Chapter 63: First snow of winter

A small feast was held as they finished hunting and butchering a giant Bodua. Various parts of the Bodua were delivered back to the fortress to be used for creating different preserved foods. Sausages made from its intestines and meat was one of the best, and the soup made from the leftover intestines also proved to be very delicious. A large part of the meat was sliced into smaller strips to be smoked with salt and spices on top to be made into jerky. The jerky that was almost finished gave off a special smell and was finished with a coat of liquid spice made out of Bodua fur. Fall was almost over.

The red forest was now losing its color as leaves began falling down to the ground. The temperature also became very cold — it was almost freezing in the mornings.

The late fall was very relaxing as there were not many things to do. There were still tasks left to complete, but everyone seemed to be laid back except Joonbum. He kept moving back and forth between Earth and the other word to bring in more stuff.

He was now bringing in insulation and wood stoves to keep every house warm. The Ainos had their own fireplaces, but it was very inefficient as the fireplaces consumed a lot of wood. With insulation to keep out the cold air from the log houses and the wood stoves burning within them, it was perfect. The stoves also allowed for simple cooking or boiling water with steel pots. People could also utilize it to bake potatoes, corn, or preserved Basett meat. It solved the issue of heat and saved a lot of wood consumption.

‘It has changed a lot.’

Joonbum moved his sight from the distant edges of the forest to the bottom of his own fortress. It was now big enough to be considered a town.

“Whoaa!”

“Me too!”

“It’s flying!”

Joonbum looked at the drones that flew around the fortress. He had given them to the kids as toys.

‘They sure learn fast.’

“Ugh! I missed!”

“It’s my turn now!”

“I’m next!”

The kids weren’t just making them fly. They were now competing with each other to move them through various obstacles. Every kid seemed very eager to win.

“Hey, you failed. It’s my turn.”

“Nooo way! It was so close!”

Joonbum grinned at the sight and moved to another area where it was empty. It was where Galfus and the four cubs resided until a while ago. Just like Doral said, they had moved out of town to spend the winter in the south. Galfus, who seemed reluctant to leave, let out a long howl before departing. Joonbum felt lonely at that sight. The days when Galfus and Joonbum helped each other survive in this forsaken land came rushing back to him.

However, Joonbum had Nite, the Garlim that helped ease his loneliness. At first, Nite seemed to be discomfortable with the horse armor made by the Iron Sword, but it looked like it was okay with it now. Joonbum often wore his full suit of armor while riding around on Nite. It felt natural to ride around on a fully-armored horse in a suit of armor.

‘It will be sensational if I bring Nite to Earth.’

Nite was much bigger than any horse that existed on Earth. It would trump all other horses in terms of its sheer size and beauty. The armor and weapons equipped on Nite had also been custom-made to be larger. There was a lance equipped on one side measuring twelve feet in length and other side had a giant sword about six feet in length. There was also a fully loaded AR-15 and USAS-12 automatic shotgun equipped on the saddle. Joonbum had also equipped his armor with a short Gladius sword and a handgun. There were also daggers strapped to the thigh areas and a shield was hung on the back with a chain.

It was really hard to even move around with everything equipped at first, but Joonbum’s consistent training allowed him to manage it little by little.

‘It really has changed.’

Joonbum thought again at the sight of the town. His treehouse that was made high up on the tree was now the main town watchtower. The house had been expanded around the tree and it was able to keep watch on both ends of the town and there were at least two men on guard the entire time.

A burning sound was heard followed by the familiar smell of jerky. The Bodua jerky was being smoked on the stove.

“Joonbum, it’s good now.”

Joonbum came back from his thoughts at Doral’s words.

“Oh, nice.”

“Try it.”

Joonbum took a bite of the Bodua jerky. The slightly burnt taste was immediately followed by a mixture of salt and spices that filled up his mouth. The special taste of the Bodua mixed with various spices was very delicious in its own way. Doral handed him a beer as Joonbum chewed and swallowed the chunk.

“This is really nice!”

“Right? I think it’s one of the best until now.”

It was crafted beer. There were liquor factories made from the machines purchased from Taesoo, and some people had been working hard at it by studying all the videos about creating beer. The beer in Joonbum’s hand was the product of such work.

“Grandi and Cabo’s?”

“Yeah. They almost live there now.”

Grandi and Cabo, who moved not too long ago, were some of those who devoted themselves to making liquor.

“I think we can count on what we make from here.”

“Yeah. It’s nice.”

Doral nodded as Joonbum drank the beer. Doral, who had been watching him drink, suddenly stood up and glanced outside.

“It’s snowing.”

Joonbum quickly turned toward the window. Snow was falling from the skies. A large snowflake fell to the ground in silence as there was no wind. A quiet chill filled the atmosphere as Joonbum walked out of the house.

“Wow! It’s snowing!”

“Yay! Snow!”

Kids were running around in excitement as snow began falling. Adults who noticed the noisy chatter of the children walked out of the warmth of their houses.

“Winter is here!” someone shouted. It was the beginning of winter.

*

The snow soon covered everything in pure white. It was astonishingly beautiful. The sun that came up shone brightly upon the snow-covered land and the view mesmerized Joonbum.

Snow kept falling heavily for three straight days and the people who started off happy began to worry as it did not stop.

“It’s snowing too much.”

“I’m sick of the snow already.”

“Ugh.”

Joonbum was a bit embarrassed as he was still excited to see snow. The kids were also enjoying the heavy snowfall, as opposed to the adults who had begun working to clear out the snow. Joonbum soon joined the ranks of the other adults who ranted at the endless snowfall.

“STOP IT, WILL YA?!”

Someone shouted toward the sky on the fifth day, and the snow stopped that day.

“Zordic, you should’ve shouted earlier!”

“I know! Why didn’t you do it earlier?”

“This is all his fault.”

“Haha.”

Joonbum laughed as people jokingly blamed Zordic, the man who shouted.

“Oh, so you think it’s funny? Feel my wrath!”

Zordic threw a snowball at Joonbum. As Joonbum dodged the snowball, Pav, who was looking the other way behind Joonbum, was hit directly in the head.

‘Is this maybe a start…?’

It was. Everyone started throwing snowballs at each other. A snowball fight had begun.

“AWW, it’s cold!”

“Herr! Stop!”

“No! MOM! NO!”

“Hey!”

Everyone, including the kids, the men, and the women joined in and threw snowballs at each other. It was like a small festival. The older women watched for a while before preparing warm milk with honey and bread for the kids. They also prepared hot liquor and finger food for the adults.

Everyone gathered around the hall at the center of town after the hour-long snow fight was over. It was the largest building in town, big enough for everyone to be seated. Stoves lined the hall in various places to warm everyone who was red from the cold.

“Oh! Wow!”

“Yay!”

Everyone shouted in joy as the older women began filling up the tables with food. The feast began.