Nah, there is not a single shred of joy or pride to be had in helotry…conversely if my mc lives a reasonably long theurgic lifespan one of the greatest joys could be seeing kids or teens vacant expressions and glazed over stares when casually mentioning the word.
Only my second mc would go for the Koinon my main mc wants a single state. Tolerance for private military contractors will most likely be quite low in both cases, as PMC’s tend to be agents of destruction and unsanctioned war-crimes much like the current Alastors and they should not expect mercy when defeated if fighting against him.
That said, if the cold war is achievable some will likely be around and it’ll be lucrative and very dangerous as they’d exist only for plausible deniability for, I imagine, both Halassur and my mc’s state. So again, they should be expected to be treated like common mass-murdering outlaws if captured or defeated by either side, not POW’s.
One exception where, under the right circumstances, my mc might encourage private action is on the high seas if a situation manifests itself where establishing a system for privateering makes sense and is feasible.