Steel and Stone

Three hundred heavy infantrymen stood in gleaming armor, dazzling beneath the warm sunlight of the South.

Compared with Westeros as a whole, the South was relatively wealthy, and the lords of this land loved outfitting their armies in the finest-looking armor.

Its protection was not necessarily much better than the far rougher stuff worn by men from the Riverlands or the Vale.

But it certainly looked impressive.

Skilled craftsmen stamped embellished versions of family sigils onto the armor itself and fitted brightly colored ornaments to its arms and shoulders.

This was a peculiar sort of "arms race" unique to the South.

As one of the greatest noble houses in the South, House Hightower was naturally no exception.

Of course, everything had its advantages and disadvantages.

When it came to boosting morale, an army that went all out on appearances certainly had its own strengths.

And so, as the army led by Darean and Jeylo Hightower marched in grand procession past the busy construction sites,

the cheers rose one after another without pause.

Most of the people living on this land took pride in House Hightower's "powerful" army.

Darean noticed that Jeylo seemed to enjoy this immensely.

He deliberately slowed his horse, drawing the whole process out a little longer.

When they came within sight of the ring of earth-and-timber walls, absurdly low compared with Oldtown's city walls, Darean said with a smile,

"There. Those are the walls I built before I understood the family's intentions."

Darean had merely mentioned it in passing, with nothing else behind it.

Jeylo Hightower, however, stared at that extremely stripped-down version of a "city wall" for quite some time.

How to put it...

It was not a question of whether there were problems.

There were problems everywhere.

A moat outside the walls... none!

Watchtowers offering a clear view... none!

A gate capable of withstanding an assault... none!

His verdict: better to tear it down and rebuild.

But when Jeylo Hightower told Darean what he thought, he found that Darean barely reacted at all.

Of course Darean knew exactly what sort of thing he had put together back then.

But comparisons could make a man despair and make perfectly serviceable goods look fit for the rubbish heap.

Having somewhere to settle was enough. Who cared what came afterward?

Had he known all this would happen later, why would he have gone to that trouble?

The soldiers reached the tents prepared for them in advance.

Although oxhide tents were no long-term solution, they would serve perfectly well for the time being.

Provided there were no torrential rains during that time.

Once they had finished resting, Jeylo Hightower would lead them on a thorough survey of the surrounding terrain, then choose suitable locations for small lookout posts.

The family had already projected a portion of its strength here.

The only thing that could interrupt this process was a surprise attack by night or from the shadows.

What they needed to do was eliminate that possibility at its source.

The family's army had never feared a fair fight with their friends from the Summer Sea.

If they had the courage to come.

Under the steward's direction, the people of the estate cooked hot meals and delivered them to the temporary military camp.

To Darean's astonishment, the steward had actually set his sights on these three hundred newly arrived, strapping men.

Resting was all well and good, but surely lying in your tents sleeping all day was not quite appropriate, was it?

Well then, how about being issued some tools and having a few master craftsmen sent over to guide you, so you could build part of your own barracks?

In short, not a single person was allowed to sit idle!

Darean saw Jeylo emerge from the steward's room with a dark expression.

Oh!

Looks like the older man won this round.

So Darean thought to himself.

Construction on the estate was in full swing.

Naturally, there was no longer any need to conceal the iron vein Clyson and the others had found.

With Westeros's current level of productivity, surveying its total reserves was simply impossible.

But that did not matter.

What mattered was digging it up and putting it to use!

And so a great crowd rushed to the area around the vein, chose the nearest spot, and hacked a road straight through the woods with axes.

If the estate could meet its own everyday need for iron goods without buying them elsewhere, its value here in the South could hardly be overstated.

Take Oldtown, for example.

As one of the largest cities in the Seven Kingdoms, the Gold Dragons it spent each year on iron ore or finished iron ingots could probably have filled all of King's Landing with tourney banners.

It was not just weapons.

Iron pots, farming tools, and various everyday necessities all consumed enormous amounts of iron.

The maesters of the Citadel had toiled by lamplight for thousands of years without unlocking stainless steel on the technology tree.

Let alone putting it into everyday use among the common people.

Iron rusted away layer after layer, and scarcity drove up value. Add the South's enormous population to that,

and the price of iron in the South naturally shot through the roof.

Now that Darean's own estate had iron, Baelor's heart would probably have an easier time when he drew up the budget.

Almost at the same time, another piece of good news arrived.

With the help of earlier geographical records of the estate obtained from Sunflower Hall, the exploration team they had sent out found a sizable quarry in the western highlands.

The stone was of excellent quality, settling the problem of building the walls once and for all.

Under Darean's coordination and scheduling, the estate's nine hundred people each took up their duties and swiftly got to work.

They reclaimed wasteland, burning the wild grass to enrich the soil.

They built houses to expand the actual area of New Land Town.

They dug foundations, ready to begin constructing the walls once stone had been extracted from the quarry.

Darean was even discussing plans with his "courtiers" for several roads leading to key locations.

Hauling goods through mud would inevitably cut efficiency considerably.

Besides, building roads was worthwhile however one looked at it.

In an age when information leaked from every quarter and nothing could truly be kept secret, the estate's feverish construction naturally drew considerable attention.

Darean had no time at all to set up any sort of counterintelligence organization.

Quite a few people with ulterior motives might already have slipped into the estate.

Since he had no way to identify them, he could only act as though he had not noticed.

He merely gave Jeylo Hightower a warning, asking him to discuss matters with the steward and send a small portion of the troops to guard key production sites.

For the moment, Darean could spare no attention for anything else.

As long as these people caused no trouble, everyone could coexist peacefully.

Otherwise, he would not mind watering this brand-new land with some more unwelcome visitors' blood.

Interestingly enough,

Darean encountered neither assassins nor troublemakers.

Instead, the council of septons at Oldtown's Starry Sept sent a small party of devout brothers.

They came bearing the septons' guidance, claiming they would bring this land, which had yet to bask in the light of the Seven, into Their embrace.

That in itself was nothing unusual.

The Faith and the family enjoyed a very good relationship.

It was only right that the Seven should establish a presence here.

Yet after Darean came into contact with these men, he changed his mind.

For he detected faint, almost imperceptible fluctuations of magic in them.

And he had only ever seen this in Septon Derrian, whom he had met before.