After the meeting with the diplomat, I visited the prison again.
　It was just about time for dinner, so I handed Alice some bread and soup.

　I have the same menu.

　"...you're going to eat it too?
　Yeah.

　I sat down in front of Alice, across the cage, and brought the bread to my mouth.

　'You're the king, aren't you?'
　Well, yes, but it's a war zone, you know. The food we eat is the same as an ordinary soldier.

　Just because you're the king doesn't mean you can't have a sumptuous meal alone.
　Well, it does have a poisonous taste, and there's only an extra bunch of grapes.

　But the basics are the same as a common soldier.

　The meal begins unobtrusively.
　Silence rules the prison.

　Well let's have something to talk about.

　"Is your power a blessing?
　No, sir.

　Alice easily denied it.
　It seems that Alice's physical abilities and her ability to create strings are not a blessing.

　Then what is it?

　'My father is a spider.'

　Alice began to speak in a matter-of-fact manner.
　And then, unexpectedly, she came out.

　What does it mean that her father is a spider?
　Mystery begets mystery.

　Could it be that there is no concept of genes in this world?
　If I ejaculate into "Sakura," a horse with a face that looks like mine will be born...

　No, it's not possible.
　Quirky.

　However, Alice isn't joking around, and has a supremely serious expression on her face.

　Half spider and half human........
　Isn't that a stretch?

　I still wouldn't understand if you were to say that they are hybrids with creatures that are close to humans, like chimpanzees and gorillas.
　A lion and a tiger, a zebra and a donkey.　
　There have been cases where children of different species have been produced.

　But a spider and a man.
　Even if you stand on your head, it must be impossible.

　Does the spider have a p*n*s?
　What size spider is big enough to breed with humans?

　I mean, Alice's mother is a bit of a proclivity for that sort of thing.


　You must be confused, sir.
　You'd be crazy if this didn't confuse you.

　Alice chuckled when she saw me confused.

　'I was a former human spider,'
　I'm sorry. That was unnecessarily confusing.

　You think he's reincarnated like me?
　I think I've heard something like that before.

　I don't know much about it. It's just that one time he suddenly turned into a spider. I think it was a blessing.

　Blessing to turn into a spider one day
　It's a curse, isn't it?

　My great king's blessing is half a curse, but...

　'As I've heard, if you have more blessings than that human vessel, it will go out of control. One day a human being suddenly becomes a different creature. Apparently it's not so rare, actually.

　Runaway....

　After all, the beings giving us blessings are of bad character.
　You are enjoying giving a big blessing to a person with a small vessel on purpose.

　I'm a former human being, even though I've turned into a spider. That's why they can breed with people.
　Hmm your mother used to breed with spiders.

　My words are denied by Alice, shaking her head from side to side.

　'No, sir. My mother was raped.'
　....

　I'm sorry about something.

　It's starting to feel like a wake.
　It's not going to happen.
　No, let's hear the end of the story.

　"So you got your father's powers, huh?
　'It will be. I've been told by the slavers that people like me are sometimes called 'beastmen'. I've heard it's extremely rare to find them on the market.

　The Beastmen....
　When I hear that, I can't help but think of cat ears as dog ears....

　Are there dog ears and cat ears in this world?
　But Alice is a spider-man, but it's not like she has the physical characteristics of a spider in her appearance.

　Only her abilities make her closer to the beast.

　Come to think of it, you just called them slavers.
　Now I remember, Alice was a slave.

　How did you become a slave?
　I was sold. To the Cilician. They raised him until he was about five years old, but as soon as there was a famine, he was sold. Then when I was seven years old, Prince Aldo's mother bought me. She said it was because she wanted to see a spider-man.

　I see.
　After that, to Prince Aldo....

　How old is Alice?　I'm nineteen.
　I'm 20 years old.

　After thirteen years of exposure to violence, it would be a traumatic experience.

　'It's amazing to be king at nineteen.
　Well, it's just that there's a lot going on, you know?

　My accession to the throne was the result of a series of circumstances.
　If it weren't for that one thing, I'm sure I'd be an ordinary village chief.

　Hey, Alice.
　What is it?
　What are you going to do now?

　Alice swims her eyes.

　'What do you mean ...?'
　I would like you to work for me as my vassal. You could be very useful in an assassination capacity. Well, if you don't want to assassinate people, you don't have to. I'd like to see you do more than just that, I'd like you to be useful to me in my own defense, in my own intelligence work. ...but I won't force you to do it. If I force you, what you're doing with Prince Aldo will be the same as what you're doing with Prince Aldo.

　I cut off the words once and looked firmly at Alice.

　'Aldo will die. Soon the peace treaty will be signed and he will be executed. The chains that bind you will disappear. You will be able to choose your own life. I am the only person in this country who knows the truth about the assassination of my army's centurion. You were threatened, and I can see that there are extenuating circumstances. So I forgive you.

　If I kill him, Alice will never be my vassal.
　So I need to keep her alive for now.

　Of course, if she's going to escape my grasp, I'll need to kill her.
　They could become pawns in the hands of the enemy.

　I ask Alice while hiding the ulterior motive of "I don't want to be a pawn of the enemy".

　'It would be great if you could be a palace servant for a start. What would you do?

　Alice told me in a small voice that she needed me to think about it for a moment.

　You want to come back tomorrow to ask me about it?
　I got out of my cell.






　Four days later, the diplomats informed me that we had succeeded in persuading King Roselle to sign a secret treaty.

　A meeting was then held between the League against Gaul.

　The agenda was about concessions to the peace treaty.
　I presented the concessions I had presented to Merlin.

　The kings of each country reacted furiously.

　The opposition was particularly strong in King Domorgal's country.
　King Domorgal's country had been severely devastated by the war.

　It would not be able to stand without reparations.

　King Gilbed's country and King Fardham's country also complained.

　However.

　'Our soldiers are exhausted from fighting so many battles. It is impossible to fight any more consecutive battles. The farmland has been neglected for a long time. You may be happy because you have gained territory, but we have not gained any territory. We have lost nothing. I want to disband the army as soon as possible. ...If you want to prolong the negotiations any longer, I want you to negotiate on your own. Our country will be home in a week.

　The kings' faces changed when I said to them, "I'm afraid that if we don't succeed, the kingdom of Roselle may take back our territory.

　If my country was left behind, there was a chance that Roselle would retake our territory.

　Muzio and his friends also began to hope for our return.
　The Equus have fought so hard to repay my debt to them.

　They fought for righteousness, not profit.

　I've already repaid my debt.
　I will not fight any more wars.

　If we don't make peace, we'll return home in three days.
　He told us that if we did not make peace, we would return in three days.

　This was the first time I had heard of it.
　Later, I learned that the Arias and the Lupus were showing some disturbing movements.

　We can't leave the country any longer.
　That's what I'm saying.

　In addition, the mercenaries lent by Rezad and Gehenna's heavily armed infantry have also begun to rush the peace process.
　Both countries are commercial states and naturally trade with the Roselle Kingdom.

　If the war drags on any longer, it will affect their commerce.


　King Rosais' country, Rezad, Gehenna, and the Equus tribe.
　If rushed by the four countries, even the three quintessential nations will have to admit it.

　Thus, my concession plan was approved.


　Soon after that, I negotiated peace with the Kingdom of Roselle.
　A fierce and heated debate ensued, but it was a race to the bitter end.

　I was gloating inwardly while raising my voice.
　So did the diplomat.
　Merlin, though, seemed unhappy with the whole thing.

　The theater went on as scripted and the actors did what they were supposed to do.

　The comedy ended safely.

　And so the long, long siege was over.