Chapter 131 - The Beast

After the meeting with the diplomat, I visited the prison again.

It was just about supper time, so I gave Alice some bread and soup.

I had the same menu.

Are you going to eat too?

Yes.

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

Youre the king, arent you?

Well, yes, but this is a battlefield, you know. The food you eat is the same as that of ordinary soldiers.

Just because Im the king doesnt mean I can eat a sumptuous meal by myself.

Well, it tastes poisonous, and there is a large amount of grapes added.

But the main meal is the same as that of a common soldier.

The meal started casually.

Silence reigns in the prison.

Well, , what should we talk about?

Is your power a blessing?

No, sir.

Alice simply denied it.

It seems that Alices physical abilities and her ability to create threads are not blessings.

What is it, then?

My father is a spider.

Alice began to speak plainly.

What does it mean that her father is a spider?

Mystery after mystery.

Is it possible that there is no concept of genes in this world?

If I ejaculate in Sakura, a horse with a face like mine could be born:

No, thats not possible.

Its a quirk.

Half spider, half human:

Isnt that a bit impossible?

If youre a chimpanzee or a gorilla, you can say that youre a hybrid of a human and a close relative.

A lion and a tiger, a zebra and a donkey.

There have been cases of different species having children together.

But a spider and a human.

It must be impossible even if you stand on your head.

I mean, do spiders even have penises?

What size spider can breed with a human? (Note: what are these questions)

Im confused.

Youd be crazy not to be confused by this.

Alice giggled when she saw my confusion.

I used to be a human spider.

Im sorry. Im sorry, that confused me even more.

You mean you were reincarnated like me?

I think I heard something about that.

I dont know the details, but I heard that one day he suddenly turned into a spider. I think it was a blessing.

Its a curse, isnt it?

My Great Lords blessing is half a curse, too.

Ive heard that if you have a blessing that is greater than your human capacity, it will go out of control. Its not that unusual, actually.

Runaway

After all, the beings who give us blessings have bad personalities.

Even though he was a spider, he used to be a human. So they can interbreed with humans.

Hmmm, , how did your mother breed with a spider?

Alice denied my words, shaking her head from side to side.

No, she didnt. My mother was raped.

Im sorry.

Should we stop?

No, Ive come this far, lets hear it out.

So you inherited your ability from your father?

I guess so. I heard from a slave that people like me are sometimes called beastmen. Its very rare to find them on the market.

A beastman.

When I hear that, I cant help but think of cat ears as dog ears.

Are there dog-ears and cat-ears in this world too?

But Alice is a spider person, but it doesnt mean that she has the physical characteristics of a spider in her appearance.

Its only her abilities that make her more like a beast.

I just remembered that Alice was a slave.

How did you become a slave?

I was sold. Sold to the Cilicians. They raised me until I was about five years old, but as soon as there was a famine, they sold me. Then, when I was seven years old, I was bought by Prince Aldos mother. She said it was because she wanted to see a spiderman.

I see.

From then on, Prince Aldo gave me

How old are you Alice? Im nineteen.

Im twenty.

It would be traumatic to be exposed to violence for thirteen years.

Its amazing to be king at nineteen.

Well, it just happened, you know?

My ascension to the throne was the result of a combination of fates.

If I hadnt had even one of them, I would have been just another village chief.

Hey, Alice.

What is it?

What are you going to do now?

Alice looks into my eyes.

What do you mean ?

Id like you to become my vassal and work for me. Your assassination skills could be useful. If you dont want to do assassinations, you dont have to do them. I wont force you. If you do, youll be doing the same thing Prince Aldo is doing.

I broke off and looked at Alice closely.

Aldo is dead. The peace treaty will be signed soon and he will be executed. The chains that bind you will disappear. You will be able to choose your own life. Im told that it was you who assassinated the centurion of my army. Im the only one in this country who knows about it. You were threatened, and I can see that there are extenuating circumstances. So I forgive you.

If I kill her, Alice will never become my vassal.

So, for now, I need to keep her alive.

Of course, if she wants to escape my grasp, Ill have to kill her.

Thats because she might become a pawn for the enemy.

Hiding my ulterior motive, I asked Alice, What should I do first?

It would be great if you could be a servant in the palace for now. What do you think?

Alice told me in a quiet voice that she wanted to think about it for a while.

Ill come back tomorrow and ask you again.

I left the prison.

Four days later, a diplomat informed me that my efforts to persuade King Roselle had been successful, and a secret treaty had been formally signed.

After that, a meeting was held between the Gaulish allies.

The agenda was about concessions in the peace treaty.

I submitted the concession proposal I had presented to Marlin.

The kings of each country were fiercely opposed.

The king of Domorgals country was particularly opposed.

The land of King Domorgal was severely devastated by the war.

Without reparations, they would not be able to survive.

The kingdoms of King Gilbed and King Faldum also complained.

But.

Our soldiers are exhausted from fighting so many battles. We cant fight any more battles in a row. Our farmland has been neglected for too long. You may be happy because you have gained territory, but we have not gained any territory. We are losing. We want to disband the army as soon as possible. If you want to prolong the negotiations any longer, I want you to negotiate alone. My countrys army will be home in a week.

I told them, and the kings faces changed.

If we leave, there is a possibility that the Roselle Kingdom will take back our territory again.

The Muzios also began to hope for my return.

The Equus people have fought this far to repay me.

It was for the sake of righteousness, not for profit.

Ive already returned the favor.

I have no intention of engaging in any more wars.

If we cant reach a peace agreement, we will return in three days.

I hadnt even heard of this.

Later, I heard that the Alyce and Lupus tribes were showing some disturbing movements.

We cant stay away from the country any longer.

Thats why.

In addition, the mercenaries that Rezad lent us and the heavy infantry of Gehenna began to hurry up the peace.

Both countries are commercial nations and naturally traded with the Kingdom of Roselle.

If the war dragged on any longer, it would affect their commerce.

The country of King Losais, Rezad, Gehenna, and the Equus tribe.

If the four countries rushed me, even the three quintessential countries would have to admit it.

Thus, my concession proposal was accepted.

Immediately after that, peace negotiations were held with the Kingdom of Roselle.

A fierce debate ensued, but it was a race to the finish.

I was laughing out loud, and smiling.

Im sure the diplomats did as well.

Marlin looked unhappy the whole time.

The theater went according to the script, and the actors did what they were supposed to do.

The comedy ended without a hitch.

Thus ended the long, long siege.