To produce the gunpowder we lacked, we'd need to operate a saltpeter farm, but how could we run one when we didn't know how to make saltpeter? I knew it was made from dung and urine, but I didn't know the fundamental layout of the farm.
And the fact that saltpeter farms didn't exist anywhere in Beren made it all the more hopeless. The Grand Duke was someone I could rely on at times like this, but I dreaded what he might demand in return, so I needed an independent information channel.
For instance, I might be able to find out through someone like the merchant Wenzenberg, who traded out of Strasbourg. I'd have to pay him a significant sum, though.
"Oh, my lord. May God's blessings be with you."
"And with you as well."
"The gunfire was louder than I expected. I nearly knocked over the altar. Ha ha ha!"
