Chapter 290: One Thing at a Time

Darion, Garren, and Seren sat in the great hall, the weight of the news still pressing down on them. The fire crackled in the hearth, casting long shadows across the walls. The silence was heavy, filled with unspoken thoughts and unanswered questions.

The threat from Vrethka was obviously important, but Darion realized there was nothing useful they could accomplish by sitting there endlessly discussing an enemy they barely understood.

They needed more information before making serious defensive plans. Sitting here, going over the same points again and again, wouldn’t help them prepare. It would only make them anxious.

For now, there were still practical things that needed to be done around the castle. Life couldn’t stop just because a threat was looming. People still needed to eat, to sleep, to live. If they let the fear consume them, they would be defeated before the first battle even began.

Darion remembered the wagons that had just arrived. The beds. He had almost forgotten about them because of the scouts. The mattresses had arrived, but most of them still needed proper bed stands. That was what he and Garren had discussed back then: beds, then stands.

The castle had undergone a complete renovation, and this was one of the last major things remaining. New beds for everyone. Comfort for the first time in years. It was a small thing, but it mattered.

Darion decided they should finish it. It might seem insignificant compared to the threat of war, but the castle was where everyone lived. If the place was supposed to become a proper home for the people of Percvale, then small improvements mattered.

’We can’t spend every second preparing for an enemy that hasn’t even arrived. Besides, people need somewhere comfortable to sleep.’ Darion thought.

Darion told Garren that they’d handle the beds first. "We’ll deal with the defenses after this."

Garren looked slightly surprised but understood. "The beds?"

"The beds."

Normally, he should abandon everything and focus solely on finding Vrethka and doing investigations. But fuck that. He couldn’t let the threat consume him. He couldn’t let it stop him from living his life, from building his home, from giving his people what they deserved.

Seren gave Darion a slightly amused look. "You really want to hire carpenters to construct bed stands at this moment we are now? With the threat of the scouts looming?"

Darion shrugged. "Why not?"

He didn’t mention that part of him simply wanted something normal to focus on after discovering the scouts. He needed this. He needed to build something, to oversee something this casual before they went to war (possibly).

The next morning, Darion sent word for the local carpenters who had constructed the livestock section. They were craftsmen who had already proven themselves reliable during the livestock construction. They had done good work before, and Darion trusted them to do good work again.

Several carpenters eventually arrived at the castle carrying their tools. Some brought measuring ropes, saws, hammers, chisels, wooden boards, nails, and other supplies. They moved with

efficiency, their faces focused, their hands sure.

Darion explained what he needed. The mattresses were already available. What they needed now were sturdy wooden bed stands to support them.

He didn’t want anything extravagant. He wanted something simple, sturdy, and comfortable. The castle didn’t need fancy beds decorated with gold. It needed beds that wouldn’t collapse underneath someone.

"Nothing complicated," Darion said. "Just make them sturdy."

One of the carpenters looked at the mattresses. "How many?"

Darion gestured toward the storage area. "All of them."

The carpenter glanced at the others. There was a moment of silence as they realized how much work they had been given. Then one of them nodded. "We’ll get started."

As the carpenters began setting up their tools, one of them looked around the castle, his eyes widening. "My lord, this castle... it’s beautiful. I remember when it was falling apart. Now it looks like something out of a story."

Darion smiled, a genuine warmth spreading thro"Thank you. It’s been a long journey, but we’re getting there."

Another carpenter nodded in agreement. "I never thought I’d see the day. Percvale was... well, you know what it was. Now it’s something else entirely."

Darion appreciated the words. They reminded him why he was doing this. "We’ve still got work to do, but we’re getting there."

The carpenters began measuring the rooms. They checked the dimensions of each mattress and determined how much wood was required for each frame. Some workers remained inside measuring rooms while others began preparing the lumber. Soon, the castle filled with familiar construction sounds — thump, thump, scrape, saw.

Darion watched from nearby. It was strangely comforting. For once, he was watching people build something instead of destroy something.

He watched one carpenter carefully cut a wooden beam, his movements precise and controlled. Another smoothed the edges of a frame, his hands moving with ease. Two others assembled the first frame, their work quick and efficient.

Darion noticed how efficiently they worked. They didn’t need him standing over them. They knew what they were doing.

’Good. At least I don’t have to explain how a bed works.’

He almost laughed at the thought.

Darion spent some time simply observing. There was something satisfying about watching raw pieces of wood gradually become something useful.

A few months ago, the castle had felt cold and abandoned. Now people were moving through it constantly, from the renovation to this. The castle now looked stunning. Furniture was arriving. The place was becoming livable.

Darion realized that rebuilding a territory wasn’t always about huge achievements. Sometimes it was something as simple as giving someone a proper bed. It was a stupidly small thing, but it was still something.

He looked around the castle. The place no longer felt like the ruin he had originally inherited. It felt like a home.

The bed stand construction took the whole day. The carpenters worked steadily, their hands never stopping, their focus never wavering. Frame by frame, room by room, the castle was transformed.