Tunguska Conference: Part II
- Location
- South of North
Tunguska Conference: Part II
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!"
You groaned slightly, your attempts to pick yourself up off the ground sufficiently hindered by the weight of a young woman as to be fruitless. Perhaps you could force the issue, but you didn't particularly want to injure Milly either. Instead, you contented yourself with acknowledging that, whatever the flaws of your host might be, they certainly hadn't skimped on creature comforts for the accommodations. The carpet you were lying on was very soft indeed.
"Milly?" You heard Kallen grunt, just a bit irritably. "If you just wanted to jump Lelouch you could have waited until after six in the morning."
Milly only laughed, snuggling up against you for another moment, then rising and wrapping your lover in another tight hug. While your date for the conference was busy with your date for the night prior, you picked up the bundle of messages and newspaper she'd dropped on the way in, quite obviously when she'd leapt into your arms.
As your eyes skimmed the missives, your right brow began to rise.
By the second letter, both were far above their usual resting position.
After you'd finished with the newspaper you began to understand.
Folding the bundle under an arm, you cradled your chin as you considered what you'd just been informed of. Looking to Milly, you saw she was watching you eagerly, Kallen having stepped into the bathroom, trailed by one of the servants, no doubt to spend some time in the jacuzzi. In the day and a half you'd been here, she'd certainly grown to enjoy it. So much so that you were honestly considering having one shipped to New Caledonia.
You focus your gaze towards Milly, "five hundred thousand pounds of royal notes?"
"The emperor apparently liked your speech." Milly's grin widened, if that were possible. "Steiner Konzern has already approached us for a partnership."
You frown, your eyebrows knitting, "but why would, your family doesn't have anything even remotely ready to launch into space-ah."
Yes, now it made sense.
The Emperor, your father, had stamped his approval on the rant you'd given a day and half prior. In fact, he'd approved to the point that he'd placed a bounty on putting the first person in planetary orbit over the Earth. Five hundred thousand pounds wasn't much in the grand scheme of things, until you realized that it was in the currency of the highest-tier of the nobility, a type of note which a Number could and had been executed simply for possessing. Backed by the emperor's treasury of solid platinum, each denomination was worth approximately a hundred times what the gold-backed currency of the middling nobility was worth, and at least ten-thousand times what the commoner's silver-backed notes were worth.
You would have to check current exchange rates, but to the lower classes, the amount on offer was something north of five billion. More than that, though, to be paid in what amounted to the Emperor's personal currency...
...and the fact that you had given said speech with Millicent Ashford at your side...
What had actually amounted to a moment of intense pique and ensuing tantrum on the international stage transformed itself into a genius ploy in favor of one of your family's greatest supporters. After all, only a madman would honestly believe you held altruistic motivations behind your words, or that they hadn't been carefully calculated to take the greatest advantage of the situation.
"Yes, ah." Milly repeated, practically bouncing on her seat.
You turn back to the newspaper, frowning in thought as you skim over the various reactions. Mentally, you noted that you'd managed to displace Guinevere's pregnancy updates to the third page, which must have stung your elder sister.
It was likely why her quotes smacked intensely of false sincerity and brown-nosing.
Even if you'd accidentally slighted her, after all, she wasn't fool enough to speak against your father.
"Guinevere is in fine form," you noted with a snort, then flicked your eyes towards another column. "...and it's times like these that I have to wonder if Odysseus is actually something of a genius who's managed to fool us all for the past decade."
Milly giggled. "He does have a certain gift for saying nothing at all in great length and detail, doesn't he?"
Schneizel's words were... genuine, as best you could tell. He'd perhaps given the longest review of your statements at the conference, most of which contained positive elements, though there were enough criticisms of your 'status as a political neophyte on the world stage' that it didn't seem as though he was kissing the hem of your gown.
Cornelia hadn't said much, but then... she was at war, and could largely escape the consequences of giving anything other than lip service to the dominant political stance of the day. For what it was worth, your mother's former bodyguard seemed more distracted than critical of your actions. If anything, she particularly liked the snubs you'd given the Europeans and the Rus more than your advocacy for the conquest of space.
Carine, though, was a surprise.
She'd sent you a personal communication by way of Milly in addition to the seemingly-authentic praise she'd heaped on you in the papers. There's definitely something going on there, especially given the way Milly mentioned Carine to you so recently.
...could Carine, who tended to be grouped in with Guinevere's camp, be using the occasion to leverage greater assistance from your mutual sister by way of a threat to join up with Schneizel or Cornelia's camp through yourself?
You shake your head, you'll have time to puzzle out that problem later.
For now...
You drop the documents on the table and turn to Milly. "We need to discuss tactics for the rest of the conference."
Your friend sobers slightly, but still chuckles a bit. "Well, Lulu, I don't think you have all that many choices given the performance you've already given. It simply wouldn't do to approach one of the parties you've just offended, hat in hand."
You wave Milly off, signaling for a pair of drinks. Surprised as you were by her sudden entrance this morning, you've only barely noticed your own scratchy throat and feel the sudden urge to quench that irritation. "I know all too well. Still, if there's something worth conversing with one of their groups, allowances can be made to overcome such difficulties."
Milly shrugs, "well, in that case... I still say that the Japanese and the Ethiopians will be the easiest to talk to. You took pains to exempt them from your rhetoric and they'll likely be appreciative of not being lumped in with the rabble."
Speaking to the delegation from Japan would, doubtless, be profitable in some way, though it depends on exactly whom they've sent. The speaker they allowed to take the podium was the head of one of their Zaibatsu... though not someone you recognize from your conversations with Kaguya.
The Ethiopians... well, you likely won't be seeing your friend from Indonesia again. It was publicly announced you'd be attending and given the rather taxing affair of the previous month, word had it he'd taken a well-deserved rest. Instead, you'd likely be dealing with a corporate sector leader. There's the possibility you could make a deal for something there, though your grasp on exactly what industrial goods Ethiopia could offer isn't quite up to par.
Absently, you wish Euphie were here, but that can't be helped.
The known quantity, on the other hand, are the Euro-Britannians.
You've pretty clearly burned that bridge to ash, then salted the Earth on either side of the river to ensure that the land around it will remain barren for generations to come. That's not entirely an exaggeration, either, given the level of publicity the speeches were given. It's entirely possible that any children you father may be given the cold shoulder in this land some decades hence.
...all of that said, if you were of a mind, you could attempt to pry some few fragments of the meteorite from the Euro-Britannian's hands using the leverage of your good PR. It wouldn't be a pretty strategy to employ and would likely involve pouring salt on a fresh wound. You could do it, at least in theory, but it would make real enemies. At this point, if you left and never returned to Euro-Britannia you were likely safe from retaliation, but this would invite some form of antagonism from the upper crust of the empire's client state.
After talking all of that over with Milly, Kallen returning to the room in a fluffy bathrobe at the tail end of the discussion, toweling her hair off in a way that makes the Ashford heiress cringe.
Yawning widely, your girlfriend shakes her head. "If you're that worried about offending people more, why don't you just talk to the Europeans? You can't piss them off more than they already are, right?"
You blink and cock your head, considering the point.
Milly sends Kallen a smirk, then looks to you. "You know, Lulu, she has a point. I'm not sure if I would expect anything from it, but if you have time to kill, it's better to be seen talking to someone rather than allowing yourself to be an outcast, even if it's just arguing."
You snort. "If I wanted to indulge in pointless exercises, I would seek out that lunatic the Rus sent."
Milly rolls her eyes. "Let's not be droll, Lelouch."
Realistically, though, you can't imagine what good could come of speaking to the Rus Republic's representative. It would certainly make you the talk of the convention again if you managed to have a civil conversation with the man. Well, that and perhaps cause a minor geopolitical panic given it could be argued that you were courting a breakaway EU state after snubbing the Euro-Britannians on an unprecedented scale.
"It would muddy the waters spectacularly," you mutter to yourself, frowning. You suppose there's something to be said for sowing confusion on a grand scale. It would cloud your real aims and goals all the more.
"The only ones I would argue you should avoid completely would be the African Unions' people." Milly finishes, a servant having produced a glass of her favorite juice from somewhere. "Unless you have some secret ambition which would benefit from further ties in the region, I simply don't see any particular point to speaking with them."
You slide into a seat and ponder the last group. A few African railroad oligarchs aren't worth speaking to, really. That said, gathering information on them could be useful if you want to court their competitors... the shipping companies which, until recently, have dominated trade between the two Unions. You already have quite enough on your plate, but if you want to pick up another side project, this could be a good time to test the waters. That said, it would be difficult talking them up as you'd already insulted their strategies and value to the convention as a whole.
But still, it's an option.
Or, you suppose, you could go fishing in the pool of the minor players. You might even catch something, or someone, interesting.
PICK THREE:
[ ] Euro-Britannian Hosts (Very Difficult)
[ ] Japanese Delegation (Easy-Moderate)
[ ] EU Ambassadors (Difficult)
[ ] Rus Republic Envoy (???)
[ ] Joint African Union Representative (Difficult)
[ ] Ethiopian Delegation (Easy-Moderate)
[ ] Minor Players (Mystery Box – Random Diplomacy Roll)
DO NOT VOTE FOR ONE HOUR! ONE HOUR MORATORIUM!
QM's Note: I did actually roll for responses from the various members of your family, two months ago after your crit. Charles' roll was... high, let's just say. The imperial seal of approval, so to speak, has colored the responses your siblings could give without expecting backlash at court.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN! And Welcome Back Everybody!
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