24 Truth, Lies, and Omissions

"Wow, you were right Dad. These would be way more effective applications of gunpowder than those pine wood boxes. I'm glad that you gave him the title and told him that he would have to fight in the war so that he had a stake in how this country fared in war so that he showed us the best weapons that his homeland has." Said Mia while looking over the diagrams shortly after Ethan left the room.

[I know that I said to Ethan back at Verafgelegen that this gunpowder substance would be only a niche weapon, but with this new application of it, it may even surpass the sword in terms of usefulness on the battlefield. And with this 'bayonet' device attached, there would be no advantage that the spear has over the 'musket' whatsoever because the gun can act like a spear. Dad was totally right when he suggested soldiers wielding this standing in a row and firing at the enemy. They can kill the enemy at a great distance. Once the enemy is weakened enough to be routed, the soldiers could just charge with the bayonet and drive them from the field, perhaps even killing a significant amount of the enemy with the bayonet in the process. Plus, with these cannons, even a relatively small number of soldiers with no skilled magic casters could successfully assault an enemy fortified position, with the soldiers with muskets defending the ones manning the cannons and the ones manning the cannons dealing massive damage to the enemy's defenses. Of course, a group of skilled magic casters could still defeat such a force, but even in the Western Empire, skilled magic casters are still few and far between. I wonder if these cannons could be mounted on ships as well as being used on land…] Thought Mia.

"These would indeed be way better than pine wood boxes stuffed with gunpowder, but by the way that you are talking about them, I assume that you didn't catch it when the new young baron slipped up there towards the end?" Said Augustus.

"Slipped up?" Asked Mia.

"Do you remember what he said when I asked him if cannons could be used against enemy fortifications?" Asked Augustus.

"He said that that's what they're used for." Said Mia.

"What he said more precisely was 'That is indeed what they were commonly used for.' He used 'were' as in past tense. I assume that based on how good at language you told me he was that after traveling with you for several days, he was able to learn the difference between present and past tense. Why would he use past tense for the use of a weapon that is currently in common use in his homeland?" Said Augustus.

Realization dawned on Mia.

[That means that they are weapons that may have been commonly used in the past in Ethan's homeland, but certainly not the present. He gave us weapons that are to him obsolete and made us think that they were the best technology available.] thought Mia

"Are you saying that he lied to us?" asked Mia.

"Not at all. It is just as you told me before we brought him down here. He did indeed omit valuable information from us, but he didn't lie directly. He did not actually tell us that these were the best guns available, we merely assumed it, and he did nothing to correct that assumption. He merely told us that they are better than pine wood boxes filled with gunpowder, which indeed they are, and better than letting unskilled soldiers hack at the enemy with swords or fail in attempting to use magic while wasting mana, which indeed they are. I fully intend to get many blacksmiths and craftsmen to make as many of these as possible and then use them to train new recruits who are unskilled at magic and swords before the war begins in a little more than two months. With previously unskilled soldiers armed these guns, we may even be able to turn the tides against the Western Empire." Said Augustus.

"I suppose that just because they are obsolete in Ethan's homeland doesn't mean that they are obsolete here. With these, we could really do a lot of damage the Western Empire. Perhaps we could even capture many of the Western Empire's fortifications on the west bank of the Grenze River." Said Mia.

The Grenze River was another river that ran from the north to the south, from the mountains in the north, to the Great Sea in the south, and was a similar size to the Strom River. Like the Strom River, it also had many tributaries. It formed the Vorbei Kingdom's western border, and marked the boundary between The Vorbei Kingdom and and the Western Empire. It was one of the most militarized areas in the region, with both nations building up fortifications on either side of the river, and both sides keeping many ships docked and troops garrisoned, prepared to invade the other side and defend their own side if war were to break out. It was also known as the 'river of blood' based on all of the confrontations that took place on it in the last war. Unlike the Strom River, the Grenze River was much clearer and slower moving.

"Precisely, We could even mount these cannons on the forts and castles on our side of the Grenze River, and destroy the enemy forts and castles from a position of safety. Although, we will need to keep a sharp eye on that young man in the future, and not just accept his words at face value; even if we can assume that what he says to us isn't outright false, which I think you are right about, there could still be some important information left out." Said Augustus. "Anyway, you should get some sleep as well. You will have a long journey tomorrow and you need to be your best if you are going to play the political game to deal with Von Geld."

"Okay. Good night Father." Said Mia.

"Good night darling." Said Augustus.

Mia then went to her room on the third floor, which was twice the size of the guest room that Ethan was staying in. It was even more ornately decorated than his. It had two stained glass windows, and there were frescos covering the ceiling in the image of past generations of Von Ritters. The walls had beautiful navy-blue wallpaper with gold trim. The silk carpet that covered most of the floor had indigo dye in patterns on it. There was even a glass mercury mirror in a gold frame on the wall. Mia drank a goblet of imported wine and then went to sleep.