Winter pressed harder against the village.
Snow piled higher along the outer fences, and the wind that swept over the hills grew sharper. In response, Isabella's orders became even more firm.
"If you want to see spring," she told the village, "you will build like you are expecting fifty hungry beasts to attack tomorrow."
The men listened.
Under her direction, additional fences rose in layers around the village, not just one circle but several, so that if an enemy broke through one, they would be slowed by another.
Watchtowers grew taller and more numerous. At first, the beastmen had grumbled.
"Why climb when we can just smell the enemy from the ground?" someone had said.
Then Isabella had pointed out that seeing further meant knowing earlier, especially when the wind carried scents away. They had tried it once, and when they realized they could spot moving shapes in the distance before any smell reached them, they stopped complaining.
