Building a Place to Sleep

We need somewhere to lie down. But how?

"How about using wood?"

Wood was the easiest material to work with, but I wasn't sure it would turn out well.

My only experience with woodworking was through life skills in video games.

I couldn't expect the same level of skill as seasoned construction workers.

"Since Mr. Woojin can work with wood..."

Seoyoon didn't seem sure, either.

"Why wood~? Can't we just lay a cloth on the ground here and lie down?"

"It'll be much damper and colder than the beach."

"But I don't wanna go through the trouble of moving~─."

Luka wouldn't know since she hadn't experienced it, but I'd slept in the mountains during training, so I knew.

One scrap of cloth wouldn't be enough.

Still, I very much agreed that it was a hassle.

Ah~ I wish someone else would do it for me.

"Come on, if we don't build it, who will? This is where we're going to live."

Usually, the person who took charge of that "someone" was Assistant Manager Seoyoon.

Her drive was reassuring.

"Let's have fun first?? We came to such a beautiful place, it'd be a waste not to enjoy it~!"

"Have fun?"

Kang Seoyoon's eyes narrowed.

But Luka wasn't intimidated. She smiled brightly and flung open her outerwear.

"Ta-da~~."

To wear a bikini even in the jungle—she was a die-hard bikini lover.

I was overwhelmed by Luka's incredible figure, especially her firm, sun-tanned breasts.

"Oppa, you're joining us, right?"

"Maybe we should take a little break."

"Now's not the time to rest~. Manager, say something, too."

"Hehe."

The manager just watched with an amused smile.

"Let's catch our breath first. We still have a little food left."

"Should we...?"

In the end, the manager settled things, and Assistant Manager Kang sighed and smiled helplessly.

"Luka. You're going to work properly after we play, right?"

"Yeees."

"We have a mountain of work to do. Why are you so cheerful, Luka?"

"Luka always has a queen's mindset~."

Gotta give her that—she's a queen.

"Let's go, Oppa. Come on~!"

Luka clung to my arm, pressing her breasts against me as she coaxed me.

Squeeze.

"Ah."

I gave Luka's enormous breasts a discreet squeeze.

Squeeze. Squeeze.

"Mmm~. Oppa, you're a pervert."

As if bashful, Luka wiggled her hips and pressed even closer.

"Huh."

Watching us, the assistant manager said in disbelief,

"When did you two get so close?"

"Oppa and I were always close. Right~?"

"Right~."

"This is my way of thanking Oppa. Luka's boobs belong to Oppa!"

As I kept squeezing her big breasts, Luka pushed them toward me as if asking for more.

Ooh, her breasts are pushing my hands away.

I'm in heaven!

"Hmph."

The gyaru smiled at Seoyoon, who was watching us with displeasure right in front of her.

"Are you jealous, Korean unni?"

"Who would be jealous? If anything, I'm lamenting this situation."

"Come play with us too, Unni Kang! Okay?"

I let Luka lead me into the pool.

"Oppa, the water's so clear! Can I drink it?"

"There are microorganisms in it, so probably not."

"It's so clear, but there are things living in it."

"Because it's clear."

The clearer and nicer natural water looked, the more likely it was that something was living in it.

"Wow. There are little fish, too!"

"Seriously... You're like a little kid."

The assistant manager complained, but came into the water with us.

"The water feels so good~~! Take that!"

Luka launched a surprise water attack.

Drenched in the face, the assistant manager immediately scooped up water in her palm and threw it back at Luka.

"Pwah! やったな~？(You asked for it~?)"

"You started it, didn't you? Oh my, I guess a queen can't dodge something like this?"

"The queen never loses!"

The two of them were playing like children.

"You get some too, Oppa!"

Splash!

"?"

You picked a fight with a water mage?

I made weak water bullets with the Glyph of Water and shot them at her, and Luka shouted with a laugh.

"Eeeeek!! Oppa, Oppa, that's cheating~~!!"

"Mr. Woojin, how can you seriously attack us with magic?! Eek! Wait, why am I...?"

I made sure they knew exactly who was on top.

* * *

After we finished playing in the water and came out, the manager was waiting with food laid out on a broad leaf.

"We have some fruit left. Let's all eat something before we get to work."

"After playing in the water, ramen would really hit the spot."

I said, picking up a piece of fruit.

"We're not here on vacation, you know..."

"You enjoyed it too, Assistant Manager. That makes you an accomplice."

"......"

Luka looked at me with sparkling eyes.

I wiped a piece of fruit clean and held it out to Luka.

Luka accepted the fruit I offered with her mouth, munching like a pet.

A gyaru cat that's fun to feed.

"Nom nom..."

The way she took it from my hand using only her mouth was adorable.

"Anyway, we need to get to work now."

"Well, worst-case scenario, we can go back and sleep there later..."

"No."

The assistant manager said with a shudder.

"No matter how much I wash, sand sticks to me and won't come off."

"......"

Ah, yeah. That's true.

No matter how much you shake out your shoes, more sand comes out.

"And that's not all! At night it's damp and cold, it chafes my skin, and the sea breeze and salt make my hair stiff!"

Heh.

Seoyoon said, trembling, as if she'd been holding a lot in.

"Bugs, crabs, ants, and fleas keep getting into my clothes! The tide is noisy when we're trying to sleep...!"

"There's no privacy with everything open on all sides...!!"

"I get it. I get it. Calm down."

"Hoo... Hoo..."

I could tell how much the sensitive assistant manager had been putting up with since we were stranded.

"I don't like sleeping in the sand either. My back and lower back hurt."

Manager Han Jia's reason was entirely age-appropriate.

Though I probably shouldn't put it that way, right?

"Well, then, let's give it a try."

Let's start by cutting some wood.

The technique was similar to when I made the raft. It would require a bit more finesse this time, though...

But I was growing as a wizard, too, so I vaguely thought it might be easier than before.

"Watch out, it's falling."

Thwoom!

I chose a suitable tree and severed its trunk with a flurry of Wind Cutters.

"Oh."

The inside of this tree was rotten.

No, maybe it wasn't rotten, but dying? Bugs had eaten away at the inside.

The number of mushrooms at its base had seemed a little ominous...

"This one's no good..."

"Even finding good lumber we can use right away won't be easy."

"Hmm..."

"Still, should we try somehow?"

"I think it'd be best to process it into a form that's easy to use. Starting here..."

If I cut this into pieces and made a simple structure...

"Mr. Woojin."

Seoyoon stopped what she was saying and suddenly called out to me.

"Yes?"

Seoyoon, who'd been watching me, said,

"It doesn't matter how you do it. Why don't you try building it yourself?"

"You mean leave everything to me?"

"Yes. You work less efficiently when someone tells you what to do, Mr. Woojin."

Is that so?

Seoyoon seemed to see something in me that even I hadn't known.

"Hmm..."

"Try doing it your way. We'll gather firewood for tonight and bring over the supplies we left on the beach."

"Understood."

And so, making a place to sleep became a project entirely of my own.

Knowing the assistant manager, it wasn't because she was too lazy to do it.

If she were a woodworking expert rather than a cosmetics expert, she'd probably be criticizing how I held a nail before I even got started.

That's just the kind of person she is.

The type who sets a clear direction and feels a thrill when things go according to plan.

A promising talent in society thanks to her impressive achievements.

On the other hand, what about me?

Hmm.

Even in society, I hadn't had anything I clearly wanted to do.

Even now, stranded, I was content as long as I could grope huge breasts.

Honestly, unless something absolutely needed doing, I didn't want to do it. It was a hassle.

'But a place to sleep is important.'

It wasn't as urgent as water or food, where you die if you don't have them, but I was getting sick of sleeping on a mat on the sand.

I wanted something better than that.

'First, the materials matter.'

I calmly focused and felt the flow of mana.

I had no way or knowledge to tell whether the inside was rotten just by knocking on the tree.

But I had magic.

The detection spell had helped me find delicious fruit, after all. Should I try it?

I set my awareness on the flow of mana and focused on each tree I'd passed by until now.

'Found it.'

I couldn't see inside as if I had X-ray vision, but I could tell by feel.

That tree was solid all the way through. It was ideal.

To see if my hunch was right, I immediately went over and cut it down.

Thoom!

"Hmm..."

Perfect.

I didn't know what kind of tree it was, but the wood inside was beautiful.

So that's how I'll find the materials...

How should I build a place to sleep?

If I made it too elaborate, it would collapse.

What came to mind was the simplest wooden structure in Korea.

What if I made something like a pavilion?

I arrived at the idea of building a raised platform, elevated a set distance above the damp ground.

Even as a beginner, I thought I could imitate it somehow.

Raising the floor would keep out the moisture and cold constantly rising from the ground.

That alone would make it much more comfortable.

'Good.'

What should I make next...

Quite some time passed as I sorted through one idea after another.

The assistant manager really had left everything to me. She didn't even ask how the work was going.

Unexpected.

At the company, she'd come check every fifteen minutes to see if I was slacking off.

I felt like she trusted me.

All right. I've decided.

First, I used Wind Cutter to make several log supports.

Rrrrrumble───

<Wind>

and

<Change>

With a saw blade made by applying the Glyphs, I finished the work in no time.

It took about thirty minutes?

Before placing the large support beams, I slowly pressed down on the ground with pillars of compressed air.

I was making holes in advance.

This part looked like it would take a while.

"Do you need anything?"

Seoyoon peeked her head out.

"Could you find some suitably sized rocks? To put in these holes."

"Sure."

A little while later.

"Oppa, I found some!"

The assistant manager and Luka gathered some suitably sized rocks for me.

First, I laid down broad, flat stones, then packed the gaps around them with smaller stones and dirt.

That should keep the support posts from sinking into the soil.

I brought over the support posts and slid them into the holes.

Shunk.

They fit perfectly, like they were going into standardized holes.

That's so satisfying.

I installed about ten support posts at equal intervals on the ground to hold up the platform.

About forty centimeters off the ground should be enough.

'Now I need to put up the floor.'

It wouldn't be enough to just lay planks on top, would it?

I needed a more firmly secured structure.

What if I carved the insides of the logs into a U shape and used them as crossbeams?

If I laid planks on top and drove in wedges, they wouldn't slide sideways and would be held securely.

It seemed like a decent idea, considering I'd just thought of it.

If only I had the ability to freely shape logs.

Rrrrrumble!

Ugh, that's a lot of sawdust.

I used a Wind Cutter mixed with water as a makeshift waterjet cutter to carve out the insides of the logs.

Some would be floor beams laid across the support posts, and the rest would be used as planks.

'There's more water in it than I thought.'

An unexpected variable.

I'd thought all I needed to do was carve the planks into neat squares, but the green wood was full of moisture.

They weren't quite worthy of being called premium lumber made with magic.

'Should I push the moisture out?'

I decided to try fine ventilation using the Glyph of Wind.

I couldn't lift the logs, but I could easily distribute the pressure in tiny increments.

If I tried to do it all at once, the wood might crack, so I decided to slowly remove the moisture inside.

──This is going to take the longest. I have to do it slowly.

Still, the work went more smoothly than I'd expected.

The results were excellent, too.

Near sunset, I managed to make the wooden structure I'd roughly pictured in my head.

"Ugh..."

It was time to move the logs that would serve as floor beams.

This part had to be done with brute strength. I could use the Glyph of Wind to help a little, though.

Even though I'd hollowed them out to use as floor beams, they were insanely heavy, and I could only drag them along.

"Mr. Woojin! I'll help."

"It's okay, Assistant Manager. I'm almost there."

I stopped her, worried she might get hurt.

Seoyoon watched me anxiously, but all I had to do was set them on top.

Once I'd laid down all the floor beams, the thick frame was almost complete.

"Haa."

That was rough.

"Are you okay? We can carry the planks, too."

"Then lay them on top of this."

"Okay!"

Luka and the manager had come over and were helping, too.

I brought over the finished wooden planks and laid them on top.

"The surface is smooth."

"I sanded them all with a water-mixed wind saw."

Since it was like a makeshift waterjet cutter, it should be smoother than planing.

The logs laid horizontally had U-shaped grooves carved into them, too, so it was easy to fit the planks into place.

Now it was time to drive in wooden wedges to keep them from wobbling.

Calling them nails would be a stretch; they were crude.

I made several by carving them into shapes I could drive in right away.

Using the Glyph of Wind, I carved a hole that fit perfectly──

Then fitted the wedge into it so it could be driven in.

Thunk!

After releasing bursts of pressure several times to drive the wedges in firmly, the planks and floor beams locked together as one.

When all the work was done, a fairly spacious and handsome raised platform was complete.

Kim Woojin-style makeshift pavilion (floor) complete.

"Haaah..."

I immediately lay down on it.

I was definitely going to be too sore to move tomorrow.

I barely finished by nightfall, but I didn't even want to think about adding pillars or building a roof.

Construction was fucking hard...

"Mr. Woojin, are you done?"

"Yes..."

I couldn't do any more even if she asked.

Seoyoon approached with a stern expression like an inspector, then sat on the platform and tried to make it wobble a little.

The wedges had been cut to fit using the Glyph, so it wouldn't wobble.

After checking it from every angle for a while, Seoyoon smiled brightly.

"You did a great job."

"Thank you."

"It's a little disappointing that there's no roof."

"That's too much to do in one day. I'd die."

For now, instead of a roof, tall leaves stretched above us, blocking the sun. Cool shade and a reasonably firm floor.

Ah.

So this is what it feels like to have something this nice?

A level floor

...

The hard floor I'd taken for granted in modern life felt like heaven to me, after sitting around on damp sand waiting for rescue.

"Ah. This is nice. I never knew a flat floor could feel this good."

Seoyoon lay down beside me and shared the same sentiment.

"I'm glad I left it to you, Mr. Woojin. It's amazing how the surface isn't rough anywhere."

"This is Kim Woojin's premium magic-made lumber."

The most time-consuming job today was making the planks.

I slowly dried the moisture inside with fine ventilation so they wouldn't rot easily.

Since this was where we'd actually be lying down, I put a lot of effort into it.

"Ah... It'd be so nice to sleep here."

I was already sleepy.

"Oh, you can't sleep yet, Mr. Woojin."

"Huh?"

Is there still something left...?

"Come over here."

Seoyoon gently took my hand and led me.

I didn't want to get up, but when I managed to get to my feet, I smelled something delicious.

A campfire.

"I made dinner."