For the time being, my relationship with Melissa was based on sharing information and our agreement not to harm each other.
While we were slowly making progress toward a formal alliance, it was clear she didn't yet trust me as an ally, as she refused to share anything about her Gift and skills.
Even though she had agreed to do it in exchange for me explaining mine...
Still, I wasn't too worried.
I had no plans to harm her or her tribe, and zero people I could leak her secrets to. With time, she should realize this and slowly trust me more.
The real problem was whether her tribe could hold long enough for me to find a way out of this mess.
Licia: "Hmm... that's gonna be hard..."
Sitting on the Kingdom's ground with Claire and me, Licia scratched her head, trying to help me out with a plan I could show Melissa.
Claire: "How many soldiers does she have?"
While she didn't seem to be as focused as Licia, Claire was definitely interested in Melissa's war.
Unfortunately, she cut straight to the main problem.
Miwen: "That was the last topic before I left. Melissa's standing army numbers 600, and she told me that she could conscript between 800 and 1000 more men. As for the enemy... They have between 6000 and 7000 soldiers. Though not all of them are professional soldiers..."
My conversation with Melissa was quite productive, but at the same time, extremely worrisome.
Assuming Hamperlon is willing to kill each man in their army for the island, each soldier in her army would have to kill 10 men in Hamperlon's army, at the bare minimum.
While Melissa could recruit more men to fill in the ranks, it seems like Hamperlon could also do the same, probably dwarfing her numbers even more.
Honestly... I'm no expert on wars.
Most of what I knew came from history classes and documentaries, so while certainly better than nothing, it'd be insane to think I hold a candle to an actual, seasoned general.
Thankfully, I had Claire on my side.
She used to fight under her dad in their territory's army, so she should know-
Claire: "You may have chosen the wrong side to support..."
She hid it well, but I could tell she was holding back a chuckle.
Miwen: "I know they are outnumbered, but isn't her position quite good? I mean, she doesn't need to kill their entire army; she just needs to hold her territory. After wasting enough soldiers and resources, Hamperlon will probably give up. And like... The terrain is super defensive. It shouldn't be that hard."
Defending should be easier than attacking.
Their enemy would have to cross the sea and disembark on the island, which shouldn't be easy.
And after all that, they'd have to find their way across a snow field, into the forest, only to then siege a fortress.
Even if the numbers weren't in her favor, everything else seemed to be going Melissa's way.
Claire: "That's an interesting analysis, but... You're underestimating her numerical disadvantage a little. With only six hundred soldiers, every loss she takes represents a massive blow. Any recruits she brings won't have that much experience and training, so eventually, she'll lose too much discipline and morale."
I suppose...
In essence, Hamperlon can trade soldiers for longer than Melissa, and her disadvantages will only compound as the war drags on.
Licia: "Also... Her army composition is fragile. Since there's no Dungeon on the island, the best recruits she'd get would be hunters. Without enough warriors and mages to replace her losses, their army will crumble."
That one was a good point.
Army composition was a bit too specific to be discussed in classes, so it flew under my radar.
Still...
Miwen: "Can't she fix all this by training them?"
Licia: "Not at all."
She was pretty quick to jump on it.
Miwen: "Huh? Why not?"
From what little I knew, Melissa could definitely alleviate these problems with proper military training.
However, Claire seemed to agree with Licia that it was impossible, or at least, unrealistic.
Claire: "Yeah, you can train a hunter to be a swordsman, no problem. But you can't magically change their Gift and skills. Considering their life until recruitment, they'll probably struggle in a different role. At least, way more than a soldier who enlisted for that role in the first place. Her army will lose the quality advantage they have over time. With such disproportionate numbers, there's just no way around it."
Since most governments and organizations have been busy with internal affairs and security for the past 20 years, there haven't been many modern wars we could learn from.
Gifts and skills definitely impact war, but all we have so far is theory derived from mock battles and simulations. Hardly enough to draw strong conclusions.
And what Claire said, unfortunately, makes a lot of sense.
Most Gifts are not that fluid. If a mage dies, Melissa probably can't replace them.
Shit.
Most of what I thought wasn't considering Gifts.
Licia: "The lack of a dungeon in her territory is also particularly concerning..."
Claire: "Yeah, it's a huge minus for her..."
It was a bit easier to follow the logic with this one.
While some monsters would appear on the island from time to time, Melissa didn't have a stable source of experience and level-ups. Not as long as her island was blockaded.
The enemy, on the other hand, had a vast territory, with plenty of Dungeons to raid.
Eventually, the average level of her troops would decrease.
With all things considered, it actually seemed like Melissa was running on a timer, and that every day, the lock would tick faster.
Miwen: "Even though the event description said that her army was individually stronger..."
Licia: "That doesn't mean this will be the case forever."
Right.
But I felt lied to.
Claire: "She can't lose soldiers. Otherwise, she won't last long."
Quite hard to do that in a war, too.
However....
Miwen: "It's worse than I thought, but it doesn't really change what I gotta do. If anything, it just makes it more urgent that we take action."
Claire: "Even after all this, you still wish to ally with the underdog?"
She sounded harsh, but there was a slight hint of worry in her voice.
Miwen: "I do. And also... I believe there's something we can do right now. I'm gonna need your opinion, though."
Claire: "Go ahead."
Before I left Melissa, I offered her whatever I could get from the [Weapons Banner] and the [Armor Banner].
I had already come to terms with the fact that I'd be parting with possibly great items, but curiosity got the best of me, and I ended up taking a peek at what I was giving her.
Back then, one item in particular caught my attention.
[Scout's Cloak Of Invisibility]
Basically, the one wearing this cloak becomes invisible, and most detection skills aimed at them are weakened.
The biggest weakness of the cloak was that it would lose its effects once the one wearing it attacked an enemy, even if the wearer were to cast a spell.
Also, enemies attacked once or those who have seen the attack happen will become immune to the cloak's effects.
In a big battle, it would be useful once, and that'd be about it.
However, the moment I laid my eyes upon it, I realized I could use it as a cornerstone to take one of the enemy generals down.
Maybe losing one general wouldn't be enough to completely turn the tide of war, but at the very least, it should delay Hamperlon a little.
Furthermore, it was the feat I could realistically get that would make Melissa reconsider me as an invaluable ally.
Before the day's end, while discussing the details of my plan with Licia and Claire, I got them some clothes using the [Kingdom Points].
The thickest, warmest clothes we could get.
For what I had in mind, that'd be essential.