OOC: Akitsu Expansion into Belau

[Zabuza825]

The Holy Lanlanian Empire may have accepted Belau's conversion to Sentricism and consequently been friendly to it, if it was friendly to the Lanlanians and welcomed missionaries and maybe a Holy Lanlanian naval refuel/resupply station. Historically, the Holy Lanlania Empire never colonized further north than its current islands in Southeast Ostara.

Since there's a significant distance between Belau and the empire though, the trade between them wouldn't have mattered much to the empire, especially given Belau's small size. But, as the Sentric state, the empire would have an interest in defending its little Sentric brothers and sisters and hence could possibly intervene to protect them.

I don't feel too strongly about those islands though, so we could come to some sort of understanding. But it'd be too awkward for the Holy Lanlanian Empire to do nothing about a Sentric state being invaded and annexed by non-Sentrics. How about that Akitan conversion?

They were likely friendly, though whether that friendliness was genuine or not would mostly come down to the question of whether or not you gave them guns back during the wars that unified Belau. Even old super-outdated "we were going to throw them away anyway" guns would be fine as long as they functionally worked, since the locals would've been using weapons far less effective than guns at the time so literally any kind of gun would've given King Guafi Inayik a huge advantage in war.

As for Missionaries, well at least under law there would've had freedom of religion. This would mostly because the King's would have the foresight to know that if they tried to prevent other countries from sending missionaries, it could cause diplomatic issues. So the King would've likely allowed Sentric missionaries in at first (the only reason King Guafi didn't convert would've probably been because polygamy, but his son would've had no qualms and converted and King Guafi would likely allow Sentric missionaries before any others because of that), and then gradually opened up to other missionaries, with the last act being allowing for freedom of religion.

Akitsu would've likely felt very strongly about those islands though, since they would likely see it not only as a way to show of their new modernized powers and expand business interests. That and some Admirals might've seen those islands as a way to try and keep Brigidnan forces out of the seas near Akitsu. But any further east than that, well Akitsu wouldn't know at the time but they would've not gone any further east, instead turning their attention to Ostara proper after Belau. Maybe some agreement with Lanlania could be the reason for that? Not sure how that would work out RP-wise though if the interest is "protecc sentric little brother".