I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 368

< The Enemy of My Enemy (2) >

Admiral Bernabe, the Spanish ambassador to the South, had felt uneasy from the start.

Currently, there were only two Spanish embassies in the Americas: Canada and the South.

Originally, there should have been an embassy in the North as well, but repeated terrorist attacks forced them to maintain only the southern embassy.

Until now, public opinion in the South towards Spain had been favorable.

Although they were labeled as an unsavory nation during the war with Mexico, they had provided substantial support during the War of Independence.

However, people are creatures of forgetfulness.

No matter how much gratitude they feel, that gratefulness fades with time.

Especially with France and Prussia sending large-scale support troops towards the end of the war, interest in Spain waned even further.

It would have been fortunate if it had ended there, but Spain, with its poor finances, continued to urge the South to repay its debts, and the South consistently delayed.

In hindsight, it’s amusing that Spain was merely exercising its legitimate rights, but the people of the South didn’t see it that way.

This was a tradition of the South that had been passed down since the Jefferson administration.

“We borrowed money, yes, but we’re struggling to make ends meet ourselves. Do you really have to take it all?”

“You’d think we were the bad guys.”

“Isn’t there such a thing as human decency!”

Look at them, begging and pleading to pay back the money later when they were desperate, and now they’re going back on their word.

It’s like the pot calling the kettle black. They’re saying we’re not being decent for asking them to repay the money they borrowed.

Ambassador Bernabe was realizing more acutely than ever that things were much easier when he was an admiral.

He should be showing these crazy bastards the taste of cannons, but the need to maintain the dignity of an ambassador of a nation was driving him crazy above all else.

“I understand your country’s situation, but my country’s situation isn’t optimistic either. We have enormous debts to repay to the British Empire. Is it reasonable to ask my country to sacrifice for your country’s sake? That’s not decent.”

“We’re not saying we won’t pay it back at all. Just wait a little longer.”

The Jefferson administration had been making excuses and postponing repayment.

Still, at least they were paying interest little by little at this time.

The real problem started when the Confederate States of America collapsed and a new country was established.

“We are currently reorganizing the country, so we are re-examining everything from scratch. Please wait a little longer.”

“No, you still have to pay the interest…”

“The basic administrative system isn’t even functioning properly, so there are significant obstacles to conducting diplomatic affairs. We would appreciate your understanding.”

It’s true that the country was in complete disarray, so it was unavoidable that they couldn’t pay even if they were asked to.

They had to rebuild the entire administration from scratch, so how chaotic must it have been?

Up to this point, it was understandable.

However, no matter how much time passed, the South showed no intention of paying back the money, and the pressure from the home country to receive the money quickly only increased.

The clueless fools in the home country even criticized the ambassador’s work ethic.

‘Damn it, do they think I’m doing this on purpose?’

It was suffocating, but the situation in the home country was the same.

As the day to repay the debt to the British Empire approached, Spain’s language became increasingly harsh in pressuring the South.

The British Empire had already greatly extended the repayment date, and if it was delayed again, there was no telling what measures they would take.

As a last resort, demanding food and cotton export rights wasn’t an unreasonable request, considering everything.

These were all clauses stipulated in the contract, and it was the South that had created this situation.

However…

“We absolutely cannot allow the taxes made from the blood and sweat of the people to go towards the arms production costs of imperialists!”

With this declaration made directly by Secretary-General Engels, the head of the Southern Council, Ambassador Bernabe’s mind went blank.

“Secretary-General! What are you talking about! Are you unilaterally invalidating the contract with the home country?”

“You’re using words that could be misunderstood. I’m not saying we’re invalidating it. I’m saying it was invalid from the start.”

“Isn’t that the same thing!”

“Not at all. If we were invalidating a valid contract, we would deserve to be criticized. But if we are merely confirming that a contract is already invalid, then it is no one’s fault.”

Since this is an official meeting between the Secretary-General and the Ambassador, all of this conversation will naturally be recorded.

In other words, this isn’t just trying to gloss over things with nonsense, but it can be seen as the South’s official position.

However, unilaterally overturning a contract between countries like this is the same as declaring isolation in the international community.

If he seriously has his head on his shoulders, he wouldn’t be saying such nonsense unless he knew it.

Or is he aiming for something?

The ambassador couldn’t accurately grasp the intentions of the Secretary-General in front of him.

Is his psychological warfare skill a divine ability, or is he just an idiot?

Or maybe…

“Secretary-General, do you know how much impact this declaration will have? Does the American Socialist Union not intend to establish diplomatic relations with other countries?”

“What are you talking about? We have been adhering to the agreements we have made with other countries since the establishment of our nation.”

“…”

“For example, let’s say you’re signing a lease, and the person who lived in the house before you does a midnight flit [leaves secretly to avoid paying rent]. And then a new tenant moves into that house. Does it make sense for the previous tenant to ask the new tenant to pay all the back rent?”

“It is not right to compare a country to a tenant. Your country is using the facilities built by the Confederate States of America as they are!”

It’s not like there haven’t been countries that have made the insane claim that they won’t pay back debts because the country has changed.

However, the majority of those countries paid the price and were educated on the fact that the world order is ruthless.

“The British Empire, France, Prussia! None of those countries will tolerate your country unilaterally claiming that the agreement is invalid. The establishment of the World International Cooperation Organization is just around the corner, and if you continue like this, your country will only be excluded from this order. Make a rational decision…”

“The reality is that the Western European powers are afraid of us and are trying to distance themselves. The World Economic Cooperation Organization? Everyone knows that it is an organization created to isolate us. We’re going to be excluded anyway, so why should we be afraid of it?”

“Uh…”

“And if you don’t want to starve to death, you have no choice but to import food. The situation that the ambassador is worried about cannot happen.”

The ambassador realized that the Secretary-General hadn’t committed this major accident on a whim without any calculation.

He must have calculated everything meticulously in his head, considered the side effects, and then pulled the trigger.

The fact that they had been delaying interest payments with excuses and then suddenly did this was proof of that.

“Secretary-General, it’s not too late. If you change your mind even now…”

“Changing my mind or anything, this is a conclusion reached after all the prominent lawyers in the home country reviewed it.”

“Then what is that declaration that you can’t give the taxes made from the blood and sweat of the people?”

“That’s a kind of political rhetoric to make the people of our country happy. Don’t all countries do that?”

“You’ll regret it.”

As expected, you should never have trusted the commies from the start.

The ambassador suppressed his rising anger and stood up from his seat.

He said he would make them regret it, but what could Spain really do to the South right now?

In any case, he had to inform the home country of this fact as soon as possible.

* * *

The fact that the South had stabbed Spain in the back spread like wildfire.

Spain hoped that by spreading this fact far and wide, all countries around the world would condemn the South with one heart and one mind.

However, that was only Spain’s wish.

“The South stabbed Spain in the back? Hahaha, now Spain is getting backstabbed by the commies, what a level.”

“That’s what you get for trusting the commies? You should have gotten the money a long time ago; that’s what happens when you drag your feet.”

“Ooooooh! Commies are trash!”

There were many opinions criticizing the South, but criticizing the Communist Party is the default in Europe anyway.

They criticized them as hard as usual this time, but that was it. No country stepped up to take the lead for Spain.

Rather, other countries seemed to be more focused on using Spain to strengthen domestic public opinion that the commies were untrustworthy from the start.

And on top of that, they were mocking Spain for being backstabbed by the commies and crying about it.

In fact, it’s not that there weren’t voices calling for completely crushing the South, taking this opportunity.

However, with Europe’s attention already focused on China, these claims did not gain much traction.

Europe, which is on edge to intervene in China if necessary, had no desire to send troops to the South, which was obviously not going to be profitable.

In addition, within the British Empire, which is currently leading the order in Europe, the opinion of watching the situation was dominant.

If things continue like this, there is a high possibility that Spain will not be able to repay its debts, so wouldn’t it be possible to extract more things from Spain by using this as an excuse?

Condemning the South can wait until later.

Still, Spain was determined to pressure the South and win back their rights if they had even one ally.

However, one country that even Spain and Europe did not expect issued an official statement, and the political situation began to fluctuate greatly.

-The South’s claim that Spain’s demands are unfair and that there is no need to repay any debt to Spain is persuasive.

The country that hates commies the most in the world.

But a country that hates Spain even more than that.

The North. The United States of America, surpassing everyone’s expectations, took the South’s side, and the situation was falling into great chaos.