Keralt’s stance might have worked from an adventurer’s perspective, but it didn’t suit an entire country. Without rational, coherent diplomacy, a country couldn’t trust other nations.
“I know that, but it’s different when everyone’s trying to ally with us. Both you and Nyrnal are trying to keep each other in check and take control of our country. That alone makes for a strong bargaining chip.”
Why does she have to make things so complicated?
She had a point, however; we and Nyrnal both wanted the Eastern Trade Union on our side. Each of us needed it to invade the other. This gave the Union the initiative to pick one or even neither of us.
“You can’t do that,” Konrad refuted. “Siding with Nyrnal when it’s convenient for you, siding with the Arachnea when that’s the easier option—you can’t handle diplomacy that way. If you do, both countries will take advantage of us. They’ll think we’re too weak to defend ourselves.”
He wasn’t wrong either. Trying to be everyone’s friend could backfire and get everyone to hate you instead. Given the impression each of the countries held of one another, politics couldn’t be handled in such a noncommittal fashion.
“We’ve got three choices,” Konrad said, lifting three fingers. “One, we insist on protecting our country by ourselves without relying on another country’s power. Two, we yield to Nyrnal and give them the right to station soldiers in our territory, letting them take everything we have in exchange for protection. Three, we side with the Arachnea and see if it’s possible for mankind to coexist with these creatures.”
He turned his eyes on Keralt. “Well? Which choice sounds best to you?”
“That’s difficult. Allying with Nyrnal is likely out of the question, but we lack the military power to defend our country alone, especially against the two most dominant forces on the continent. Still, we can’t tell for sure whether the Arachnea are trustworthy.”
Trust was shaping up to be the central issue here.
Konrad offered his own choice. “Well, I’m willing to gamble on the Arachnea’s help. Nyrnal’s officials one-sidedly demanded we give them the right to bring their army here, and Maximillian never cared enough to ask us himself. Meanwhile, the Arachnea’s queen personally came to discuss things with us. That makes them more trustworthy in my eyes.”
It looked like my coming there in person had an unintended but positive effect. As it turned out, being willing to go out of your way earned you trust. A lesson to remember.
“Considering she came here of her own accord, I do want to trust her,” Ventura chimed in. “But humans have discriminated against the elves, mocked the dwarves, and looked down upon the demi-human races for far too long now. With a horde of monsters on our doorstep, asking to be our ally, will our people really consent to that?”
Indeed, the elves were just one of the ostracized races in this world; many of them were treated poorly by mankind. My original world had also been host to terrible examples of racism. The Swarm, which weren’t even humanoid enough to count as demi-humans, obviously wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms.
“If we’ve got no other way, we ought to ally with these bugs,” Konrad argued. “We have a dwarf for a chairman, we trade with the elves, and we even try to domesticate monsters. I doubt this is what will shatter our tolerance.”
Ventura gave a shake of his head. “I’m afraid I don’t share your optimism.”
They weren’t seeing eye to eye. The question of whether they could trust us was key, but I had no words to sway them with. If Roland were here, maybe he’d have been able to improve their opinion of us, but he was too busy with the situation in Schtraut.
I guess it’s time for my last resort.
“You can hold me hostage for the duration of the alliance, then,” I declared.
“What?!” Konrad’s eyes widened.
Meanwhile, Keralt furrowed her brow.
“I’ll serve as collateral to prove we’re trustworthy,” I explained. “I promise we won’t stab you in the back. As allies, we’ll fight alongside you. If you need a reason to trust us, I’ll just have to offer myself.”
Thankfully, I could command the Swarm from afar. Being held hostage didn’t make things harder for me in that regard.
“Y-You can’t, Your Majesty!” Sérignan protested. “What if they decide to sell you out to the Nyrnal Empire?!”
I shrugged. “If that happens, come and save me.”
True, I had no guarantee they wouldn’t sell me out to Nyrnal. I simply had to place my trust in the Eastern Trade Union.
Just then, Konrad burst out laughing. “Aha ha ha! I wouldn’t expect that kind of recklessness from our queen of conquest here! But I like it! I get the feeling you and I will get along just fine, missy. Better than I’d get along with Maximillian, at least!”
“I appreciate the compliment,” I said.
It felt like he was mocking me, but what I’d said was actually pretty laughable. It did prove how serious I was about this, though.
How’re you gonna respond to that, Keralt? I thought, leveling my gaze at her.
“I’m getting the impression you’re trustworthy too,” she said. “You’re far more human than I thought. With that kind of humanity, there’s certainly a chance for mutual understanding between the Arachnea and us. So long as we have that, an alliance is possible.”
It seemed my reckless offer had won Keralt over too. Oh. Maybe I have potential as a villainess, after all.
“I take it you both view the idea of an alliance favorably now?”
“Yes. My faction should be in agreement,” Konrad answered.
“I’ll convince my people of it as well,” Keralt said with a nod.
That meant I had at least some of the senators on my side.
“What about you, Ventura?” I asked.
“I’ll abstain from making a decision right now. The day after tomorrow, I’ll introduce you to another one of the senators, Honnoson Alphtel. If he agrees to the alliance, it will be as good as decided.”
“I appreciate that.” I bowed my head.
As soon as the alliance is set in stone, I’ll have my forces cross the Eastern Trade Union into Nyrnal’s land. Then, we’ll finally end this war.
“That concludes the talks for today,” Ventura announced. “I’m glad this conversation has been beneficial for both sides.”
With that, he left the room.