Immo said, "I have heard of something called stone bricks before. They are basically stones cut into more regular shapes. Some tribes use them to build houses."
Hayoon nodded at him. "What I want to make with the red clay is mud bricks."
She gestured with her hands as she explained, "Red clay is sticky, right? After digging it out, you soak it in water overnight, then stomp on it repeatedly to make it even more adhesive. After repeating that process several times, you mix dry grass into it to increase its toughness. Then you shape it into rectangular blocks..."
As she spoke, she casually snapped off a branch and quickly sketched a rectangular block on the ground. "Each one will be about this size. Once they dry, they can be used. By stacking the mud bricks one on top of another, you can build walls."
Everyone listened attentively, and by the time she finished explaining, they were all stunned.
"Beast God above, you can do that?"
"So the bricks only need to dry in the sun?"
"It sounds simple enough, but will walls built like that actually be sturdy?"
After remaining silent for a while, Minho finally spoke. "Red clay treated this way should not crack easily. It should at least be good enough to block wind and rain."
Hayoon thought to herself that this was wisdom passed down from ancient ancestors. It was not just "good enough." It was extremely reliable.
If maintained properly, a rammed-earth house could easily last through generations.
After hearing Minho's words, the beastmen present also began to feel that the idea made sense.
All of them were incredibly strong. Almost no building could withstand a full-force charge from them anyway.
Then again, no one would go charging wildly around inside their own house.
"So houses are still built from dirt in the end?" Beom asked. "That does not sound very different from living in a cave."
Sulwoo nodded. "Even if making mud bricks is easy, it is still not as easy as digging a cave. Personally, I would not want to go through all that trouble."
Hayoon did not continue explaining further.
No matter how much she said, it would never be as convincing as letting everyone see the finished house with their own eyes.
"Anyway, that is how the red clay will be used. It is getting late, so shall we begin?" she said.
"Alright!" everyone responded enthusiastically.
Hayoon first explained the area she had marked out. "All the tall grass and large rocks need to be cleared away, and those two trees need to be cut down as well. There is no need to level the ground yet because we still need to dig the foundation afterward."
Before anyone could ask what a "foundation" was, Hayoon looked toward Minho. "Can you help assign tasks to everyone?"
As the tribe's warrior, Minho might not speak much, but he had plenty of experience leading groups.
Minho nodded. "Alright."
With his help, the group was quickly divided into teams, with the adults and teenagers assigned to the main labor.
The cubs immediately crowded around Hayoon and Minho instead.
Although they still could not transform into human form, they could already speak.
In soft childish voices, they began chattering all at once.
"Uncle Minho, what about us?"
"I want to help Big Sister Hayoon too~"
"Huh? What is that smell? It smells so good."
The little bears' attention instantly shifted as they crowded even closer, sniffing the scent lingering on the two of them.
Their short little snouts twitched rapidly.
Leejin, the panda cub from Yeonhwa's family, suddenly lit up with excitement and shouted first, "It smells like beast milk!"
The other cubs quickly recognized the scent as well and refused to be outdone.
"There is honey too!"
"And fruit!"
"It smells soooo good!"
The little bears shouted noisily while practically drooling.
None of them directly asked Hayoon for food, but they stared at her eagerly while pawing softly at her pant legs, which somehow made them even more destructive to her resolve.
Hayoon could not help laughing helplessly while also feeling strangely guilty as if she had secretly eaten something delicious without sharing.
Yeonhwa and her mate hurried over and pulled Leejin away.
"What did we say before coming here? You are not allowed to disturb the adults while they are working," Yeonhwa scolded Leejin with a stern face.
The panda cub immediately lowered his head and even his ears drooped down as he let out the soft whining sounds unique to bears.
Hayoon instantly felt even more guilty and quickly comforted him. "There is still some milk left from this morning. After we finish working, I will make something delicious for all of you."
Yeonhwa froze for a moment before hurriedly refusing. "No, no, no. You cannot encourage his greedy eating habits."
The other adults voiced similar objections while pulling their cubs back to their sides.
But Leejin was clearly tempted now.
His round little bear eyes sparkled brightly as he stared at Hayoon.
Yeonhwa had probably already used sulfur soap to bathe him because he looked especially clean now.
Combined with that innocent, longing little expression on his face, he was so adorable that it nearly drove Hayoon crazy.
She was making food for them. Absolutely making it.
Once she returned to the cave, she was going to bring out all the milk and prepare something delicious for everyone.
"Leejin."
A deep, authoritative male voice suddenly sounded out.
The panda cub immediately trembled and quickly hid behind Yeonhwa.
"Father," the cub called obediently.
Hayoon looked up, and Yeonhwa took the initiative to introduce him.
"This is my mate, Jinsan."
She nodded to show she understood.
Haeun had a very good friend named Jinsu who was Jinsan's younger brother.
Both brothers were beastmen and they resembled each other closely.
Jinsan was a handsome man with deep-set features and a firm resolute face.
Because he rarely smiled, the cubs in the tribe feared him even more than the naturally aloof Minho.