Siding with the Cardinals

In the opinion of these Cardinals, the Empire was filled with lunatics. 

They were power hungry and wanted to absorb the neighboring countries to become the sole rulers of the Southwest. 

They also did not have access to the sea and capturing the Theocracy would lead to insurmountable resources. 

The Theocracy was nicknamed as God's Own Land due to the vast resources available. 

The nobility and the church controlled most of these resources and in the land of god, nobody stayed hungry. 

The Empire was surrounded by mountains and barren highlands. The whistling winds were cold and devoid of any moisture.

Most of the land wasn't as fertile and the Empire was thriving simply because of their extravagant deposits of precious metals and magic stones. 

Rumor had it that the Empire also possessed the Fountain of Youth somewhere in those snowy mountains. This explained the secrets of their youthful appearances despite them getting older.