The chances of Melissa winning this war were diminishing as the days passed.
Their recruits didn't measure up to the soldiers they were replacing; the quality of her army decreased noticeably every day.
The only way to deal with it was to kill the generals responsible for the casualties on her side, but the plan I developed to deal with them would require Melissa's trust.
Even then, it would still be a bet if it was going to work out.
What's more, I'd need Melissa to put someone from her tribe in danger, which wasn't exactly easy to convince her to do.
We talked and agreed on many things, but this detail was usually the deal breaker, and sadly, the items I was receiving from the Gacha weren't opening up any new possibilities.
My best bet would be to let things play out for now until she became desperate enough to accept my proposal, but by then, it would be difficult for us to turn this war in her favor...
Melissa: "Boy, I see you're back again today. Did you bring me any goods?"
She welcomed me with a slight smirk this time. Though it'd be a bit of an exaggeration to say she was happy to see me.
Miwen: "Yeah, but it's more of the same, to be honest. Don't expect too much out of it."
Melissa: "It's already more than enough; we'd be lucky to find a blacksmith capable of producing your high-end items."
Oh?
I was almost taken aback by how nice she was being.
Miwen: "If only they were that reliable, huh? Even though I bring a bunch every day, the quality is completely random, and most of the time there's nothing that's useful."
Melissa: "You don't need to downplay it like that, you know? It's not like I was expecting you to bring me a single item that could instantly win me this war."
The more kind she was, the more wary I grew.
From the moment she said hello, it was obvious she had ulterior motives, but I pretended not to notice and kept replying casually.
Miwen: "Is that so? But it raises the question, how exactly do you expect to win then?"
Melissa: "Oh... Is about that again, huh?"
Since the mood was so good, I tried to propose my idea again, but...
Miwen: "You bet. It's clear that what I'm offering you has a minimal impact, but if you went along with my plan, we could-"
Melissa: "Thankfully, I came prepared for it then..."
Since she had resisted my proposal so strongly before, it surprised me to see Melissa's sudden shift.
However, even more surprising was the presence of another person in the prison.
Standing a little further back from Melissa was her daughter, Mia. She was a wolfgirl with long silver hair resembling her mother's and a slim body that would make models ask for her diet. Despite being well-defined, it was hard not to contrast it with Melissa's curves.
She glared at me intently, with her eyebrows furrowed. As irritated as she seemed, she had a face I couldn't describe with a word other than "cute".
Whenever Melissa couldn't show up to get the items I provided to her tribe, she'd send Mia in her stead.
These circumstances forced us to interact often, but she was always hard to deal with, ensuring we'd have minimal contact and even letting her distaste for me show from time to time.
It was obvious she didn't like to rely on an outsider like me for help, but she showed immense respect and obedience towards her mother, and thus, never failed to show up and follow her orders. Even when it seemed like she hated my guts.
Things were a little better nowadays, though. She would sometimes answer me with something other than a threatening growl.
Like mother, like daughter, they were both tough nuts to crack, but it was worth the effort.
However, since Melissa was already waiting for me, I had no idea why Mia was present.
Miwen: "So, what exactly is this all about?"
I scratched my head, looking at Mia like she was an oddity.
She furrowed her eyebrows and clenched her fists, but with her mother around, she held back and stayed silent.
Melissa: "For what you had in mind, you'd need both me and another subject of mine at the very least, isn't that right? Well, here you go, you can use Mia as you'd like."
Still bothered by me, it took Mia a second to register her mother's words. Once she realized it, her eyes widened, and her jaw dropped, glaring at her mother as if she had just been backstabbed.
Even though she clearly didn't like it, the blush on her face was red enough to make me believe she might actually consider going along with it if it were her mother's orders.
Admittedly, I had a similar reaction and quite a few ideas, but I hadn't come for that.
Miwen: "I believe I told you that whoever you chose to accompany me would be the one in most danger. My allies and I can quickly escape if things turn out badly, but your subject would have to face one of the generals alone..."
I was a bit suspicious of Melissa's reasoning.
She was always putting on a tough front as the Snow White Wolves' Chieftainess, but putting her own daughter in danger was going too far for appearances.
Melissa: "Can't you see I'm warning you here? If things turn out badly, I'll obviously focus on rescuing my daughter before following your plan or saving you. What's more, you need someone whom you can trust your back to, right? In the tribe right now, aside from myself, I believe Mia is the only one who wouldn't kill you on sight..."
Right, Mia would at least wait until I opened my mouth before killing me.
Still, Melissa had a point.
As much as Mia and I liked to pretend we didn't get along, I had a lot of fun with her, and I felt like I could trust her to a certain extent. Especially when it was an order from her mother.
Mia also seemed to understand that I was different from the invaders and didn't mean any harm; however, that was because of the time we spent together in the prison.
Regardless of who Melissa sent to retrieve the items should have ended up trusting me after so many days. Hell, someone else might've been even more likely to befriend me at this point.
So, the fact that I could trust Mia and that Mia could trust me only came about because Melissa engineered the circumstances this way.
That felt strange to me.
Since when did she plan this arrangement? And what was the purpose?
Melissa was cunning. Getting a good read on her actions was already tough, but discerning her intentions was outright tiring.
For the time being, I believed she didn't mean any harm to me. So I could only imagine this would somehow result in a positive for her and Mia.
Hm...
I guess I could accept this.
Mia seemed quite capable herself, so there shouldn't be any problems in that front, either.
Melissa: "I also believe coming face to face with one of the enemy generals would be a good experience for her."
I lost myself in thought for a second, trying to figure Melissa out.
She seemed to notice it and added a second reason behind her decision.
I could tell there was another layer she was hiding from me, but this woman was too much of an expert at hiding the truth behind a thick layer of honesty.
Miwen: "Well, it's your daughter that you will be putting in danger, so I won't object. But if you agree to it, I believe we can do it tomorrow night."
Melissa: "Fair, we need to discuss the finer details, like the locations and timing. Come here, Mia. You will need to pay attention to this."
Mia had no input of her own throughout our whole discussion.
Her expressions didn't hide her concern, but everything her mother told her, she instantly agreed with.
I also felt that Melissa cared deeply about her, but for some reason, she didn't show it much.
While her decision still bothered me a bit, I'd be nitpicking not to accept these conditions. And with limited time and resources, I might not get another chance.
So, while it was still a bet, I decided to put everything into the plan that could become the greatest upset of this war.