The Three Generals

After saying goodbye to the girls back at my Kingdom, I enter the Event and find myself in the same place I left yesterday, the prison cell inside the fortress owned by Melissa.

Taking a good look at it, I can now notice that the house I made in my Kingdom uses the same wood and even the stone is cut in a similar fashion as what can be seen in this prison. It might be just because they are both medieval, but it's somewhat familiar.

Of course, from inside this cell, I can't actually see too much, but If I went outside I would be able to make a better comparison between the houses they have in the villages and what I have in the Kingdom.

It takes a bit of time for Melissa to arrive, which is rude since she left me in such a precarious room. But I'm hoping that maybe my gifts will sway her heart and eventually lead me to the best chambers this place has to offer.

Melissa: "I see you're back, boy."

Miwen: "I tend to keep my promises. I also brought gifts."

Melissa: "... I appreciate it."

Even though she says that I feel like she was expecting a bit more. I could notice that she was using appraisal on the arrows and rings, and was not very enthusiastic about the results. Her contributes to my impression, as it's clear she doesn't care too much about my showing of good faith. Next time I'll bring even more arrows, I bet that will make her happier.

Melissa: "I must say it's quite bold of you to willingly come back to prison. Are you that confident in your abilities ?"

Miwen: "That's not the case. I know well enough that you could kill me at a moment's notice, and to be honest, it would be a bet if I can escape on time. Right now what I'm trusting more than anything is your ability to discern my intentions."

Melissa: "Mhm... Is that so?"

Just the fact that she hasn't attacked me yet, even though I've proven I'm capable of leaving whenever I want, should be a good indication of the value she places on my life. Of course, that value may change at any time, and that's why I'm doing my best to increase it right now.

Melissa: "You left some interesting things behind last time... Some of those weapons were at the level they could be considered relics. If you had brought more of them I would be willing to consider your last proposal..."

Miwen: "I'm happy they are of use to you. But if you were to consider my proposal right now, I could definitely bring you more. Although as you probably saw, their quality may vary drastically."

I'm having very mixed feelings about this. It's definitely good that the weapons I gave her showed some prowess, it certainly makes my position much better. But also... to give good weapons away like this, it hurts a little bit.

Melissa: "...Alright then. Do tell me, what is it that you want in exchange for more of those ?"

Miwen: "For starters, I want you to guarantee my life as long as I remain in this realm. This should also extend to any companions I may have."

Melissa: "Companions huh? I thought that might be the case. They must be quite good since even when I led a search group during the night patrol we didn't find a trace of you or anyone else for that matter."

That much is obvious since we weren't here to begin with. But this chieftess is surprisingly diligent huh? To take matters into her own hands and spend the night searching, it seems like she's the type of person to lead by example.

Miwen: "If you agree to my condition, I can tell you why you weren't able to find them."

Melissa: "...Neither you nor your companions are to harm anyone under my wing. You are to tell me, in detail, the number and abilities of your allies. As long as these conditions are met, neither I nor my people shall bring harm to you and the ones under your care."

Miwen: "Fine, but it's only fair that you also share a bit of information about what's currently happening with your people and this war. I don't need any compromising detail, but a clearer picture of what's been happening would be beneficial to me, and could also help me support you better in the future..."

If I'm to take their side in this war, I'll try my best to contribute as much as possible, and since fighting doesn't seem viable right now, the best weapon I could acquire is information. I may not have the strength necessary to directly interfere in this war, at least not without any tricks, but information always opens up opportunities.

Melissa: "That's acceptable."

It brings me relief to see Melissa accepting my terms. As I thought, she's quite reasonable, as long as I provide her benefits, she'll do the same to me.

I had no reason to deceive Melissa right now, even more so since her trust was key to me being able to progress in this event. So, as she asked, I told her all about both Licia and Claire. I also felt secure doing this since I knew they wouldn't be put in harm's way as long as they were in the Kingdom, so even if Melissa decided to betray our agreement, there would be nothing she could do to the girls.

As for my abilities, I didn't share any of them with Melissa, after all, she only asked for details of my companions. It seems she still thinks of the people who could be outside this fortress as more of a threat, which is understandable to a point, but I'll make use of that to get whatever advantage I can.

Melissa: "Good. If they are close to your level, they are no menace. But from what you told me, these girls that accompany you have no skill that would allow them to sneak around or teleport as you do. So, since you promised, tell me why exactly can't we find them ?"

I guess I can't keep everything hidden. But this much is alright to give her.

Miwen: "They are not here right now, so you won't be able to find them as much as you search. Although they can come any time since I can call them to my side. That's not thanks to their abilities, but rather, thanks to mine."

Melissa: "I'm guessing it's also thanks to you that they seem to have so many skills even though their level is as low as yours ?"

Miwen: "Who knows? I told you everything about my Kingdom, so I think you should start sharing a bit about your tribe right? I mean, if you want me to tell you about myself, I'd be willing to, but only after you talk about yourself."

Melissa: "So you'll only share information as long as I do the same huh? It fascinates me how you can be so bold and careful when dealing with someone much stronger and experienced."

Since she's older than me she sees and treats me as a young boy. Well, I appreciate the compliment either way, even though I'd disagree that it's something impressive for someone my age.

Melissa: "But yeah, I guess it's only fair if I start sharing a bit myself. So let's start at the beginning. Do you know why my tribe is at war with the Kingdom Of Hamperlon?"

Miwen: "No idea."

Melissa: "...That kingdom has been expanding its border for generations, culminating in one of the strongest forces in the region right now. They have an alliance with a strong kingdom called the Grand Duchy Of Okeans across a strait they share, and both have agreed to maintain that border and help each other if attacked, although thankfully that guarantee doesn't apply when they are the aggressors. Even then, this gave them a secure position, while also allowing for slow expansion whenever needed."

Miwen: "Do you have a map? It would be helpful for me to have a better picture of the situation."

Melissa: "I can bring you one later..."

I cannot be 100% sure about it, but given her description, what I imagine is two nations in a position like Spain and Morocco have on Earth, being separated by a strait. Their agreement to not cross the strait, along with a guarantee of mutual cooperation during a defensive war sure would provide a good position.

If it's a long-standing alliance, it might be hard to throw a wrench in it, even more so considering how beneficial it is to both of them.

But if I can convince Melissa to let me leave the island, and if I can gather enough good weapons, like what Melissa described as being relics... is it possible that I could convince the Grand Duchy to betray their allies? From what I know, the control of a strait is something extremely sought after by nations, since it usually comes with the benefit of increased control over trade in the region. If I make a good case, maybe they would surrender to greed.

After that, they would have a stronger position, but their reputation would also be extremely damaged, so they might refuse if they value their reputation that much.

There would also be the matter of the balance of power in the region, but as long as the Snow White Wolves win the war I should be done over here, so it's not really a concern of mine.

Miwen: "I have a question though. Why are they attacking this island specifically? Due to the climate and terrain, it is extremely difficult to invade. It would also be quite hard to settle in and even cultivate in here. No offenses, but I don't see much value in this island, even more given the amount of casualties they'd have to trade for it."

Melissa: "There are two valuable mines here. One is filled with gold and the other is filled with orichalcum. Our tribe is composed mostly of hunters, but even with the few miners we have, we made enough profit to trade for many goods across the sea. Due to this, throughout our history, there were many attempts to conquer us. Of course, they all ended up in failure, but this time..."

Miwen: "It's a bigger force than what you can contend with?"

Melissa: "Possibly. It was fine when they were occupied with another nation, but now they brought some troublesome individuals, three generals that are turning the tide of this war. Not to mention the increased amount of troops. A few hours ago they even managed to land, although we were able to repel them..."

The situation is more dire than I thought. Even though they have the terrain in their favor, if the enemy manages to maintain a landing, with their numbers, it would probably be only a matter of time until the tribe falls.

The event is going to last a bare minimum of two years, so either the event conclusion is tied to something else or their enemy is making faster progress than they were supposed to.

Either way, if I think calmly about the situation, there's not much I can do about the increased number of troops, but the three generals might be a different matter.

Miwen: "Can you tell me about the generals? Maybe I can help in some way."

Melissa: "It would be lovely if you could, but strength-wise, they are as good as the elites in my army. I believe in a one-on-one, only I should be capable of reliably taking one of them down."

Yeah, when she puts it like that I feel like my chances are extremely low. But I think it's worth to at least hear about them.

Melissa: "Either way, if you really wanna know. I'm fine with telling you about them."

Miwen: "Sure, go ahead."

Melissa: "The first and most troublesome one is a girl known by her epithet of 'The Seven Rainbow Miracles'. It seems like among many abilities, her Gift is capable of creating extremely strong barriers. Even a barrage of magic sometimes is not enough to break it. Her barriers are also quite big, so usually she envelops three ships in them, and the two ships in the front are the ones that usually try to land. She herself never approaches the island, only maintaining her barrier and leaving on the third ship once the others manage to reach the shores."

If she never approaches, and the island's focus is on defense, they have no way of giving chase. Even more so when it's extremely hard to break the barriers of the two ships that do actually try to land and should be the priority.

Melissa: "During the day, this causes my soldiers to lose most of their mana and much of their fighting ability, and in case of landing, some might even die while repelling the enemy troops. This brings us to the next problem, the "Angel of the Night". That guy is definitely no angel though, he's a harpy that painted his wings black or whatever. The problem is that he's strong, and during the night, hard to spot. He's been frequently landing by himself, picking and killing soldiers when they are alone or distracted. Over time, he's the one causing the most direct damage to my forces."

Right now this one seems the easiest to deal with, after all, the moment he slips and bites more than he can chew, it would be a simple matter to kill him.

Miwen: "So, who's the last one?"

Melissa: "Prince Gerbil. He's only the third prince of Hamperlon, but he's quite astute. From what I could gather, both "The Seven Rainbow Miracles" as well as "The Angel of the Night" weren't going to join, only doing so after Prince Gerbil managed to convince them. He's not a threat directly, but his troops show greater discipline and morale, making him quite a fierce opponent even when he's not fighting directly."

I see that as long as these generals stay alive, the chances of Melissa winning will be diminishing every day. So I think my priority for this event will be formulating a plan to take them down. If I manage to do that, the path to victory will be that much clearer.