Chapter 33: Preparation

With only 100 days left until the prophesized major crisis, winter fully embraced the northern territories, covering everything in a vast blanket of snow. This year, as reported by Baldwin, the cold seemed harsher, the snowfall heavier than usual.

For the past two months, the drafted soldiers and guards in the territory had shown progress in their training, yet they were still far from Gwenis's expectations. With such severe weather, outdoor training was out of the question, for the poorly clothed and fed peasants would not survive it. However, idleness was not an option.

Gwenis had already prepared and distributed basic materials to every household, including the manor, for the making of longbow arrows. To match the 5.5-foot longbows, these arrows were significantly longer than standard short arrows, measuring about 30 inches, or roughly 80 centimeters. The arrow shafts were made from red pine or poplar, lighter and more flexible compared to the dense beech, and less prone to warping. Craftsmen cut them to the correct length, then shaped and smoothed them, attaching feathers at the tail through pre-carved grooves and adhesive, secured further with tightly wound string to ensure they wouldn't detach mid-flight.

The feather choice, per craftsmen recommendations, ideally would be eagle feathers, or even vulture feathers considering the additional length and weight of the arrows. But reality dictated the use of rooster tail feathers, which were abundant and easily sourced from local farms and households. Furthermore, Gwenis sent messengers to Windermere City to buy up all available rooster tail feathers and even established collection centers, offering money for quality feathers. This initiative led nearby civilians to hurriedly snip their roosters' tails and deliver them to Windermere. Ten suitable feathers fetched one small copper coin, with no upper limit on quantity. With the promise of a repeat collection once the feathers regrew, Gwenis rapidly amassed thousands of suitable feathers, which were then distributed across the households in his territory.

For arrowheads, the local blacksmiths took charge, working tirelessly to increase production efficiency. Under Gwenis's orders, several young men were recruited as apprentices, tasked solely with arrowhead crafting.

Once material supply was ensured, the citizens eagerly set to work. Families collaborated in their respective roles: men shaping arrow shafts, women trimming and affixing feathers, and elders fitting arrowheads. A skilled family could produce up to three bundles of 24 arrows each day. However, the collected feathers were soon exhausted, and Gwenis had no choice but to wait for more supplies or the regrowth of feathers.

By February of the following year, when winter receded and the snow melted, revealing the sprouting wheat nurtured by the cold, Gwenis had gathered about 8,000 arrows, reaching the limit of what his territory could produce.

As spring returned, the guards resumed their training, but many of the drafted soldiers had to return home for farming, leaving only limited time for military drills at the castle. As a result, there was little scope for further improvement in combat skills, with the focus shifting to recalling and revisiting the training received before winter.

However, for the bowmen from the manor, Gwenis did everything possible to retain them for continuous training, as their skill level was still insufficient. They had only undergone basic physical training before winter due to the lack of bows and arrows, with many only getting their first hands-on experience with the specially made longbows in spring. Thus, they had to intensively practice.

Gwenis had hundreds of straw dummies set up, lined up in rows, for the bowmen to practice shooting from a distance of 200 yards. Following the captain's commands, they aimed for uniform bow drawing and simultaneous shooting, striving for the maximum degree of firepower coverage. Fortunately, months of physical conditioning had significantly improved the bowmen's basic strength. Once thin and frail, they now appeared stronger, even muscular, managing to draw the hefty bows weighing over 80 pounds without lagging.

"Ready... Fire!" At the command, the bowmen released their bowstrings, sending a hundred heavy arrows arching through the air, sparsely covering the straw dummy battlefield. However, upon closer inspection, Gwenis found that only about a dozen dummies were hit, with some arrows hitting the same target. The overall performance was less than ideal, especially considering these were static targets. For moving enemies, the hit rate would likely be even lower.

But there was no alternative under the current conditions. Shooting a target 200 yards or further with rudimentary longbows, without precise aiming devices, was a challenging task. Archery largely depended on feeling rather than precision aiming, often requiring aiming off-center and adjusting for arrow drop and gravity's impact. How much to offset and how high to raise the arrow varied greatly with distance and whether the target was stationary or moving. Hence, every shot was more about intuition, developed through practice.

Until the emergence of truly skilled archers, they could only rely on volley fire. After two months of practice, managing to hit over a dozen targets in a single volley was commendable. However, the kill rate would drop further if the enemy shielded themselves.

Gwenis had no choice but to accept this limitation. "Collect the shot arrows, clean them, and shoot again!" he ordered. Since accuracy was lacking, the solution was more practice.

With only ten days left before the crisis, the preparation phase was in its final stretch.