When Claude heard that the envoy wanted to import ironclad warship manufacturing technology from the region, he understood why the king signed and stamped his seal on the blank document without hesitation.
Yet another idiot who coveted ironclads and wanted to use Cape Loducus as a bargaining chip to make the region owe them a favour and hand over the ironclad warship manufacturing technology.
That was why Claude used the excuse that the Fochs Islands United Kingdom didn't pay the ransom, protection fee, and didn't even want to pay a penny for the rescue and support of the Fochs Islands United Kingdom. Claude drove the envoy away and showed that he would rather have the Fochs Islands United Kingdom pay the ransom, protection fee, and reward instead of the Gulf Loducus Colony.
Since December, envoys from various countries arrived in the region one after another. The envoys from the eight colonial countries were among them.
Unlike the other countries who wanted to get their hands on the gunpowder for the new bullets, the envoys from the eight colonial countries wanted to get their hands on ironclad warship manufacturing technology or buy one or two ironclad warships from the region to make replicas. It would be best if they could get their hands on a few master craftsmen who could design and build ironclad warships.
However, the Patres military port in Robisto was heavily guarded. It was the manufacturing base for ironclads and the main base of the region's fleet. Outsiders weren't allowed inside.
It was a pity that the spies of the various countries in the diplomatic mission had tried their best, but they still fell into the hands of the Military Intelligence Department of the autonomous military zone.
In the end, the envoys were forced to work as miners for the region's gold mines.
Left with no other choice, the envoys shamelessly went to the main gate of the region's headquarters and requested to meet Claude to buy ironclad warships or import their manufacturing technology.
Claude's attitude was one of refusal. Handing over 16 ironclads to the kingdom didn't mean the region would open its doors to the outside world.
Before other countries could build decent ironclad warships, the Dominion's military would never sell ironclad warships to the outside world, let alone the technology to build them …
In the past two years, the countries along the coast of Freia had invested heavily in the research of ironclad warship technology, and a few of them had even made good progress.
According to the intelligence sent by the autonomous military zone, at least three or four countries had already produced a complete iron hull.
Of course, the iron hulls of these ships were not as slender as the warships of the autonomous military zone. Instead, they were round like sailing warships.
After all, the autonomous region had the biggest cheat code in Claude, which allowed them to skip all the mistakes in ship design.
According to the intelligence, after these coastal countries developed the iron hull, they also moved those heavy muzzle-loading naval cannons onto the ships. Then, like sailing warships, they arranged dozens of muzzle-loading cannons on both sides of the ships, firing the same solid iron pellets.
To put it bluntly, they had just replaced the sail warship with an iron hull, which was already a great improvement.
So, it wasn't all that strange for the eight southern colonial countries to want to get their hands on ironclad warships and their manufacturing technology. They were all nations with a long history of maritime trade and had obtained countless resources and wealth from the distant sea trade and colonization of Nubissia.
They knew very well what a drastic change the appearance of ironclad warships would bring to their maritime forces. They were actually the coastal countries that most wanted to get their hands on ironclad warships to protect their maritime interests.
Just as the envoy from the Kamarlane Kingdom had said when he met with Marshal Bolonik, the eight colonies on the west coast had jointly issued a trade ban on the overseas autonomous region. In fact, they thought that they had taken advantage of the overseas autonomous region's greatest weakness.
They hoped to force the overseas dominion to transfer the ironclad warship production technology to the eight colonial countries through trade negotiations with the overseas dominion, while opening a limited trade market to the overseas dominion …
In fact, Claude and the other councilors were rather puzzled when they first heard about the trade ban imposed by the eight colonies. The eight colonies wouldn't sell all their goods to the colonies.
Many of the less profitable goods wouldn't even be shipped from the mainland to the colonies, so they could trade with the region in that regard. There was no need for them to ban all trade and goods in the region.
It was only then that everyone understood that the eight colonies wanted to use the trade ban to negotiate with the region so that they could get their hands on ironclad warship manufacturing technology.
However, what the eight colonial countries didn't expect was that the Overseas Dominion didn't plan to negotiate with them at all. The Military of the Dominion directly carried out Operation Wildfire, preparing to have the indigenous people drive the eight colonial countries out of the West Coast and end their colonial rule ….
That was also the reason why the envoys of the eight colonies didn't gain anything from the region. No matter how much they tried to get on good terms with the councilors and generals, no one was willing to help them complete their mission.
Everyone was well aware that the overseas autonomous military zone was the mastermind behind the independence and liberation of the indigenous peoples of the various colonies on the West Coast. The purpose of this was to counterattack the trade ban imposed by the eight colonial countries on the West Coast.
Moloshik and Lesnia were probably regretting getting involved in this mess. Not only did they lose their colonies, they also lost three corps. Not to mention, they didn't even have any evidence to accuse the region.
But it was too late for the eight colonies to regret it. Even if they lifted the trade ban, it wouldn't be a big deal to the region.
After all, the region had always been the merchant and most of the profits from the trade went to the smugglers.
Now that the autonomous region's military had opened up a secret road inland through the nikancha country, even though the cost of repairing the road was a little high, the profits were even greater without the smugglers as middlemen.
Just as the envoys from the various countries who had come to the overseas autonomous region left with their tails between their legs, the first and second divisions of the Monolith Corps had also returned to the overseas autonomous region.
Claude breathed a sigh of relief. Now that the region had a reliable garrison, they would be able to ensure the safety of the region. They wouldn't have to worry about any unexpected incidents happening.
Birkin also ended his inspection at the frontlines and returned to Lanu. Next, he had to reorganize and reorganize Monolith's 1st and 2nd Folk.
According to the new military system, they would be divided into 1st, 2nd, and 4th Folk. With the addition of Monolith's 3rd Folk stationed at Cape Loducus, Monolith would have four Folk. Each Folk would have 18,000 men for a total of 90,000. They would be the most reliable armed force of the region.
After the reorganization of Monolith was completed, Birkin also had to form a temporary volunteer corps to be used in the war on the west coast.
The corps would help the natives of the various colonies gain their independence and chase the colonists out of Nubissia.
Almost all the officers and excellent soldiers who had been promoted in the Monolith Legion had to go to this volunteer legion to temper themselves and become the real elites and backbone of the legion.
Drivick and Hipilos reported to Claude at the headquarters. The two generals were Claude's old subordinates in Thundercrash and were promoted to the rank of general through their contributions.
Drivick was only a first lieutenant when he joined Thundercrash through his father, Weyblon. Now, Claude was already a grand marshal and Drivick was promoted to major-general, fulfilling his childhood dream.
Derivik and Hipilos served as the leaders of the two Shiksan folk and performed outstandingly in the battle against Morosik.
He helped the pamigar to establish an independent nation and made great contributions to the expeditionary force of the Lesnian Kingdom's three legions.
Naturally, the Shiksan 3rd and 4th Shiksan Folk that attacked Cape Loducus and Loki Mountains were all staged by Monolith 3rd and the four garrison lines. Drivick and Hipbelos only sent a Shiksan regiment each to confuse the residents of Cape Loducus and convince them that it was the Shiksan mercenaries who attacked them.
After occupying Cape Loducus, the 1st and 2nd Shiksan folk under the command of Drivick and Hipbilos would continue to rest and reorganize in the losman territory.
However, they didn't expect the Shiksan king, Majid III, to set his sights on the two folk and send an envoy to contact them in hopes that they would turn against him and help him gain a colony on the west coast of Nubissia.
Fortunately, the Shiksan envoy was captured by the lothmans the moment he came ashore and sent to the military office. Claude had no choice but to order the two Shiksan folk to return to the region and wait for further orders. He then had the four garrisons pretend to be Shiksan folk and continue to station themselves in lothman territory to see if he could bait a few more Shiksan envoys over. The mines were always lacking manpower anyway.
"How's the mission going for you two?"
Claude looked at the two generals who saluted him and casually waved his hand in return. "Take a seat. Captain Fachselin, pour some fruit wine and open the bottle of Golden Apples for our two generals."
"Lord Marshal, please don't stand on ceremony. We'll be fine with anything." The two generals still maintained their respect for Claude. The generals who had risen from the lowest ranks saw him as their idol, unlike the likes of Moriad, Myjack, and Borkal, who treated him so casually just because they were on good terms with each other.
Golden Apples was a type of fruit wine that wasn't brewed solely from apples.
It was named Golden Apples to show that the ingredients used in the wine were very precious and it wasn't easy to brew. It was also a bit of a boast that it was a famous brand among fruit wines and was rather expensive.
Captain Fachselin opened a bottle and poured half a glass for each of the two generals. He put the bottle aside and saluted before exiting the office and closing the door.
"Lord Marshal, the eight Shiksan folk have been formed. They number 280,000 in total," Hipilos reported in a concise manner.
General Delevik sighed. "The last time we recruited volunteer divisions, it took us three months to complete the task of forming two divisions.
Also, those who joined were mostly the tens of thousands of Shiksan captives who wanted to settle down in the region, as well as those adventurous war maniacs.
Now, we're bringing them back to Shiks to bring their families back to the region and treat them like immigrants. In less than a month, we've filled all eight folk. "
Claude knocked on the table. "As captives of the colonial war, they've been living in the region for close to a decade. It's only natural for them to be homesick.
That's why the fate of the captives infuriated them and brought them despair. They're worried that they won't be able to return to Shiks to see their families for the rest of their lives.
Under such circumstances, we can bring them back to Shiks to reunite with their families. We can even let them settle down in the region with their families and give them the same treatment as immigrants and land. That's basically giving them a new lease of life, so it's only natural that they'd go crazy to join the returning folk. "
"Lord Marshal, there's something I don't quite understand.
General Drivick said, "I personally believe that the most pressing task for the autonomous region's military right now is to carry out Operation Wildfire. The autonomous region should focus all its energy on the battlefield on the west coast.
There's no need for you to personally head to Shiks at such a crucial time.
After all, Shiks isn't our neighbour and it doesn't matter even if we're still at war. We shouldn't start another war on Freia, which is so far away.
If we send all eight Shiksan folk into Operation Wildfire, we'll be able to conquer at least half of the western coast by next year. "
Claude nodded. "We've considered all that, but we can't do it.
They're a returning folk made up of eight Shiksan captives and they don't have any sense of belonging or loyalty to us.
You should be aware that Shiks sent an envoy to contact your two folk, right? That's a confidential piece of information.
If we force the eight folk to fight in the western coast as mercenaries, they might really turn against us if they come into contact with the Shiksan envoy.
To the Shiksan captives, returning to Shiks to reunite with their families was their number one wish. Anyone who tried to stop them would become their enemy.
I'm glad that the first Shiksan envoy fell into our hands and allowed us to see Majid III's intentions.
It's safe to say that the five hundred thousand Shiksan prisoners living in our region have become the biggest unstable factor in the region.
Let's think about it. If Majid III sent many spies into the region to contact the Shiksan captives and ask them to cause trouble in the region by killing, robbing, arson or something like that, they would be able to return to Shiks to reunite with their families. How many Shiksan captives would do that?
Or, if the Shiksan agents coerce the released captives into disobeying their orders, they'll bring disaster to their families and loved ones in Shiks. Do you think the released captives will obey their orders?
What would happen to the law and order of the region then? "
Derivik and Hipilos shuddered at Claude's words. "They wouldn't go that far, would they?"
"That's hard to say. We have to take precautions."
Claude tapped the table with his finger. "Sometimes, I have to admit that the Shiksan king, Majid III, is a madman. He always surprises us when we're not paying attention.
Just like this envoy and the previous four colonial wars, all of them show that he's a paranoid maniac who won't stop until the very end.
"To be honest, Shiks has already replaced Nasri as the only enemy of Aueras and our region. Not to mention, it's still the hegemon of Northern Freia.
If we don't take advantage of our superior military strength to take them down, they'll become a huge problem for us one day.
"You should know that the five hundred thousand Shiksan prisoners living in our region are nothing more than cannon fodder abandoned by Shiks.
After all, they don't belong to the Shiksan royal family. Instead, they're the private forces of the Shiksan nobles. To Majid III, the Shiksans we captured are worthless. He'd only be happy if they were all dead.
"That's why he doesn't want them to return to the kingdom to reunite with their families. Let alone five hundred thousand, he wouldn't agree to even fifty thousand.
The reason is that these captives will increase the strength of the nobles of the Kingdom's territories. Mackid III didn't take advantage of the colonial war to reduce the strength of the nobles to the lowest. Through us, he eliminated the private forces of the nobles of the Kingdom, so how could he let these 500,000 captives return?
"Our region, on the other hand, wants the five hundred thousand Shiksan captives to join us as new immigrants to strengthen our region. The simplest way to do that is to bring them back to Shiks and have them bring their families to live in the region.
That's the only way for the five hundred thousand Shiksan captives to be truly loyal to us and become one of us. "