Chapter 148 - Spring (3)

My pollen allergy wasn't particularly severe. It only made me sneeze and gave me a runny nose, nothing worse. With a mask on, it was practically nonexistent.

"Achoo! Snrrk!"

Fortunately, the pollen in the Forest of Four Seasons was much the same. It was as dense as a yellow dust storm in China rather than Korea, but the symptoms were no different. Putting on the face covering All Hail the Sun had given me as a substitute for a mask helped considerably, though there was nothing I could do about the pollen I'd already inhaled.

'How do animals survive in this environment?'

I looked from the speed-sloth to Roundfur. The speed-sloth tossed a log into the fireplace, while Roundfur stared at me with wide, round eyes. How had those two adapted to such a shitty environment? I was a little curious.

'Whatever else I need, shelter is a must.'

It wasn't optional; it was essential to survival. If I hadn't claimed this cave, I would've died in some disaster. I should look for places to shelter from disasters along the way when I went exploring.

'The pollen's... settled down a bit, too.'

The yellow haze of pollen had mostly subsided. Apparently, all the flowers had bloomed at once with the arrival of spring, sending enormous amounts of pollen into the air. As far as I knew, pollen was usually at its worst in April and May, but the Forest of Four Seasons didn't give a damn about that. Spring arrived, and everything went, Yay, it's spring! Then they all bloomed together, and that was that.

'Everything bursting out at once is a problem, though.'

I stepped outside with my face covering on. My nose itched, but not enough to make me sneeze. The runny nose, however, was unavoidable. Reminding myself to wash the covering thoroughly later, I armed myself. First, I was going to fetch some gravel.

I brought the speed-sloth and Roundfur along for the first time in a while. They seemed perfectly fine despite the pollen.

"Pchoo!"

Or not. Were they just holding it in? Watching Roundfur sneeze, I figured it simply varied from one individual to another. It was a pollen allergy, after all. Whether you had it or not made a big difference.

When we made our way up to the river, I found it was still frozen. The ice must have melted underneath, because the water was flowing swiftly.

'I should be able to start setting fish traps soon.'

From now on, I planned to set two traps instead of one. Now that I'd experienced how quickly winter arrived, I needed more smoked food.

'Do frogs hibernate, too?'

I kept an eye on my surroundings as I gathered gravel into a sack. A frog or something else might jump out at any moment. Fortunately, perhaps because spring had only just arrived, there wasn't a single animal in sight.

Once I'd filled the sack with gravel, I returned to the cave. All I had to do was spread it over the ground and tamp it down.

'Why is this mud so damn soggy?'

But given the size of the yard, I had no choice but to make several trips. It hadn't been like this even when it first rained. Winter had left it in this state. The ground freezing solid was part of it, but the snow was probably the deciding factor. Even scattering salt here and there hadn't stopped the ground from freezing.

'The ground's done. Time to start building?'

It was time to rebuild the oven and furnace that the avalanche had swept away. I planned to make them sturdy enough to withstand future disasters.

'I'll need to dig down a little to anchor them properly.'

I dug out the ground and laid bricks in the bottom first. Then I stacked more bricks neatly, just as I had the last time, applying mortar made from sand and cement between them. Finally, I slid the tray in and out to check the dimensions, and I was done. The preparations had taken a long time, but having built one before, the construction itself was quick.

'I'd better put some brickwork behind it, just in case.'

Remembering how the avalanche had come from behind the cave, I'd built the oven right up against it. But I couldn't relax just yet, so I decided to erect a sturdy wall behind the oven. That would be better than rebuilding it every time a disaster knocked it down.

'Hmm... Will this do?'

Somehow, though, I'd ended up building a barricade rather than a wall. It wrapped around the entire oven and was exceptionally thick. I wondered whether I'd overdone it, but it was already built. Nothing to be done now.

'Now all that's left is the furnace.'

I built the furnace right up against the cave as well. I didn't forget to surround it with walls, just like the oven. I'd applied the cement thoroughly, so it shouldn't crumble so easily.

'Yep. Perfect.'

The oven and furnace now stood on either side of the cave. I'd left space beside them for future expansion work(?). Looking satisfied, I took a photo of the front of the cave and posted it on the forum.

Rebuilt everything

Wild Grylls

(Photo of the cave from the front)

(Photo of gravel covering the ground)

(Photo of the forest radiating warmth)

As of today, winter's over and spring's here in the Forest of Four Seasons.

Rebuilt everything the avalanche swept away as soon as spring arrived.

Time to get back to an honest day's work.

└Heavenly Demon: They look rather like wings. It seems you have some knowledge of architecture as well.

└Wild Grylls: Thank you, haha.

└Sword Masta: Did you spread gravel because of the mud?

└Wild Grylls: Yes. Rain alone might be manageable, but winter makes it way too soggy.

└Sword Masta: A good choice. Incidentally, did you learn to spread gravel during your military service?

└Wild Grylls: How did you know?

└Sword Masta: I did the same thing.

└They really teach you all sorts of things in the military, huh?

└There are just as many different sorts of people. Some make you wonder what they're even doing in the army.

└The only useful thing I learned was spearmanship. Having a spear makes a huge difference.

└Passing Dwarf: Oh, right. Hey, don't tell me my mold got swept away too?

└Wild Grylls: Nope. The mold was portable, so I moved it inside.

└Passing Dwarf: Good. That thing's expensive, you know.

└Wild Grylls: Can't be more expensive than mithril, lol.

└Passing Dwarf: Can't argue with that, fuck lmao.

└Wild Grylls: Oh, and can you give me two fish traps? I think I'll be smoking a lot of food from now on.

└Passing Dwarf: I can, but don't you have anything for me?

└Wild Grylls: I'll tell you the moment I find something worth steeping in booze.

└Passing Dwarf: OK.

└Robert the Base-Building Expert: An impressive layout. Are bricks that sturdy?

└Wild Grylls: They don't mean much in the face of nature, but they are sturdy. And I used cement this time, so they should be even stronger.

└Robert the Base-Building Expert: I see. This should prove helpful later. Will that be all you're doing?

└Wild Grylls: There's more to do. I need to gather firewood and make charcoal, too.

└Robert the Base-Building Expert: Having to build everything up yourself must be hard.

└Wild Grylls: It is, but finishing feels rewarding.

As they say, hard work pays off. It was hard to put into words the pride I felt upon completing something I'd designed. I'd built it out of necessity, but I couldn't hide my satisfaction.

└Robert the Base-Building Expert: I see. In that case, are you planning to farm as well?

└Wild Grylls: I'll give it a try, but wouldn't it be difficult?

└Robert the Base-Building Expert: It might not be, given that you're in the Forest of Four Seasons.

└Wild Grylls: Maybe you're right.

└Grow Big and Tall: You think farming's a fucking joke? Just tilling the field is hard enough lmao.

└Wild Grylls: Is it that hard?

└Grow Big and Tall: Honestly, the land matters most, but with the weather being such a bitch there, it'll probably be even harder. You said the seasons change every week, right?

└Wild Grylls: Yes.

└Grow Big and Tall: Then conventional farming knowledge might be useless. The plants won't stand a chance with the weather constantly changing.

└Wild Grylls: Hmm... All right. I'll keep that in mind.

└Robert the Base-Building Expert: So that presents a problem. I hadn't realized it until now either.

The explanation from the registered user, who seemed to be a working farmer, gave me pause. They added that if you wanted to gamble at a casino, you might as well farm instead. Farming was as unpredictable as gambling, and this was the Forest of Four Seasons.

'I'll need fertilizer, and I'll have to water everything... There's a lot to consider.'

I already had plenty to do. Adding farming to the list would make life harder in all sorts of ways. Especially here in the Forest of Four Seasons, where disasters struck whenever the place got bored. I was busy enough keeping myself alive; I had no time to devote to farming. The only small consolation was that it would be more like tending a vegetable patch than actual farming.

'Should I ask the raccoon family?'

I immediately discarded that idea too. Papa Raccoon was busy searching for medicinal herbs, and Mama Raccoon would have her paws full looking after Baby Raccoon. I couldn't think of a suitable source of labor.

'Still, I should at least look for a spot, just in case.'

It was strictly a contingency plan. I'd only farm when I truly had time to spare. After that, I polished off lunch: the fish left in the metal container. It had been so long since I'd eaten fish that it tasted all the better.

Passing Dwarf

Here are two fish traps.

Try not to break them this time.

I'll try.

Season changes are one thing, but I never know when it'll rain.

Oh, and can you give me a barricade too?

Passing Dwarf

Just build a thick brick wall.

That'd be much better.

You think so too?

Passing Dwarf

Yep. No matter how good the wood is, it can't hold a candle to stone.

Unless it's the World Tree.

The World Tree, huh. Come to think of it, I'd seen an enormous tree before, when I'd experienced an out-of-body experience after learning the second formula from Heavenly Demon. I couldn't be certain it was the World Tree, but it was worth checking.

Is the World Tree that tough?

Passing Dwarf

Its branches outperform steel.

That says it all, doesn't it?

Damn. Then what about those gloves the elf gave me?

Are the leaves just ordinary leaves?

Passing Dwarf

Yep. But the silkworms aren't ordinary silkworms either.

No idea what got into that knife-ear, but they gave you something really good.

The gloves Let's Grow Trees had given me had been very useful. I'd traded a guardian's core for them, but I had no idea what the elf was doing with it now. They still showed up on the forum occasionally, but as always, all they talked about was planting trees.

'World Tree or not, I hope there's something useful there.'

It was so far away that even making the round trip would be difficult. I thanked the dwarf and checked the fish traps. Normally, waiting until tomorrow to go to the river would've been better, but food had to be secured in good time. I figured I should break the ice myself and set the traps.

'It's grassland across the river this time.'

The area across the river changed at certain intervals, though I didn't know how often or what it would turn into. I ought to figure out that pattern soon. That way, I could expand my range of activity...

"... Huh?"

... What was that? I blinked. It was grassland, so I could accept there being all sorts of animals. A giraffe was nothing surprising, nor was that giraffe fighting off predators. But a person riding the giraffe and swinging a sword? I couldn't just brush that off. A giraffe wasn't a horse.

I rubbed and rubbed my eyes. The sight was so unbelievable that I had to rub them and look again.

But unfortunately, it must have been time for the area to change, because the far side of the river blurred like a mirage. A moment later, all I could see was a barren expanse of rock instead of grassland. The knight riding the giraffe had vanished without a trace.

'Is there really someone...'

...out there? For a moment, I felt a faint glimmer of hope.

'But they were riding a giraffe.'

And fighting like a knight from its back, no less. Faced with such an utterly bizarre sight, I was left bewildered.