CRACK! We all jolted at the loud sound. It didn’t come from the rock hitting the target—the end of the tie that had been released whipped through the air, creating a sonic boom for just a split second. It’d sounded like a small explosion—very similar to what occurred when someone used a whip. In fact, if one rippled a long chain, they could achieve the same effect.
In contrast to the noise, the stone flew through the air quite elegantly. It required practice to sling a stone where you wanted, but this one flew in a beautiful low arc and hit the target cleanly. The stone shattered with a crack, implying that it wasn’t very tough. But that didn’t mean that the target was unscathed. The target had already been damaged by the arrows, and it now sported a hole where the stone had struck. If the rock had hit someone in the head, even if they were wearing a helmet, it would’ve been a fatal blow. A chill ran down our spines at the thought.
“And that’s how it’s done,” Helen said cheerfully. “All right, let’s begin practicing!”
We all nodded obediently.
Large cracks rang in the air as we snapped the ties from our grips—the sounds were quite ominous. The most recent crack belonged to Samya, who’d just slung a stone at a target. Perhaps because she was used to aiming with her bow, she hit her targets expertly. Every time we hit our target, my three daughters cried out in celebration.
Helen crossed her arms behind us. “Yeah, she’s awesome.” She didn’t lock eyes with me as she continued, “If she’s this precise and it’s practically her first time, it’s more than good enough.”
“I expected as much,” I agreed.
Samya was very skilled at many things and could execute them very well. Naturally, she couldn’t be blamed for lacking specialized knowledge in, say, blacksmithing. But she was the best when it came to stuff like this. All she’d received were a couple of pointers from Helen, and then she was hitting one target after another. And to repeat, every time, my daughters cheered joyfully.
Diana would miss her target every now and then, but she generally kept all her rocks in one small area. She might need a bit more practice if she wanted to use this technique for hunting, but her skill was more than enough for chasing away outsiders and protecting our cabin.
“Protect, huh?” I mumbled under my breath. Another loud crack rang in the air.
Clappers and defensive, rock-flinging slings—these measures had been brought about by us assuming the worst. We were overthinking...for now. Still, if an elite squad came to attack us, it was imperative to be ready for them, and I felt it was fair to be prepared for possible monsters as well. Ranged attacks ensured our safety, and there was no harm in having more options. Of course, I’d rather not use any of these methods at all.
“You think an abatis would be pushing things?” I asked Helen.
“Hmm...” She scratched her head.
An abatis was a defensive obstacle or barrier made of sharpened wood or branches. Usually, it was pointed at enemies—in our case, anywhere outside our cabin—and it was meant to prevent outsiders from intruding on our territory. I’d seen them in history books back on Earth, and I knew that they were rather ancient technology.
An abatis could be a barricade of sorts, meant to guard ourselves against monsters too. And it’d be useful against humans. I wasn’t sure if the existence of an abatis would make an intruder forfeit their plans to harm us, and it’d do us no good if we went through all the trouble of building one, only for it to yield poor results. Plus, an abatis could possibly lead to unfortunate accidents. I don’t think it could land any fatal blows, but it could easily injure someone.
“I don’t think they’re totally useless, but they’re a pain to maintain,” Helen said.
“I see...” I replied.
I scratched my head too. The Black Forest wasn’t nearly as humid as Japan’s forests, but wood tended to wear out pretty quickly, and it’d need regular repairs or maintenance. These repairs would probably be infrequent, but even so, an abatis took time and money to install in the first place. I wasn’t sure if all the effort would be worth it.
“I think you can save that idea until you know that your enemy will come at you with a massive army,” Helen said. “You probably wouldn’t even set one up around this cabin—it would be better placed much farther out in the woods.”
I nodded. “Makes sense.”
The idea of barbed wire filled my head. I could probably make some, and even various types, if needed. Razor wire and barbed wire with spikes wouldn’t be hard to forge. However, this was extremely advanced technology for this world. If it could remain in this forest, I wouldn’t mind making some, but everyone here would potentially leave the cabin one day—it would feel awful to force them into secrecy on certain matters simply because I couldn’t keep my modernity to myself.
“But hey, as long as I’m here, I’m not gonna let this place get harmed,” Helen said. She focused on the ladies flinging rocks as she narrowed her eyes.
At the very least, we had the strongest person in this area on our side. Our enemy would have to attack us with an even greater force if they hoped to stand a chance against us.
“You’re right,” I said.
Helen chuckled. “Yeah? You think so?”
She patted my shoulder—an unusual thing for her to do. I felt pain that was different from Diana’s usual patting. Normally, anyone would’ve gotten annoyed by it, but I only felt ease and a sense of reliability in Helen.