- The Prince's Gift

『The Beloved Ally』

To put it positively, it meant maintaining amicable relations with everyone; put negatively, it meant proclaiming neutrality and being called a bat.

In most works of fiction, such people are portrayed as uncool and excessively sly, so they are ignored.

However, historically, the people who survived for a long time had one thing in common: they became beloved allies and avoided making enemies.

Not making enemies is an incredible ability.

People and organizations have thorns, so they end up making enemies.

In such circumstances, those who hid their thorns and managed their relationships well—doing their utmost to smooth things over even when conflicts arose so they would not be seen as enemies—might not become heroes, but they became beloved allies and survived for a long time.

Of course, there were drawbacks too.

They were often treated poorly compared to their efforts and achievements, and because they profited by attaching themselves to both sides, they could be called bats and reviled.

But that was fine...