Taking a Bite

The great powers’ preparations for war filled the world with tension.

First, countries that had remained neutral until now began to be forced to choose sides. The two great blocs had no intention of allowing anyone to sit idly between them under the pretext of neutrality.

The small countries caught between the League of Nations and the alliance of non-member states had to find some way to look after themselves.

Some of them even came to the Empire.

They pleaded with us to guarantee their independence.

But the Empire’s response was cold.

"We will uphold our principle of non-intervention, as we always have."

The principle of non-intervention was the Empire’s own independent course, one it had upheld for more than a thousand years.

Kyle Leopold had a simple reason for sticking to it.

"A world war has to happen sooner or later anyway."...