Published: August 15, 2025
The Next Morning
“Ugh... it’s cold!”
The chill that slipped in through the gap in the futon instantly snapped me awake.
I’d always thought mornings were cold, but today felt especially so.
Winter must be about to set in full force... I steeled myself and got out of bed to start my morning routine.
However, the clothes I had prepared by my pillow were freezing cold—so uncomfortable!
“I definitely need to bundle up today...”
Following my instincts, I pulled out another set of clothes from the Item Box and put them on.
It was a kind of “down jacket” stuffed generously with fluff from fluff slime between the fabric layers, and coated on the outside with waterproofing made from sticky slime.
Since I couldn’t reproduce a zipper, the front closed with buttons, but for the wrist cuffs, I used rubber made from latex slime’s bodily fluid. It provided a snug fit that blocked out the cold air—a winter garment I had made to prepare for the cold.
Checking the comfort and insulation, I resolved to give it my all today!
...And just like that, a week flew by from that determined morning.
Basically, my mornings and forenoon were spent helping with fishing (defeating mud salamanders). Afternoons were for caring for and researching slimes with Niki-kun. Nights involved preparing dinner and getting ready for the next day. That was the routine, but there were plenty of small things happening as well.
Looking back roughly...
Day 1
In the morning, as usual, I prepared for the mud salamander hunt, but the limule birds that came out from the dimension home seemed off.
When I asked them, their message was clear:
“I can work, but it’s cold.”
Wild limule birds have migratory behaviors like real migratory birds. Normally, they would have moved to warmer regions by now.
...So from that day, the limule birds stopped participating in the hunts and stayed in the dimension home.
Of course, I arranged times for them to go outside to relieve stress, but they’d come back after flying for only about 30 minutes.
Fortunately, the temperature inside the dimension home remained constant and comfortable.
When I returned to Gimul, I planned to discuss with them and prepare for getting through the winter.
Also, I wondered if the clever chickens, another bird species, might want to go out sometimes, but according to their representative, Amber, there was no need to worry. The clever chickens seemed unchanged, and Amber’s explanation was rather euphemistic—I guessed they were still the same as usual. I decided to give him something tasty next time.
That night, I learned from my madam how to prepare small speargrass liquor (the preliminary work).
During that work, the topic came up that the cooking at the processing workshop’s dining hall rotated, and my turn would come in two days. They talked about the difficulty of planning daily menus, complaints from men who got tired of the usual dishes, and how the women worked hard to keep everyone healthy... I heard plenty of honest housewife talk.
In my past life, I ended up dying unmarried, but in this life, I might get married someday, so I’ll be careful.
Day 2
We continued the fishing and mud salamander hunt for three days, then took a day off.
Although it was a rest day, I woke up early, so I went for a light run along the lake shore to train my legs and hips.
At that time, I took out the iron slime and metal slime, who had trouble moving on the sandy ground, and let them practice running at their own pace.
By the end, three of them had clearly improved and were faster than the others.
Checking with magical beast appraisal, I discovered these three had learned the skill “rough terrain navigation.” It was still level 1, but having such a skill meant that with training, they could run on sandy ground as easily as on normal roads. I felt hopeful about this possibility.
Later at noon, while talking about this with Niki-kun and collecting trash, the village chief gifted me an old large net from the village’s communal warehouse—the dragnet used every morning for fishing.