With the coming of the snow the canons have finally stopped. While they still haven’t managed to take the outer walls I do not know how long it will take before they finally do. I had thought it impossible to bring something strong enough to knock down the walls here to Cerva but I was proven wrong. 

Luckily it appears they do not have a lot of these weapons and the winter seems to have ceased the onslaught. I have tried my hardest to figure out a solution but it appears that all I can do is sit and wait for reinforcements. 

If I could get rid of those cannons then I would be in a different position. Well... I have a couple of walls to fall back to. Sieging Cerva is a waste of time. Even if they do manage to take it what then? 

Arria will have mounted a counter offensive and it will be even easier for them to take Cerva back than it was for the Allonians to take it. Their horses would be useless in the mountain pass. 

“Genreal Boetio!” I look over to see one of my commanders coming rushing over to me. “They have begun the assault on the first wall. What shall we do?” 

It is pointless to waste my manpower over defending the outer wall. Right now I need that manpower to deter a frontal assault. “Retreat.” 

“Of course, I shall give out the order immediately.” 

I look back out onto the castle. I watch over as the battle raises. Fire protecting the soldiers from the grueling bite of frost. Some might say this looks like hell but I have a strange feeling that it is going to get worse as the months go by. 

I look back and grab my glass of wine. I need to start planning on how I am going to repel these Allonian dogs. The first thing that needs to go are the cannons. They cause terrible frights among the men and make it hard to sleep. 

Hell! I can’t even hear myself think when they are going off. 

William Asherton De Allonia. As soon as I heard that he would be attacking I began to look into his history. A bastard sent to Arria to die a prisoner. Came back to take the crown during the Allonain war of brothers. 

I must simply make small concessions. Prolong the situation to the best of my ability. He doesn’t have time on his side, he can’t risk staying in these mountains for too long. Not only because he needs to avoid a major battle but the war must end quickly. 

I sit down and begin writing to the emperor. I need not instruct him on the war, I am sure he knows what has to be done but I do need to inform him of the situation. When they first laid siege they weren’t using cannons, it seems that it took them some time to bring them up. 

His majesty needs to know about this advancement in technology. 

These advancements could change warfare forever. If Arria is to survive it cannot slacken when it comes to this field. If only I could get my hands on these weapons. That would be a great help to our cause. 

I have some time to brainstorm ideas. No need to rush a response. One mistake and everything falls apart. “I wish I was back in the capital.” It is much nicer and more beautiful than Cerva. 

Cerva is a bunch of mountains, snow, and mines. Not the farmland, hills, and forests of inner Arria. It will also be safer for me. I have a promising future as a political figure. I watch as the Allonians storm into the abandoned area. 

There has to be some books inside here. Something to pass the time as I wait for the next big event to happen. 

“Your order has been relayed to the commanders.” 

“Do you think they can take Cerva?” I ask the soldier. I want to know his opinion on this matter. Everybody I have asked has stated that the idea is absurd and that they would fail like all the others. “An honest opinion, I will not punish you for what you say.” 

“Yes, anything is possible. While I seriously doubt that everything will work out for them, I will not deny the possibility of their victory. That would be absurd." I nod my head at the analysis. This means that I am not the only one thinking this. The cannons have been affecting the morale of the soldiers. 

This is bad news for me. 

The only good news is that morale might not matter. There is no place for them to escape to if we lose the battle. This should allow them fight until the very end. I seriously doubt the Allonians will be willing to do the same. 

A/N: I mentioned a guy named Boetio, we finally get to meet him in this chapter. He isn't really that important of a character but we will probably get one or two more chapters from his POV. The war is heating up. Before it took forever between chapters like this, now it is a short wait before the next one.

As always, thank you for reading.