Chapter 17 - Fridge

As the sun rose, Dawn had successfully acquired [chill].

Now I just need to set up a storage room and test [chill].

Dawn stood up, setting out to find a room she could commandeer for research, but with everyone in town still sleeping, she couldn’t begin her testing.

If only… Aron’s house. Since they live in Foxshire now, I can test there.

Dawn set out, arriving in a few brisk hours. Before stepping inside, she cut a large branch from a tree and carved it into several planks, then cut those planks into smaller blocks, forming many tablets.

Entering the house, she carved [chill] onto every plank, filled them with mana, and tossed them throughout the house, evenly spaced.

I can feel the heat leaving.

Dawn left and noticed how the chill was spreading outside the house as well.

No one has doors; they only have doorways and drapes. But I lack the skill to make one. What can I make to seal the heat, and be reopened?

Dawn looked at the doorway. It was an ordinary height for a doorway, a bit taller than the average citizen's height. An idea struck Dawn, turning her around and making her cut down a tree. She sawed it up, eventually ending up with many strips taller than the doorway. She cut them to be just taller than the door, and used [heal] to merge the wood width-wise into one plank. The work was clearly shoddy, with rough edges and the parts where the strips were joined poorly combined.

Large enough to cover the door.

Setting the wooden ‘door’ in front of the entrance, the chill escaping noticeably decreased.

I’ll check later to see if it’s properly cooling the house.

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“Samuel. What is the name of the leader of the farmers?”

“Omar, your majesty?”

“Thank you. Now, can you call Rosalia to meet me at the gate soon?”

“Understood.”

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“So, your name is Omar?”

“Yes,” the farm leader confirmed.

“Good. Follow me.”

Dawn left for the gate, Omar following behind.

“Ah, Dawn! What’d you call me for?”

“A new curriculum I want developed. Mathematics, specifically arithmetic. Omar, I brought you to learn as well. Thinking about it now, though, it will only be another burden on your shoulders. Do you wish to add inventory manager to your list of duties, or would you like to have someone else take it?”

“Can you tell me what that means?”

“You will record all produce added to storage, and all taken out, making sure the food per day will be consistent for the week.”

“I see. I’ll find someone to take that duty.”

“Send them to me tomorrow morning, then. I will be waiting by the gates.”

Omar bowed lightly before leaving.

“So, Rosalia. Call the other teachers, as this is an important skill. I will be off to fetch materials. I expect you back here before me.”

I should try and get measurements of time made.

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What a long lesson, it’s evening already. I had to teach place value and 0 before even beginning addition. Thankfully, they’re a quick study, and all already understand division, with remainders. When decimals become needed, I’ll continue my math lessons. Well, all of the teachers are capable of basic arithmetic and writing Arabic numerals. Hopefully, that’s all they will need.

With arithmetic done, Dawn found the farmers in the evening, before everyone had arrived.

“Hello. I’ve come to teach you all something fun to do.”

The farmers froze up, staring at Dawn.

“I have two games for you all. First is rock, paper, scissors. It requires two players, so will someone be a volunteer?”

Silence.

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“Very well. You,” Dawn pointed to a random farmer, “you’ll be my assistant. Come over here.”

The farmer walked over slowly, terror obvious on their face.

“So take your right hand. There are 3 symbols you need to remember. A fist, rock. Two fingers pointing out, scissors. Open hand, paper. The two of us each pick a symbol, and play them at the same time. Play yours on three, understood? 1, 2, 3.”

Dawn played rock, and the farmer paper.

“Good. Now, the comparison. I played rock, and you played paper, so I lost. Had I played scissors, I would have won. Rock beats scissors, scissors beats paper, paper beats rock. Simple enough, right?”

Dawn’s gaze went over the crowd, finding some tiny nods from the otherwise frozen crowd.

“Good. And in case of the same symbol, rock and rock, for example, it’s a tie, and no one wins. Now, is there a second volunteer?”

Silence.

“Very well. You,” Dawn pointed to another random farmer, “come over here. You two, face off. Count to three, then play your symbols. Got it?”

They nodded, faced each other, and began to count.

“1 (1), 2 (2), 3,” they said, starting out not in line before joining together for 3.

“You both played scissors, so you tie. And that’s how you play rock, paper, scissors. Any further questions?”

Silence.

“Very well. I’ll come by tomorrow to teach you another game. Goodbye.”

Dawn left, receiving no sound as she departed.

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Dawn returned to Aron’s house, and before even entering, she knew the chill had been running strongly. The air was several degrees below everything else around the house. She unboarded the door, finding the inside covered in ice. The door has a layer of frost on the inside.

This is… quite possibly too strong. I’m not aiming to freeze the food. Then I need some way to regulate temperature. But to what temperature? I don’t have any thermometers, and I don’t know very much about either Celsius or Fahrenheit. Then what do I do? Perhaps the farmers know something.

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“Omar. Are you aware of any way to preserve food for longer?”

Omar fell into thought, without even a mumble. “I don’t know.”

“I see.”

I’ve forgotten. They only started as farmers recently, and they hunted daily. Old humans must have figured out chilling food preserved it. Refrigeration is relatively recent. So, how did they preserve food before then? It has to be simple. How do you cool food without constant tools?

Dawn raised her head, staring into the clear blue sky.

The sun is a major source of heat, so it has to be indoors. But what inside a house is cold?

“Omar, before you leave, a question. Inside your house is something cold. What is it?”

“Cold? The ground?”

Dawn knelt down and pierced the dirt with her hand.

It’s cold.

“Thank you,” Dawn told Omar before leaving.

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With an idea of digging a hole and sheltering it from the sun, Dawn returned to Aron's house and dug a hole inside. After reaching a few feet deep, she grabbed the [chill] tablets and took them away.

I can use these tablets for a freezer. It won’t be very good, but it should work. And for a fridge, those plants came from the soil. They can last there.

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The next morning, the inventory manager arrived.

“What’s your name?”

“Marau, your Majesty.”

Does anyone have a last name?

“Do you have a last name?”

“No, your majesty.”

“Alright. You are aware what your job is going to be?”

“Generally.”

“Good. When I finish running you through the main duties, you will supplement your lessons with 2 curricula from the teachers. Now follow me.”

Soon enough, they arrived at Aron’s house.

“I’ve made something that will, if all goes well, preserve food. This hole, protected by the shed, should keep the food cold. You will record all food that goes inside, and make sure the right amount is removed every day. Any questions?”

“Will I have to travel here every day?”

“No. This one was just a test. I’ll make another one in town when the walls are expanded.”

“Then how will I do this?”

“The teachers will teach you literacy, and then arithmetic. You’ll use those two to record and calculate the food distribution.”

“Then what is this called?”

“I don’t have a name for it.”

“Hrm. Then what about root cellar?”

Dawn’s eyes widened in surprise.

A match for a word from Earth? And… I think I might have heard that word before. This tells me two things. I’m on the right track with a root cellar, and that there’s a deeper mystery in this language.

“Sounds good. Now, any more questions?”

“No.”

“Then follow me. We’ll start your lessons now. I’ll deal with your crops today, but make sure to arrive for dinner.”

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What to search for now?

Dawn was thinking as she case [rapid growth] on Marau’s crops.

How to cast [rapid growth] more efficiently. And language… that’s very strange. What else… measurements? We don’t have distance or time. Cultural things? Religion would be good to investigate.

Dawn’s stomach growled.

I haven’t eaten? But I last ate…! I haven’t eaten for days, and only now do I notice? And if I can survive several days, no wonder they survive with only one meal. But their faces… they are still hungry. I should continue my work to get more meals, it’s just less pressing.

Dawn finished harvesting the radishes and returned to Foxshire. She handed them to Omar, telling him that they’re Marau’s.

So, in what order should I tackle this? I’ll spend the evenings investigating magic. And during the days, I’ll start with language.