Making Preparations for a Rainy Day

After years of development, the administrative district southeast of Weissenburg City was nearly complete. The newly built government headquarters of the Duchy of Weissen and the various departmental buildings were all located there.

In the government headquarters, Frederick sat in his office, absorbed in a report from the observatory.

It was not only the temperature that was low; precipitation had also begun to decrease.

After reading the report, Frederick rose and stood by the window behind him, his face marked by a gravity at odds with his age.

"Knock, knock, knock."

A steady knocking sounded at the door.

"Come in."

Frederick's voice was calm, though it carried a trace of fatigue that was difficult to detect.

The door swung open, and his secretary, Vanessa, hurried in with Flick, the head of the Department of Administration.

Flick's secretary was carrying a stack of documents, his expression no brighter than the sky outside.

He bowed slightly and said, "Sir, I've compiled the latest intelligence you asked for. The situation is worse than we expected."

Frederick turned around. His sharp blue eyes settled on Flick. He gestured for him to sit on the sofa and asked Vanessa to make tea, then said, "Go ahead."

"The unusually long winter and extreme cold last year caused damage across the entire region." Flick unfolded a report, speaking faster as he went. "The Kingdom of Gaul, the Piaster Kingdom, the Kingdom of Riesenburg... along with many members of the Rhine Alliance, are all expected to see a roughly twenty percent drop in this year's Winter Wheat harvest, by conservative estimates."

Frederick's brow furrowed. He had known the situation was bad, but hadn't expected it to be this severe.

Flick continued, looking utterly unconcerned with his own fate and ready to take on anyone who disagreed. "Although wheat