[X] Bear Any Burden: The easy choice and the right choice are usually not the same. You could pay the ransom. But what message would that send to the Maretonians? To other nations and peoples? Do you want everyone to believe that kidnapping your citizens is a route to a quick payday? That such actions will be rewarded, and not punished? These Citizens may go free now, but what of those that may be taken in the future? No. Simply paying their ransom is unacceptable. It may be cruel to delay their release, but your enslaved brethren are in no danger: they have become too valuable to be worked to death on some plantation, or killed for the public's amusement in some gladiatorial arena. No slaveowner would allow their "investment" to come to harm when the possibility of a fat payout exists...or when the threatened retribution of a foreign Empire hangs over their heads. Send Olive Branch and his party packing. You will find another way to get your people back. New Options Unlocked.
[X] Pay Any Cost: You'll pay the fee and compensate the Maretonian Nobility for their "property". A King's ransom it may be, but it's a small price to pay for the speedy and safe return of dozens of Imperial Citizens. -5000 Gold. Guaranteed Immediate Return of Your People, Chance for Normalized Relations with Maretonia.
[x] Pay Any Cost: You'll pay the fee and compensate the Maretonian Nobility for their "property". A King's ransom it may be, but it's a small price to pay for the speedy and safe return of dozens of Imperial Citizens. -5000 Gold. Guaranteed Immediate Return of Your People, Chance for Normalized Relations with Maretonia.