“What do you mean?” Alden asked the majordomo.

  “I mean this is the first winter when all the villagers will have to stay here,” Vusato said. “We still have around two and a half months before the snow starts, but we have to start planning the next steps immediately."

  Roderic leaned forward. “The most important thing in the coming winter—like in any winter—is how we'll defend the village. The largest monsters, which can give trouble even to the mighty stone walls of Garitus are quite rare, and they're only seen south of the Pinotians once every few years. One of them attacked the fortress city last year and even managed to break through the walls before it was taken down, so I think we'll be safe from the city-killers for a few years. But even if a medium-sized monster comes here, our palisade walls won’t be able to protect us. As it stands, we probably can’t even handle the smaller monsters—like those wolf-monsters that chased us that day—if they come in large enough numbers."

  The captain shrugged, his muscles straining against his leather jerkin. "It's fine in the summer, when monster attacks are rare and their numbers are lower, but winter will bring them in droves. The northeastern outpost will also be abandoned in the winter, so those hundred rangers won't be there in the snow months to thin out the number of monsters coming south. That means our defenses will be useless if even a few dozen of those wolf-type monsters attacked us—not to mention if something larger came here, and they certainly will. Although there are two village hunters who can help us in a pinch, we only have 3 good archers in our guard force, so we can’t even keep watch on all sides with that strength—not that the archers can be put on duty for all hours of day and night."

  Vusato looked at Roderic. “Should we start training more archers? I know it’s not feasible to train them properly in such a short time, but we can’t give up either. We have to do something. Anything...”

  "Let me think about it," Roderic grunted.

  The majordomo turned to Alden. “That reminds me—what is it you’ve been sketching for the past week? You even hid it from me, saying you’d show me when it was ready. Were you just doodling?"

  Alden exhaled loudly. “Of course not. I've been working on some… plans to help defend the village from the monsters.” He looked around. The main hall was nearly empty, but a few servants were still clearing tables and carrying mugs inside, and some off-duty guards were drinking ale at another trestle table.

  “Let’s move to the dining room first,” Alden said. “We don’t want anyone else to hear what I’m going to say."

  Vusato stood, curiosity plain on his face, and followed Alden toward the dining room. Roderic stayed back for a moment to tell the guards not to disturb them. Once all three were inside, the brawny captain locked the door behind him.

  Alden took the head chair again, with Vusato on his right and Roderic on his left.

  “So,” Vusato said, “what is it?”

  “What did you mean by plans to help us defend?” Roderic asked with interest.

  Alden knew this wouldn’t be an easy conversation, but he had to get over it before they could move forward. There was no way to hide his real origin if he wanted to use knowledge from Earth to defend his village. He also needed to present it in a way they could easily accept, and in a way that wouldn’t get him burned at the stake. “What I’m going to say is only for your ears. You can’t mention a single word of it to anyone else. Not even Caelen, since he’s still young, and might blurt it out to someone.”

  “Of course,” Vusato said, nodding.

  “I swear it,” Roderic said.

  "Good. You remember the time when I was sick a week ago?”

  “How could I ever forget that?” Vusato said. “You were on your deathbed for so long that everyone called it a miracle when you woke up."

  Alden nodded. “It was no less than a miracle. But you don’t know everything yet. When I woke up that day, something changed in me. Something drastic.”

  “What do you even mean?” Roderic asked, confused. “You seem the same to me."

  “I am, for all purposes,” Alden said. “But when I woke up that day, I had some… new memories in my mind. Memories of a life lived elsewhere."

  Vusato frowned. “How could you have memories from anywhere else? You've lived in Sarnok for nearly all your life, apart from the winter months spent in Garitus. Is that what you mean?"

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  “No,” Alden said, shaking his head. “It was a place none of you have even heard of. Not just in a different city or another kingdom, but on a different planet altogether."

  “Uh... What…?” Roderic looked down at his mug. “Did you already have a few mugs of ale before I brought that one?”

  Alden snorted. “I wish I had. But no, I’m serious. I have no idea how it’s possible, but when I woke up, I had vivid memories of having lived more than three decades in that place. In that world. I remember every single thing about life there."

  Vusato shrugged. “Well, then I guess you just had a really elaborate dream while you were sick. It can happen when someone is lying on a bed for weeks. So what?"

  Alden shook his head. “You can call it a dream if you want, but the thing is, that world wasn’t like this one. It was different in more ways than I can list. What matters for us right now is that that world was much more advanced than this one, even though there was no magic there."

  Roderic snorted. “So nobody could even throw a fireball in that world, and you call it more advanced?"

  Alden grinned. “I do. And it was. There were things in that world you can’t even imagine. We had weapons that could help us deal with all kinds of monsters easily, whether big or small. We had technology that would let us speak to someone on the other side of the kingdom in real time, so we could coordinate against monster attacks in winter. We had ways to build walls from a material that couldn’t be broken even by the largest monsters. We had machines, uh... things made of metal that humans could fly in, making it possible to see where monsters are coming from long before they reach our village."

  “Humans flying using things made of metal? That… that even doesn’t make any sense,” Vusato said. "Even the mightiest mages can't fly by themselves, except on their griffins or other pet beasts. How's such a thing even possible?" He glanced at Alden's mug again. "You sure you’re not drunk?"

  Alden shook his head, exasperated. “Of course I’m not! I’ve barely had a sip from my mug."

  “Let’s assume for a moment that the dream was so vivid you still remember it properly,” Roderic said, “and that it showed you ways through which people could deal with monsters easily. Let's say it was the God who sent you those visions... Those dreams. But what does it matter to us, unless we can get those weapons and machines here?"

  Alden grinned, knowing he had them now. “I told you I remember everything about that so-called dream. It means I can build nearly all of those machines and weapons here in Sarnok. Not immediately, and not just by myself, but yes—we can build those things in this place. It won’t be easy by any measure, and we’ll have to start from the very basics, but I can guide our craftsmen so they can eventually build those weapons here." He tapped his head. "I have all the details from those dreams stored right here."

  Roderic frowned. “You are not just joking around to take your mind away from your father's death, are you? Because if you can really make those things here, it could be the salvation for us this winter. But if you are joking, it would be the most cruel joke I’ve ever heard."

  “No, I’m not joking,” Alden glared at him. “The drawings I’ve been working on for the past week are exactly for that purpose. I already had plans to work on those machines and build some of those weapons in due time, so they could help us in the future."

  "You mean you were doing that from the time before the baron died?" Vusato frowned at him. “How could you possibly know in advance that your father would die in a week? Did you get a premonition?"

  “I really wish I had,” Alden muttered, “but no, I didn’t get a premonition. I told you it will take a long time—months, or even years—to build most of those weapons here. So after I had those vivid dreams, my original plan was to start working on them immediately so I could help the craftsmen build those weapons and help Father in the coming years. According to my plan, by the time I had to become the baron in around a decade, we would have already built many of these weapons to protect the village. But plans don’t always work out like you want…"

  “That they don’t,” Roderic muttered. He looked at Alden carefully. “So, about those drawings you’ve been working on—can we make anything before winter? Anything at all? I’ll train the guards as much as I can to help kill monsters when they come in droves after the snowfall, but any help your weapons can give us would be a godsend."

  “We can start with the simplest weapons first,” Alden said. “If we had a mage here to help, I think we could fast-track a lot of things, but without magic we’ll have to do everything the hard way. Even so, out of the two basic weapons I’ve been working on, the first design can be built within a few days, and the other can be finished within two weeks at most.” Alden looked at the majordomo. “Call up the carpenters and the blacksmiths from the village tomorrow morning. I need to meet them and see what skills they have to decide how we can make these weapons here—as quickly as we can and as cheaply as possible. We don't have the funds to splurge on anything."

  Vusato stared at him for a moment, then brought his hands together in a quick prayer. “As much as it hurts the village that Lord Edaroc passed away, I think God has really blessed us. First he made sure you survived after being on your deathbed for so long, and then he put those dreams... those memories in your mind so we could protect the village even after the baron’s passing—right before the very first winter when we won't get refuge in Garitus." He smiled. "I think he has a plan for us—for Sarnok. We may not know anything about it, but I believe Sarnok is going to survive the coming winter. And maybe even thrive..."

  “I don’t know anything about God having plans for us,” Alden muttered. “All I can say is that I have a lot of knowledge in my head—about weapons, machines, and technology—and I’ll do my best to build those things here to protect the village. So? Are you both in?"