Leaving Ashley Grant to wash her own clothes, Henry Clark went back to take care of some miscellaneous chores. He moved the butchered pork to the outer room of their living quarters, found a place to bury the wild boar’s discarded organs, and by the time he finished all this, Ashley Grant had also returned with her damp clothes.

When she was hanging her clothes on a wooden pole, Ashley Grant said softly, “Brother, Henry.”

“Bathing is out of the question, don’t even mention it.”

Ashley Grant was stunned. She asked in surprise, “How did you know what I was going to say?”

Henry Clark turned his head to the side and said, “You don’t have to be that smart to know what it means to push your luck. If it were summer, of course I wouldn’t stop you, but the problem is it’s winter now. Even at the warmest part of the day, it’s only two or three degrees, and at night it drops to minus seven or eight. We don’t even have a big pot to heat water. How exactly do you plan to take a bath?”

“You see, I didn’t even say it and you’re already on guard… Well, it’s okay if there’s only a little hot water…”

Henry Clark let out a breath and said, “Your body is too weak. If you wait until you’re stronger, I won’t object to you bathing, but in your current state, I can guarantee you’ll catch a cold if you do. And if you’re not foolish, you should know that if you get sick now, there’s no doctor!”

Henry Clark completely understood that girls love to be clean and look good, but if staying clean meant risking her life, he’d be very angry. As a survivalist, he thought it wasn’t worth it.

Ashley Grant was smart and obedient. She said regretfully, “Alright, I won’t bathe.”

“Good, then I have something nice for you. Come with me.”

Henry Clark was pleased. Since Ashley Grant was a smart and obedient kid, there were some things worth giving her.

Chapter 7: Knife

Ashley Grant followed Henry Clark into the bedroom. Henry Clark took out two knives, one long and one short, from his bag, and placed both in front of Ashley Grant.

“Take this knife.”

Ashley Grant was a bit surprised as she took the longer knife.

“Draw it.”

Ashley Grant undid the clasp on the leather sheath and drew the knife.

The blade was very bright, and the wooden handle had a beautiful pattern.

Henry Clark said with a straight face, “The handle is stabilized birch burl. The blade is 33 centimeters long, 3 centimeters at its widest, 5 millimeters thick, made from S30V powder steel from Crucible Industries in the US, BOS heat treatment, Rockwell hardness 61. It has excellent edge retention and toughness—enough to last you a lifetime.”

Ashley Grant couldn’t help but say, “It’s so beautiful, and you sound so professional!”

Henry Clark exhaled lightly and said, “From now on, keep this knife on you at all times, no matter what you’re doing. Don’t let it leave your reach. Get familiar with it, use it, treat it as an extension of your arm. If you encounter a bad person, don’t hesitate to stab them with it. If you encounter a wild animal, stab it.”

Ashley Grant was stunned for a moment, then nodded, “I understand. I definitely will.”

Henry Clark continued, “This knife is very sharp, but because it’s so sharp, don’t use it to chop very hard things, or you’ll damage the edge. A knife is your most important tool for survival in the wild—more important than anything else. Treat it well, just like you would treat yourself.”

Ashley Grant became serious too. She nodded, “Got it. I’ll definitely treasure this knife.”

“Birch burl isn’t very hard, so the handle is relatively fragile. Be careful when you use it. Also, the handle was made to fit my hand, so it might be a bit thick for you. If you think it’s too thick, I can adjust it to fit you better, but I can’t change the length—I don’t have the right tools.”

Ashley Grant said in surprise, “When you used the radio earlier, you called yourself a knife maker. Did you make this knife?”

Henry Clark spread his hands and said, “What else? Of course I made it. This is the first knife I’m truly satisfied with. The steel was expensive, and it’s a pain to make a knife from properly heat-treated steel. Buying the steel hurt my wallet, making the knife hurt my head, and giving it to you hurts my heart. So you have to take good care of it.”

“Wow, you’re really multi-talented! Amazing! Thank you, Henry.”

After her exclamation, Ashley Grant suddenly said, “Can I see the knife you use yourself?”

Henry Clark hesitated for a moment—he really did hesitate—but he still drew his own knife.

However, Henry Clark didn’t hand the knife to Ashley Grant.

The knife Henry Clark used himself wasn’t as pretty as the one he gave Ashley Grant.

It wasn’t rusty, but it had black oxidation spots and lots of signs of use. The sheath was covered in scratches, and the black handle looked very ordinary.

“This knife is forged from high-carbon steel. I used rail steel—old rails from decades ago. I designed, forged, and quenched it myself. The length is 32 centimeters, Rockwell hardness about 58. The good thing about carbon steel is it sharpens quickly and easily. This knife is very sharp, but its edge retention isn’t as good as yours. Yours is made from modern powder steel; mine is, at best, traditional craftsmanship.”

Ashley Grant asked curiously, “You have a lot of knives, right? Why do you use this one?”