Chapter 5: Frostfield Town 2
(AN: This is more world building)
Eizo sighed and he had a melancholic smile as he watched his friends leave. Yes. He now considered them friends and he was sad with their sudden separation soon after getting to know them. He knew he would miss them.
Ezio have had many people from Earth that he considered as friends. But, these ones are people whom he had gone to battle with. Something completely unimaginable on Earth. They relied on one another. It made his affection for them stronger. He had regret on his face knowing that, unlike on Earth, he couldn’t call or video chat with them anytime he liked. There was that much gravity in saying goodbye to friends.
Ezio sighed again. This time it’s to perk himself up with determination to carry on his day.
(Alright, let’s do this! First order of business is shopping. ~Shopping~. hehe)
After having to wear the same clothes after a bath, he really prioritized getting more clothes. Plus, there were a lot of necessities he was still missing. After asking the innkeeper where he could buy clothes and packs, he was directed to the area around the Crafters Guild.
He entered a shop that specializes in leather items. There he found leather armor, fur cloaks, belts, and other things crafted with leather or animal skin as base material.
“Mister, can I see the traveling packs that you’re selling?” -Eizo
“Sure sonny. This way… You an adventurer? This ones here are popular among adventurers.” -Old man shopkeeper
Eizo checked the items he was pointed to.
(I see why this would be useful for adventurers. It has multiple pockets and the main flap is quite secured. Huh? What’s this?)
“Mister, can you tell me about this one?” -Eizo
“Oh? Certainly. That there, sonny, is an enchanted rucksack. It can store much more items than it looks. It is enchanted with runes with space-time magic, you know.” Old man shopkeeper
“Really can I see it?” -Eizo
(Now that he mentioned it, I can, indeed, sense mana from this rucksack, but, they are barely noticeable as if distorted or barely even there. Is this the effect of space-time runes? Oh, I can recognize these marks.)
The marks that he was thinking about were actually invisible to the naked eye. It was only when he focused some mana in his eye that he was able to see those marks or notice the distorted circulation of mana in the rucksack.
“How much is this thing?” Eizo
“That one is 5,000 Gil. I’m sorry, sonny, but, I don’t think you can afford that.” -Old man shopkeeper
“No. You’re totally right. There’s no way I can buy something like this. hehe.” -Eizo
(Hehe. I’ll just make one on my own later.)
“How about this one right here?” -Eizo
He was talking about a dark leather rucksack that has a very simple design. It has 3 pockets in total; one main compartment and one on either side of the rucksack. Each pocket has a flap and a buckle to seal them. Eizo thought that he could enchant this rucksack later.
“Hehe. Enchanted rucksack are usually carried only by experienced adventurers. That one you’re pointing at costs 500 Gil.” -Old man shopkeeper
“500? Hmm. I’ll give you 350 Gil for it.” -Eizo
“Haggling? hehe. I’ll take 425 Gil.” -Old man shopkeeper
“Deal!” -Eizo
Ezio was not new to haggling. In some places on Earth, it was still widely practiced, especially in places where they gave no receipts and accepted no returns. In fact, some shopkeepers even liked it when their customer haggle. But, he felt that he shouldn’t haggle too much to avoid being an annoying customer. Since he was going to make this town his base of operation, he wanted to maintain an amicable relationship with shopkeepers he was likely to shop from often.
“Can I buy a belt as well?” -Eizo
“Okay. I have one that matches the leather of that rucksack. … This one here is 100, no just 75 Gil with the racksack. So, that’s a total 5 silvers.” -Old man shopkeeper
“Okay. Here you go.” -Eizo
He handed one gold coin and got 5 silver coins in change.
Now that he had a rucksack, he went to a nearby tailor shop to buy some clothes. The selection they had ranged from the most affordable to very expensive ones used by nobles.
“Hello there, I’m looking for some clothing for myself.” -Eizo
“Hmmp. How much can you afford? -Granny Tailor Shop
“Please show me the cheaper ones.” Eizo
“Okay this way. … This ones should be appropriate with your budget.” -Granny Tailor Shop
She showed him her selection of tunic, cloaks, and trousers made from the cheaper fabrics. Upon looking closely over the merchandise he picked three tunics and one trouser. The tunics had short sleeves, low neck line, and were made of wool. It had very simple design, white, or undyed, with minimal accent black stripes along its ends. The trouser had a dark brown color and was made of jute like plant fiber fabric. It seemed durable enough for his travels.
“I’ll take these ones. How much?” -Eizo
“For the tunics, 50 Gil each. For the trouser I have to ask for 150 Gil.” -Granny Tailor Shop
“Okay here is 2 silver coins.” -Eizo
He decided not to haggle with this granny.
“Thank you. I’ve received exact payment. huh? Wait boy! That clothes you’re wearing under that cloak. Can I see it? I’ve never seen anything like it.” -Granny Tailor Shop
Eizo realized that his clothes did seem strange compared to the clothes available here. He was wearing a simple buttoned shirt paired with jeans. His shoes would also be strange when thinking about it.
“That top you’re wearing. I’ve never seen any fabric as fine as that. And, so many buttons! Are they made from pearl? Are you a noble? And those trousers, they looked very durable. I’ve never seen any fabric like that. Are they made from hemp? From Jute? Flax, perhaps?!” -Granny Tailor Shop
“No, I’m not a noble and these things are not that strange. They were common where I came from.” -Eizo
“Really? Either way, how about selling them to me? I could pay you coins or I could exchange them with clothes in my store, with a discount of course.” -Granny Tailor Shop
“Hm? It sounds like a good offer. But, I’ll have to refuse. These clothes are important to me. See?” -Eizo
“Of course, of course! I understand if you get attached to your favorite clothes. If you change your mind, come back to me, okay?” -Granny Tailor Shop
He put all the things he brought to the rucksack. Eizo exited the tailor shop and proceeded to the Adventurers Guild.
(That granny got excited all of the sudden about my clothes. I guess they would seem interesting to tailors from here. I should make an effort to wearing the common clothes to fit in. It was very tempting to sell my clothes when I feel the lightness of my coin sack. I should have about 595 Gil remaining. For now, I should take a simple quest.)
“Hello, Anna. Is my guild card ready yet?” -Eizo
“Yes, I was waiting for you. Here you go. Do you know how to take care of your guild card?” -Anna
“Take care of it? You mean don’t misplace it?” -Eizo
“Well, naturally you should try not to lose it. But I’m talking specifically on how guild cards function differently from normal cards.” -Anna
“Oh? What do you mean?” -Eizo
“Each guild card is tuned to a person’s mana. Yours is still new and it’s not attuned to anyone’s mana right now. Please keep it on your person for at least 12 hours. By then, the card will have registered your mana. The card will store a very small amount of your mana, after that, it can only store your mana once it’s attuned to it. This trace amount of mana will also dissipates after about 4 hours that the card was not in close proximity to you.” -Anna
“So, this is how you check the authenticity of a person’s guild card?” -Eizo
“Exactly. The verification orbs we have in every guild branch can check if the card has its registered mana in it while also verifying that the information on the card is accurate. This way we can prevent other people from using your card.” -Anna
“I understand. It is good to know that. I guess I don’t have to worry about other people using my card then.” -Ezio
“That’s right. But please, take care not to lose it. Remember that it may still be used by others within 4 hours after you lose it. Be especially careful not to lose it in big cities where guild receptionists can’t be expected to be familiar with all their regular adventurers. Also, you will have to pay 150 Gil for a replacement and you will have to wait another day for it to be ready. Your first one comes free with your registration.” -Anna
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
(I’m thankful that Anna had the patience to explain things to me. She’s definitely the kind who can become a good teacher, especially for young kids. hehe. I can imagine her explaining the same things to every new adventurers.)
“Thanks, Anna. I appreciate you taking the time to explain it all to me.” -Ezio
Anna blushed a bit.
“It’s okay. It’s my job afterall. hehe” -Anna
“Well, in that case, can I ask you another question? Do you know what kind of monsters can I expect to encounter near the town?” -Eizo
“Oh for that, you’re free to use the guild library. We keep a small library here. It’s filled with local informations especially about monsters. Head to the second floor and you’ll find it to your right.” -Anna
“Is that right? Thanks. I think I’ll do that right now.” -Ezio
Ezio went to the upper level of the guild building. On his left from the stairs was the library as expected. They had several bookshelves and a sitting area where a whole party of adventurers could do some research about a quest. On one end was a desk where for people who wanted to do more serious research. On the right were a door that lead to the conference room and another door for the guild master’s office.
Ezio went to the library. He found an old man sitting there, reading a book. He decided not to bother the old man as it was the custom in libraries he was used to from Earth. He found the book he wanted to check from a bookshelf dedicated to monster informations. The book he selected was titled ‘An Illustrated Survey Of Monsters Around Frostfield Town’ written by Frostfield Branch Adventurers Guildmaster Sergius Bellator 3rd Ed. 487 Draculis.
(487 Draculis? Wait a minute. The year that Grandpa was transported was 119th year of the Draculis Era. That means this book was published 368 years after that. That’s about 7 times the time Grandpa spent on Earth which was 53 years including the time we thought he was missing. For all I can tell, the duration of a day and the number of days in a year is the same as on Earth. Do this means time flows here about 7 times faster that on Earth? I can’t confirm it at the moment. For now, I’ll just do what I came here to do.)
“Is something wrong, young man?” -old man
Apparently, the old man noticed the shock on Eizo’s face.
“Huh? No, everything’s fine. Sorry” -Eizo
“Don’t be sorry. I was just curious why you had a sudden change in expression after picking up that book. Is it that surprising of a read? Haha.” -old man
“No it’s not that. I haven’t read it. I just think it’s a good book to read for new adventurers.” -Eizo
“Oh. You’re new, huh? I’ll take what you said as a compliment. It is why I wrote that book, to help newbies. Haha.” -old man
“You’re the guildmaster? “ -Eizo
“Yup! Sergius Bellator, at your service.” -Guildmaster
“I’m Eizo Walker, adventurer as of today.” -Eizo
“Oh? Welcome to the guild, young man.” -Guildmaster
“Um. If you don’t mind me asking, how old is this book.” -Eizo
“You’re worried if it might be outdated? It’s only been three years since I made this edition. It’s good to see a cautious new adventurer. Most of the newbies are overconfident thinking they can’t be possibly defeated by low level monsters. But, it is like I always say, you won’t see an old adventurer that isnot careful! Haha!” -Guildmaster
(Three years? So, now is the 490th year of Draculis.)
“Right. I will keep that in mind.” Eizo
“Good. I look forward to what you become in the future. I’ll leave you to your reading then.” -Guildmaster
Guildmaster Bellator exited the library and went into his office. Eizo went right into reading. It was very helpful that the book had illustrations of the monsters. He already had a basic knowledge about monsters from his grandfather but he wanted to make sure what to expect. Knowing the appearance of monster would be essential later on.
(That old man is a great scholar and illustrator. It’s kinda unexpected.)
After going over the book about monsters, he was thinking of reading a history book about the past three centuries, He was excited to take his first quest, like a little boy about to go in a field trip. But frankly, he was still shocked to find out that more than 350 years had passed since his grandpa was transported. From the selected memories he inherited, he knew how his grandpa wanted to return to his homeworld, especially after his grandma passed away.
Having a depleted mana pool due to the lack of mana on Earth, Rufus Silavanus had to wait for a specific celestial condition to use in a ritualistic spell to power the world bridge he deviced. But unfortunately, the portal to Crystallis required more mana than he expected. He collapsed after trying to open the portal, never being able to stand up again. He died after using his remaining mana in creating the crystal orb containing his knowledge within. (AN: More on this later.)
Of course, being unable to come back, he couldn’t have known that before he died almost three centuries had passed by in his home world. Rufus Silvanus, as free spirited as he was, truly cared a lot for his home world and it’s people. As the archmage of the human empire, with the constant monster threat and the possibility of another demon invasion, he was increasingly worried as the years, decades went by. But now, realizing that his grandfather was actually gone for more than three centuries, Eizo felt sad for his grandpa. But, that was his grandpa’s worries. Eizo knew that his grandpa wouldn’t want him to inherit his worries.
But just like a cat, he couldn’t contain his curiosity any longer. He checked the history section of the library and found a book that looked interesting. It was ‘The History of Humanity: Draculis Era’ by Gaius Ignatius , 13th ed.
Eizo flip the cover of the big book and looked at the information about the author. It said:
Gaius Ignatius, 1st Mage of the Arken Kingdom
Headmaster, Professor Emeritus in Human History, and Master Instructor of Fire Magic of the Obsidian Tower.
Head Keeper of Records of the Human Mage Genealogy
(Wow. That’s a lot of titles. Someone’s an overachiever. But, it’s good that he’s the leading figure in the study of human history. I couldn’t care less about those other titles right now.)
The Draculis era started after the successful repelling of a full demon invasion, as it was custom to start a new era in celebration of surviving a demon invasion. He skipped over about the first third of the book and found the section about his grandfather’s disappearance. The book had a section dedicated to the unsolved mystery of the disappearance of the former Archmage. It’s obvious that the author revered Rufus Silvanus as the unreachable god like level of what a human mage could be. He even provided the popular theories as to how and why the archmage disappeared.
One theory said that he was abducted by the demon race as payback to the failure of their last invasion of the Aria Continent. Another said that he was assassinated by the beastmen in preparation for their war against the humans. One said the archmage simply tired of living among the humans and decided to live among the elves instead. The most bizarre one said that he accumulated too much power and turned into a dragon before flying away.
(I guess as weird as those theory, travelling to another world was even more unimaginable.)
Human history took a bad turn after losing their last archmage. Eizo skimmed through the contents, only noting events that he was curious about at the moment. He summarized what he read in his head.
Having the archmage as advisor to the old Arken Empire increased the prestige of the then emperor. Under his rule, humanity was united under one banner. During the demon invasion, the human army was decisive in its deployments and was able to quickly defeat the invasion in the human territory with the help from the archmage. They were even able to lend their forces to help the elves fight the invasion in their territory.
After the archmage disappeared, the authority of the emperor was put into question. Some people even accused him of driving away the archmage due to jealousy of the archmage’s fame. It resulted in a civil war that resulted into the collapse of the empire. The human land was divided into three kingdoms: The Arken Kingdom in the west that rose from the remains of the empire, The Alosha Kingdom in the south, and the Khora Republic in the east.
Not long after that, the Beastmen Hegemony attacked Arken Kingdom blaming them for the devastation of their lands during the demon invasion because the humans decided to help the Elves instead of them. After almost two centuries after the invasion, widespread starvation in their territories fanned the hostility of their people toward the humans. The battle occur on the border that served as a choke point between beastmen and human territory. The disputed border was claimed by both sides at one point but they were unable to hold it for good.
At that time, wealthy human, beastmen, and dwarven merchants founded the independent City-state of Tovaria on the disputed border between the beastmen territory and the Arken Kingdom. This city-state was able to hold on their country using their army of mercenaries. In time the city-state was formally recognized by other nations and it has now become one of the biggest economic power in the continent. To this day, Tovaria is still ruled by their merchant council.
In time, a peace agreement was signed by all the leaders of the nations of Aria Continent. This is because the demons may invade anytime. Historically, the demons have invaded with intervals of 400 to 600 years. Ironically, the threat of a demon invasion was holding the peace in Aria Continent.
-End of Chapter-