Day 4.1

Now that he had both an understanding of how to go about making a basic set of tools—that is, the [Flint Knife], [Flint Chisel], [Wooden Shovel] and the [Flint Axe]—and the overlapping knowledge of the blueprints guiding his hand, the entire process had become shockingly straight forward.

“I see,” Rittan said, nodding. “It’s a matter of controlling the burn to carve out the hole.”

“Exactly, you can do it without the fire, but the chisels are too wide for something this small,” August said, scraping off the last of the charcoal from the handle. “If you want to try making one later, I’ll help you out—it’s probably better that you know how anyway, in case I get eaten.”

Rittan wasn’t idle either, currently working on the branches that would become the front door and cutting them down to size with August’s [Flint Axe]. He was lining them up on the ground in front of the [A-Frame Hut] as he went and had made something of a door frame right in the middle out of three thicker branches.

“I would hope that isn’t something in either of our futures,” Rittan said, chastisement in his voice. “I am interested in learning, however.”

August pushed the large piece of flint into the burnt-out socket until it was in tight and then whacked it on the ground until he was sure it was snug. He turned towards the vine and began wrapping it tightly around the head, securing it to the handle.

Once he was done, he placed it next to the other tools he’d made for Rittan before sitting back on his hands. All this sitting on the ground was murdering his back, but it wasn’t like there was anything else to sit on out here in the flat before the lake. Maybe they could drag a couple of stumps out of the forest or try his hand at making a bench to work on. He’d need planks for that, or at least something flat that he could strap together to make a larger surface to work on.

“August,” Rittan said, drawing him from his thoughts. “Is this sufficient?”

August pushed himself up to his feet with a groan before moving to check—branches lined the ground in the rough shape of the missing front. There were probably two or three rows of branches too many, but it was easily enough material to fill the space.

“Perfect,” August said, trying to figure out the order in his head. “I suppose we dig two post holes for the door frame and then get them in first.”

Rittan smiled before moving to do just that, using the first of the tools August had made for him—nothing more than a pointed stick, but [Analysis] told him the truth, it was a [Wooden Shovel]. They worked together to settle the uprights in the holes, leaving enough room for either of them to slip between the two to enter and exit.

The top of the door was added next, tying it off with vine, and then they were free to start filling the gaps in with the other branches. For the most part, they worked in silence, with simple comments now and then, or a thank you as they passed things between each other—There were no additional unlocks, as this fell within the [A-Frame Hut] blueprint, but he didn’t.

“Now we just need a door,” Rittan smiled.

“Yeah,” August admitted before pausing. “Hey Rittan, you ever heard of a Venetian blind?”

Rittan turned with a look of concern on his face.

“Is it an illness of some kind?” Rittan asked, concerned. “If you’re experiencing some kind of problem with your eyesight—”

August started laughing, unable to help himself—he shook his head before trying to explain the general concept.

“A wooden curtain of some kind?” Rittan said, scratching his cheek. “Of course, we had those, but to call it a Blind is an odd and possible insensitive choice—a shade maybe, or a curtain, as I said makes far more sense.”

“I suppose,” August said, tilting his head. “I never really considered it like that; The ‘Blind’ in the name is a descriptive term, referring to the inability to see through it; it’s not supposed to be a pejorative.”

They used the left leftover branches to map it out on the ground. Essentially two lengths of wood attached to a number of thin branches, almost like a ladder, but without space between the rungs. A single thicker branch at the top could be secured to the inside of the [A-Frame Hut], draping it down to the floor.

They set about making an attempt, using what that had leftover—the gaps were a bit too big given what they had on hand, but they could always add more to it later. August worked on the left side, tying each rung off with vine, while Rittan did the other side. It wasn’t a monumental task, but neither was the end result something incredible. On balance, they ended up with a lightweight and simple cover for the door frame.

Hanging Shade Blueprint Unlocked

The process of looping the vine around the top part of the [A-Frame Hut] was a simple task, and for the most part, they’d even managed to get the overall length roughly correct. It was far more transparent than August had wanted, but given that was the case with the overall structure, it couldn’t be helped.

It did give him the idea for the future—to strip a couple of dozen trees of bark like he had that morning and lay them across the walls. It would make it more resistant to water, but they weren’t quite there yet and stripping bark from trees was something of a time-consuming process. The one he’d done earlier hadn’t come off easily or neatly.

Once it was tied off, and the job was essentially complete for now, they took a step back to look it over.

“Nice work, man,” August said, riding the high of completing it. “Even a blind Venetian would be impressed, don’t you think?”

Rittan gave him a look, and August stifled his smile.