Aristocles smiled and pointed to a chair on the side.
"Sit down and talk."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
"Lida!"
Aristocles called out the name of his slave girl.
“Prepare delicious wine and the fruits we bought!”
"This is..."
The messenger was about to refuse, but Aristocles grabbed his hand.
"How can I refuse this? You've been waiting for me for so long. Let's eat and talk at the same time. Besides, it's getting late. Come enjoy dinner with me later. We have tender roast lamb today."
"Yes, I understand. Thank you."
So much for Aristocles.
The messenger could not refuse the kindness.
Seeing that the other party agreed, Aristocles couldn't help but smile.
That's fine.
"So, why did you come to Corinth from Sparta?"
"That's right, my Lord."
Seeing that they were starting to talk about business, the Spartan envoy hurriedly said, "Now, Hilde and her barbarian army have controlled the Athens area, and the entire northern Greece has been conquered by her. This is the most dangerous time for us Greeks, so your Majesty the King believes that our city-states in the Peloponnese should unite and resist Hilde's attack together. Finally, under the blessing of the gods, we can save the Greek city-states from her hands."
"Is this what His Majesty Pausanias meant?"
"Yes."
The messenger nodded affirmatively.
To Aristocles, this sent a signal.
That is, the current ruler of Sparta is Pausanias, and the newly appointed king has far less say than the previous Archidamos, so the envoys did not take the new king seriously.
But it is not important.
What’s important is that the Spartans actually said so.
And see Aristocles thinking.
The messenger continued:
"Corinth is an important ally of ours, so if Corinth is willing to fight alongside us during this crisis."
Discussion on the discordant eighth section of the fifth key
"What will happen?"
"We Sparta will naturally help you, and Corinth will dominate the entire north."
It’s no different from what I just said.
Aristocles felt that there was no surprise.
I thought that during this time of delay, the other party would realize that the conditions to be offered to the Corinthians should be slightly higher. But now, it is still a blank check.
"I don't quite understand this."
"Of course, to help your country establish hegemony."
"Hegemony? We Corinthians only like to make money."
"Isn't now the best time? Athens has been defeated. As long as we resist Hilde and drive Hilde out, then after Athens is restored, it will definitely lose the strength to compete with Corinth. And we Spartans will do our best to help Corinth in this process and establish its commercial hegemony in Greece. We Spartans are not good at business, but the Corinthians are different. We know this."
"you flatter me."
It seems that the Spartans thought very clearly.
The Spartans now could not give the Corinthians more benefits.
So we can only guarantee it with things in the future.
Northern Greece...it seems like they are really planning to divide the area and rule it separately.
Aristocles thought to himself that if the Spartans really drove away Hilde and her Greek Empire, then the next result would be that Corinth would take over northern Greece, including Athens and Thebes. Then, Athens' hegemony would fall, and Corinth would take over Athens' sphere of influence in business. This was indeed the perfect ending for Corinth, but...
When doing business, there is more to it than just profit.
Risk is also the most important.
What can Sparta and Collins do now to fight against Hield?
Rely on those gods who have proven themselves to be unreliable?
"But I have a confusion."
"Please say."
"I understand your intention, but you should also understand the situation of Corinth. Hilde has stationed tens of thousands of troops in the Megara area, and may send troops south at any time. We in Corinth will directly face Hilde's troops. What does this mean? I think you and the King of Sparta should know it very well. Therefore, if Corinth really breaks off relations with the Greek Empire, I am afraid that the end of Corinth will be very tragic."
"As for the fight against the Greek Empire, we Spartans will..."
"You're here to help, aren't you?"
Aristocles smiled and shook his head.
"But that would only make Corinth a battlefield."
"Mr. Archon, what are you doing..."
"I also have to consider the future of Corinth. Although the things after driving Hilde away are indeed very attractive, what if we can't drive him away? Don't we have to look at the risks before considering the benefits? At present, your country has not shown sincerity, but simply and rudely thinks that we Corinthians will definitely stand with you. Isn't this not good?"
"Sincerity?"
The messenger also frowned slightly.
Obviously, he also understood what Aristocles meant.
When asking someone to do something for you, you must show sincerity.
That is, the benefits that can be seen.
But in the eyes of the Spartans, being conquered by Hilde and her Byzantines was already a very bad thing, and being able to avoid this matter itself was a huge benefit. But Aristocles's attitude seemed to feel that if the Spartans did not give enough benefits, the Corinthians would not hesitate to directly choose to join the new Greek Empire.
That would be too strange.
However, the messenger was not in a position to say it clearly.
He could only lower his head and say, "I don't have the right to decide this."
"Is it."
Aristocles shrugged.
"In that case, we may not be able to muster the courage to fight to the death."
"But, Lord Archon, if we don't continue to cooperate, if Hilde goes south, you will definitely be conquered."
"I think you Spartans have made a mistake. If we are conquered, you will be next. If we can't hold on, you Spartans can't hold on either. That's why I said you are insincere. Because you don't understand this truth." Aristocles walked up to the messenger. Although he was smiling, his words were aggressive, making the messenger feel at a loss. "Now, it is you Spartans who want to resist Hilde the most. If you lose us, you will have no way to resist the other side. But we don't care. For Corinth, joining the Greek Empire is not so difficult to accept, don't you think?"
"...I understand what you mean, Archon."
The messenger stood up.
"Please, what do the Corinthians need?"
"That depends on what you want to give."
Aristocles' words are puzzling.
Generally speaking, the benefits are nothing more than a few aspects.
Money and power.
But for Sparta, Corinth was too rich. Even if the Spartans' money was added together, Corinth would not care about it. It can be seen from the weapons and equipment that the weapons and equipment of the Corinthian army, the sophistication and quality of the armor, were several levels higher than those of Sparta. The helmets worn by Sparta were like toys made of mud by children in front of the Corinthian helmets.
But the words of power.
Sparta had nothing to offer.
Not to mention beauties and slaves.
Corinth, the country of prostitutes, has no shortage of these.
Therefore, the envoy was in a dilemma. In addition, his decision-making power was very limited and he could not give any definite opinions. Therefore, the envoy looked at Aristocles in front of him and could only sigh helplessly. This meant that the negotiations had failed. Therefore, the envoy could only continue to say: "I really can't think of what we Spartans can give your country, but we can't just sit back and do nothing. The coalition forces of Sparta, Argolis and Messenia will arrive here in a few days."
"Oh? Military threat?"
Aristocles sneered.
"Is this how Spartans treat their allies?"
"No, it's not a military threat, but we can't let Hilde enter the Peloponnese easily."
"Indeed, from a military perspective, this decision is not wrong, but..."
Aristocles paused here.
The messenger looked at him in some confusion.
"What's the matter, Lord Archon?"
"No, it's okay."
The Fifth Tune, Section 9: The Strategy of the Snipe and the Clam in Dispute
Aristocles's hesitation was annoying.
But having said this, the messenger could not give any more ideas.
"What I learned from the Archon today, can I convey it to Your Majesty as a formal diplomatic message?"
"of course can."
Aristocles smiled faintly.
It's as if he doesn't care about it at all.
"But, privately speaking, we are likely to maintain a neutral attitude."
"Neutral...Yes, I understand."
Today's result made the messenger somewhat disappointed.
The so-called neutral attitude actually means that when the Spartan coalition and the Greek Empire army are fighting, Corinth will not help anyone and will be a complete bystander or fence-sitter. At present, Corinth has the confidence to do so. Corinth has a strong city and deep moat, and has about 18,000 standing soldiers. No matter who wants to attack, it will take more effort. Therefore, Aristocles can almost do whatever he wants and wait for the final result to appear. Of course... the greater possibility is that Hilde will win.
After sending the messenger away.
Aristocles returned to the palace.
The man who had been accompanying him just now asked in confusion:
"Lord Aristocles?"
"You feel it too."
"what?"
"Now, the Spartans are cornered."
"……Yes."
"If the Spartans had the support of gods, even the God of War Ares, their attitude would not be the same as it is now. However, the Spartans actually lowered their proud heads. This is really exciting! What does this mean? This means that the Spartans are no longer able to hold on! So, they are just planning to fight to the death."
"What about us?"
"Of course, I choose to be loyal to His Majesty Hilde!"
Aristocles' words shocked the man.
"But, but!"
"Are you trying to say that the Citizens' Assembly will not agree?"
"Of course!"
