We at dinner together, and I played with my new Raccoon son. He’s truly adorable and clingy. As expected, Dinner was very bland, though cooked well. However, I found myself longing for a nice juicy Beef Steak. The next thing I realize, there is a commotion outside, and a loud mooing that is unmistakable. I handed the little bundle of toddler cuteness overload to his mother, who he clung to, as I ran outside.

  “Oops!” A whole herd of cattle was outside, including ten massive bulls that were now attempting to battle it out. I somehow knew one was infertile, and I didn’t want him harming the fertile ones. An ice lance pierced his brain a second later. Then I chased all of them outside the palisade, and having seen all the greenhouse outlines already placed, I noticed a massive grassland area that wouldn’t be suitable for cultivating crops. I herded the cattle there and erected fences, and kept all the bulls in separate enclosures with an equal share of the cows. There must have been five hundred head, but now only nine Bulls for all of them.

  “Milady Jane, what are these beasts?!” Asked the Elder grandmother from before.

  “They’re called Beef, a great food source, and a leather source. Herbivores, dumb as anything. Back home, we raise them for food, just like this. They’ll need a second set of grassy fields to move them to after they’ve eaten this one down. Move them two to four times per year, I guess. I’m not a Rancher, I just wanted a Beef Steak, and boom, we have a huge herd to deal with. Not sure if you want to bother raising them or not, but I didn’t want a crap ton of meat going to waste by killing them all at once. My Magic has a tendency of doing things on its own, it seems, whenever I’m nostalgic. If they could come after me here, I’d be in trouble for cattle rustling.”

  I giggled almost uncontrollably for a moment. “Still, I killed the one bull that was sterile, so these can all breed, and I have a big animal to carve up and share out. Do you have a tanner in town?”

  The Elder smiled. “As it happens, my Son and I are the Tanners. Is there anything else these animals can provide? Meat is excellent in its own right, but I suspect there may be more.”

  I nodded. “I don’t know how to make them myself, because I had better options, but the Bladder can be used to make a water skin, with a leather covering. Most of the internal organs can be eaten if properly prepared, but aside from the Kidneys, Heart, Liver, and for the brave, the Testicles, I don’t know the slightest about preparing them safely. The wind pipe can be used in making Bellows for a Smithy or Home fireplace. Also, Beef Cows produce an excessive amount of Milk, way more than their calf will ever need, and as long as you keep milking them, they won’t stop producing, even after the Calf is weaned. This Milk can be churned to produce butter and cream, as well as the Buttermilk most commonly used in soups, and you can make cheese, though I don’t know the details myself, so that will be a long, hard grind to master even one form of Cheese making. Basically, you need to force the milk to curdle up, then pack the curds into a mold of some kind, and let it age in a controlled environment. After a few months to a year, you cut the rind off the outside, and the inner part is a solid block of edible cheese. Typically, you coat that with Beeswax, or something else that’s technically edible wax, to keep it safe from the air till you want it.”

  The Elder was suffering from an information overload. “Oh yeah, and their droppings are great fertilizer after they’re dried out, and crushed. You can burn it if you get desperate. The hooves can be boiled to make glue, along with the fat from the skin. Stinky process though.”

  “Ah, well, Glue we know about, I’ll have my Son help with skinning the one you killed in Town, he should learn any particulars about this beast. We don’t want to waste anything that can be used after all.” I smiled, "it’s just outside Jeanette’s folks' place.”

  I had her Son do the work, and answered the questions I could, my knowledge being spotty at best, but enough to help a seasoned tanner who already knew it anyway. After the Skin was off, I realized they had no way of dismantling the corpse, and I willed the Earth to provide a stainless steel saw, and to my utter delight, it worked, though I felt dizzy afterwards, and had to hand it to the Elder’s Son.

  Jeanette and her siblings came to help as well, and before long, with the last light still on the horizon, we had given every house a portion of meat and a few brave ones, who know about organ meats, took all the innards. Only the skull was left, and I hung it up on the outside of the Palisade to be picked clean and dry. “Why keep the Skull?”

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  “They look amazing dried, and might inspire a Helmet design, or something, maybe even an embossment of a Shield. Sort of a Death Knight armor.”

  Shaking her head, Alian smirked. “If you say so, sweetie. Just don’t be surprised if nobody else cares for your inspiration.” I laughed. “You’re only saying that because you’re a princess, Jeanette, can’t you see that? What would you think of fighting someone with a Bull Skull embossed onto their shield?”

  “Hmmm, I have to admit, it would cause unease, and instantly put me on edge.”

  “Huh!? You seriously think so?”

  “Yes, Alian, I do think so. Like Jane said, you’re a Princess, you haven’t been out there fighting Monsters and the Like. Jane’s aura has protected you on this trip, even. If one of those Bandits Traitors had a Shield like that, you’d probably have curled up in fear, or else black out, and go on instinct to fight.”

  “Hmph, I don’t know about that, but whatever!”

  Finally able to relax, we all went to bed till the morning. Upon waking, I could smell Steak sizzling over an open flame. It drew me out like a Moth to a Flame. “Steak, STEAK!” Drool practically ready to trail out of my mouth, I moved like a Zombie, failing to put anything on myself before moving. I didn’t exactly strip naked, but I was only wearing my underpants. No top at all. Honestly, I couldn’t care less, but Mitchell and Kent were instantly drawn to the sight. Freddrick, Bobby, and Dillan were thankfully still sleeping.

  “Jane Sweaty, I think you forgot something.”

  “Huh?!” I looked down. “Oh, sigh, I guess I should put on a top, but that Steak smells so good, I don’t even want to bother.”

  Nevertheless, I let Mira guide me back inside to get a top. I needed her too, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to force myself to leave that heavenly smell. It was Divine in flavor. Everyone approved, though they were all timid on their first bites.

  Once breakfast was finished, and I was finally able to force myself to leave the table and put on clothes, I went outside the Palisade. The construction was quick. Fifty greenhouses, their houses, and storage buildings rose before I felt the drain on my Mana, “Damn, there’s only two more fields left, why couldn’t my Mana hold out longer this once?”

  Nevertheless, I had to take a break. Upon which I realized that Jeanette’s Family, with the help of my Detail, had finished moving into the first house I constructed. The Elders had taken it upon themselves to assign families to the new homes, leaving two of their three families unassigned, but with the two remaining fields to construct, it was obvious that everyone would have a new home once I finished my break. Two hours, and another Steak later, and I was ready to finish the new construction. Which I promptly did. “Elders, should we dismantle all the old buildings once they’re empty. Then, plan out a new town using my Stone Magic, so everyone can have a decent home when they move here, later? Craftsman and the like. I assume more people will be moving here in time.”

  “Perhaps that’s wise, you said dismantle, that means taking them apart, so we can use everything again, yes?”

  I nodded. “Absolutely, the three, um, ah, well, it doesn’t work in this language. There are three words you should always keep in mind with old items that won’t do their original jobs anymore. Recycle, meaning to use again, Reduce, meaning to use less than you might otherwise use, and lastly Reuse, meaning to use something for a use other than it was originally designed for. Such as a cracked Barrel being turned into a Hay Manger, or a Water Filter.”

  I had installed a large water tower, with a wind-powered pump, a filter system, indoor plumbing for every home, flushing toilets, and a sewer system leading far out of the town. This would be the most advanced community in the Nation. I had made roads too, so once I was finished with the Town, there would be very little trouble for the residents. “I see, that makes sense. Why waste materials, once the original structure is no longer needed? Once we’re finished moving everyone to the new houses, I’ll have the old structures dismantled as you suggest. Even if we don’t need the materials ourselves, I’m sure we could regain some money from selling them off.” I smiled, taking my leave as I went back to work. The last two fields, houses, and their outbuildings were finished in less than an hour.

  “I think I’m going to collapse for like ten hours as soon as I eat something.”

  Alian chuckled gently, with a warm smile. “Come love, let’s get you fed, and into bed. At least tonight, we all have our rooms. So we won’t be surrounded by everyone else tonight, just the three of us.” Once we reached the new house, the Kitchen was clearly a big hit. The dining area had a huge, clearly new table built, still needed to be sanded and stained, but a major improvement over the previous plate holding they were used to.

  “Oh Jane, I was curious what those rod things on the windows were for.”

  I smiled and responded. “Curtains, so you can block out the light, with something pretty.” I sat exhausted at the table, as food was served. More Steak, YUM! “Right now, I don’t think I can get tired of Steak!”