The city of Fritsburg was surrounded by a stone wall about 4 to 5 meters high. Beyond it lay vast fields of crops and simpler houses where the poor, and now most of the refugees, lived.
The weather was cloudy, with a cool breeze that hinted at the approaching winter. Everyone knew that winter meant hardship—more than it already was.
The peasants working in the fields were taken by surprise when the army arrived, accompanied by an old man who ordered them to stop working. Some were fearful, while others were angry. They refuse to let us inside the walls, and now they want to starve us to death? many thought bitterly.
Groups of commoners and peasants, rallied by influential individuals, began to gather and shout angry words at the soldiers. The situation was tense and seemed on the verge of escalating into a violent clash.
However, a priest appeared beside one of Edwin's advisers and, after explaining the reason for halting their work, managed to calm the crowd. He convinced them to focus their efforts on other tasks.
In a surprising turn of events, a large group of these peasants was granted permission to enter the city to work for the Count. Many cried tears of joy, while others stood dumbfounded, only to learn that they were allowed into the city solely for work and would still have to sleep outside the walls at night.
If that wasn't bad enough, they were met with extreme prejudice from the city's citizens. Despite all this, the hope for a better future and the decent pay promised for each day's work were enough to keep them going.
These workers were put to use in various tasks—some helped make the strings for the crossbows, while others assisted the smiths in polishing and maintaining weapons, among many other duties.
As Rafael walked through the bustling streets, he noticed how chaotic things had become. People were moving quickly, carrying weapons, materials, food, and other supplies.
He understood that they were preparing for the impending attack. From a distance, he saw a large church packed with people praying.
Religion is the foundation for these people, heck, maybe even for this entire kingdom. I don't think it would be good to end that... I don't even think I could do that, in reality, he thought.
If we're going to be attacked soon, my ideas won't be of much use. They all need at least a week to be put into practice, and we may not have that much time. Man, it would be so easy if...
Rafael suddenly stopped in his tracks. He began frantically searching his pockets, one after the other. Panic set in as he realized something was missing.
"This can't be happening... No, no, no!" He retraced his steps, scanning the ground where he had walked, but found nothing.
Maybe I dropped it in my lab... It has to be there... Wait... His mind replayed a scene of two kids hugging him earlier. He understood what must have happened. The amount of swearing he mentally unleashed could have scared anyone if spoken aloud.
Despite searching for over an hour and asking around, there was no trace of the children.
Okay, calm down. It's not that big of a problem. They don't even know how to read, and even if someone manages to read it, they won't know what it's for or what the last ingredient is.
Shit! If I find those little brats...
Frustrated but resigned, Rafael decided to ask a blacksmith to make a few metal bearings for him. The blacksmith, unfamiliar with the request, asked for a detailed explanation and even a drawing.
After finally understanding the task, the blacksmith demanded half the payment upfront. "It will be 3 coins and 40 coppers for 5 of these bearings, as you call them," he said.
Rafael felt his eye twitch at the price. "The Count will pay you. Just charge him later."
"Do you think I'm stupid? Pay now or get the hell out of here," the blacksmith retorted. Knowing this wasn't typical behavior for Edwin's people, Rafael realized the blacksmith was taking advantage of his position.
Holding back a torrent of curses, Rafael paid for only two bearings. One coin and 30 coppers poorer. Where is my share of the compass sales?!
"Come back in two weeks," the blacksmith said.
"Two weeks?! It's just two bearings! How can it take that long?"
"First, I've never made anything like this before. Second, I've got a lot of other work to do. We're at war, kid. I need to craft and repair weapons so we can defend our city."
Rafael left, feeling dejected. He had planned to use the bearings to build a trebuchet. With those metal pieces, there would be no friction between the wooden components, allowing a smaller trebuchet to have the same or even greater power than a larger one.
He also had the idea of making a wooden "tank," but that seemed even less feasible in the near future.
Maybe I can scare the enemies with a balloon... It's not a bad idea, actually. I could draw something terrifying on it, like a face with black eyes. But there's a problem: it might work, but then rumors of a demon controlling the city would spread to other kingdoms and churches. The army we'd have to fight would be ten times larger.
Rafael mulled over various scenarios, trying to figure out how he could help win the battle and what the consequences might be. In the end, he decided to proceed with the balloon plan to scare the enemies.
I can't do this without the people knowing what it is. I don't want our soldiers to piss themselves instead of the enemy. We need to do this now; the consequences are for later.