One of the few things Chresis has had going for it is mineral wealth. But with Ornestra and Styrlac controlling the passage to the sea they have been rather limited in their options for trade. For many centuries they have largely been content to fend off attempts by Solodimir and Styrlac to conquer them while keeping Ornestra from paying them too much attention.
For a long time that worked. Then Solodimir fell into decline, and Chresis began to see an opportunity to expand. Unfortunately, they were not the only ones, nor were they first to act. Ornestra invaded Solodimir before Chresis or Styrlac could do the same, leaving Chresis in a difficult position. The acquisition of Solodimir nearly doubled the Onestran southern border and their exposure to potentially hostile nations. Since the Chresis border with Styrlac was comparatively small, and since Chresis lacked the support of Virstachreon that Faltris enjoyed, it seemed clear that Ornestra would be forced to invade Chresis as well.
King Chironis of Chresis looked at this hopeless situation and saw an opportunity. While Ornestra could undoubtedly take Chresis, it would place them on tenuous footing during the time it would take to do so. He determined that even with their relatively light losses in conquering Solodimir, Ornestra knew conquering Chresis was as risky as it was critical, and would likely be willing to offer many concessions in order to avoid leaving themselves vulnerable. Swallowing his pride, King Chironis offered Ornestra a deal: they would voluntarily join the new Ornestran Empire rather than fight.
Chironis’ assessment of the situation proved correct. Realizing too late the mistake they had made in seizing Solodimir, they determined not to compound it. Chironis’ offer was a stroke of luck, and they gladly accepted the annexation of Chresis. In turn they granted their new holding almost total autonomy under Chironis so long as they shared their mineral wealth and maintained a large enough army to keep Styrlac on the defensive. Under the light touch of the Ornestran Empire and lacking any threat from Solodimir, Chresis has thrived, even to the point of Chironis III’s son being appointed Imperial governor over Solodimir in recent years.