The conversation with William II went very smoothly. Not only did they finalize Germany's financial aid to Australia, but they also roughly agreed on a series of plans concerning industrial assistance and future wartime aid.
At least in William II's eyes, he had successfully taken the first step toward tying Australia to Germany's chariot, giving Germany another ally in the wars to come.
Arthur and William II agreed that he would travel to Germany around the middle of December.
If the negotiations went smoothly, he could even spend a pleasant Christmas in Germany before returning to Australia.
However, before traveling to Germany, there was one more somewhat important matter to settle: the aid treaty with the United Kingdom.
Although the United Kingdom certainly would not be as generous as Germany, as far as Arthur was concerned, anyone who turned down free aid was a fool. The more they could get, the better.
Besides, German and British aid would not conflict. Both countries were extremely powerful industrially, with one leaning toward army equipment and the other toward naval warships. Each possessed technology that led the world, allowing Australia to study and absorb it properly.
After leaving William II, Arthur returned to Buckingham Palace and summoned the key members of the Diplomatic Delegation to a meeting in his office.
Fortunately, Buckingham Palace was enormous, and the rooms assigned to each member of the Royal Family were spacious as well. Each had its own reception room and conference room, and they were large enough to accommodate a meeting of more than a dozen people without much trouble.
The main purpose of this meeting was to determine the areas in which British support was needed. After all, with German assistance secured, many industries and technologies no longer required British support.
It was not that