After I obtained again to the camp, I used to be shocked to see that Daedalus had already completed constructing a smokehouse.

It was only a small container product of bricks that had a vent on its roof.

Florin was by the bonfire, roasting one other lizard she caught and one other beast that I did not need to learn about whereas Athena and Daedalus have been working at my home.

Seeing that my home was below development, it seemed like I must sleep in Athena’s hut in the intervening time.

I did not trouble them and proceeded to start out doing my half. First, I might clear the fish. Then I might begin smoking them to protect them.

If it had been a while in the past, I must peek by means of the darkness. Happily, there have been lights round my place now.

Not an commercial, however the [Glowing Crystals] made my territory brighter than my future.

Each tower by the wood gates had lights, and each meter by the pathway had lamp posts. Lanterns with [Glowing Crystals] inside additionally held on each side of each construction and their doorway.

It was extra handy to maneuver within the evening now than earlier than.

An thought crossed my thoughts. Lamps with [Glowing Crystals] ought to promote, proper? In Roselake City, I seen they have been nonetheless utilizing torches and candles as their major supply of sunshine. Different cities ought to be roughly the identical.

If that have been the case, then I might be wealthy after introducing one thing new out there!

<And your village will likely be at risk of warfare due to the Glowing Crystals. However that fits the system simply nice. Keep on along with your plans, Host. The system is 200 p.c at your again!>

“. . .” I all of a sudden modified my thoughts.

I pulled my focus again to the duty at hand, going to the effectively to get some water I may use to scrub the fish. After washing them, I eliminated their bones, tendons, and extra fats, which was a vital step earlier than drying or smoking a fish.

I minimize a few of them into smaller items. Half of them have been rubbed with salt and spices, and the remaining have been soaked in a brine that Ulysses made.

The salinity of the brine was already examined. Earlier than soaking the fish, I cracked a uncooked egg on prime of it — it floated, so it was salty sufficient.

I handed the smaller fish to Florin, so she may roast it whereas I dealt with the large fish myself, getting ready to prepare dinner fish stew.

There have been nonetheless a number of fish that remained, and I hung them in a well-ventilated space outside, ensuring that it was not less than two meters from the bottom. It was bye-bye fish if the animals obtained into it.

Air circulation was important in making certain that the meat would not rot. As for temperature, all the pieces was nice so long as it didn’t exceed 40 levels Celsius.

The remaining, I put them within the smokehouse.

<Wow, Host. You certain know your stuff even with out Athena’s assist.>

I used to assist my grandparents once I was small. I advised the system in my head.

My coronary heart swelled once I remembered that point once I was nonetheless a child.

Our village within the province was so distant and really removed from town, one the place you possibly can depend the huts within the mountainside and farmlands along with your fingers.

We have been so poor that we could not even afford a kilo of rice, so my grandmother used to lend her land in alternate for rice. The opposite farmers used her land to plant crops and pay for his or her produce.

That was how we obtained by.

Although we did not have cash, we have been by no means hungry since meals was considerable within the forest and rivers. I additionally grew up being taught about all types of issues I wanted to outlive utilizing the assets readily discovered close by.

We did not even have electrical energy there. For gentle, we used fireplace. For meals, particularly through the famine months, we ate dried, pickled, or smoked produce, which we personally made.

Life was exhausting, nevertheless it was price it in the long run. It felt quite a bit higher after surviving the tough instances.

My grandparents have been very strict and resilient. They typically advised me that life was stunning and that the exhausting instances have been solely momentary — simply do not surrender in the long run.

. . . They have been gone, although.

I miss them a lot. That they had been lifeless for years now, however I may nonetheless see their faces as clear as day.

They used to say that so long as we’re alive, then we should always stay our lives to the fullest. They inspired me to have enjoyable and be completely satisfied. Even once I was having a foul day, my grandfather would deliver out his harmonica and play “Superb Grace” for me.

Each time I hear that tune, I do know all the pieces will likely be okay once more. Every time I listened to it, I may really feel myself beginning to relax.

I smiled at my recollections of them. Watching them prepare dinner and taking part in with them was one in every of my childhood pastimes.

My grandmother knew how you can make me snigger. Being round her at all times made me inexplicably really feel protected. However, my grandfather was a bit quiet, however his humorousness was additionally nice.

It wasn’t till after they died that I noticed how a lot they meant to me. There was one thing particular about them that made me need to be higher than who I used to be. They have been so sturdy and courageous, they usually have been nonetheless like that even when issues did not go their means.

They taught me not to surrender it doesn’t matter what. They taught me to maintain combating for what I needed. They taught me by no means to let anybody take away my goals.

. . . I wanted them greater than ever now.

I blinked the tears and took a deep breath earlier than resuming my work.

Previous age took them.

< . . . >

The evening handed by as regular. Florin was speaking about her day like at all times. Daedalus could not be disturbed by his work. Athena was giving her lectures on issues that did not curiosity me. Ulysses was too engrossed in his lab to care concerning the happenings exterior.

Yep, the standard.

Taking a look at these creatures that I had simply met, my grandparents’ final phrases rang in my head, and a small smile curved my lips upward.

‘A door may shut, however a brand new one would open.’

And I hoped that this peace would final without end.