Chapter 12: Charcoal

TL: Fraiziar, Pengu

ED: Manga Hunter

I seriously dislike chemistry

Hey? Is this really useful?

Its all right. Believe in me.

The children have the face [is it true?] when I said that Im going to sow the ash on the field.

In this region, its rainy in the winter and recently its been getting rainier.

The rain is slightly acidic because of the carbon dioxide in the air merges in the rain.

The field that had absorbed the rain most likely has become slightly acidic.

And wheat is vulnerable to acidic soil.

Therefore it is necessary to cover it in ash to neutralize the acidity.

Thats the reason why you cover fields with ash.

Whether you are talking about plants that prefer alkaline or acidic, there are many varieties.

I must be careful in that area.(Concerning the acidity of the soil.)

This field is 1.5 times the area, which used to raise turnips.

Though there are various reasons, my physical ability have largely risen.

Its enough for just me to take care of it.

Next is the homemade fertilizer I guess.

I lift the earthenware pot containing the fertilizer.

I consolidated the undiscarded cow and goat feces along with fallen leaves from the forest and let it ferment.

It wasnt ready when we harvested the turnips, but we can use it now (during the wheat harvest).

The children were saying that putting the cow manure into the fields was impossible, but I persuaded them by telling them that the nuts that we always ate were also growing in the dung that was left around inside the forest.

I thought about human feces, but I hate the idea myself, and Im afraid of contracting the parasitical worms that might come from using human feces.

Thinking about those worms makes me feel ill.

I stir the fertilizer and ash into the pot one at a time.

It needs to be spread evenly throughout.

The joint force of me, the children, and the cows will plow the fields.

The working pace is quite fast.

My physical strength and the cow strength are huge.

Even using our lowest skills, we are probably more efficient than the average farming community.

For now, lets stop here. The last day of work will be the day after the day after tomorrow

Agreed! Im already exhausted. Lets go eat!

What is todays meal?

Its the same as usual.

In other words, is it nuts?

How does Griffon-sama collect a large amount of nuts?

Children talk while starting preparation for dinner.

They were rather stiff at first when I first came.

Everyone was strangers from different hometowns.

There were many children who were stunned and couldnt get out of the shock of being abandoned by their parents.

There isnt such a situation now.

Everybody looks happy.

Lets go?

Tetora pulled my clothes.

Ah. gotcha.

I turned and faced everyone.

Next year, I wonder how many child will be abandon if there isnt a famine next year.

In agriculture, the difference between when we are busy and when we arent is unreasonably intense.

Yeah

Its been a few weeks since we planted the wheat.

Even though there is no harvest, we still have to take care of it through pest extermination, weeding, and tilling.

Pulling out weeds isnt too much of a pain if its done diligently everyday. Even a small child can do it.

In the first place, pests dont breed so much thanks to the Chrysanthemum insecticide.

By the way, recently human sightings in the forest have become more frequent.

Well it is almost winter. Theyre having the pigs eat acorns, and collecting nuts for the winter. It is considerably serious that people who are afraid of the Griffon-samas anger enter the forest.

Tetora said with an unpleasant face.

Will there be children abandoned this winter I wonder?

Though I think in the summer most families cut off those they couldnt feed, there are certainly those who didnt plan ahead for winter, so Im sure there will be a certain number of abandoned children. However, if its a bad harvest in the next wheat season, they will come in large quantities.

I have no choice, but pray that its not a bad harvest.

Will the Griffon support the newly coming people?

It might be impossible

In our case, Hes simply supporting us on a whim.

Its not the time for King Domorgal and King Gellberd to do things like warring with each other. Its absurd to lose things like magicians and workforce for war. They should return the soldiers to farming, and magicians should go remove curses.

Are there any abilities of black art not for war, but is useful beside curse and anti-curse? Why dont you go ask that Julia woman?

Tetora said with displeasure.

Shes ill-tempered.

Can you please tell me?

Then, pet my head.

Here.

I stroked Tetoras head. Tetora smiled happily.

Then, Ill tell you. Do you know how a soul can put into an animal?

Yes. I know.

hen the story will be quick. A soul can be put in an eagle or dog to scout the enemy. Naturally, enemies will shoot it with a bow and arrow to prevent it. When it is shot with a soul inside, there will be large damage to the soul. You can do other things like raise flames and wind too. Though that takes dozens of people.

Thats amazing. The reconnaissance in particular.

Wont it be like using an airplane depending on how its used?

I can make a bird carry something like a bomb and drop it over the enemy force.

Itll literallly become a bomber.

Though simple, it is unexpectedly usable.

Hey. I intend to call Julia to the village when autumn is over at the beginning of winter. Because I want everyone to be able to learn magic. Is that okay?

I dont have any objection against Almiss decision in particular.

She seems to be okay with it.

Thank goodness.

By the way

What?

Hasnt it been a bit cold recently?

Tetora confirmed it with silence.

Winter season is coming.

For one reason or another I realized that the cold winter in this area isnt the same as Japans. Rather, its much colder.

Though everyone is wearing clothes that were processed from the animal furs that the Griffon occasionally gave us, There is only one layer per person. Its cold and uncomfortable.

It seems we will be spending most of our daily lives indoors during the winter.

I want a warm fireplace.

I must prepare firewood before its too late.

AhWont smoke be terrible is fire woods are burning in the house?

What should I do?

Thats it. Lets make that. Before its too late.

What happened? Almis.

Lets go cut some tree now.

It is a lucky day to make up my mind.

There are many advantages to charcoal.

One large advantage is that it burns for a long time. Its heating is also stable, and it produces no smoke

Of course, there are drawbacks.

By pure heat-to-fuel efficiency, its faster to just burn wood.

In fact, its common sense to use firewood to fuel things like fireplaces.

Therefore in truth I want to use firewood to make heat, but that produces smoke.

Itd be fine if there were chimneys, but there arent any chimneys in pit dwellings.

If we were to use firewood, it would all become cover in smoke.

Well, Charcoal needs to be made, but it isnt that difficult.

If heated in an low oxygen place, firewood will turn into charcoal.

Heat in an low oxygen place.

I wonder where oh where I could find such a place?

So in conclusion, we are going to use the Anagama kiln.

Was that introduction really necessary?

Shaddup. I was explaining it so be thankful.

Anyways, If we can make charcoal we wont be freezing during the winter nor being smoked out of our homes.

I pack timber into the kiln.

In order to prevent the atmosphere from entering too much, I fill the gaps with dry leaves.

Well then, lets light it up

I lit it with a torch.

The wood inside the kiln began to burn.

For a little while, keep the fire opening and the smoke opening closed up. Itll become charcoal if we leave it alone for a day

This wont change the pottery?

Well, the lack of reaction with oxygen is the same in both processes so its fine.

Huh? Whats oxygen?

Explaining oxygen huh

Im not confident in my explanations

The thing Im calling oxygen is the stuff you normally need to burn stuff. Its kinda like a type of air. If there isnt any oxygen then nothing will burn.

Hmmmm. Does the oxygen not burn as well?

Sheet. An annoying subject was brought up.

I dont know the best answers for these science questions since I was a humanities major.

Well, to start with, when I say carbon, Im referring to anything burnable like trees. The substances our bodies are made out of are called polymers, which are compounds of oxygen and carbon. Thats why, rather than oxygen being the thing that burns, oxygen combusts, right?

Yeah, I somehow understand.

I dont really understand it myself.

In the first place is this a good definition of burning? Isnt the linking of iron and oxygen combustion? Is it not limited to carbon? In the first place what is the difference between burning and combustion?

Laymans terms versus chemistry terms?

Speaking of which, didnt my High School teacher once tell me that oxidation is a chemical reaction between oxygen and some other material?

Or was oxygen when a material was deprived of hydrogen?

Well, Im certain at least that during oxidation the substance loses an electron.

Wait, thats acid reduction.

I dont know what that means anymore.

Stop using such misleading terms!

Basically, in junior high I learned that oxidation is when substances react with oxygen to make a compound.

Stop spinning around my assertions!

I dont know how to decipher these things.

Hey, Nii-san, whats wrong?

No, its nothing. Im just thinking a bit.