Chapter 51

Ardiel Elrond

'Talented guy huh?'

'Can't say that I didn't tell you.'

Faelar sat on the bed across from mine, conjuring and dispelling earth and water magic. It was always nice to see a confident smile on his face instead of his usual shy and passive demeanor. The guy really did demonstrate talent that is rare to come across. If not for his submissive behavior, he certainly could rival me given a few more years. 

I obtained the ability to dispel magic in about the same time that he did, but I also have to consider my head start in casting magic, and my adult brain. So basically I, a thirty seven year-old, was competing against a ten year-old, and our results were the same. 

If I was born without my memories of my past life, as a twenty seven year-old man in an infant's body, then Faelar would definitely be way ahead of me in magic. But, truth be told, it was me who sparked the confidence he so required to achieve such results, so who knows. 

Anyways, I was proud of him. Like a teacher who feels proud for the success of their students, I felt genuinely happy for the kid. 

But on the topic of magic, I still needed a more updated book. The one I borrowed from dad was almost as old as he was, so at least a hundred years old, and the contents of it were outdated too if I assume what Loueras told me about magic was correct.

As we rode into town, we passed by a mage shop that looked promising enough, so I memorized the way there from this inn. Getting a new book would be beneficial for me to study new forms of magic, and for Faelar to advance his skills as well.

But honestly, I was also looking for an excuse to explore the town for a bit. We saw Tralelin only from our wagon, and same for Grassente. I never really got to just walk around and see it for myself. But would Loueras allow me to go alone? And if my friends overhear, then I would have to take them too, and it would end up in a confined group tour instead of a casual free stroll. I really wanted to immerse myself in human society once again, just out of curiosity. Not being a human anymore would also add to the thrill of exploring it for a bit.

I rose up from my bed, sparking interest in Faelar. 

"Are you going somewhere?"

"Downstairs. Need to ask Loueras something, I'll be right back."

"Oh alright then." He said, immediately turning to conjuring and dispelling his magic. Does he not run out of mana? I swear he already did it like over a hundred times now.

I made my way down the creaky wooden stairs to the first floor, where I surprisingly found Loueras sitting alone, idly chatting about something with a nearby sitting man. 

I approached him, cautiously eyeing the stranger, and asked him in elven language so the man didn't overhear. I don't know why, but I just found it uncomfortable to share my whereabouts and plans with someone who's face I couldn't even see under his hood.

"If it's you, it should be fine. But I prohibit you from walking into the dark alleys, understood?"

"Yes sir." I replied.

He reached into his pocket, and handed me some coins.

It was nice of Loueras to see me almost as an adult, and trust me with not only my own safety, but with Faelar's as well. If it was anyone else, he would've said no, I was sure of it. Especially because Tariel's kidnapping was still fresh in everyone's minds. 

Oh right, I didn't even tell Faelar that I will be dragging him along. Oh well, I thought as I made my way back upstairs, it would only benefit him.

I entered the room where I found Faelar still sitting on the bed, engrossed in practicing his magic. Opening the wardrobe, I took out our travel cloaks, and threw one at him so that it landed on his head.

"Huh? What?" He asked as he frantically pulled at the cloak.

"Put it on." I said while dressing myself.

"Why?"

"Let's have a walk to the magic store."

"What? Alone? Just us?"

"Yes."

"What about Loueras."

"It's just the two of us."

He blinked as he stared at me, and then slowly put the cloak down. When his gaze landed back on me, his eyes were full of reprimand.

"After what happened to Tariel, he just let you go? And either way, that would be too careless."

I looked over at him and grinned while pointing a thumb at myself. 

"Don't worry princess. This knight in shining armor will save you, oh damsel in distress."

Faelar's face grimaced at my little play like he was either about to fart or puke. Meanwhile I finished getting dressed, and pulled the hood over my head.

"As long as we cover our ears, we will be no different from the locals, come on."

"But…"

"Let's go. It's good to get out once in a while." I said as I buckled serenity's shard around my waist and made my way to the door.

"I'll wait for you outside."

I gave Faelar no room to make further excuses to pressure him to go out. I must get that low confidence out of him or else he will remain a shut-in and stagnate. I waited for him outside by the front door, and sure enough, a few minutes later, he sheepishly made his way out with his hood almost completely covering his face. Well, better than nothing I guess.

"This way." I prompted him as we began walking in the direction of the store.

Grassente was much cleaner and tidier than Tralelin was. As we made our way along one of the town's main streets, I was surprised to see how fresh it felt. Tralelin, although it did have its nice spots, anywhere else stank of horse crap, the streets were dirty, and the buildings did not look like they were properly taken care of.

Despite being a small town, the streets were wide, and neatly laid out with paving stones. The homes were built in a middle ages Germany fashion, and looked proper and neat, almost like it was a tourist destination in Europe. All of them were constructed in a half-timber architecture, two or three stories tall, with colorful wood, red, brown, or yellow, and stone walls coated with white, yellow, or light brown plaster.

It was all the same as in Tralelin, only here there were no cracks, moldy smell, or loosely hanging window shutters. It was a town that was polished to a shine, which was surprising because how could such a small town look so wealthy and taken care of?

But where there is light, there are shadows as well. The answer came quite quickly to me once we passed the slave market, which was almost two times bigger than the one we saw in Tralelin, and much wealthier looking at that. Dark purple tents with golden lining, and the traders looked much more pompous too. I guess the reason this town was so prosperous was exactly because it was a center of the slave trade in the region, or at least a popular trade route. I made sure to hurry by it. Despite covering ourselves, especially our ears, I didn't want to test my luck like this. And Faelar was shivering like a leaf so I definitely did not want to be around here for much longer.

But other than that, the town was very nice. Merchants yelling out their products, the smell of flowers and pastries in the air, and the lighthearted chatter and laughter coming from the passerby. Grassente felt very homey and cozy. If I were a human, I would definitely consider living here.

The thing about living in Elvedreil is that the mentality of elves and humans were very different. Of course there were exceptions like my dad, but the majority of elves were much more reserved and calm. Here, the atmosphere felt warm, like at grandma's cottage. People interact with each other, laugh and holler, bicker and swear. Perhaps this was my human side that I still held within myself talking. I thought that I left it behind in Tralelin, but I guess that deep down, I mentally still am, part human.

I longed for this kind of atmosphere, and didn't realize just how much I did until now. There were much more rules as to how you must behave yourself that exist within the elven society. Things like swearing, hollering, and horseplay were frequently looked down upon, more so than humans did.

No, elves are not completely hermit-like high nobles. There are many similarities to human society, and the home that I grew up in was very homey and warm. But how should I put this…here in Grassente I felt much more free than I did in Elvedriel. Less required to abide by societal standards, and just be who I want to be. 

But who am I to rebuke the elves for being so reserved and proper? I did nothing but sleep at home and stare at a computer screen every day back in my old life. If anything, I was a hundred times more free and at peace in Elvedriel than I ever was. 

I really got spoiled huh? I literally grew up in a place that is safer, and more beautiful than any other. So what the hell am I complaining about?

Before I realized it, we were already standing before the magic shop. There were large windows at either side of the front door, which was something that really made it stand out as something more modern amongst the medieval style buildings around it.

On the shelves displayed by the window I saw orbs, books, weird ingredients, and wands. I window shopped for some time before stepping inside, followed by Faelar who was quiet the entire way here. 

The door made a quick ringing sound from the bell that was attached to it as we walked in. In the far side of the shop, was a balding old man smoking a pipe and reading a book.

"Welcome to Gerald's Magic Shop." He said lazily, not even sparing a glance at us.

I looked around, and the shop had a much wider variety of products than I expected. Wands, staves, robes, hats, orbs, herbs, and whatever else. There was even a dark green grotesque head on the wall with large tusks on its lower jaw.

I made my way over to the left side of the shop, to the book aisle, and began searching. 

"What are mana beasts, Duncan's book of the history of magic, history's greatest mages." I mumbled to myself as I scanned book after book, but each one wasn't what I was looking for.

'Ardiel, up there on the top shelf. A book called 'Theories of Magic'. It looks promising.'

'Where?'

'The red one with the golden print.'

I scanned over the books on the top shelf and spotted it. A thick, dark red book, in which the title "Theories of Magic" was weaved by golden thread.

I slid a wooden stool to reach for the top shelf, and plucked the book out. It was heavy, and looked brand new. 

"Theories of Magic," I read out, "by…Alec Eastwood?" I looked in surprise at the name of the author engraved in the same golden weave.

'Well would you look at that,' Vie exclaimed. 'It looks like the old man is an author.'

I opened the hardcover book to the table of contents. 

"This is exactly what I was looking for." I exclaimed as I read down the list.

It had everything; how to absorb and circulate mana, how different elements differ from each other when you cast them, and instructions to learn how to cast the four foundational elements, and the special deviations. 

"This is a treasure trove." I whispered in awe as I finished reading the table of contents.