Home/The Ice Age Came? And I Just Got Married?!/ch 11

Chapter 11.

Thanks to Chippy, the greenhouse guardian, and the extra hands, the crops grew astonishingly fast.

We harvested potatoes, ate them, and planted more.

Before we knew it, a month had passed since Marcus and Jack had joined our village.

There were seven houses in the village besides the headman's mansion, and the two of them each chose one to live in.

Some of the Redstones we'd found in the headman's basement had been absorbed by me, while the rest were used throughout the village—placed in each house or carried around. They proved quite useful.

Winterstones were consumable minerals.

Depending on size and shape, their depletion periods varied—but remarkably, once absorbed into my body, their power accumulated permanently.

I tried every method to get Logan to absorb them too, but nothing worked.

Still, absorbing the Redstone was incredibly useful and convenient. I could produce fire at will and became far less susceptible to the cold than others.

I climbed onto the mansion's rooftop and scanned the surroundings with the binoculars Logan had given me.

Beyond the village wall, the snow was still piled high, and blizzards raged fiercely.

The snow outside the wall was already up to Logan's waist.

I know there are quite a few Winterstones buried in the forest zone besides the ones in the headman's house.

I should go scouting around soon.

Logan periodically went out on patrol with the other two, but the person best suited for reconnaissance was probably me—since I'd absorbed Winterstones.

As I swept my binoculars around, I looked up at the cliff that stood protectively behind the village.

That cliff seemed to provide considerable stability and shelter for the village.

There were also several caves at its base—I wanted to explore those later.

I came down from the rooftop and headed to the greenhouse.

After breakfast, before starting the morning's work, everyone gathered around the greenhouse table.

And I made a major announcement.

"I'd like to hold a contest to name our village."

In some novel, the female protagonist had named her survival camp something cute like "Happy House."

It'd be nice if our village had a name like that too.

Jack looked bewildered.

"A contest? With only four people?"

"I'll go first."

I answered cheerfully.

"Happy Village."

"Your Grace, I don't think naming things is your strong suit."

Jack Harper replied politely, with a serious face.

"You don't like it? Then how about Acorn Town—since this is Chippy's territory?"

"I also oppose our junior's naming sense."

Marcus shook his head too.

Thud—

Just then, Logan kicked an empty chair over, arms crossed. With a thuggish posture—one leg resting on the fallen chair—he said,

"If our 'lady' wants to do it, she can. You all talk too much."

I couldn't argue—after all, Logan owned the mansion and the village.

But "lady" all of a sudden?

"Logan, just call me as you normally do."

"I can't do that. We're married."

I suppose so. It's true that in marriage, a husband should call his wife "lady."

Besides, the marriage certificate was still in my room—I couldn't exactly deny it.

I deliberately shrugged and changed the subject.

Otherwise, I'd end up having to call Logan by some embarrassingly affectionate title too.

Marcus gave us a peculiar look, but I decided to ignore it.

---

A few days later.

Marcus crafted a wooden sign and hammered it into the village entrance.

[Welcome to Acorn Village.]

In the end, the village was named "Acorn Village." And the mansion Logan and I shared was named "Eve House," with a wooden sign to match.

Logan had come up with the name.

"Senior, you're quite handy, aren't you?"

At my words, Marcus looked genuinely proud.

He'd lost some of his usual slickness lately, so I'd been generous with compliments.

Just then, Logan returned from hunting—dragging something like a sled with an enormous bear on it.

Its size was so unreal it almost caused cognitive dissonance.

The bear was easily three times Logan's size—though lean, with little fat.

We gathered around the bear in the village square (though it was tiny) and squatted down for a discussion.

"So there are still living creatures out there."

At my words, Marcus nodded.

"Even in all that chaos, there were quite a few survivors. Anyway, it's been a month since we got here—I've been eating nothing but potatoes and jerky. I've missed fresh meat."

"For you, Senior, it's been a month. For me, it's been over two."

"Oh dear. That must have been a hard time for you, Your Grace."

At Jack's words, I nodded and pretended to wipe away tears. It really hadn't been easy.

Then I glanced at Logan.

"By the way, can you actually process this?"

"Don't worry. I know how."

Logan stepped forward. In fact, he'd been the one cooking all along.

In the end, Logan did all the butchering and cooking himself.

Thanks to him, dinner was meat for the first time in a long while.

Thanks to Chippy's help, we had potatoes and carrots for a hearty meat stew, and we made a salad with kale and cabbage.

The main course was steak.

Marcus and Jack's hands trembled as they held their knives and forks.

Marcus seemed to come to his senses belatedly, clearing his throat once before gracefully spreading a napkin on his lap.

Then he straightened his back and picked up his utensils. It was hard to believe this was the same man who looked ready to devour the whole plate—his demeanor was so refined.

Even after cutting a bite-sized piece and putting it in his mouth, he didn't gulp it down.

He chewed slowly, swallowed, and took a sip of water—as if he were seated at a royal banquet.

But the tip of his fork still trembled slightly.

I watched him silently.

He was hungry—but he couldn't let go of his dignity.

I found that admirable.

Because I couldn't contain my excitement.

The moment I put the steak in my mouth, fireworks seemed to explode in my head.

I was so happy I almost cried.

Logan pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at my tears.

Just as everyone except Logan was savoring the meat in awe—

BOOM—!

A loud crash echoed from somewhere.

"What was that sound?"

"Eve, stay here."

Logan quickly grabbed his greatsword and rose. Marcus also snatched up his rifle.

Seeing my startled expression, Marcus wrinkled his nose and said,

"Don't worry. I served in the military too—I know how to handle a gun."

"Good. Then I'll cover you two from the rooftop. I'm pretty good at hunting."

I wasn't a sniper, but I'd honed my skills through hunting—I could handle long-range shots and covering fire.

Logan nodded, apparently judging it safe enough.

"Wait—there are only four of us, and three of us know how to use guns?"

Jack Harper muttered in bewilderment.

"That's quite a coincidence."

I patted his shoulder and stood up.

"It really is. You take a rest, Doctor."

"I-I'm not a doctor."

"In a collapsed world, anyone with medical knowledge is a doctor."

With that, I left the greenhouse.

I didn't see the moved expression on Jack Harper's face.

In any case, Logan and Marcus headed toward the village entrance, and I climbed onto the Eve House rooftop with my binoculars.

Huh?

Through the trees in the distance, I spotted a group of people. Armed people.

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