Chapter 137 – The Weight of Feathers.

The return to the Lower Cauldrons Estate took place late in the afternoon, right after the squad crossed the exit portal of the Pit of Embers.

The trek had been grueling. Though no one had broken bones like in the clash against the Steel Titan, the sustained strain of clearing five floors of a Level 50 dungeon took its physical toll on everyone.

The moment the estate's iron gate swung shut, Kael unstrapped the Volcanic Shield from his back and leaned the heavy slab of metal against the hallway wall with a long sigh. The vanguard barely found the energy to pry off his iron greaves before collapsing onto the thin straw mattress laid across the ground-floor bedroom, falling into a dead sleep in under two minutes.

Upstairs, Aurelia-Elysia and Seraphina stripped off their cloaks and collapsed side by side onto their respective floor mattresses, drifting off to sleep with slow, exhausted breaths.

Rhea dragged her feet up the stairs, took a quick wash in the cistern's lukewarm water, and curled up on the mat in the master bedroom, bundling herself beneath the blanket and knocking out almost instantaneously.

Zarek vaulted directly onto the courtyard roof, folding his six arms behind his neck to rest among the black shingles.

Diana remained standing in the ground-floor parlor.

She took a quick bath in the basement thermal pool, shed her heavy armor, and pulled on her clean leather coat over a gray shirt.

The Commander climbed to the second-floor hallway and peered into the ajar doorways.

She saw Aurelia and Seraphina asleep on the floorboards under tangled blankets, and saw Rhea curled up on the straw mat in the master bedroom, shoulder pressed against the hard wooden edge of the baseboard.

Diana furrowed her brow, the golden rings in her pupils narrowing.

Her squad was at Level 42, Kael boasted over a thousand hit points, Seraphina had achieved Level 44, and she herself stood at Level 47 with more than fifty gold coins accumulated in the vault.

Having elite warriors sleep on thin straw mats on the hard ground like road beggars struck directly at the pride and logic of her Greed.

Diana fastened the dimensional pouch to her belt, locked the front door with the iron key, and stepped out alone onto the outpost streets.

***

The Joiners and Upholsterers Market of the South Sector was bustling with late-afternoon trade.

Diana headed straight for the largest joinery warehouse on the square, where an elderly four-armed demon was sawing thick planks of red cedar with a manual bandsaw.

Diana didn't look for delicate ornamental furniture. She wanted heavy, resilient, and comfortable structures, suited to the weight and habits of each member of her faction.

She hired the woodworker to deliver and assemble at her estate:

- Three reinforced solid wood bed frames fitted with cast-iron brackets.

- Three wide mattresses stuffed with mountain goose down and pure wool, thick enough to insulate against any lingering chill from the stone.

But Diana did not stop at mattresses.

With her perception tuned to every habit of the group, she walked among the neighboring artisan stalls and picked specific items for each of them:

For Kael, she bought an extra-wide anatomical pillow with double-stuffed cured horsehair, designed specifically to cradle thick necks and relieve shoulder strain for someone who hauled fifty-kilogram shields all day.

For Aurelia-Elysia, she bought a set of six glazed white porcelain jars with airtight cork and silver lids, perfect for the priestess to organize her floral extracts and tea blends without letting the powders dry out.

For Seraphina, she bought an articulated brass reading stand with a clamp and a small directional crystal lamp, allowing the young summoner to read her grimoire in bed without straining her back or fatiguing her eyes in the dark.

For Zarek, she bought three bars of runic diamond stone for the fine polishing of curved blades, the sort of material that maintained the razor edge of moon swords without wearing down the steel.

And for Rhea... Diana paused before a stall of rare northern furs and chose a long blanket of deep blue velvet lined with soft snow-hare fur, gentle to the touch and ample enough for the wolf girl to wrap herself in completely.

The complete purchase of noble beds, feather mattresses, and personal items cost fifteen silver coins, with the haulage of three express delivery carts included in the price.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

[FULL FINANCIAL AUDIT]

- Previous Balance: 575 Silver Coins (57.5 Gold Coins).

- Purchase of Noble Beds, Feather Mattresses, and Personal Items: -15 Silver Coins.

- NEW VAULT BALANCE: 560 SILVER COINS (56,000 Bronze / EXACTLY 56 PURE GOLD COINS!)

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Five hundred and sixty silver coins kept securely in the faction vault. Exactly Fifty-Six pure Gold Coins.

***

Two hours later, the delivery wagons pulled up before the gate of the Lower Cauldrons Estate.

Diana made the porters bring everything inside in absolute silence so as not to wake the three sleeping upstairs.

The cedar frames were assembled with precision: a wide, reinforced bed was set up in Kael's ground-floor room, the feather mattress rolled out and the broad pillow nestled at the headboard beside the Volcanic Shield.

In the second-floor bedroom, the two beds for Aurelia-Elysia and Seraphina were made up with clean linen sheets. Diana placed the set of porcelain jars atop Aurelia's dresser and fastened the articulated brass stand to the headboard of Seraphina's bed.

In the master bedroom, Rhea's bed was erected right beside Diana's, with the blue velvet and hare-fur blanket spread across the plush mattress.

Diana ascended to the roof through the rear trapdoor and set the case of three runic diamond stones beside Zarek's coat, without uttering a word.

She tipped the haulers, bolted the iron gates, and headed down to the kitchen to put the water kettle on the hearth.

***

Kael was the first to awaken, around seven in the evening.

The big man rolled onto his side in his ground-floor room, still groggy, expecting to feel the hard floorboards dig into his ribs.

Instead, his bulk sank into a plush feather mattress that contoured to his back without a creak. When he opened his eyes and took in the red cedar frame, the broad pillow cradling his neck, and the thick quilt over his legs, the vanguard sat bolt upright in bed, jaw slack in disbelief.

On the upper floor, Aurelia-Elysia and Seraphina woke almost simultaneously.

Aurelia smoothed her hands over the linen sheets of her new bed, letting out a small squeak of delight upon spotting the porcelain jars arranged on the dresser. Seraphina pushed her glasses up her nose, touching the brass stand and the crystal reading lamp mounted at the exact height for her books, eyes shimmering with emotion.

Rhea padded down the second-floor stairs wrapped up to her chin in the blue velvet and hare-fur blanket, silver ears perked and amber eyes locked onto Diana, who sat at the kitchen table sipping a mug of hot tea.

The wolf girl crossed the room barefoot, trailing the soft blanket across the wool rug, stopped beside Diana's chair, and rested her head on the Commander's shoulder, releasing a long, contented purr.

“The blanket smells like cedar...” Rhea murmured, nuzzling the plush fur against her cheek. “It's the softest thing I've ever touched in my life.”

Kael lumbered into the kitchen shortly after, scratching the back of his neck with a massive hand, an awkward grin and shining gratitude in his eyes:

“Commander... did you go and buy real beds for everyone while we were sleeping?”

Diana took a sip of her tea, keeping her expression neutral and her voice typically calm:

“Level 40 warriors sleeping on stiff straw on the floor suffer muscle spasms that lower combat response speed by twelve percent. It was a strictly technical asset maintenance decision.”

Aurelia-Elysia and Seraphina came down the stairs laughing at Diana's military rationalization, while Zarek dropped through the kitchen window frame, twirling one of the runic diamond stones between his chitin claws with an approving, sharp-toothed grin.

Diana looked upon the five members of her faction gathered in the kitchen illuminated by the pine lamp.

Nobody had an aching back. Nobody was cold.

The house was complete. The vault held fifty-six gold coins.

And the march toward Level 50 would continue the following day with the squad at the pinnacle of comfort and readiness.