I invite Alistair to come to town.

"You have come a long way, Alistair. Why don't you take a look at our city of Ivalice?

　It sounded like a pick-up line, but it was not intended as such, and he wanted to explore Rosalia's inner workings while making small talk.

　At first I thought she would refuse, but Alistair honestly shook his head, "I'm glad.
　After all, he wants to see the city of the demon race once.

　How the demon race governs the humans, how Ivalice became rich, how they make weapons that become guns, they seem to be endlessly interested in it.

　It's a bit endearing to see him speak honestly, but I can't help but think, "Oh man.

　I think that would be like declaring that you want to "spy" on your enemy, but I didn't dare to pay attention to that.

　In the first place, I need this girl to be light-mouthed.
　Earlier, Cephiro had said.

If the girl won't talk, then I can make her talk with the secret medicine, or I can cut her skull open and extract the information.

　--there was no guarantee that that witch would not carry out her words.

　I wanted to get the information out as smartly as possible and find out what the King of Rosalia and the people behind him were doing.
　In that sense, this girl is easy to handle and helpful. With that in mind, I walked out of the pavilion and headed to the city.


　The first thing I led them to was the large square in the center of the city, where there was a large fountain and sculpture.

　Originally it was just an ordinary square, but Günther, King of the Dwarves, expanded it, saying it was boring.
　There is a statue of the goddess in the center, with water spouting from her fingertips. It was a statue of Aqual, the so-called water goddess.

　It was not an unusual subject for a fountainhead, but Alistair's impression of it was one word: wonderful.

'You won't find anything as magnificent as that in the royal city of Lysus.

'I'll have to tell Günther about it. That statue was made by his men.

'Lord Günther, you're the dwarf king who is rumored to be making the guns.

Well, his people, to be precise, sir.

　How many of them do you think she has?　He pulls out a notepad and asks.

(Oh man, she's really easy to understand, or maybe she's just a girl who can't lie.)

　I get the impression that this is a good idea, but I teach her to be honest.

　The next thing I led her to was a farm outside of Ivalice.
　It's now covered in clover.

Why are there clovers growing there?　Only livestock eat this stuff, though.
It's for the animals to eat.

　And I'll be honest with you.

　The four-wheeled farming method is not the best-kept secret. Since I've instructed the farmers to do so, the rumor will eventually spread throughout the continent, and there will be people who will imitate it.

　No, they have already started introducing it in the cities under the control of the Demon King's army, he said.
　There was no need to hide anything.

''This is how you rest your fields and change the crops you plant. That way, we won't have continuous crop failure and we won't have to rest our cultivated fields.''

　Hearing those words, Alistair said, "How! 'I didn't know there was such a method,' he muttered, jotting down notes frantically in his notepad, 'I must introduce it in my territory, or rather, in all of Rosalia.

　Now, this should be enough to surprise her and open her mind.
　As we walked through the plantation, I asked, casually.

'As a matter of fact, who is the King of Rosalia, Tristan III?

　She answers immediately.

'You are a fine man!
　And--

.........

　I'm at a loss for an answer.

　Well, if it were in her position, I'd have to say so, but that doesn't give me any information, so I step in.

Do you have any hobbies, for example?
"His Majesty enjoys hunting foxes and writing poetry.
It's very stylish.

Yes, I usually go fox hunting with my close friends, and at night I look at the blue moon and recite beautiful poems by heart.

I see.

　I mutter.

　In other words, a mediocre monarch with no interest in politics.
　I'm sure that the real power of Rosalia is in the hands of Eichs, the Prime Minister.
　Next, I decided to ask him about this Eichs person.

You can also have a look at a few of the most popular items on the menu. I'm sure he will keep the peace.

Of course, Your Majesty is not a double-minded man. "Of course, His Majesty does not have two hearts, and no one is more averse to war than He is, and no one is more merciful than He is. After all, it was you who saved me from imprisonment.

'I understand that Lord Alistair was imprisoned because he advised the Council at the Imperial Council that we should forcefully concentrate our forces on Ivalice.

Yes.

　I wonder if it was because he was remembering that moment that his voice was so low.

''I hate to say this in front of Lord Ike, but His Majesty the King was indeed offended, but it was Lord Eichis who decided to imprison me.

So this is your decision, Your Excellency?
"...Yes, you coward, you ornate Commander, don't talk to me about strategy!　I was cursed.
So you're saying that the war is actually being conducted by the Prime Minister?

　Alistair nodded.

'Politics too?'

　Alistair nodded in the same way.

''Then His Majesty Tristan is a puppet of the Prime Minister, isn't he?'' she would have nodded as it was, but she couldn't utter such an impolite word, as was the case with the stones.

　However, with his expression and demeanor, I felt as if I could see the inner workings of the country called Rosalia.


　The king shows no interest in politics or warfare, and the vizier, taking advantage of that to control the national government.


　It was like a typical pattern of an exile in a story.
　However, it is a thankless political situation when you are the enemy, but under the current circumstances, it works against you.
　The king, who is tired of warfare, sent an emissary to try to make peace with the Demon King's army on his own.
　The vizier, who had turned Rosalia into his personal property, did not feel good about it.
　On the contrary, he may have had his self-respect as a person who has been in control of politics and military affairs seriously damaged.


　In that case, it is still a good thing that


　It was quite possible that he would destroy the peace conference, assassinate the king on the spot, and blame the king's army for the crime.


　There was a good chance that he would do this.
　I pondered this for a while.
　Is it dangerous to sit at the negotiating table?

　Maybe Jiron and Cephiro are right, and I'll end up playing the clown who sluggishly falls for the enemy's tactical plan.

　As I was thinking about this, Alistair asked me to look into my face.

'What's wrong with you?　Lord Ike.

　Alistair asks with concern, but to reassure her, he makes a decision.

'I still think we should be at the bargaining table,'

　And--.
　There were many possibilities of the enemy's trap, but it didn't matter if we fell into it.
　Even if you are caught in the trap, if you bite off the opponent's throat flute, we will inevitably win.
　The bottom line is that as long as we prepare a plan that goes beyond the enemy's trap, there is no problem.

　Thinking this, I turned back to Alistair, and

I've had a wonderful time today. Please keep up the good work.

　He bowed his head like a gentleman.

　Alistair has a pompous look on his face, but in a manner of speaking, he returns the greeting and thanks, "It is my pleasure.
　Her appearance was quite dainty, and her wanderings reminded me of the daughter of a great nobleman.

　Now, she doesn't seem to understand anything, but I wonder how she would look if the negotiations were to break down.

　Of course, I will do my best to get the peace treaty signed, but I am curious, albeit inappropriately, to see what this girl will look and act like when the negotiating table is engulfed in a storm.