How It Was Done

"Perhaps some of you are wondering: How did we do it?"

Frederick's tone shifted smoothly, but his gaze grew warmer and more resolute.

James had a guess, but he didn't dare believe it. The idea was simply too incredible.

Frederick raised an arm and gestured toward the densely packed crowd in the square.

"First, look around you." His voice was gentle yet powerful. "Look at the people standing to your left, your right, in front of you, and behind you. The answer lies with them—with all of you."

A faint stir rippled through the square as people looked around at one another.

"Two months ago, a severe blizzard suddenly swept across the entire Duchy of Weissen."

Frederick's voice rang out with remarkable clarity, tinged with excitement:

"At a weather station on the northern coast, a meteorologist named Anders recorded data around the clock. Every hour, he went outside to measure the temperature, wind speed, and wind direction. Each time he came back in, his eyelashes were rimed with frost."

"Late that night, he discovered that the temperature had plunged and the northerly winds had strengthened. Realizing that a powerful cold front was moving in from the north, he followed regulations and began taking readings every ten minutes."

"An hour later, Anders was already shivering from the cold, but he had confirmed that the cold wave was coming!"

Several people in dark blue uniforms stood straighter in the crowd, their eyes suddenly reddening.

They were the rank-and-file workers of the Duchy of Weissen's meteorological bureau.

"That warning reached Weissenburg City within twenty minutes. What did that mean?" Frederick asked, then answered himself. "It meant that more than a dozen telegraph operators had stood watch in front of freezing machines that night. Their fingers were numb with cold, but they didn't leave,