I’ve Been Reincarnated as a Tentacle Slime~ I Want to Live a Comfortable, Secure Life and Do Whatever I Want~ - Chapter 50

Now that the defense is sorted, the next task is to make charcoal. In this village, charcoal is hardly used. Well, with all the wood around, they probably use firewood instead.

I could easily think, ‘Let’s just use firewood!’ but charcoal burns longer in winter, holds the temperature better, and, importantly, doesn’t produce smoke. It’s more stable for cooking than firewood, and wood vinegar is also a natural pesticide.

So, as the first step in improving food and living conditions, we’ll start with making charcoal.

“So, I’m going to set up a charcoal production kiln outside the northern defense wall. If it’s outside the village, even if a fire breaks out, it won’t spread to the houses.”

“Yes. Since it’s land that Lord Cruz has developed, I have no objections… but wouldn’t it be fine even inside the village?”

“Once I can produce it steadily, I’ll move the kilns inside the village.”

With Legos’ approval, I built a 10-meter diameter cylindrical kiln. The ceiling is dome-shaped. The edges are 1 meter tall, and the center is about 1.5 meters. The entrance extends about 1 meter to start the fire, and the back has a low smoke vent with a chimney.

Since moisture is a big enemy, I made the whole structure, including the floor, out of Golem stone. It’s 20 cm thick, so it should withstand the heat from the charcoal and prevent the outside temperature from affecting it.

“Father-sama, the shape of the wood should be about 1 meter long, and the width a bit larger than ordinary firewood, right?”

“Yes. The wood needs to be laid out in the kiln, and once it becomes charcoal, it will shrink a little.”

The three of us divided the work and started cutting the logs. Since the leftover from the wall wasn’t enough, we ended up having to fell more trees. Then, we laid the wood vertically inside the kiln. After we finished packing it, we sealed the entrance with a 90 cm stone wall, leaving a path for heat at the top. We also sealed the protruding entrance with a stone wall that had a 20×30 cm hole like a fireplace.

And so, they’ll burn fiercely at the 1-meter protruding part, directing the heat into the wood.

The wood for burning will absorb moisture from the leftover pieces, and we’ll use the cracked ones. If we run low, we’ll fell more trees.

For the wood to be burned, I absorbed the moisture from scraps and used the cracked ones. If I need more, I’ll cut some down.

The wood for charcoal has been left with moisture. In order to turn it into charcoal, I need to remove as many impurities as possible, so I thought the usual method would reduce the chances of failure. When the steam comes out, impurities may flow away as well.

I used fire magic to ignite the fire, then kept throwing in firewood. Since Rio taught me how to start a fire, it was easy to light.

“Magic is really convenient at times like this.”

“That’s right. We can start a fire without a lighter, create water if we’re thirsty, and heal if we’re hurt. If we learn wind magic, it’ll be easier to blow air too.”

“It seems like it would be easy to raise the temperature too.”

–

After a while of starting the fire, Legos came over.

“Oh, I saw the smoke rising, and I thought it might be. What an impressive charcoal kiln!”

“It’s better to make a large amount at once so that you don’t have to do it as many times.”

“It’s amazing that you can create such a large-scale kiln just for that.”

“Well, we’re slimes, after all.”

“Hahaha! It looks like we’ll be able to use that as an excuse from now on.”

“Hahaha! I’m not lying, you know.”

After laughing for a while, Legos asked.

“How much wood is actually inside this kiln?”

“The wood I put in is triangular with a side of about 5 cm, and there should be around 55,000 pieces of 1-meter-long firewood inside. It’s not packed perfectly, so it probably won’t reach 60,000.”

“50,000 pieces, huh… That’s an amount that doesn’t feel real.”

“Well, as long as you think a large amount can be made, there’s no problem. I should be able to show it to you in about half a month to a month.”

“I’m looking forward to it. With that amount, we should be able to get through the winter without freezing.”

“That’s why I’m making it.”

I turned towards the slimes and made one request.

“Can I entrust the night fire watch to you?”

“Yes, I’m not busy at night, so it’s fine. I can’t chop wood at night anyway.”

“Yeah, if there’s a loud noise, the villagers might be startled.”

–

After that, I kept the fire burning for about five days, gradually reducing the size of the opening for burning wood. After a few days, I sealed the kiln tightly and waited for the charcoal to finish.

We’re making charcoal while working on the wall construction.

Chapter length 1786 characters.