A wide stone space held the kind of silence that made breathing feel loud.
A man knelt on the cold floor with his head down, shoulders shaking as if he could not stop the fear from leaking out of him. His hands were planted flat, fingers spread, and the sweat on his skin made the stone shine under the light.
Ahead of him, a figure sat above the floor line, relaxed in posture, almost bored. The air around that seat felt heavy, and the faint glow of gathered mana made the shadows look deeper.
The kneeling man forced words out through a dry throat.
"My lord, the slaves escaped and ran into the Forest of Death."
The man above did not move at first. His gaze stayed on the trembling soldier like he was staring at a small insect that had crawled onto his table.
"Why didn't you follow them?" the king said, his voice calm and sharp at the same time.
The soldier flinched and pressed his forehead closer to the floor.
"They had Rethan with them, a tier one mage, and in that forest our trackers would lose them without backup, so we pulled back to report."
Silence returned.
The soldier could feel eyes on him, and it felt like a blade held close to his skin. He could not look up. He did not dare. His body shook harder, and he tried to swallow without making a sound.
The king stared for a long moment, then slowly looked away as if the matter had already grown dull.
"Get more people from the surrounding villages, and bring me higher quality ones this time.." the king said, his tone flat like it was an ordinary supply order.
The soldier almost collapsed from relief and fear at the same time. "Yes, my lord."
He backed away on his knees, then rose only when he was far enough, and fled from the room without turning his back too quickly.
When the doors closed, the king let out a low sigh.
His fingers tapped once against the arm of the seat, and the mana around him settled like a cloak pulling tight.
******
Another full day passed at Aiden's base, and by late afternoon the third rest area was finally finished.
It did not mean they were done. It only meant the worst of the cramped sleeping problem had been reduced. People now had more space to spread out, and the rotation system was not as tight as before.
Aiden did not let himself relax for long.
The next wall was still needed. Though now, he had plenty of hands to help. So it shouldn't be that hard.
Aiden kept the work organized so the camp did not turn into chaos. One group hauled and stacked wood. Another cleared brush and leveled ground. He moved between them, lifting when needed, then stepping back to check the layout.
J.E.M. had finished sorting the cores from the hunt, and Aiden used that new supply the moment he could. There was a bunch of D-rank cores there too, so it really was quite the haul.
The upgraded laser cutter now had a stronger, steadier feed, and the difference was obvious. He can actually cut more trees now, and faster. The tool ran smoother under load, and Aiden could keep a steady pace even if he was cutting down ironwood trees.
[POWER DRAW: STABLE]
[CORE FEED: WITHIN SAFE RANGE]
[OUTPUT MODE: INCREASED]
Most of the afternoon turned into pure cutting and hauling. Aiden chose the direction on purpose.
The northwest.
He had scouted that area more than any other direction during his first week in this world. He knew the paths, the terrain, and the places where animals moved most often. It was not perfectly safe, but compared to the other directions, it felt calmer. The ground was also better. Less swampy. More open patches. Fewer rock clusters that would make clearing a nightmare.
He pushed out about a mile from the base and started clearing a wide plot.
Trees fell in a controlled line. Branches were stripped and stacked. Smaller wood was sorted for fire and basic supports. The thicker trunks were kept for house posts and strong frames that can be used in the future.
As the land opened, Aiden could finally see the shape of it.
He stood there for a moment and looked over the cleared ground, then his mind went straight to the same problem he could not ignore.
Winter was coming in a few months.
And only a few months of preparation was not that long at all.
Cold nights would get worse. Hunting would get harder. Work would slow down, and food would disappear faster than people expected.
Making use of the seed bank now was the right timing for things.
He forced himself to think through what mattered most first.
Staple food first. Food that filled stomachs and stored well. Food that could carry them through bad weeks.
'Hmmm....'
Corn. Potatoes. and maybe Sweet potatoes.
Those could be a good starter for things.
Corn could be boiled and eaten as is. It could be ground into simple meal. It could be cooked into thick grits. The stalks could be dried and used as fuel when firewood became harder to gather under snow and wet weather. If he up it a notch, he should be able to make corn stalks into house insulations for the coming winter.
Potatoes and sweet potatoes were steady calories, easy to cook, easy to store, and it also grows fast.
Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, onions, and dry beans were still worth planting, just not in massive fields yet. They would make meals healthier and keep people from getting sick over time, and beans would also help fill the gap when meat was low. Still, those crops needed more care and checking, so Aiden decided they would start small and expand only after the main staples were secured.
By late afternoon, he returned to the base with the others. The wood piles near the wall line were taller and cleaner now. The layout had taken shape already, and the overall area was starting to turn into a real settlement of people now.
Aiden paused for a moment and looked over the stacked wood, the cleared paths, and the new shelters, then felt a quiet satisfaction at how much the place had changed in just a short time.
******
By the time the workday slowed and the light started turning orange, Aiden realized how long Talren had been gone. The camp had stayed busy enough that he did not dwell on it, but as the shadows stretched, his attention kept drifting toward the gate.
Then movement appeared on the path.
Talren returned just before sunset.
The hunting crew came back from the old settlement area with more loot than the first trip. They carried hides, bones, tusks, bristles, and bundles of tough sinew. They also had scraps of cloth and leather that looked battered but still useful. Even damaged materials mattered right now, because almost everything could be repaired or repurposed.
The gate area tightened again as people gathered, but Marrek stepped in and controlled the flow, keeping the path clear so nobody got trampled or blocked the unload.
Aiden did not waste time staring at the piles like they were treasure. He started sorting immediately. Hide in one stack. Bones in another. Tusks and hard parts together. Sinew and rope material in its own pile. Anything that could rot or attract pests was separated right away.
He also did not linger on the obvious uses this time. He had already seen enough to know the ironhide boar parts were valuable, and what mattered now was how to process and store them without wasting a single piece.
But the bones pulled his attention for another reason.
He took a few thick pieces into the ship and ran a quick check with J.E.M.
[SCAN MODE: MATERIAL ANALYSIS]
[SUBJECT: BONE SAMPLE]
[RESULT: HIGH MINERAL CONTENT]
[PRIMARY: CALCIUM COMPOUNDS]
[NOTES: SUITABLE FOR SOIL FERTILIZER WHEN PROCESSED]
Aiden leaned back slightly as he read it.
Calcium rich fertilizer.
Bone meal worked back on Earth, and it would work here too if the soil was similar enough. If he could crush these bones into fine dust, he could help the crops start stronger and reduce failure.
He stepped back outside and spoke to the nearest group in a clear tone.
"Crush these bones into fine dust and keep it dry, I want it ready for the farm plot." Aiden said.
People blinked at him at first, then nodded when they understood it was another practical task. They might not know the word fertilizer, but since Aiden ordered it, they just had to follow for now.
Aiden pointed out a crushing spot away from sleeping and away from food prep, then had them start with stones and simple pounding tools.
As they worked, Aiden kept shaping the farm plan in his head.
First, he would start a small crop area near the base where people could watch it closely. Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, onions, and dry beans would go there, not in huge amounts, just enough to test the soil and see what grew well in this world.
After that, he would focus on the real staples. Corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes would be planted on a much larger scale, because those were the foods that could carry them through winter.
He also remembered he had a few cold season seeds in his seed bank and starter stock. If those actually worked here, they would give the settlement a backup even when the weather turned.
When the unloading slowed and the hunters began washing up, Aiden found Talren near the edge of the storage area.
Talren looked worn out, but he still walked up with a steady step.
Aiden kept his voice low, but direct. "Winter is coming in a few months. I'm thinking of making farms and get it started now so we can stock up before the weather changes."
Talren blinked once, then nodded like it was the most reasonable thing in the world.
"Do we even have seeds for that?"
"Yeah, I do." Aiden said. "I have a seed bank and starter stock, enough to start small near the base and plant big fields once the plot is ready."
Talren's shoulders eased a little. "Then it shouldn't be a problem, just tell us what you want done and we'll do it. I have a few people who used to farm back at the kingdom and they can lead the others."
That was good to hear. Aiden did not show it much, but it took weight off his chest.
"I already cleared a plot to the northwest, about a mile out." Aiden said.
"It just needs a bit of managing, plus some people watching the area while we start planting. Once we finish the next wall here, I'll put a basic wall around the farm too. So we can secure the farm without needed to check on it all the time."
Talren gave a firm nod. "Sure, we got what we needed from the old settlement already, so we have more hands free again. I'll focus on the farm starting tomorrow."