Volume 5 Chapter 1 Breakfast
The rainy season began about a month and a half ago, and the weather has gotten hotter. Lately, even sitting still makes you sweat. The church bell rang for the second time this morning, and most shops are already open.
"Good morning..."
Al opened the door to the dining hall with a sleepy face. The dining hall, with 6 tables lined up, was quiet, and in the kitchen, Russ's wife, Louren, and their daughter, Iris, were washing dirty dishes.
"Good morning." "Good morning!"
Hearing their voices, Al walked closer to the kitchen, took a wooden bowl, and served himself some stew. He grabbed a piece of black bread from the basket in front of the counter and sat down at the counter seat.
"Thanks for always helping yourself."
Louren smiled without stopping her dishwashing. The stew had a sweet aroma that made his appetite grow. Al took a bite and nodded big.
"It's delicious again today. What's this flavor?"
"It's methi. Do you know fenugreek? The seeds have started to come out now. Good flavor, right?"
Al tilted his head. Fenugreek was known as a herb for strength and digestion. It was supposed to be very bitter, but he was impressed by how different it tasted when used in cooking.
"It's thanks to Mr. Al that the food tastes so good."
Louren spoke, deep in thought. Al tilted his head. She explained that ever since Al used the 'Light' spell on the dining hall lamp to save oil, they didn't need to burn the lamp anymore. Because of this, the food's flavors became clearer. The smell of burning beast oil from the lamp was quite strong before. Even though they used good-quality oil for the dining hall, it still affected how food tasted. Al sniffed and agreed--it made sense now.
"It's only while we're staying here, though. I've managed to adjust the timing just right."
Al looked proud. The fact that he could adjust the timing came from his recent learning of 'Magic Power Control' spells, which not only refilled the magic stone used for magic tools with mana but also allowed him to infuse more mana into the magic he used.
When using the 'Light' spell, its duration depends on your skill level. If you know how long it lasts, you can wait for it to end and cast it again to keep the light. Al could set the duration by adjusting brightness, but that was only when he first used the spell.
However, by using the 'Magic Power Control' spell, Al could add more mana to the spells he had already cast. He could also adjust the brightness and duration of the spells again. As a result, he no longer had to worry about the timing of when the magic would run out. He could add mana anytime, so he wouldn't miss the timing when it would end.
"By the way, Mr. Al. You've been cooped up in your room for the past 3 weeks without working. Are you okay?"
Iris was washing dishes when she handed Al a wooden cup of water. Earlier, he seemed fine, but now he looked worried. He had been too absorbed in his new spellbook to work, and his money was running out.
"Y-Yeah, I'll go to work soon. Ms. Barbara should be back, and the armor I ordered should be ready too."
"Just because you got some money doesn't mean you can just play around."
Louren reached over from behind the counter and took Al's empty wooden bowl and spoon. Learning magic wasn't a game, but for Al, it felt similar. Feeling a bit anxious, Al tried to change the subject by showing Iris the pendant hanging around his neck.
It was a round, flat blue crystal about 2 cm in diameter (� 0.79 inches). It had a shiny silver metal frame, and a hemp cord was threaded between the crystal and the frame for wearing it around his neck.
"Wow, it's beautiful."
Iris couldn't help but stop and stare at the blue crystal. She could see white lines glowing from the center of the crystal, waving like waves.
"My grandpa gave this to me. He found it in an ancient ruin. I don't know what kind of magic tool it is, but it's beautiful, right?"
Al felt a bit shy as he looked closely at Iris's profile, so he hurriedly took off the pendant and handed it to her.
"So far, it reacts to the 'Magic Sense' spell, but it doesn't seem to do anything useful. It's just a blue transparent stone with a metal frame, glowing faintly in the center. I thought it might be out of mana, so I tried using a magic stone, but nothing happened. After learning 'Magic Power Control,' I put mana into it and it started glowing like this."
Iris was impressed as she held it up to the lamp's light and looked at it through the bright sunlight coming in from the window.
"I'm sure this must be really valuable."
Iris spoke confidently, and Al smiled and nodded. People often think of magic tools as very useful. However, Al's grandpa, who explored ancient ruins, said many magic tools have unknown uses. His grandpa believed this mystery was part of the dream. Al always wore a pendant around his neck, as a symbol of this idea, often staring at it by himself.
"Anyway, it's getting late, but I'm going out for a bit."
After getting the pendant back from Iris, Al stood up energetically.
* * *
Al's first stop was the main branch of the Levy merchant guild. He walked past a spellbook shop but didn't go in since he had no money. After telling the clerk why he was there, they led him to a reception room. Instead of flowers, fresh green branches decorated the space, giving off a pleasant scent--maybe cinnamon? While Al wondered about it, someone knocked on the door. When he said, "Come in," the door opened with energy.
"Thank you, Alfred. I'm glad you could come."
Entering the reception room were Ruella and Guildmaster Levy. Ruella was wearing a blue dress and looked cheerful. Al smiled, happy to see her looking well, and Ruella returned his smile with a bright grin.
"You really helped me. Thanks to you, I didn't have to go through anything terrible, and there were no strange rumors."
Guildmaster Levy nodded repeatedly, agreeing with Ruella's words.
"However, I never expected there would be such a bad magician. Ah, I don't mean to say all magicians are bad, but I just wonder what we should do about it."
Guildmaster Levy's tone sounded quite regretful. Of course, not all magicians were to blame, and the magician guild had measures in place, like banning certain types of magic and providing ethical education for registered magicians. But still, the crimes didn't stop.
As Al, who was involved in one of those banned magics, felt a bit guilty inside, he could only nod in response to Guildmaster Levy's words, saying it was a troubling issue.
"Well, if you want to know, after that, the remaining members of the group..."
When Al asked, Guildmaster Levy shook his head. Although they managed to catch all the members who were in Oakley Village, it seemed there was still more to the story, and it wasn't completely resolved. Barbara was still conducting the investigation. It seemed Ruella would also have a bodyguard for a while.
"As a thank you for what you did, I prepared this for you. When I asked Ruella, she said a spellbook would be the best gift for you. I asked a shop that sells spellbooks what is popular right now, and they recommended this one. I hope you like it..."
After discussing various topics, Guildmaster Levy gave Al a beautiful wooden box labeled "Magic Tornado." This spell could attack all enemies within a chosen area, hitting many targets at once. It was flashy and popular, selling for around 35 gold coins a few months ago.
"Of course, I haven't learned it yet, and I'm really happy. But, something this expensive..."
Al hesitated to take it, but Guildmaster Levy somewhat forcefully made him hold the wooden box.
"That's how much you helped us. I hope you continue to support Ruella and Sir Naresh. I also made sure to thank Kane properly, so you don't need to hold back. Also, Barbara wants to ask you something later, so please help with that too."
Al was persuaded and accepted the wooden box. Recently, he had been really happy to keep getting spellbooks one after another. However, it seemed like he needed to slow down a bit since it was time to get back to work. After thanking them many times, Al left the reception room.
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