Victory Conditions

"What happens if you win?" asked Rose

"Then I will become your king, the king of the fairies." I said.

"What would you do as our king?"

"Lots of stuff," I said, after a long, thoughtful pause. "I guess you'll find out about my plans if I become your king. Of course, some of my plans may require secrecy. I can't exactly share sensitive information like that with outsiders, now can I?"

I don't actually have any plans, but there's only one way for all of us to find out what I would do as the king of the fairies.

Rose is maintaining a poker face, keeping her eyes on me. I wish she would just tell me what she's hoping for. I'd probably do just about anything for these fairies if they begged enough.

Thankfully, these fairies don't seem to know I'm something of a pushover. That's the main reason I'm here in the first place. 

Anyway, the other fairies aren't doing such a good job of hiding their excitement. It's clear I have their interest. Hook. Baited. Time to go fishing.

"Can I have the fairies who bowed to me on my team?" I said. "Since they already acknowledged me as their king."

Remembering that Lilac was among the fairies who bowed, I turned to her.

"Thank you so much for acknowledging me as your king, Lilac. It means a lot to me." I said.

Then, I hugged her a bit with one arm. Lilac smiled bashfully.

Uh oh. When I turned back to Rose, she had an alarming look on her face for a very brief moment. She had a huge open-mouth smile and a very intense look in her eye. I think I might have pushed my luck a little too far.

Now, Rose has her usual pleasant, cute smile. What is she hiding from me? Am I in danger?

"Of course," said Rose. "I'm sure it will be more fun if the teams are more even."

I may have won the real battle already. If I made the fairies more interested in losing than winning, they should reveal an obvious path to victory in our game.

Then, I shouldn't have to do much to secure victory, but that alarming look I saw on Rose's face is making me uneasy. I have no idea what the fairies will actually do.

I wanted to relax a while longer, but relaxing isn't so easy now. Now, I kind of want to get this over with, and I don't think I would benefit from giving Rose any more time to plan. It's time to face the final boss of the sacred forest. I hope she goes easy on me.

"Well then," I said, starting to get up. "Shall we?"

I'm feeling a little embarrassed, now that I'm standing. I see where the fairies are looking, and they are definitely not thinking I'm soft, so to speak, right now.

Oh well, I think I'm getting better at suppressing my embarrassment, and they've seen it all before. Considering the circumstances, the alternative would be more strange, and it would be potentially insulting to the fairies.