Chapter 48
I bring the new giant ant home as a companion.
I wondered whether it really needed to stay in the cave, but the giant ant doesn't seem bothered.
I suppose it's fine.
Chai sees the giant ant and tucks its tail.
...Huh?
It's not scary, but you're okay, right?
When I look at the giant ant, it seems fine.
I still can't fully read the situation, but it'll probably be fine.
Chai, it's okay. It's a companion.
It was cumbersome to keep calling it the giant ant, so I decided to give it a name.
"Shuri"
I want to believe it likes the name.
...
I still need to do something about the tree-stump field, but sorry—I'll put that off for now.
Today, more than anything, I want to investigate the fruit that tastes like salt.
Specifically, whether salt-like crystals will form from its juice.
If I'm going to use it as a seasoning, crystals that are easy to measure out would be best.
So I head straight to the kitchen.
You can all do whatever you want.
I harvested 65 fruits in all.
That's quite a lot, but it shouldn't be a problem.
I cut open the fruit and filter the juice through cloth into a bowl made from silver ore.
There was more juice than I expected, and even five fruits yielded a decent amount.
For now, I'll try it with five.
I use magic to warm it little by little and evaporate the water.
As the water gradually evaporates, I start noticing impurities, so I filter it again.
Little by little, little by little, so it won't burn... The salt, now sherbet-like, is complete.
I put a little on my finger and lick it.
Salty.
Ahh... I'm a little moved.
I filter it once more through clean cloth, then dry what remains with wind magic.
At long last, I succeed in obtaining salt.
Who would have thought I could get salt from fruit juice?
I met Shuri and got salt. Today is a good day.
I imbue the gold ore with magical power.
I imagine a container with a lid.
"Transform."
I put the salt I'd made into it and work single-mindedly to turn the remaining fruit into salt.
There are four containers in all.
At last, I get the salt I'd been longing for!
From that day on, I somehow became better at fine-tuning my magic.
Apparently, I kept fine-tuning my magic with tremendous concentration to obtain salt.
So this is what they mean by dangling a carrot in front of me.
I enjoy a blissful moment eating meat with a sharp, salty kick.
The usual meat has become several times more delicious.
Next, I want eggs.
Mayonnaise and garlic would be nice too... And stock. There are still so many things I want.
...
When I go outside, I can't find the stumps.
...Where did that huge pile of stumps go?
??
Looking around, I find a hole in the area I've cleared.
A huge hole.
Shuri pokes its head out of it.
...Ah, right. It is an ant, after all.
I spot the baby ants carrying the stumps.
They put them into the hole... Are they going to use them?
Anyway, thank you for reducing my workload.
I can see the One-Eyed Ones fencing off the area around the hole with wood.
It looks like they're even trying to build a roof to keep the rain out.
They can work outside too? Amazing.
...By the way, where did you learn that? It wasn't from me.