Building harem town, p.24
Building Harem Town, page 24
The afternoon shadows were growing longer, and once the final tree was de-limbed, I decided to call it an evening. I was slightly disappointed the priestesses hadn’t finished their work with the axe today, and I hoped I would still get a new tool on the altar in the morning.
Like the night before, the three priestesses fell asleep before they had a chance to eat dinner. I thought I would suggest the next day they stop by the blessed stream on their way home from the woods, but it was already too late for tonight.
I thought about what I wanted to appear next on the altar, and though it wasn’t the most exciting tool, I realized the women’s lives were going to be a lot easier if they had a tape measure before a hammer or a plane. That way they could use the crosscut saw to make the length of each beam the same before we tried to drag it back to the convent.
I hoped again the game would give me the tool even though the women weren’t done with their axe. I waited eagerly overnight for the next tool to appear, but nothing seemed to happen as the morning light grew brighter and brighter. Then I caught a glimpse of something metal flash in the sunrise, and it had to be the tape measure, because it was definitely tiny.
Chapter 15
I wondered how the women were going to react to the new tool, given that I’d never seen any sort of printed materials in the world I was in. I assumed the women could read numbers, and Penelope said she was good at math, but I realized I still had no idea about their educational backgrounds. A tape measure wasn’t too much different than a simple ruler, I supposed, but I was still curious to see their reactions.
They all woke up and went to the creek as they had the morning before, and they returned squeaky clean. I suddenly wished I could smell their fresh bodies, and I laughed at myself a little. It was funny the things I took for granted when I was a mere mortal.
“What did you get us, my lord?” Penelope asked as she skipped over to the altar, but when she saw the small metal square, she wrinkled her upturned blue nose in confusion. “I have to confess, I don’t know what that is. I was reasonably sure about the axe and the saw, but you’re going to have to tell me about this one.”
“Okay, pick it up,” I chuckled. “You see the little metal hook on the side? Pull it out, and you’ll see what it is.”
The naiad did as I’d instructed, but she accidentally let the tape snap back against her hand. She squeaked out loud and jumped backward at the loud noise, and that made me laugh again.
“Don’t laugh at me, master,” the blue woman pouted.
“I would never really want to tease you,” I assured her. “But go on, try again because I think you’re really going to like this one.”
Penelope pulled on the metal tab again, and this time she successfully pulled out more of the measuring tape. When she saw the flexible yellow metal had numbers printed on it, she brought it up to her face to inspect it more closely.
“Is it… a giant ruler?” she breathed. “We did a little work with measurements when there were teachers at the orphanage, which happened from time to time.”
“Yeah, it is a ruler!” I wasn’t surprised she’d figured it out, since the cerulean beauty was obviously very bright. “The first step is going to be measuring the walls that already exist so we can cut the wood to the right dimensions.”
I had no idea what units of measurement they used around here, but I figured the general principles had to be the same. I considered the idea of having Penelope do all the measurements for the beams and posts while Nicola and Aleia split the wood. I wanted the naiad to continue to grow stronger, of course, but she’d done a lot of physical labor already, and I wanted to get this process over with as quickly as possible.
Nicola had taken her bow to the woods this morning and brought back a rabbit, and both she and Aleia knelt by the fire as the animal cooked.
The naiad gripped the tape measure in her hand as she walked over to the two other priestesses, and then she held it out and showed them how it worked. They both looked slightly confused, although I was sure they’d be able to figure it out with a little effort.
Once they were done eating, Nicola yawned and laid back on the ground.
“Do we have to do work today, Jack?” the dark-haired woman moaned. “The stream makes me feel better, of course, but I’m tired of having to hurt in the first place.”
“Sister!” Aleia said as she poked the brunette in the arm. “Our lord knows what needs to be done, and he wouldn’t have us working so hard if it weren’t important.”
“Uh, yeah, I just think you’ll all be way happier once you have a roof,” I said as I tried to convince Nicola. “And what if it rains? It seems like you’re overdue for a storm.”
“We’ve been fine in the garden so far, so I don’t really care,” Nicola pouted. “I want a shelter, of course, but like I said, I’m not having fun being in so much pain.”
“I understand,” I responded as I tried to sound as sympathetic as possible. “But it’s going to be so nice to have this building completed, isn’t it? Then we can have a party, I promise.”
“A party?” the brunette laughed. “I’m not sure what you mean by that, though I can see where drinking a little more whiskey might not be so bad in this scenario.”
“Oh, Nicola,” Penelope sighed. “Can’t you be happy to do what our lord tells you and not complain so much? Why can’t you just have faith he always knows the right thing to do?”
“Well, I suppose the logical answer to that is you’re just naive, Pen--”
“Sisters!” Aleia gasped and cut off the brunette. “This is no way to behave. Today is going to be difficult enough without you arguing.”
“Well, if you really want to stay here today--” I began, but then Aleia cut in.
“No, Jack.” The fairy shook her head firmly. “I’m not going to sit around when a project is already halfway done. The spring heals my sore body enough that it makes this all possible, and I’m sure Nicola truly feels fine this morning as well. You don’t have to be so hard on her, though, Penelope.”
The naiad had started to smirk with satisfaction when Aleia was talking about the creek, but she rolled her eyes a little at the second part of the strawberry-blonde’s statement.
“Fine,” Nicola huffed. “But this better all be worth it, sisters. I just hope Jack actually knows how to build this.”
The brunette stood up, dusted off her hands, and stomped out of the garden toward the woods without saying another word. Penelope and Aleia looked at one another for a moment and shrugged, and then they grabbed the tools they needed for the day before they tried to follow after the human priestess.
“Don’t forget you need to measure the walls,” I reminded the blue woman. “Maybe you should let Nicola cool off in the woods for a little bit anyway.”
“That’s right, you said that,” Penelope said with a nod. “Come, Aleia, let’s figure out how to use this tool.”
The two women walked down to the walls of the living quarters, and the naiad examined the measuring tape closely.
“Penelope, I’m not sure if you know what a foot is,” I started to explain to the naiad, “but let me describe it to you. You see the black markings? Well, twelve of the shorter ones make up a foot, and at the marker for each foot, you’ll see the longer length written, as well.”
“Okay… I see it!” the naiad said with a cheerful smile. “This must be one foot, and then two…”
“How do we start, sister?” the fairy asked.
“I think you can just hold one end at one side of the wall, and then I’ll just pull it down to the other and take note of the number,” the cerulean woman explained.
“Yes, that makes sense,” Aleia responded as Penelope handed her the measuring tape’s hook. The fairy held it precisely at the end of one of the existing walls, and the naiad walked down to the other side with the case.
“Jack, it says approximately ten feet,” the blue woman told me. “I’m not entirely sure how to get a more precise number.”
“That should be fine,” I assured her. “We’re really going to be estimating a lot anyway.”
The two priestesses worked together to measure the height and length of all three existing walls, and Penelope reported the numbers to me each time. The room was actually about ten feet by ten feet squared, and I mentally patted myself on the back for my guessing skills. The walls were about six feet tall, which hadn’t been hard to estimate given their similarity to Nicola’s height.
The naiad and the fairy didn’t catch up to Nicola until she was back at the clearing with the logs, and the time alone appeared to have calmed the dark-haired woman down a little.
“I apologize, sisters,” the brunette said with a conciliatory smile on her face. “I didn’t mean to be in a bad mood.”
“It’s not us you need to apologize to,” Penelope said in an accusatory tone, and Nicola glanced up at the sky as if to look at me.
“Fine,” the chestnut-haired beauty snorted. “I’m sorry, Jack. I shouldn’t have been rude to you. I was just sore and cranky.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I responded. “I’d probably be cranky, too.”
“I suppose,” Nicola muttered, and she reached out for the measuring tape. “How does this thing work again?”
Penelope and Nicola seemed to instantly reconcile as the naiad gave the human a crash course on the tool, and then all three women were finally smiling.
“So, Penelope, do you want to take the first round with the measuring tape?” I suggested. “I can explain to you how long the logs need to be, and then you can mark off those distances with a rock.”
“Yes, of course, master,” the blue woman replied. “I’d be happy to. I’d like to look for the larger pieces of wood first to ensure we have an adequate supply.
“Makes sense to me,” I said, and then I addressed the other two women. “Aleia, Nicola, why don’t you work on splitting the logs in half? Actually, Penelope, you can measure a log first, and then the other two of you can come in, chop it to the proper length, and split it.”
“Yes, that makes sense.” Aleia nodded.
“Jack, how long do the biggest logs need to be?” the cerulean woman asked me as she pulled out the tool and examined the numbers printed on it.
“I think we calculated about twelve feet for the rafters, didn’t we?” I asked. “To make sure the roof is sloped enough? And we’re going to need a couple of extra feet for the posts to make sure you can place them deep enough into the ground.”
Penelope walked over to the longest log and examined it, and then she turned and looked at Nicola.
“Can I help you, sister?” the brunette asked.
“Yes, you hold the end of this piece of metal at the start of the log, and then I’ll pull it out to twelve feet in length,” the naiad explained. “I just need to find a sharp rock to mark the wood…”
Penelope poked around on the ground for a moment and found a stone that met her specifications. Nicola held onto the end of the measuring tape like the naiad had told her, and the cerulean woman pulled out the long strip of metal and ran it along the bark of the log until she reached twelve feet.
“Did you get it?” I asked Penelope.
“I think I did,” the naiad said with a proud smile as she carved a notch into the wood. “Aleia, Nicola, do you want to cut it now? I think I may be able to use this thing by myself if I hook this part that sticks out onto the wood. Is that right, my lord?”
“Well, it’s certainly worth a shot,” I replied. “It would definitely help things get done faster if you could measure on your own.”
“Yes, that makes sense, so I will try,” the pale-blue woman responded, and then she wandered off with the measuring tape in hand.
Nicola had already chopped the long log down to its proper length, and I saw Aleia was holding the chisel.
“Do you know what you’re doing?” I asked the two of them. “Try to place the sharp edge of the chisel in the center of the log, and then you can hammer it into the wood with the back of the axe.”
“Yes, my lord,” the fairy said with a firm nod. She jammed the piece of sharpened basalt approximately halfway between the two sides of the log, and then she turned to the dark-haired human. “Your turn, Nicola.”
With one firm swing of the axe, the brunette dug the chisel deeper into the wood, and a long split appeared in exactly the right location.
“Okay, now you can use the axe to split it even further, and then just repeat the process until you’ve made your way entirely down the length of the log,” I instructed the women, and both of them nodded.
“So, how many logs do we need of each length?” Penelope asked me with pursed lips. “The twelve-foot logs are for the rafters and the tallest posts, correct?”
“Yeah, that’s right,” I replied as I tried to envision a mental diagram of what we were building. I scanned the image, and I calculated four twelve-foot rafters, two twelve-foot posts, two eight-foot posts, and four ten-foot beams. I wasn’t sure yet how to best cover the rafters, but I decided to worry about that once the main structure had been built.
I relayed the numbers to the naiad, and I could see her memorize the figures easily after repeating them once to herself. The blue woman took leadership of the measuring task for the remainder of the day, which seemed to pass quickly. The women switched off their jobs periodically until all three of them were comfortable using the tape measure, the chisel, and the axe, and I was amazed to see they’d measured, cut, and either split or sawed all the wood just before the sun started to dip below the trees.
“What do you think, my lord?” A large, proud smile spread across Penelope’s lips.
“You all did perfect,” I praised the priestesses. “How are you feeling?”
“Tired but accomplished,” Nicola admitted as she wiped away the sweat from her brow. “I’m glad we got this work done, although there is still clearly so much more.”
“I was thinking you should go by the stream on the way back to the garden,” I suggested. “Then maybe you can eat both tonight and tomorrow morning, and things will go a little easier for you. I hate to think you’re not getting enough food.”
“Yes, that is probably a good idea,” Aleia agreed. “Well done, sisters. Tomorrow, we can… wait, what are we doing tomorrow, Jack?”
“I’ll… I’ll let you know then,” I said in a deep voice, since I didn’t know how to tell her I was completely dependent on the whims of whoever was giving me the tools. “I hope we’ll be able to at least carry the wood over to the building, and then, at some point, we can put it all together.”
“At some point?” Nicola asked with her brow furrowed. “Why don't you know for sure when it’s going to happen?”
“Um, because--”
“Sister, would you please stop questioning him?” Penelope sighed.
Nicola shot the naiad a sharp look, but luckily, the dark-haired woman stopped speaking for the moment.
There were a lot of things I wasn’t sure about yet, to be honest. How were we going to fit all the pieces together? If I got a drill, it might work to use pegs to fit the joints into place, but if I got a hammer, the women would have to use nails. I hated not having an overall plan, but this was apparently just the way the game worked.
And then there was the question of a ladder. I’d put off having the women make one since it seemed like just another complicated project, but the time of reckoning would come soon. Even though Aleia was strong enough and could go high enough to lift large pieces of wood and fasten them together, Nicola would still need to hold pieces up above her head for the whole thing to work, and I didn’t think the brunette was strong enough to do that. I didn’t want to waste my tool choices, but I decided the ladder might be the thing we needed the most. Then again, we wouldn’t be able to do much with the ladder without a hammer and nails. I kind of needed both at the same time, but so far, I’d only gotten one a day.
“I’ll try for a hammer and nails and hope I get both,” I said.
“What was that, my lord?” Penelope asked.
“Ahhh,” I cleared my throat. “I was speaking to myself. Sorry about that.”
“That’s okay!” She laughed. “I do that, too.”
When the women walked back through the gate with big smiles on their faces, I saw Aleia was holding an armful of wood for the fire, and Penelope had a large trout in her hands. I was pleased to see they were actually going to eat dinner, and I watched as they talked amongst themselves and prepared the food and the fire.
After the three women were done eating, they spread out on their blankets and stared up at the stars. It was nice to see them resting easily, and I was incredibly grateful for the magic waters of the creek, even though in my old life, I would have laughed at the possibility of a blessed stream.
“So, how much work is it still going to be, my lord?” Penelope laughed. “Why do I have a feeling it’s quite a bit?”
“But it’s all going to be worth it when we don’t get rained on, sister,” Aleia reminded her. “It seems like we’ll be much safer within the confines of a building, too, and we’ll have a place to keep our things.
“I’d be happier if you had a house with a locking door,” I sighed. “Maybe someday…”
But I wasn’t going to worry about that when the women had gotten so much done today.
I could see they were all now starting to drift off, and I experienced the sensation of bodily exhaustion again. It was funny how many physical feelings I still experienced even though I didn’t actually have a body, and I wondered if it was comparable to amputees having the feeling of phantom limbs.
I sped up time once the women were asleep, and I forced myself to quiet my thoughts throughout the night so I could feel more rested. I didn’t even glance at the altar until the sun started to rise, but then I started to get excited.
