The Illastia Negotiations

While Leopold had used the meeting with the Illasia representative as an excuse to get out of an uncomfortable conversation, it was actually something that had been weighing on his mind. Illasia was one of only seven countries that was left standing after the great technological age, and it was one that stood out from the rest. This was for a variety of reasons, the most important of which was it's technology. It was located on what used to be the west coast of the United States of America, back when such a thing existed, in the former city of Seattle. It was because of this that they were able to decipher and utilize many of the lost technologies. These technologies were often beneficial to societies as a whole, and coveted greatly by those who didn't posses them. A few of the discoveries, however, held great destructive power, and were quickly banned worldwide, as it was now well understood that the world couldn't afford another war like the ones that happened in the technological age. In this particular instance, however, there were rumors swirling around about a new technology that could increase the female birthrate. Given that Illastia had reached out to, not one but, all three of the largest nations, there was very likely some degree of truth to this rumor. The degree of truth was something that Leopold was concerned with, especially since Illastia wasn't exactly known for it's straightforward tactics. More accurately, they were well known for their deceptive nature, and this discovery was a little to good to be true. It was even less likely when the number of women in Illastia was taken into account, as there were only three women there. This was a result of repeated wars and regime changes that continued all the way up to the plague took hold. Even if it was real, Leopold was certain that this information would come at a high cost, especially since this information was also carried in with another rumor. If his informant was correct then The Illastia High council was on shakey ground and had obtained this discovery by means of repeated and cruel experiments on the remaining females of the nation, not only was this terrible to hear, but it was also against international law. Leopold didn't know exactly what to expect when entering the room, but he knew one thing for certain. Even if this rumor turned out to be baseless there was no way that he'd ever approve a trade involving sending women to Illastia.

Leopold took a good look around the conference room as he entered it. It was a simple room with the only decor being a vase of fragrant flowers set on the center of the table. Most thought that this was meant to make the space more inviting, but it was really brought in to help mask the smell of the Chancellor from Valentine. He was a good man, but his breath always smelled awful. Unable to say anything out of respect, but also repulsed by the smell Leopold had the flowers put in and began sitting further from guests while they were here. Now it seemed that The Illastia representative was fairly enthusiastic about the flowers, as he kept smelling and touching them. This made Leopold smile as he thought about how useful they had become. He would have to keep this in mind in the future. The man before him was a rather unremarkable man, in appearance at least. He was a tall, thin man wearing an old, brown suit that was noticeable large on him. His hair was carefully done, yet had just a few stray hairs, enough to make it look as if it was done in a hurry. When put all together the man looked as if he were a fickle man who often threw things together last minute, but Leopold sincerely doubted this to be true. Quite the opposite, actually. His appearance was so cohesive in it's design as to be clearly intentional, at least to a trained eye.

"I hope you weren't waiting long." Leopold said with a gentle smile. Of course, he already knew the answer. His guest had been there for exactly Ten minutes, as he had planned. It was enough time for him to notice the delay, but not enough to be bothered by it. "I had a rather urgent matter that I just couldn't put off. I hope you understand." This was also a lie, but it was one that would help him understand the mindset of the man in front of him.

"No trouble at all." came the friendly reply. "I'm Representative Lakin. It's a pleasure to meet you Mr?" He left a clear pause at the end as to indicate that he didn't know who he was talking to. This was obviously not actually the case, as Leopold handled all of these meetings on behalf of the king, so he was well known in his role, even among forgein diplomats.

"Lord McAllister," Leopold responded curtly, before smiling and adding, "but I suppose there's no real need for formalities is there Mr Lakin. Now, should we get started?"

"Of course." Mr Lakin responded through a thin smile he managed to muster to cover the fact that he was gritting his teeth. Leopold wasn't at all deceived by this fact, though he did take some joy from having gotten under his skin.

This set up the general dynamics of the meeting , and gave Leopold a clear advantage. Leopold was accustomed to the strict social conducts that were expected in such a situation, but often found them to be problematic, as they dramatically limited how he could approach negotiations. In his rush to show his superiority over his opponent Mr Lakin had unwittingly given good cause drop the formalities. He was an intelligent man though, and immediately noticed his misstep. Leopold had witnessed many men make this mistake and the majority tried to backstep. This was a poor choice since backstabbing also gave reason to perceive this action as an insult. Mr Lakin's approach, however, was very good indeed. He rubbed the back of his head and feigned embarrassment as he apologized and claimed not to be good with titles. He acted the part well. If it weren't for the clear frustration in his eyes his gesture would have been perfect.

Once the formalities were out of the way the meeting went exactly as Leopold had expected.

The Illastian Government was claiming to have a miraculous new technology to raise the female birthrate and yet the representative they chose to send couldn't come up with any real answers to the nature of this technology. From it's origin to how it worked everything was a mystery, and all they wanted for this tech was 500 gold and a woman of course. To hear him tell it this was a great deal, as it would guarantee many successful female births for generations to come.

Leopold listened carefully as Mr Lakin explained everything in immaculate, yet useless detail, and was very impressed with his salesmanship. Had he been a man with less experience in this room then he certainly would have been taken in by this sales pitch. Sadly for Mr Lakin, Leopold was not that easily sold, but as luck would have it he had managed to catch him in a good mood.

"So," Leopold questioned, feigning excitement. "For this discovery of a century of a lifetime all you want is a bit of gold and any one woman we can freely offer? Is that right?"

Mr. Lakin smiled brightly and said, "That's almost right. You see, we put a lot of time and energy into this discovery, as you may imagine, and would like to recuperate some of our losses. For all of the time and money that we put in not just any woman will do. It must be a survivor of the plague, and the younger the better." He paused, feeling extremely anxious as he saw the sudden anger raising up on Leopold's face. Then he quickly added. "I understand your frustration, as it is a lot to ask, but, as you may know, your country had more survivors than most while ours was left without any. It's also quite a good deal when you think of the lasting effect that it will have on your population. I can promise you that This is not a deal that should easily be passed up."

Mr Lakin had no way of knowing what was going on in Leopold's head, but if he had he may have approached his final sales pitch differently. You see, once he had listed his requirements for the woman who would have to be sacrificed for this technology Leopold completely stopped listening, and instead held a single-minded focus on one thing. The description that he had given fit one woman far better than anyone else in the kingdom, and that was the same woman he had spent the last week eagerly awaiting to hear from. The idea of handing any woman over to a country like Illastia was ridiculous enough, but handing Elisabeth over was enough to make him want to vomit at the mere thought. This man had been underestimating him this whole time. It was something he was accustomed to, as he was the youngest man to ever hold his position, but he was not a novice to be taken in by mere showmanship followed by demands that were beyond ridiculous. He was so furious that he couldn't stand sitting there any longer and instead stood up and began to walk out of the room. "I think I've heard all I need to hear. " He said with a polite smile as he turned towards the door.

Baffled and nervous about the sudden change of tones Mr Lakin clamored for any sign that this deal would go through. "So we can proceed with the offer then?" He questioned, adding "We can ammend the deal to your liking and get it in writing."

Leopold laughed out loud. "No!" he spat. "There will be no deal. Not only have you offered nothing tangible or indeed verifable in this meeting, but the price for this potentially nonexistent, mystery technology is undeniably one of the most precious women this country could offer. Only a fool would agree to your preposterous demands, and you will find no fools here. If you ever have something of real substance to offer then you are free to try again." Mr Lakin tried to refute Leopold's words, but his rebuttal fell on deaf ears as Leopold walked out of the room whie he was still mid-sentence.

By the time Leopold had managed to calm down from the flood of emotions that had been brought up in the meeting he had been summoned by the king. He walked straight over to the royal dining hall where he was waiting for him. He knew very well why the king wanted to speak with him. Chancellor Lakin most certainly complained about the manner in which he ended the meeting. To his surprise, however, the king did not immediately mention this. He instead invited him to sit and have dinner with him. Leopold was not readily convinced, but quickly sat down when the king mentioned that his son would be joining them. He didn't get to spend as much time with his son as he would have liked to, so this gesture was highly appreciated.