Schneider, who had been staring bemusedly during Townley's brief interjection and intently, with furrowed brow, during Redmond's, rose again to speak.
"Representatives. I am sure it will need no further explanation that we are unwilling to discuss anything regarding our defenses with our enemies. Although, it reveals a deep callousness and cynicism that the Crayter delegation would even attempt to somehow formulate our ongoing struggle for survival in the Taus against the Outcast, one of the great enemies of humanity, and a struggle they shared with us and received great assistance for for many years, as something to turn against us."
She thumbs over her notes briefly.
"Mr Redmond, I am not quite sure what to make of your proposal. Now to us, vacating South Shields and towing out the Hood seems rather close to the worst-case scenario if we continue the conflict, and thus I am not sure any other guildmember could be convinced to accept such a deal. To put it bluntly, if you wish to remove those holdings anyway, we wouldn't really have anymore to lose to hold onto them by force.
But as for the second part of your statement, I am intrigued, and I must admit I am not sure I've understood you correctly. You wish for us to leverage a peace deal between the Guild and the Kingdom of Bretonia as a bargaining chip towards the Gallic Enclave, so they might more readily accommodate a peace deal overall?
It's an interesting plan, although I fear we may not have the leverage you expect. Despite what you might have heard, we have no ties beyond a mutual war against you.
I genuinely do not know if we could achieve anything to that effect, nor if the Guild would agree to it. I don't see how I could sell a peace deal to the Guild which involves relinquishing our remaining Bretonian holdings."