"Are you really sure it was wise to split them up like that?"
With both of the groups already splitting up to deal with the formal matters in the different developer's offices, Gabe had the chance to speak up in private with Natan.
"What do you mean by that?"
Even if the question was leading, it was better to ensure the intention of the others before betraying too much of one's stance. Even if they were in the team, outside of cooperation required to lead the nation to success, they had to be wary of each other. In the end, they were a major power on the map, but in such an early game everything had yet to stabilise. If a time would come when a new superpower would arise and their position would fall beyond saving, even the tiniest bit of inside information on their government would prove to be worth millions!
"Stop with those games. It's not like this kind of detail will change anything."
With his burrows lowered dangerously close to the base of his nose, Gabe scoffed at Natan.
"Aren't you worried that they will try to cause discord in our country both from the inside and the outside like that?"
'You were angry at me for nitpicking, yet you rephrased your question...'
Natan couldn't help but realise. But just like his compadre said, there was no point in prolonging this topic.
"That's why I offered them so much. Compared to us, they will have the income from Moruye all to themselves, while we have to use our own taxes for the sake of the country. Just this enough could serve as bribe big enough to keep them loyal. As for this slut and feminist... I'm quite sure they weren't liked in their group either."
Using the fact that Bleivik leads the entire negotiation, Natan focused on observing the minute interactions between the members of the other team. It was impossible to not notice how both the man and the stoic girl treated the words of those two.
"Eh... While I want to trust your judgment, only the future will tell who was right. Anyway, when will we have our own meeting? With how aggressive we started, we need to decide what to do next. Any ideas for me to consider in advance?"
This was actually one of the toughest questions that could be asked right now. Surrounded by two, powerfull hordes to the east, the coalition that they had to befriend to the south, the lone catholic country to the west and incredibly weak orthodox state to the north, their possibilities were incredibly limited.
'West and south are out of the picture if we don't want to face the Islamic states backed by the damned caliphate. We are too weak to deal with the east and that leaves us only with the north. Even if we will have to make enemies out of every orthodox state in the political map of the game, seeing how detached they are from our immediate borders, I guess this will be our best bet.'
While the position of the Holy land on the map was great, located right in the middle of the map, this also proved the expansion to be risky both in the short and long term.
"I think I will opt for expanding north while creating a small alliance with the principality of Heria. Seeing how they managed to swallow two of their neighbours in just a single session, they are ought to have a crafty team behind their government. They are also our only shot at dissolving the Loncia Horde!"
Recalling the ledged that was accessible to everyone, Natan's target was far weaker than their country, but could profit a lot from cooperating with them. Even if this plan would lock their routes of expansion in the east as soon as their plan would come to fruition, with their newly reinforced position, they could think about breaking the stalemate at other fronts!
"I'm not sure Loncia will just sit tight while we grow in strength. What makes you think they won't cut our expansions plans short by just taking the city of Kyendi? Without access to the route that goes through it, we won't be able to swallow Nahia any time soon!"
While that wasn't entirely true as the crossroads leading to the northern Nahian cities were located quite a distance from the city Kyendi itself, if Lancia decided to strike there, it would be hard to expect them to just stop at a single city!
"Just like we are thinking about the risks and opportunities, so do they. If I were in their shoes... I think you might be right. What about making a three way deal with Heria and Loncia to expel focus our forces at orthodox lands? With us taking the Nahia, Heria conquering March of Hoi that borders them and Nahia, and Lancia venturing all the way to the Kingdom of Agus, we could push the orthodox forces more to the north, while making Lancia focus more on the east side of their country!"
Even if this plan was complicated, it was all based on the needs of all three countries. With the Holy Kingdom already being placed at 6th global rank according to the population, it was only fair for them to take the poor land to the north, claiming that they would recuperate this loss in the late game.
This kind of strategy games was all about weighting the profits and the costs... but not only for one's nation but for all the countries that were included in its plans!
"While it sounds appealing... I don't think we are ready to implement it right away. Even if our NPC armies would listen to the orders, I'm worried that the players would prefer to get some benefits for themselves first, before joining our cause! Seeing how big success the first stream was, I believe it's time to focus on popularising our cause!"