[Chapter Size: 3100 Words.]
Third Person POV.
Westeros.
...
...
Another point was that all the destruction caused by the war had finally begun to heal from the deep scars it had left behind.
Although winter had greatly delayed the reconstruction, Daemon managed to stabilize the kingdoms. Throughout that entire period, he had to feed all of Westeros, acquiring grain from both the Reach and Essos, with shipments arriving even from the Jade Sea.
As a result, he managed to prevent countless unnecessary deaths. He even dealt with the tradition of the older men of the North, who used to volunteer to die outside their villages and hamlets during the harsh winters so that the younger generation, along with their wives and children, would have a better chance of surviving. They no longer needed to resort to that custom.
Daemon fed the entire continent for five years using the stockpiles prepared for the war while also obtaining grain from the Reach and even from Yi Ti. Through the Iron Bank, he signed contracts capable of bringing constant shipments of food to Westeros.
Now that winter had finally ended, Daemon could turn his attention to the regions that had suffered the greatest destruction.
The Riverlands were, by far, the most devastated. The men of the Westerlands had spared neither villages, castles, nor anyone they encountered along the way, following Tywin's orders.
King's Landing had already been rebuilt during the first year. The damage in the North and the Crownlands had also been brought under control. King's Landing underwent major construction projects and renovations from Daemon's very first year, as he poured money into the city.
In any case, five years later, the memories of the war were already beginning to fade into little more than shadows for most of the population.
The Riverlands, however, still bore scars everywhere, and the snow had only hidden them for a time, now melting away. Daemon would have to work on rebuilding farms, villages, and the region's entire infrastructure.
At the same time, much had changed in the Riverlands. A large portion of the lands in the south and east of the kingdom, including territories belonging to House Darry, all of Goodbrook's lands, Blanetree, Norcross (Reach), and several other southern territories, had all been incorporated into the Crownlands and brought under the direct rule of House Targaryen. All of these lands had their borders redrawn during a great council with the lords of those lands and the realm, and they had no choice but to accept it.
Daemon punished every traitor exactly as he had promised, and no one dared challenge his decisions.
Even Brynden Tully knew that he remained alive only because he had served during the war as Lord Paramount of the Riverlands, preserving his house. Otherwise, Daemon would have wiped out his bloodline. His reward for serving as a general was precisely that House Tully was allowed to continue existing.
Since Edmure had no children, and as had previously been agreed, Brandon Stark became the heir to Riverrun and the future Lord Paramount of the Riverlands. He also currently served as Master of Whisperers alongside the king. He was also married to Meera Reed, and they had a baby together.
Bran would not inherit all the lands that had originally belonged to House Tully because of the new border demarcations and the expansion of the Crownlands, but he did not complain. In fact, he had never asked for any of those responsibilities that came with being a lord, even as the second son of House Stark.
Even so, he would face an enormous challenge ahead. Daemon assured him that he would help with the reconstruction of the Riverlands. Taxes in the region were also significantly reduced, as those lands were in no condition to bear the same tax burden as the other kingdoms.
Furthermore, the Westerlands were required to pay tribute directly to the Riverlands as compensation for the destruction. Even so, they still paid less in taxes overall than they normally should have, since Daemon had also granted tax reductions to the western lords because of the extermination of House Lannister.
In any case, he was not the only member of House Stark to rise over the past five years. In fact, the Starks had perhaps become the family that prospered the most among all the Seven Kingdoms.
As Daemon had planned, he granted the Dustin lands to Gendry Waters after legitimizing him so that he could marry Arya Stark. Once legitimized, he bestowed those lands upon him. Together, they took the name Froststark.
The two had married the previous year and were now living in Barrowton. Arya was already expecting their first child. She had spent several years in King's Landing before returning to the North alongside her husband. Gendry held no claim whatsoever to the Stormlands, as Stannis Baratheon's bloodline continued to rule the region.
To strengthen that alliance even further, a betrothal was also arranged between Rickon Stark and Shireen Baratheon. They were to be married four years later. For the time being, they lived in the capital, since Stannis held a seat on the Small Council, and Rickon was learning about the South under Stannis if he wished to one day become the Lord of Storm's End.
Meanwhile, Robb Stark had married the former heiress of House Manderly, further strengthening the trade between Winterfell and the Manderlys, who were chiefly responsible for the logistics of transporting goods from the North to King's Landing.
As for the last of the Starks, Sansa had married Harrold Hardyng, who had been declared Harrold Arryn of the Vale and ultimately became the Lady of the Eyrie.
She had never shared as close a relationship with the king as her siblings had. Among all the Starks, she was the one with the least affinity for Daemon. In fact, she was the only one who did not receive a direwolf as a gift after Daemon's wolves later began having pups in King's Landing, where they freely roamed the Red Keep. Daemon gave one to practically every member of House Stark, with the sole exception of her.
There were rumors about it throughout the realm. Even so, Sansa never commented on it. On the contrary, she seemed to accept the situation and quietly lived her days in the Vale beside her husband, remaining secluded and rarely visited the royal court.
As for the two eldest Starks, Benjen and Ned Stark, they remained at the Wall throughout the last five years, still alive, visiting Winterfell at least three or four times a year.
In recent times, however, the only ones who usually remained in Winterfell were Robb, his wife, and Robb's heir, along with Arya, who could now visit the castle more often because she lived relatively close.
There were still whispers throughout the realm about the relationship between Daemon and Ned Stark. Ned seemed to have accepted his fate and never complained. He never spoke ill of his nephew in any public situation at the Wall, despite the constant provocations from some people who still harbored resentment over Daemon having been sent to the Night's Watch.
However, those people had already become a minority. After the battle Daemon fought against the dead and the Night King, most of the realm came to respect him, even among those whom he himself had sentenced to spend the rest of their lives at the Wall.
Even so, there were times when people saw the two of them sharing drinks during the harvest festivals. Whenever Daemon traveled north to oversee his companies and businesses, he took the opportunity to attend the feasts held in the halls of House Stark, where Benjen and Ned were also usually present on the most important occasions.
Lord Commander Jeor Mormont was still active, but there were already signs that Lord Stark himself would one day take his place.
Unfortunately, Maester Aemon passed away two years ago. Daemon and Daenerys brought three-year-old Aegon to the Wall atop their dragons. He was there alongside everyone else to pay tribute to Maester Aemon at his funeral. Daemon received the news in real time through Bran, which was why he flew north to attend the funeral of the oldest member of House Targaryen. Afterward, they returned to King's Landing.
The Night's Watch still functioned as a place to house criminals. Even so, there was no longer a true enemy left to fight. A portion of the Free Folk had returned beyond the Wall and no longer showed any desire to attack the South.
The villages established beyond the Wall simply did what they needed through Daemon's agreements, mining ore and maintaining ice farms to earn coins, which they exchanged for food and supplies brought by ships sailing from the South to their villages.
Upon realizing this new reality of the Night's Watch, Daemon ended up changing part of Westeros's punishment system. It no longer made sense to maintain the Night's Watch for the same purpose as before, when all of its former enemies had already been defeated.
Even the Black Gate was opened, allowing people to pass through freely. Many visited relatives, friends, or companions beyond the Wall and then returned. There were no longer any wars, raids, or killings between the Free Folk and the North.
Despite the old hostilities, that war became the first step toward healing the wounds left by thousands of years of conflict.
Daemon simply allowed the last members of the old Night's Watch to live out the rest of their lives peacefully at the Wall. The order would not be dissolved, but it would no longer receive new convicts.
Instead, he ordered the lords to build prisons within their own territories. A simple theft should no longer condemn a man to the Night's Watch, but instead earn him a proper beating or a few months or years in prison.
However, murder and rape continued to be treated with the utmost severity. If it was proven that someone had committed either of those crimes, they would be hanged before the end of the day, with no chance of surviving by joining the Night's Watch.
Daemon also wished to establish a true legal system for the Seven Kingdoms, one that would help the lords judge their cases and, when necessary, rely on the assistance of people trained for that purpose. It was a reform he planned to develop over the next ten years, as it was not something that could be accomplished immediately.
Now, with the Citadel reformed, he finally had enough scholars to create a group dedicated exclusively to developing that system.
As for the lands of the North, a new castle had been completed in the former Bolton lands, which now had Mance Rayder as its lord, the territory now being known as the Rider lands. It had been completed a few moons ago. Mance could have lived there, but he served on the current council and remained in King's Landing instead, traveling there a few times each year with Dalla and their son to oversee matters. Even so, he had placed Free Folk he trusted in charge of running the lands.
There had not yet been an opportunity to begin cultivating the Gift, but there certainly would be now that winter had ended. Even with a central settlement established by the Free Folk, the region had been divided into three parts, with Northerners and people hired from the South teaching others how to work the land. This also attracted people from the South, who saw it as an opportunity, since the Gift offered the chance to build a new life, and the Free Folk were no longer as frightening as they had once been.
The Twins still needed a lord, just like Highgarden, which still had no official lord. Especially in the latter case, Daemon left several people in charge of administering the Reach because he had needed its resources during the winter. He still had not decided what to do, but now that winter had ended, he intended to make that decision.
The former Lady Dustin passed away a few moons ago inside a great septry in Oldtown, where Daemon had sent all the principal noblewomen who had lost their Houses and could no longer inherit, choosing not to execute them. She was found after taking poison. She had offered money to someone to obtain it and took her own life, no longer able to endure more than five years in that place.
The place drove Lysa Arryn even further into madness. She had been confined to an isolated room for the past two years, especially after learning that her son was no longer the heir to the Vale of Arryn, as he had been declared a bastard through Daemon's magic, which had confirmed the truth. He was now serving as Brynden Tully's squire, with his future limited to becoming a knight. She also heard that the boy had not had an easy life and had cried constantly at first, though he eventually found his footing over the following years.
Myrcella Waters and Margaery Tyrell were still alive, living exactly as expected among the Silent Sisters. They had learned to endure their grief over their lost families and spent the rest of their days under the Faith of the Seven. They knew what was happening throughout the realm and tried not to show their displeasure or break down in tears.
Both had once lived the lives of princesses and future queens. Now, spending several hours each day in prayer had become their reality, their families having been exterminated.
Daemon was quite satisfied with the direction the kingdoms had taken. His entire Small Council was complete, his family was prospering and growing, and he was a king who could openly keep both his wife and his lovers. Although the Faith of the Seven still condemned the practice, the religion was facing an ever-growing crisis with the rise of other faiths, especially the cult of Meridia, whose followers viewed Daemon as the goddess's champion. If he wanted to father children with a thousand women, no one would dare say a word.
In any case, he was content with the four women who shared his bed, and the children who did not belong to House Targaryen would establish new branches of the family, becoming nobles and rising to rule the lands Daemon intended to grant each of them.
Lafy had grown as well, becoming an extremely skilled knight under Daemon's guidance, to the point that many believed he would replace Barristan Selmy within the next five years once the old man retired, while another man would become Lord Commander.
Since Barristan would not be able to fulfill his duties for much longer, Daemon intended to transfer him to the position of Master-at-Arms of the Red Keep.
Even though serving in the Kingsguard was a lifelong appointment, Barristan no longer possessed the same physical vigor he had five years earlier. He was no longer as fast or as resilient as he once had been. As much as he disliked the idea of leaving the Kingsguard, it was better to accept this new role while still serving the royal family than to remain unable to fully carry out his duty of protecting them in a time of crisis, with his body growing weaker every year.
As Master-at-Arms, he would train the future generations of knights. After all, he was a living hero, someone capable of inspiring not only the future knights of the Seven Kingdoms and those of the Red Keep, but also Daemon's own children.
And with that position eventually becoming vacant, not only Lafy but also Podrick Payne could take the post. He had also become an excellent knight. His training had begun in the North under Brienne and continued in the Vale, where Brienne personally accompanied Sansa Stark as her sworn sword.
When he returned to King's Landing two years ago, the young man had matured considerably. He became a hedge knight, traveling through the Riverlands, the Crownlands, the Reach, and the Stormlands in search of bandits. He even inspired one or two songs about his exploits, alongside other knights who had joined together to combat every kind of threat.
In any case, returning to the matter of religion, Daemon had also met with Meridia for a private conversation shortly after the war.
It was during that meeting that he finally learned his parents had been forgiven for their sins. Ever since he defeated the Night King, they had finally been able to move on, reunite with their loved ones, and rest in a place far better than the Seven Hells.
Daemon was happy to imagine that his mother, Lyanna, could finally reunite with her father, her brother, and her own mother. His father, in turn, would once again see his deceased siblings, Rhaenys and Aegon, as well as Elia Martell.
He only hoped that they had all found peace in the spiritual world. Even though he disagreed with many of the things they had done in life, they were still his parents. Knowing the fate they had ultimately received brought him satisfaction.
Author here:
Guys, I need to know—I've tried to summarize everything Daemon could have accomplished over these five years. Did I forget anything?
Sorry if the information felt a bit scattered throughout these last three chapters. There was just so much to remember, and I kept writing whatever came to mind. If anything felt confusing, let me know and I'll try to fix it.
I'd like to know whether you think this was a good or a bad summary.
I wanted to cover the topics in this order.
Tax system and bureaucracy.
Religion.
Economy and businesses.
The reconstruction of Westeros.
The expansion of the Crownlands.
The reform of the Night's Watch and the punishment system.
The situation of the great houses and the main characters.
Military changes and the Kingsguard.
The fate of Daemon's parents.
I didn't write the names and positions of the new Small Council, who the Hand is, or about Daemon's children. I only briefly mentioned a few names. I'd like to write more about them in the epilogues. I'll provide a full list in the next chapter.
Would you like an epilogue showing glimpses of the years to come? Maybe showing a few moments from the future with Daemon and his son?
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