Once the bathhouse was finished and everyone understood its purpose, the necessary equipment was gathered with remarkable speed.
The bathhouse was located to the southwest of the reservoir. I’d originally intended to build it on the eastern side, but when it came to drainage, the western side was the only logical choice. Furthermore, considering the potential for future reservoir expansion, I couldn't build it directly adjacent to the western bank. Ultimately, it ended up even further west than the southwest area where Ria and the others had their log houses.
As a result, I expanded the southwest area toward the west to encompass the bathhouse. Since a fifty-meter square block—a four-by-four grid of sixteen fields—had become our standard unit of measurement, I expanded the perimeter by that amount. Even so, since I was only digging a trench and erecting a log fence, the work was finished in a matter of days.
Next, I built another trench and fence specifically around the bathhouse, taking care not to obstruct the waterways. One is inevitably defenseless while bathing, so I wanted to buy as much time as possible in case of an emergency. Besides, while I enjoy the idea of an open-air bath, there is such a thing as being too exposed. Even among friends, there should be a certain level of decorum. It might be a bit late for such concerns, but seeing the women using the bath so unguardedly gave me a strange sense of vicarious guilt. Thus, the fence served as a privacy screen. I worked hard to ensure it wouldn't block the view from the tub while still preventing anyone from wandering in.
Then there was the matter of the water supply. Since I’d already run a waterway from the reservoir, the water was close by, but to turn it into a hot bath, it had to be lifted into the stone oven above the furnace. It was a significant amount of manual labor. To solve this, I designed a device to lift the water.
It was a waterwheel equipped with numerous wooden buckets. It might be easiest to visualize it as a Ferris wheel, where the gondolas are buckets that scoop water from the channel below and dump it out at the top. It would have been ideal if it ran automatically, but as an amateur, I could only manage the basic form. It required someone to turn a handle. Still, it was much better than scooping and carrying the water by hand.
After that, I crafted various bath accessories, such as stools and hand buckets. There was no end to it once I started getting particular, but since Lu, Tia, Ria, and the rest were so happy to use the facility, I couldn't bring myself to stop. However, just as I was wondering where to draw the line, a new priority arose.
Kuro’s children had returned. Since they brought partners with them, our numbers were growing. Looking ahead, I realized I needed to increase the number of row houses in the Dog Area.
The return went smoothly this year as well. Among the new wolves, none were quite as striking as Fubuki or Masayuki. Speaking of Masayuki, he hadn't left the village at all, yet he had somehow acquired two partners—I have no idea whose daughters they were. With his enlightened expression, he had taken on quite a dignified air.
The most notable event, however, was the arrival of five High Elf girls, herded here by Kuro’s children. Apparently, the wolves had driven them along, and the girls had been unable to escape until they reached the village. They were taken in by Ria’s group and explained their situation through floods of tears. Afterward, at Ria’s suggestion, it was decided they would live here.
"I am Rafa."
Rafa, Rasa, Rarasha, Ralu, and Rami. I’d noticed this when Ria’s group arrived, but their names were similar because they had fled their old settlement as a tight-knit family unit two hundred years ago. I only learned this after hearing the explanation: all seven of Ria’s original group were either sisters or cousins. Likewise, Rafa’s group were all sisters and cousins to one another.
For the time being, they stayed at Ria’s log house, but five extra people was a lot. I needed to build a residence for Rafa’s group as well. Suddenly, things became very busy. I figured that building a new place for myself to sleep would have to wait until next year.
Or so I thought.
The increase in productivity brought by five High Elves who had survived in the deep forest was beyond my imagination. A log house nearly identical to Ria’s was completed in a mere five days. From there, they moved straight into constructing my new home.
The site I chose was where I had cleared my very first fields.
Field Field Field Field Field ◇ ◇ Field Field ◇ ◇ Field Field ■ ■ Field ↑ HERE
There had been a suggestion to build it in the southwest area, but I found myself unable to leave the proximity of that tree. After all, Zabuton, Kuro, and Yuki lived there.
Regarding the new residence, my contribution was mainly procuring and processing the lumber. My strength wasn't really needed for the assembly. Using the ropes Zabuton provided, the Elves skillfully moved and joined the massive logs. It looked like it would follow the same style as Ria’s house. Deciding it was best to leave it to the professionals, I let Ria and her team handle the construction while I focused on providing the materials they requested.
...Perhaps leaving it entirely to them wasn't the best idea.
By the time I realized what was happening, a massive house had been built. It was a single, imposing structure, roughly fifty meters by fifty meters.
□□□□□□□□□□□□ Fruit Fruit □□□□□□□□□□□□ Fruit Fruit □□□□□□□□□□□□ Fruit Fruit □□□□□□□□□□□□ Fruit Fruit □□□□□□□□□□□□ Field Field Field Field ○○○○ ━Upper Waterway━━━━━ Pond Pond □ Field ◇ ◇ Field ○ Dog ○○ ━Drainage System━━━━━ Pond Pond □ Field ◇ ◇ Field ○○○○ □□□□□□□□□□□□ Field House House Field ○○○○ □□□□ ▼ Bath ▼▼▼▼▼ △△△△ □□□□ ▼▼▼▼▼ Southwest △ New Field △ □□□□ ▼▼▼▼▼ Area ▼ △△△△ □□□□ ▼▼▼▼▼▼▼▼ △△△△ □□□□□□□□□□□□ △△△△ □□□□□□□□□□□□ △△△△ □□□□□□□□□□□□ △△△△ □□□□□□□□□□□□ △△△△
(The river is about five kilometers in that direction. ←)