Confusion overtakes my mind. There's no hint of sense to be found in the picture my eyes deliver to my brain.
Some part of me didn't want to believe what I was seeing and I started to think about another explanation for the current events. From everything I know, there was no reason for Melissa to attack Mia like this. But there's only the three of us here right now, and I'm damn sure I couldn't do something like this to Mia even if I wanted to.
While I still try to understand what is happening, time continues to pass. Melissa impedes Mia's body from falling onto the ground, grabbing her and slowly, gently letting her body rest on the ground.
This only makes me more confused. It's clear that Melissa has the love a mother should have for her daughter, she's treating Mia's unconscious body with great care, completely contrary to what you'd expect from the one who's responsible for knocking her out.
I don't think I can understand what Melissa is doing right now, so I start questioning her.
Miwen: "What is happening Melissa?"
Melissa: "She can't ask to leave if she's unconscious..."
She's very far from the answer I was expecting. This explains absolutely nothing.
Miwen: "This doesn't make sense, why did you attack Mia? What are you doing right now Melissa? Answer me at once!"
I really want to believe her, I want to understand and make sense of it by the end.
Melissa: "You're angry... I see. I made the right choice then."
Miwen: "..."
I refuse to respond to that. She's talking but she's not answering me. Given the current situation, my mind is a mix of strong emotions and rationality is starting to fade away. To add confusion into that mix is just cruel.
Melissa: "... I suppose you deserve answers at the very least. You see, boy, I decided that I can leave my hopes to you. Throughout all of this, you've earned my trust and respect, and this... this is the way for me to win."
Well, at least she didn't give up, so I guess I was right about her after all. Still, I have no clue what is happening, what does she mean by leaving her hopes to me? And what does she accomplish by knocking Mia out?
Melissa: "Sorry, boy. I get that you must be very confused right now. You see, this is what I had been planning since I first met you. For someone to not only have disembarked unnoticed but also cross through the snow to the point of reaching close to the forest, with your level and skills... that would be utterly impossible. something else must have been at play, so I figured it would be related to your Gift."
I guess it's smart of her to be suspicious of my Gift at that moment, if I was in her situation, I too would find it strange.
Miwen: "But if you found it strange, why did you bring me to the cell?"
Melissa: "Because whatever your Gift was, it gave you the ability to come to this island... I was hoping it would also be able to let you leave. Thankfully, on that very first day, you confirmed that your ability had something to do with teleportation. If it turned out to be something else, and you were unable to leave, then I'd have killed you."
Miwen: "So you were hoping that I could leave the island..."
Melissa: "Exactly. And with some luck, you'd be capable of teleporting someone else with you. You talking about an alliance and bringing items to help was rather convenient too, since it gave you a reason to come back and stay a little while. I wanted to use this to make you and Mia get closer to each other, but it seems like I didn't manage much."
I disagree. If I had to say, we kinda get along well, although it's mostly banter between us, I have fun around her.
It finally makes sense though, this is why she ordered Mia to wait for me day after day. And thanks to it, Mia was the only person from her tribe I trusted and could count on for the scheme against the Angel.
But now I'm beginning to understand what this is all about. Melissa didn't want me to help her win the war, she wanted me to save them from it.
By using Mia, me, and my Gift, she made sure that the pieces would fall this way.
Miwen: "Since the start you didn't have the intention to fight back, you just wanted to flee."
Melissa: "Not quite. I wanted to protect my daughter. My duty as her mother came before anything else. If to protect her I'd need to kill a thousand men, then I'd gladly do so. But I wasn't facing a thousand men, right? My strength alone was not enough, not even near enough. Thus I decided to bet on you, I made sure to confirm everything I could about you, and through your actions and responses, I came to believe that this is the best I could do for Mia."
I can't really blame her for having such desires. It would actually be strange for a mother to not want to protect her family during a war, be they a leader or not.
I just wish she was more truthful with me. I'd gladly use this space as a safe haven for her and her tribe if she asked me to.
Miwen: "...But there's still time... if you bring your tribesmen here-"
Melissa: "I thought about that too, but it wouldn't work. Most if not all of us want to fight for this place. For centuries this has been ours, the place where we were raised, where we experienced life, and ultimately, where we would find death. This is our home, we will not concede it to another enemy. My people do not back down, we found ourselves on this island by fighting the strongest dragon on the continent, we are not going to let the Hamperlons take it without a fight. This place is proof of our ancestors' bravery and our history. There is not a single one of us who would be so shameful as to leave it behind... Do you know how hard it was for me, to hear from my own daughter, that she would, like her father, fight until the end for her home?"
I'm guessing that's why she had to take Mia out... and it also explains the [Blood Contract] she had me sign.
Miwen: "Melissa... don't tell me you're going back there;"
Melissa: "I told you, not a single one of us would back down. Thanks to you, I've managed to fulfill my duty as a mother, but still, I need to fulfill my duty as the chieftess."
Miwen: "...Look, I can forgive you for deceiving me, but I can not forgive you for leaving your daughter behind. You can stay here, I promise you that I'll do my best to make the both of you happy."
Melissa: "It is tempting... But you see, though I pray the time never comes, I expect you, who claims to be a king, to do your duty also. I'm leaving my daughter to you, in the hopes that one day you protect her as one of your own, even if it means you'd have to sacrifice yourself. So, may this be a lesson to you... I'll show you how a king fights for his people."
She had me dancing in the palm of her hands. Be it my interactions with Mia, the [Blood Contract], or even her inspection of the Kingdom and her talk with the girls, she did everything to reach her goal.
I'm also willing to bet she didn't want me to meet Normyu in fear that he could chase after her daughter had he gotten my Gift.
I should be mad at her, and by all means, I am. I've tried building trust between us and did my best to improve her situation. While I was looking for ways to help her, she was only trying to guarantee that her manipulation was working.
Even going as far as to lie about having some plan to win this war just to keep me from trying anything that could hinder her goals.
Miwen: "So this is it, then... this is all it amounted to."
Melissa: "Well... You actually helped me way more than I thought, you know? I was honestly surprised that you've thought of a way to defeat a general and even went as far as risking yourself for it. And also, you gave me a damn good idea."
Miwen: "...?"
Melissa: "I have unfinished business with the damned second prince, and while you can't kill him, I sure as hell can."
Miwen: "It won't amount to anything. You'd be behind enemy lines. The cloak only allows a single strike, you're sure to die."
Melissa: "True. But you can't imagine how satisfied I'll be after killing that bastard. I'll also make sure to take down as many as I can with me. "
This is the spirit I saw in her. Melissa's confidence was never a lie, she always believed in herself and never once thought about giving up.
It is what ended up deceiving me. She was always ready to throw her life on the line for her people, but... she was also determined to save her daughter no matter what.
I guess I was right about her after all. It would be so much easier if she were to just hide in here until it was all over. But it doesn't seem like that suits her. Neither she nor her daughter wanted the easy way out. Really, I allied myself with a bunch of nutcases.
But after all of that... there's still something I can do for her.
Miwen: "You asked me to protect your daughter, Melissa. But I'll do more than that. I'll be sure to make her happy. May this be the proof of my intentions..."
Melissa: "Hm? Are you asking for her hand? If you want to marry her you've always had my permission you kno-"
Miwen: "Check her status, Melissa."
Melissa: "... It... it can't be. To think you'd be able to do something like this for her..."
Mia has been struggling with it for quite a while now. And now that I know Melissa's true character, I was sure she was also having a hard time with it.
That's why, I did what I could, so that even if just by a little bit, I stayed true to my promise, and managed to help Melissa even in her truest desires.
It's such an expensive skill, and I'm not really sure if it's worth the points I spent. But to them, it means much more.
Melissa: "I never thought I'd see the day, but I always knew she was worthy of the [Mark Of The Beast Lord]."
Miwen: "I can't share all the levels you have on it, so she'll have to make do with it at level 3, but I'm sure she'll get it much higher."
Melissa: "It's way more than enough. Thanks, Miwen."
Miwen: "You're welcome, and farewell."
Melissa: "Goodbye, boy. I'll hold you to your promises."
A message pops up, telling me a citizen is asking to leave.
For the sake of my own life, I have no way of refusing it. But this is fine. I did what I could, the rest is up to them.
Checking Melissa's status a few hours later tells me that she managed to kill someone. Her level has gone up, so she must've been able to kill quite a few men. I have no way of knowing who she killed, but I hope she managed to settle her debt.
Sadly, a few moments later, a message comes telling me of her fate.
[A citizen of your kingdom has died.]
Right now, I'm inside the house I made. Mia is sleeping and I'm waiting for the results of the event to come in.
[War! The Fall of the Snow White Wolves Tribe of the Maide Island
As the Chieftess of the Snow White Wolves Tribe falls in battle, her army is soon to follow. Having no way of resisting the overwhelming numbers shown by the enemy, their last fortress falls, and the tribe is utterly defeated.
Due to event choices, some rewards have been blocked.
Due to event progression, some rewards have been blocked.
Ending achieved: A tribe conquered.
The ending achieved rewards you with:
Necklace of The Underdog (x1)]
[Due to successfully completing the event, you can choose to either add or subtract a day from the event timers permanently]
"Successfully" huh? Well, I guess even a bad ending still counts as an ending.
There's no way I'm choosing to subtract a day from the event timers. If I had more time, I could've...
I can't even sell the idea to myself. Even if I had a month, I still would be dealing with something way above my league...
Still, I have to keep going forward, and I can only hope the time I got is enough to prepare myself for next time.