair and thought, Finally, the end of the quest is in sight.
A few hours later, the video conference began.
The leaders of each nation appeared on the screen, all of them with tense expressions. The sudden call for an emergency meeting seemed to have them expecting something momentous.
“Everyone, thank you for attending on such short notice,” Adele began the meeting.
“The reason I’ve called this emergency meeting is… to decide our future.”
“What’s going on?”
“The Federation and Arsenos have begun to move against us. If things continue like this, we will eventually fall back under their influence.”
The faces of the leaders darkened.
“That is why I have a proposal.”
Adele took a deep breath.
“Let’s build a completely independent nation.”
This time, the reaction was slightly different. Many of them looked as if they had expected this.
“What form would it take, specifically?”
“A single, unified nation.”
“Unified… What about the autonomy we each possess?”
“You will have to give it up,” Adele said firmly.
Instantly, a murmur went through the screens.
“That’s too…”
“Why would we ever…”
That’s when I spoke up.
“Make your choice.”
All eyes turned to me.
“Either you join us completely, or you fend for yourselves.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s simple. If you don’t join, you won’t have our protection,” I said coldly.
“If you think you can withstand the pressure from the Federation and Arsenos on your own, you are free to leave.”
The conference room fell completely silent. A few of the representatives looked as if they felt betrayed.
When we were in a difficult position, we had certainly received their help and support, but it wasn't as if we had received it for free.
“Wait, isn’t this a bit one-sided?” the Eastern European leader burst out in frustration.
“After all the sacrifices we’ve made for this alliance…”
“Sacrifices?”
I let out a smirk.
“What, specifically, did you sacrifice?”
“That is… the resources and support we provided…”
“Didn’t we pay you for it?”
His face turned red.
“Th-that is…”
“Oh, and do you remember how we defended your colonies without even charging a defense fee? We did that because we were allies, of course.”
I kept pressing him.
“To call that a ‘sacrifice’ seems a bit of a stretch, don’t you think?”
The other representatives began to stir. What I said was true.
“Sir Seo-yun is right,” the Asian leader spoke up.
“We were in a relationship of mutual assistance, not one of one-sided sacrifice.”
“Then why are you forcing this choice on us now?” another representative protested.
“This isn’t coercion. It’s reality,” Adele stepped in to say.
“In this situation, if we all act separately, we will all be crushed in the end.”
Adele brought up the holographic data again.
“The Federation’s ‘Territory Control Reinforcement Act,’ Arsenos’s ‘Neutral Nation Check Act.’ Do you know what these two have in common?”
“What is it?”
“Their goal is to peel us off one by one and crush us individually.”
Adele’s voice became firm.
“If we remain scattered as we are now, we will become nothing more than their prey.”
“But even if we unify…”
“Unification changes the situation,” I interjected.
“If we gather all the power we currently have, neither the Federation nor Arsenos will be able to touch us carelessly.”
“Indeed…”
They looked at me and nodded.
“If necessary, I can blow away the Federation Council or the Arsenos Council.”
The conference room fell silent again. Everyone knew my words were not a bluff.
“But why does it have to be unification? Can’t we continue with the alliance system we have now?”
“No,” Adele answered firmly.
“An alliance system is too slow. We need each nation’s consent, and when interests conflict, we can’t make decisions.”
“But…”
“Shall I give you an example?”
I offered a concrete scenario.
“What if the Federation decides to single out and pressure only Eastern Europe?”
The man’s face darkened.
“Under an alliance system, are the other nations obligated to help? Legally?”
“That’s…”
“They’re not. An alliance is about mutual cooperation, not obligation,” I said coldly.
“But what if we were a unified nation? An attack on that region would be an attack on the entire nation.”
“Then all our forces would be deployed automatically.”
The other leaders nodded, seeming to understand.
“Exactly.”
Adele smiled, satisfied.
“That is the power of unification.”
A moment of silence followed. The representatives of each nation seemed to be in deep thought.