Bricks

So, a lot of time has passed. Sefi has achieved many successes – very big ones. She was able to understand the meaning of magic, or rather – how to use it, but still there remained a problem… consumption. And as they say: “Free cheese is only in a mousetrap.”

She is satisfied with this. Nothing terrible – as long as it works, there’s nothing to complain about. However, regarding the optimization of mana she continues to work: she tries to use more precise words and clearer constructions. She also works on counting mana.

This works as follows: first, she releases mana and draws a circle on the ground with a stick, taking her reserve into account. And when she uses magic, she compares the changes with this circle. The same applies to recovery. She realized that one centimeter of the mana circle recovers in two hours. It is slow, but the main thing is – the process goes on passively. Although this is not the most important part.

— The circle has increased, — she said, looking at how her current amount of mana slightly went beyond the circle drawn on the ground. Even if only a little but a fact. This means it is possible to increase the amount of mana. Therefore, she should work on this.

— Over what time… about two weeks, — she added, looking at the tree, at the root of which she was keeping count, making notches there. One day – one line. Just like those island inhabitants. Overall, it turns out not bad, but two weeks – for only a couple of centimeters? That is too slow. Is it possible somehow to accelerate the growth of mana reserves?

With these thoughts she began to try different methods. This, of course, took time – a lot of time – but all options had to be tested:

1] She tried to act as with muscles: training with magic every day. This gave only small results, but they existed. The training included different things – using magic in different amounts and for different tasks. This also helped with housekeeping: two birds with one stone. Mostly, household needs meant improving the quality of life. Getting food, cooking it and… she wants to make a bed, but so far the work does not lead to success, absolutely nothing is enough.

2] Using magic to the fullest, not leaving a single drop. This was very exhausting. So much so that afterwards she didn’t even have the strength to stand. The logic was that the body would urgently adapt to the restoration of mana and would begin to exceed the limits so that this would not happen again. It worked the first times, but then the minuses outweighed the pluses. She could not move for two days or more, and the increase was only 5-6 centimeters. Inefficient. Simply terrible, and when she completely spends her mana… it really makes her want to vomit.

3] Releasing magic and then gathering it back inside. Sefi did not know what exactly retains mana, but in this way she was training, in her opinion, the very “reservoir.” This meant that not only magic itself was being trained, but also what holds it. The results were modest, but stable. Perhaps continuing such training at a moderate pace and over a long distance would improve the quality of the reserve. After all, now, after ten such actions, her head ached. Increasing endurance would allow the use of more mana – perhaps this is the most effective path.

Of all the options, the most unreliable is №2, although it gives a strong effect at first. Perhaps this is how development works at the start.

№1 is the most moderate and helps in everything: universal, desirable, but gives little progress. However, perhaps it can be improved… probably.

№3 is a bet on the long-term perspective. However, then she loses time for housekeeping, and she would have to allocate separate hours away from work. This could be done when she builds a house and can at least somehow live… but now?

All these things took a month of research, laborious, nevertheless without effort there will be nothing. She understands this.

However, one should not think only about magic — now Sefi has learned how to obtain food. The lake has become a good source of nourishment. She caught fish using a stick with a sharpened bone attached to the end – a simple spear. Flight magic allowed her to reach any part of the shore, the main thing was not to scare the fish and to strike accurately.

She also found berries. It was unknown whether they were edible, so she observed the birds that ate them. Since the animals survived, it meant she could as well… at least, she is still alive up to now so the berries are not poisonous. They are black, just like blackberries, but smaller in size.

By the way, thanks to food she realized that she can eat anything. Not bad. Although her preference is still more towards meat. She tried to dry fish, but nothing came of it – several attempts ended with the fish simply rotting. How is this even done? She does not know. Apparently, for now, dried fish is not for her.

There were also attempts at hunting larger game, but unsuccessfully the animals seemed to have fled the forest. Why? She does not know. Perhaps they sense her from a kilometer away. Smell? Apparently not—ю she sniffed herself, and there was no terrible odor noticeable. Besides, she bathes every day since she found the lake. Yes, there are problems with soap, but with the help of magic she managed something. Not exactly soap, and a lot of mana is spent, but there is some success.

She created something like crude soap a piece of wood covered in fish fat, the smell and consistency of which she changed with magic.

Shampoo? Well… never mind. The main thing is that at least something helps. She experimented with fat, but it did not help much. Perhaps it will be possible to make something like a balm – if she changes the internal structure of the fat. She hopes it will work. For now, she smears fat; in short, it is the same as soap, but… uhh, softer.

However, so far everything is going well – despite modest nutrition, she has not broken out in something strange and has not encountered problems in her body. Perhaps the body has adapted to the load. Lucky that she is now… an antelope? Although the horns on her head sometimes get in the way – low places or trees create problems. Or maybe it is her head that is problematic? In general, the horns get stuck and it is irritating.

The arrangement of the cave has also improved. A semblance of a normal bed appeared: she used remnants of clothing from a skeleton to make something like a sack and filled it with pre-dried grass. Can this be called hay? Perhaps not, but the grass is soft – it works as a mattress. She wants a pillow… but there is no suitable material yet.

Now she dries long stems of grass and tries to weave a rope from them – so far unsuccessfully, but there is progress. She also tries to use roots, attempting to separate fibers. But she does not understand how to do it. Perhaps they need to be dried? Then they break easily, which is unacceptable. She plans to study this later.

Why a rope? She is trying to create stone tools a better axe and hammer and for this she needs strong rope. She tried to use magic to create it, but unsuccessfully. Rope made from grass, if woven well, should be suitable… or at least a temporary replacement.

Now she is trying to make a magical rope — at least temporarily – in order to understand how it is arranged. Yes, it is difficult, but a magical rope works the same way as a real one, only it requires mana to maintain. Clever, right? The main thing is to clearly imagine its structure, otherwise it will not work. Cool, after all, she is smart.

— Hm… — The rope appeared in her hands, but she could not unravel it, she lacked the skills. Yeah, smart she may be, but she still has to do everything herself. Through sweat and blood. — A pity, this would have made the task easier.

Gradually she began to imagine how a real rope is braided. Perhaps like her hair? She knows how to braid – about the same principle. To secure the bottom, another thin strand is needed. And for strength — several small braids woven into one. Complicated and long, but better this way than if it tears after the first strike.

Here are three equal strands. The left one – to the center, the right one – too, but through the bottom. And so on. An engaging activity. But from dried grass it is inconvenient – too stiff.

***

The rope was finished. It took a whole day, but now she could secure a new axe. The old one did not withstand heavy use, and this one, in her opinion, should be stronger.

A night passed, and she went to the tree from which she had cut branches. It was old, so… this axe should chop it down.

— So then… — She finally finished the task and looked at her creation. In her view, the axe was not bad, though for others it would look terrible – as if from the Stone Age. But she had no choice.

With this axe she began chopping. The first strike against the old tree was strong, it shook, but the axe held. Very good! She continued chopping – as much as the tool allowed. But the stone serving as the blade lost sharpness and strength after only twenty strikes. Little by little, both the tree and the stone crumbled. What kind of old tree is this? An oak, perhaps? Abnormally strong, though it looked decrepit.

However, even it did not withstand her persistence – the tree finally fell. This was her first large beam, and it would be useful for building a canopy. It would become a support for the structure. She would build the canopy at the entrance of the cave: she lacked the skills and materials for a house, but she had to manage. The canopy could be gradually improved, and the cave used as a storeroom — it held the cold well. With proper skill, the felled tree would become an excellent pillar capable of holding the structure.

— Now I have to drag it… — This turned out to be not easy—not only because of maneuvering through the forest, but also because of the weight. Even though she could lift the tree and even carry it a little, which was surprising in itself, she could not hold it for long. Dragging was also difficult. Although… — Clever, actually, — She pressed the tree to herself with one hand, as if carrying a sack of potatoes. Simplicity is genius: she carried not the whole weight, but only part, and it worked. Why hadn’t she thought of this earlier? However, no matter how much she wanted to go further… — I can’t… — She still lacked strength. The tree got stuck, and she could not drag it farther. — Do I really have to split it?

It would not work with the axe – too long and hard. And she had no saw. Pity… but…

— Magic. Hm… What if I imagine something cutting? — She had not done this before. This was a new experience—and perhaps useful for combat. She wanted to cut through a thick tree. But how?

— Water! — The thought came unexpectedly. Clever! He-he-he. She hadn’t felt such joy in a long time, all positive emotions now connected with magic and new ideas. Strange, but nothing wrong.

But how will water help? Under high pressure! She had seen on the internet how water under pressure cuts even metal – so it should work. A tree is not metal, so it will work!

— “Cutter,” — she said, imagining in her mind a jet of water – fast and under strong pressure. Speed is understandable, but what about pressure? Well, she squeezed her eyes shut tightly and tensed up, uh, that’s pressure after all. And from her palm burst a thin but powerful stream. It easily sliced the tree, like a hot knife through butter.

However, a problem arose: the tree became wet. Not critical, but after the failure with drying fish, she feared rot. Such cutting was not the best option, but… wait.

— I can create wind… but how?

For her, magic did not work through abstractions, but through physics. She could not imagine magical wind from a pentagram – she needed to visually and logically understand how it happened. Perhaps this was her weakness as a mage: she imagined, but not like ordinary people. This was the influence of the 21st century, technological thinking. In the past she had sold electronics, seen hundreds of real devices – and now transferred those principles onto magic. She was an adult, rational, with concrete thinking. Financial circumstances also influenced her: she was used to thinking pragmatically. And this hindered her: survival in this world required more imagination, not logic. But even her straightforward approach worked – so there was no reason to complain.

But how does water appear? For her, magic was also physics and energy, and in her head were such thoughts that magic changes electron bonds and makes material out of them. After all… it is normal, since everything in the world is energy and matter, and there is the law of conservation of energy: “Energy passes from one state to another.” At least, that is what she thinks. And since it works, then it is so… right? Well, perhaps the thoughts go through crutches and conventions, but as long as it works – she will not touch it. The law of the engineer, programmer, and her life. Once she wanted to change a ten-year plan, which had always worked, into a more reliable one, in her opinion. Then everything almost collapsed – the company lost 30% of its profit, and she was almost fired. Fortunately, connections and acquaintances helped. It became so difficult that she swore never again to change what works. A terrible experience and memory.

And wind? That is like speed, air moved by speed… and how can this be imagined in her head? And also… uh, what kind of molecules does air have? Apparently oxygen, but not only… In general, her head cannot imagine in such an image. Well, she somehow “made” water, because she imagined a waterfall. But to take as an image a storm? Uh… somehow it does not work. She thinks she needs to take something more understandable.

— Blades… a fan, — she muttered, creating something like a propeller in the air. With magic she forced it to spin – wind appeared. It began to dry the tree, though slowly. In such a key it all worked. Perhaps a special thing is needed for this?

— Wind… Hm, can I create it under pressure and at high speed? There are air compressors… maybe it will work…

But for now, wind is a problem. She will have to work on this further: how to make a strong stream of air without additional constructions? Difficult, but not hopeless. Or… hm… she thinks she should try thinking like with a tornado: the rotation of air, and since it is fast – it should cut. Worth trying later. But later. A tornado spins – that gives speed. That is the key to the riddle! Ha-ha!

And a storm? Uh… there too, but… phew, her brain cannot think of it, simply impossible.

***

Carrying all the pieces of the tree took her about seven hours – not because the path was long, but simply because… it was heavy. She had to stop and rest along the way. And, by the way… she realized she was a bit dumb: why did she even need an axe if she could have just cut the tree with magic? Well… uh… she's stupid.

— Ufff… — She sighed, sitting with her back against one of the chunks of wood. Exhausted. Too much. She could barely breathe, but it was done! Hah! Soon she would start… she just needed to… ugh… hah… rest a little, then she’d start! Yes… — I can’t…

She collapsed onto the soft grass and stared at the sky. It was beautiful… probably. Staring into the blue, perfectly clear sky, she felt nothing. Strange. Hm… a thought had come to her while dragging the wood: what if she held all her mana inside herself?

Like, a permanent reservoir – it should expand under the pressure of its own volume, adapting to it. Difficult, like forcefully holding your breath without exhaling. But it should work. After all, it’s… necessary? The stomach can expand far beyond its normal size when filled with food – that’s at least some kind of example.

And lying down like this, it seemed possible. Maybe she could even get some physical rest.

— This is more uncomfortable than I expected… — she muttered, focusing harder and harder. It was hard to maintain, but still possible. Her head throbbed, but her muscles seemed to come alive, no longer burning with hellfire.

As she lay there, she heard a sound. Surprising. She had been here for over three weeks, maybe even a month, and hadn’t heard the sound of wildlife – except for birds, which flew off even when she didn’t get close. And fish… they didn’t flee, they just swam away. She had barely caught four of them, which is why she wanted to save three – didn’t work out, they rotted… what a disappointment that had been. At least she ate one. And how had she not noticed they were rotting? Well, she hadn’t known how the process worked, and at first thought the smell was normal. A day passed, and when she checked, she realized the meat had turned blue, green in places… yeah, rotten. Just wonderful.

Now, hearing the sound, she quickly stood and saw something approaching – a creature resembling a tiger, but smaller. Its fur wasn’t orange, but gray. Probably some subspecies in this forest. But… uh… scary.

— What the hell… — she whispered, releasing all her mana. The tiger-wolf froze, eyes wide, then bolted back into the forest without hesitation. So fast its heels flashed. — What was that?

There was some logic here, some sequence. Hm… she was tired, but that wasn’t it. She had been tired before – this had never happened. Hm… but now… wait, wait! She had pulled her mana inside, reduced her aura! That’s it! Hah!

— This… will make hunting easier. I need to practice this, — she said with a smile. That was why hunting had been harder – the animals had been fleeing from her a kilometer away. Now it should be easier. But practice was needed – after all, it was difficult to do. With this method she couldn’t move normally. Her movements were stiff – like forcing the unforceable into her body, held together somehow. — For now… back to the cave. I’ll practice there.

***

A month had passed since that incident – everything had become easier. She was glad, because she realized this body was practically a natural-born hunter. Her breathing stayed steady no matter what, even when killing animals. Wolves, herbivores – it didn’t matter. The cold didn’t hinder her… And, by the way, with that knowledge she began to really figure out how to skin her prey properly.

Her first… uh, attempt ended with blood everywhere. Turns out, before butchering an animal you first had to bleed it out… She hadn’t known and just started right away, so there was blood all over. But after several butchering sessions, she learned. Now she wasn’t even disgusted by having to drain out the guts – she had adapted. After all, animals are living beings, and it’s natural they produce waste.

Speaking of that… a question arose: where were her own bodily wastes? Not that she wanted them, but physiologically it seemed wrong. Around three months had passed since she arrived in this world, and not once… had she gone to the bathroom. Not even to pee. It bothered her. Maybe her internal structure was different, processing food with no excess waste. That was actually convenient, but still… uh, a little unsettling.

Anyway, back to butchering. Now she used every resource: the hide for various things – interior coverings, clothing, and more.

Fur – for stuffing blankets and pillows. Also, to insulate the cave walls. Not that the cold was unbearable, but it was better to live in comfort.

Internal organs like the liver, kidneys, and of course the heart, she ate. But the stomach lining – she stripped it, cleaned it, and used it to craft a wooden flask; the inner skin should hold water well. The intestines she used to store food that spoiled quickly. And the bones…

She’d heard somewhere that bones could be used as fertilizer, but didn’t know how… So instead, she used them to make sturdy tools and spears. The bones also became her crafting material. She carved different things out of them. For now, they were awful, but with practice, results would come. Why bother?

Well, the question “why?” had a simple answer – such items were worth money. And if she ever found a settlement, she could sell them and buy things. After all, money was everything. Why had she reached that conclusion? Well, that skeleton had been well-dressed, and the bag with the monocle had suggested a developed world. So… this should be normal. Meat and other perishables could also be sold, but couldn’t be stored for long – that was a problem. Her handmade tools? Nobody would take them. So bone crafts were the best solution. Maybe not hugely profitable, but at least something. And by practicing, she wanted to make needles – this would allow sewing, which could bring even more profit. Smart, cunning, and her kind of thing – money was the meaning of life!

There were other things: her shelter had improved. Yes, she had managed to build it, though it took effort. She wasn’t a builder and it showed.

The first time, she miscalculated the space, the pressure, and the soil, which caused the wood to sink in and… get stuck. Getting it out was hard. She realized she couldn’t build right around the cave. Despite the rocky cliffs, the soil was oddly soft. Maybe there was another hollow space under the cave, full of water… She didn’t know, but suspected it. Anyway, her shelter changed. At first, only two beams were needed while the cliff supported the rest. But now – not anymore…

The second time, she reinforced the planned spots with stones and gravel, then began building. Everything went well until the roof. The central support couldn’t handle the weight and collapsed. Turned out, she needed not one but several central supports to spread the load.

The third time was the worst. She decided the entire roof could rest on three pillars. She thought they were strong – since they were young trees. At first it worked. But while building the roof, she heard creaking, cracking – and then everything collapsed. One of the supports had taken too much load and snapped. She realized: she needed four… and yes, the trees had to be reinforced.

The fourth time – it made her cry. Everything was finished, but she hadn’t accounted for the roof needing more fasteners and strong ropes. The structure didn’t last long. At least the pillars survived.

The fifth time – finally, she managed to make proper wedges and reinforced parts from trees. In the future, she’d replace them with iron. But for now, she made them by hand and strengthened them with magic. And there – success! Heheheh…

It worked. The roof held. Everything was fine… until the first rain. It flooded everything. But that actually helped her find the weaknesses and improve the structure. By the next rain, there were no leaks.

The shelter improved further: thanks to animal skins it now even had something like a wall. Yes, it was just hides and such – she simply secured them in place and stretched them out, like a volleyball net. But it was something! In the future, she’d make walls out of wood. Maybe even bricks! She’d seen somewhere that with mud and straw you could make bricks – that should work. She also made a floor! Not the best, but she managed!

She took logs, used her “Cutter” magic to split them into planks, then polished them with the coarse fur of a captured monster – to a decent (for the first time) level. Then she made sandpaper herself, using that same coarse hide as a base. That reduced her mana expenditure.

She made use of every material

The sawdust she collected – either as fuel for kindling or for future bricks.

It was worth recalling that she had noted several things from that grimoire. It mentioned using this skill alongside others, such as drying and repair.

That meant this kind of “household” magic was more widespread in the world and had many variations. If her particular form was rare, she could sell the book and get a handsome sum, but that wasn’t important right now. The key point was – magic existed here, and it was either widely used or at least partially known.

After all… well, recommendations can’t exist without common practices – right? Of course! Which meant this was within her reach. “Repair” seemed similar to her “restoration,” just of a slightly different nature or maybe just another name. But “Drying”… hm, maybe it could be used on a wet body – that would be useful. Also, perhaps it could clean clothes… and if so, why not clean the body too?

If that was true, she wouldn’t need to worry about soap and shampoo anymore. A dream come true!

— Ahem… I can do this, — she took a deep breath.

Was Sephi standing in her house or under her shelter? Didn’t matter. She stood completely naked. On purpose, she had smeared herself with blood and dusted her hair with dirt. An experiment. And she would conduct it, even if the test subject was herself.

— “Body Cleansing,” — she whispered, imagining all the grime washing off her: every speck of dust, every stain, leaving only freshness and fragrance behind – light, floral, unusual. All revealed in a flash, to make the effect visible.

And so it happened. Her body glowed, and the blood and dirt seemed to evaporate before her eyes. Her body felt lighter, her breathing freer.

Marvelous! Waaa! What joy!

— Ha-ha-ha! — She did it! Finally! This would save her so much time and so many resources. A simple thing, really, but what happiness! She had created this herself, developed it on her own… Each time, the joy of magic grew stronger. — Wonderful.

***

From that moment on, Sephi no longer feared getting dirty. She worked with genuine pleasure – just like now. In her hand was a wooden shovel, and she was mixing mud, straw, and water. The mixture wasn’t the sturdiest, but it might do.

But now she was no longer naïve! She had grown. She wouldn’t rush to lay the mixture immediately – first she would test its strength, durability, and other qualities. She intended to make several variations!

Though “variations” was perhaps too grand a word: she didn’t know the exact water proportions, so she decided on three options – 30 to 70, 20 to 80 (where the first number was water, the second was the mix of earth, straw, gravel, and so on). The 50 to 50 ratio she dismissed right away – even she knew such bricks would be fragile and crumble as they dried.

She had prepared the molds in advance. Thankfully, her woodworking skills had improved. She still managed without nails – she carved joints, drove in wedges, or used sturdy stones as rivets. The important thing was – she made it work!

Ten of them… it was exhausting, but the main thing was progress! She never would have thought she’d feel so happy about it. But no matter.

She poured the 30-to-70 mixture into the mold and waited…

An hour later, they had firmed up slightly. Sephi quickly removed them from the mold and poured in the next batch – this time 20 to 80.

She laid all the bricks out on a flat clearing. Here she had mown the grass in advance, dried it, then added it to the mixture – waste not. The second batch was also finished, and now all that remained was to wait… impatiently.

***

Two weeks had passed. During that time, she kept turning the bricks, drying them thoroughly. Yet, already at the preparation stage, she noticed something… the bricks wouldn’t hold their shape, they crumbled, loose and fragile… ugh. Could it all have been for nothing? She had hoped for better, but the look of the bricks did not inspire confidence.

— So that’s how it is… — And indeed, her fears were confirmed: both batches disintegrated.

The soil turned out to be of poor quality, or perhaps there hadn’t been enough binding material (straw, sawdust, and the like). She couldn’t say for sure, but one thing was clear:

— I think I need clay

She knew that proper bricks required clay, but she had no idea where to find it. That was a problem… and one that had to be solved quickly. Either she would have to search for clay, or build everything out of wood. Not that the second option was bad, but bricks were sturdier, and at least she understood how to lay them. Wooden walls, on the other hand, were uncertain. But bricks – well, stack them, add mortar, and done.

— Clay… it’s supposed to be near lakes, — she muttered, already mapping out possible places in her mind.

Sefi knew this from… a game. A cubic one. And from other sources as well. Clay was an important material. In the past, it had been used to make vases, pottery, and much more. Finding it would mean strengthening everything.

Probably

Perhaps it could indeed be created with magic, but her skills didn’t allow for that. And waiting, training, constantly straining her mind – she wasn’t Chinese, nor a cultivator. No, better to try and make it herself. That way, she would gain more experience, and knowledge never hurt anyone.

In the future, she would create clay from earth… but not now