Chapter 64 The Colour Red - Part 5

Chapter 64 The Colour Red - Part 5

It was an impossible ask. Whilst she was right that the pine wood would burn a good bit faster due to the resin in it being so flammable, these were pine forests. There were next to no other trees besides them.

"That's not happening," Beam told her. "I'll just get more wood to compensate."

"Oh?" Nila said, putting a hand to her cheek, imitating a maidenly gesture that suited her far too well. Now that her hair was combed and behind her head, she looked even prettier than she had this morning. But it did nothing to cure her personality. "Well, since you clearly can't do your job properly, why don't you go running over there and pretend to cut wood? Your stench is scaring all the animals away."

She fired back the same dig that he'd gotten in earlier, and Beam let out another sigh as he shook his head. He'd resolved not to bicker with her too strongly. If it was in her nature to be so prickly, then let her be, or so he thought.

But... He couldn't hold himself back entirely.

"You know that's just one rabbit, right? Are you so new to hunting that you'd be happy over just one rabbit?" He said. In truth, Beam knew basically nothing about hunting. His foray into Goblin slaying was his first stab at it. But he did know that when hunters went into the woods, they'd come back with several pieces of small game. That, or they'd work together to take down something larger, like a deer.

She swished her hair in annoyance. "I normally would, but I'm being conservative, seeing as I'll have to help you carry your wood back."

"Mm," Beam murmured to himself. He'd have to cut it down into smaller bits so that it would fit in his cart, but otherwise, it was exactly what he was after. Another few trees like that and the cart would be full and his work done for the day.

A bird took flight in a panic after the result of the commotion it caused. A grouse, it seemed. Beam spared it a glance as it took to the sky, just in time to see an arrow puncture its side and send it clattering back down to the floor again.

Nila walked past him, even more smugly than last time. She barely spared him a glance, but from the smile on her face, Beam could tell that she expected a compliment.

He sighed, but said it anyway. "Nice shot."

Nila shrugged. "I guess I was lucky, huh?"

"Mm, now I'm not so sure," Beam said back, but his tone was full of disinterest. He had his work to do. He dragged his log towards where three young trees together formed a clamp for it.

Sliding one end inside of the clamp, ensuring a pretty tight grip – as tight as you could get from a natural formation of trees – he then walked to the other end of the log and pushed it forwards.

It took hardly any effort from him before the tree snapped at the pivot. It was a little trick he'd learned through doing it the past few days. If one was lucky enough to be in a part of the forest where there were trees close enough together for him to do a bit of leverage-helped snapping, then the job was much easier and quicker.

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