Bows and Textiles
Now that I thought it over, walls didn't seem like a good idea after all — and even if we did build them, we'd need a much bigger population.
"Let's make some protective gear instead."
"Protective gear?"
Not a single person had ever worn armor around here, so apparently the thought had never crossed his mind.
"Yeah! What if we wrapped iron plates around your arms?"
"Won't that be heavy?"
Good grief. Even so, it might save your life, you know?
"When an animal bites at you! Block it with the iron plate and strike back with your other hand — how does that sound?"
"Hm?"
Garungda seemed to be chewing it over. It makes sense, doesn't it?
"Well? What do you think?"
"Oho!"
Granted, a big enough predator could just bite down and shake you off, but that still opens up a gap, doesn't it?
And a wound that would've torn you apart might end up as nothing more than a set of teeth marks!
"Then you attack with a short weapon. That's the idea."
"That sounds good!"
So he'd finally caught on.
"Still, you'll want to fight from a distance first, with spears. Keeping them from closing in is always best."
"Of course. Spear and bow come first."
Exactly! The spear is the finest weapon there is. Hmm? Wait a moment. Bow?
"I should go see Akta."
"Huh? Hm? Ah. Oh, right, of course."
The bow? Ah, something's stirring in his memory, sort of? Yes — the composite bow!
I'd have to stop by the workshop. I needed to see how they were making bows in the first place. Garungda must have been busy too, because while I was lost in my own thoughts, he'd wandered off into the distance.
I hurried over to the workshop, where Turu was in the middle of making something.
"Turu!"
"Hm? Haneul? What brings you here?"
Oh? Was it really been that long since I'd seen Turu? His face was such a welcome sight.
"How do you make your bows?"
"Huh? However they turn out?"
"What?"
Apparently there was no dedicated bow-maker around here.
Looks like I'll have to turn our Turu into a proper bow master.
"Then what kind of wood are you using?"
"Whatever's around?"
Oh... my goodness. So they just carved whatever wood they could find, used it until it snapped, and threw it away.
I knew birch was the classic wood for composite bows...
What does a birch tree actually look like? I had no idea about its appearance, but there was one characteristic I did remember.
"Then do you happen to know any wood that sinks in water?"
"Ah, yes. There is. It's an extremely hard wood."
Well, at least we have the wood. Now, how to make the bow? Maybe I should just give the order?
"Have you ever tried making a bow out of it?"
"No?"
"Want to give it a try?"
"That would be difficult. It's really hard."
Just how hard is it? Turu's face was full of trouble. He looked seriously stumped.
"Wouldn't work even with that wood-steaming method I showed you before?"
"Hmm... I suppose I could try?"
He looked doubtful, clearly wondering whether it would even work. Just try it! Our ancestors used this method, you know?
"Yes, let's do it. A fine bow will come of it."
"Understood."
Turu walked over to a pile of wood and began knocking on the logs.
Knock knock. Tok tok. Tum tum.
Oh? Fascinating! Every piece made a slightly different sound — could he really tell the wood apart like that?
Was this some secret technique of the masters?
Thoom! Thoom! Thoom!
I didn't know what he was listening for, but he picked out a log and began cutting it down to his own height. Behold, the gleaming silver iron axe.
Shk. Shk.
This time he was using an iron knife, and the wood peeled away beautifully. Back in the day, working stone was less about shaving things down and closer to gouging them out.
Building the blacksmith village separately had truly been a masterstroke.
He worked carefully, checking the grain of the wood at every step, and the tension was no joke.
So this is why you need a master craftsman.
After a long stretch of carving, the log that had once stood as tall as me had shrunk down to about chest height.
"That's the rough shape done."
To my eye it looked like... a wooden staff? A rod?
Then he placed it into a steamer he'd had burning since earlier.
"The stone pot's changed a lot, hasn't it?"
A wooden frame sat atop the stone pot, and apparently that was where the wood got steamed. Impressive.
"Mm. The pot itself is too small, so we only use it for boiling water now."
Come to think of it, the stone pot had gotten remarkably lucky. Some stones explode when you put them in a fire — you have no idea how startled we all were.
After steaming the wood for a good long while, he pulled it out, quickly clamped it into a mold he'd prepared in advance, and then all that was left was to wait.
"Come back once the wood has dried."
"Will do. Great work! Thank you~"
"Don't mention it. This kind of work is a pleasure."
I'd have to come back later. I should give my friends room to focus on their craft.
Ah! There was one more thing to try.
"Um..."
"What is it?"
"Could you make one more thing for me? There's something I want to test."
"Don't hesitate like that. I'll make it."
"Thank you."
Why was everyone so busy these days? It would take a few days, so I should head home and rest a bit.
The moment I got home, my tenant friends were in an uproar. The leopards. The kittens came in every variety — some solid black, some golden-furred with black spots.
"Come on now, everyone, settle down. You're shedding all over the place."
My leopard friends were thoroughly free spirits. They came and went exactly as they pleased.
Plenty of them had grown as big as their mother. They really ought to strike out on their own — remarkable, honestly.
Isn't this practically communal living at this point?
For a while they'd go off and live outside, then drift back home whenever the mood struck — free souls, every one of them.
Still, two things amazed me: they never harmed a person, and they always returned when the weather turned cold.
And then one female came waddling back with a belly full of cubs.
"And where did you go and get babies this time?"
The family looked set to grow again. Were they really on their way to becoming pets?
They were apex predators, though — no way, right?
Ahh. I can't wait for the era when they just stay home and lounge around all day~
Watching my friends in their leather clothes in the middle of this summer heat, one question occurred to me. Did they not get heat rash?
Was there no plant fiber or silk thread yet?
They did make cord out of grass...
I should go ask someone. For this kind of thing, the women were the ones to see, right? What was Agna up to today~
"Hi, Agna~"
"Hello, Haneul~"
"Booboo. Booboo."
The children were growing up fast, already three years old, toddling about on wobbly legs — a busy bunch.
Agna's eyes never left them, worried they might grab something dangerous.
Children really are adorable. So this is what an uncle's heart feels like? Or an aunt's?
Ah. No, I'm getting sidetracked again. That's not why I came.
"You really do love the children, don't you, Haneul?"
"Hm? No— I mean, yes. They're cute!"
"What's that supposed to mean? Puhuhu. Go on, hold one."
No, Agna! I came here to work today! And yet both my hands were already reaching out to receive a child.
Snuggle. Snuggle.
The little one nuzzled its cheek against my sleeve, apparently quite content.
Ah! I nearly forgot my purpose.
"No! This isn't it! I came to ask about something — everyone only wears leather clothes, so I wanted to check on something."
"Would it be possible to make clothing from something else?"
They did wear things woven from grass, so I'd assumed they had their own methods — turns out they didn't have anything yet.
I didn't know all that much myself, but if I explained what I did know, surely they'd figure out the rest?
"Well. First, there's a way to make thread from plants, and another way that uses insects."
"Plant fiber is awfully coarse. What insects?"
"I don't know the details myself. We'll probably have to find the method."
I spent a long while explaining how to extract fiber from plants, and all about silkworm cocoons.
"That sounds difficult..."
"It is. Probably won't be easy."
"So to get something as soft as you, Haneul, we have to raise silkworms?"
"Right. And since this isn't work that needs brute strength, it would suit the women well."
"All right. I'll do it."
She was probably in for a hard road. Still, there was one more thing I had to add.
"Do you know what cotton is?"
"What's that now?"
"It doesn't exist yet — not even for me. But there's a plant out there that's like a soft, fluffy little cloud. It's wonderful."
"That sounds like a good thing to have?"
It absolutely is. With cotton, people could stay warm through the winter. Extremely important.
When I explained the importance and uses of cotton to Agna, her eyes went wide with astonishment. Well, learning that she could roam freely even in the dead of winter would surprise anyone.
Ah. I hope technology advances soon. Even just reaching the ancient era would mean so much to play with.
Hmm. Then once the bow is finished, time will take care of the rest, won't it?
When I stopped by the workshop, Turu was standing there utterly dumbstruck.
"Hm? Why are you just standing there?"
Had something terrible happened? It didn't look like the bow stave had snapped, at least.
"This bow is too strong!"
"Oh! Isn't that a good thing?"
"There's no bowstring. They all snapped."
"Ah..."
Right — strings twisted roughly out of plant fiber like the ones they used now wouldn't hold up to that.
Hmm... was there a way? Should I unravel some cloth and make cord from it?
"Ah!"
"You've thought of something?"
"For now, let's use hair."
I swallowed my tears and plucked out a few strands of my own hair — it hurt so much. Not a shred of pain anywhere else on this body, but pull out one hair and it's agony. Damn it.
"Hair?"
"Yeah. My hair is incredibly strong, remember?"
"Understood."
"Later, once Agna starts making thread, we can use that instead."
"So you've left orders with her already, I see?"
Fine as they were, twisted together in several strands, the hairs made a passable string. Craftsmanship really does show.
"Then — let's draw it."
The first birch bow strung with hair was complete.
"Hnngh!"
Creak-creak-creak.
Whoa? Turu was no weakling, and his face was already scarlet — it looked ready to burst!
TWANG! Whoosh.
Unable to draw it any further, he released the string, and the wooden arrow shot off at speed, slamming into a stone and shattering to pieces.
"Hm? What? Is that good?"
"Th... this bow is far too strong?"
Even Turu, its maker, looked bewildered. Fair enough — since when does a tree branch shatter to bits when it hits a rock?
"Er... there's one more?"
"Wh... what is it?"
Turu looked almost afraid.
"It's called a crossbow — it's a device that holds a bow and fires it."
You can't talk bows without mentioning the crossbow, right? Slow rate of fire, but a single shot hits hard? And since you can aim it properly, it'd be perfect for hunting large predators — one strike, one kill.
Shk shk
A crossbow only needed a wooden frame, so it came together in no time. Slotting in one of the spare bows produced a rather convincing crossbow.
"This is the crossbow. Later on, it'd be good to use gears to help draw the string."
"Those pointed wheels you mentioned before?"
"That's right."
The crossbow's greatest virtue is that you can aim it.
"Hnnnngh"
Creeeak
Turu braced it with his foot and pulled with both hands. This time, too, it looked like a tremendous struggle.
Something sounded like it was about to snap, but I'm sure he'll modify it as he sees fit?
"This is far too exhausting?"
"Yeah. We'll need to fix that."
He'd clearly exerted himself — Turu's face was still flushed. Eager to test it, he lifted the crossbow toward the target from before, and his arms wobbled.
At this rate, if anyone pulls too hard the wood will just break... he'll adjust it himself, surely?
THOOM! BANG!
"Huh?"
What? Is this magic?! I don't care what kind of wooden arrow it was — it turned to dust? Is this thing safe?
"Wh... what on earth is this?"
"A crossbow?"
"Terrifying..."
"If we make the arrowheads out of iron..."
"Gah! Of course!"
I felt like I'd just unveiled a planet-cracking weapon. And somewhere in the village, I could almost hear the sound of every man's right arm getting thicker...
The key was the bowstring. The sooner Agna could make thread, the sooner these would be usable.
"Then we can start using these once you make it?"
"Yes. Used for the right purposes, they should be extremely useful."
"Agna had better hurry up and make that string, then."
"For now, we'll try animal sinew."
Oh? Of course! Sinew works too.
"Later we can combine different materials to make even better bows."
"Stronger than this?"
"I'm not sure about the power, but I hear they're excellent."
After all, the gakgung — the horn composite bow — was legendary? It must be good...
It did look terribly complicated, though. That part even I didn't know. Work hard, everyone. Fighting!