"Can I have two of those, please?"
"These? Okay, coming right up."
It had been a few days since the incident where Roy inexplicably found himself in a different world, and he was starting to get accustomed to this unfamiliar city.
Having breakfast with Martha, lessons with Lud, sword training with Krom, and coming back to the sanctuary to sleep had become Roy's daily routine these past few days.
As he had memorized the route to the Viscount's mansion, Roy asked Jonan not to send his men to escort him every morning, to which Jonan readily agreed. This was a great opportunity for Roy to explore the city, which he had always been curious about, and this was part of the reason for his request to Jonan.
He was on his way to the mansion when his attention was captured by an irresistible smell wafting from a stall selling what seemed to be meat skewers. His eyes spotted a man fanning the skewers to lure customers, and his attempt worked as Roy soon found himself in front of the stall, staring at the skewers. In the end, he couldn't resist the temptation. Roy was getting progressively better at Aavnisian, so he had no problem speaking a few sentences, although his pronunciation was still a little awkward.
As for where he got the money? Of course, it was from the Viscount. The other day, Lud taught him how currency works in this world, and Jonan decided it wouldn't be too bad if he gave Roy some money as an allowance, which Roy really appreciated.
"Here you go, be careful holding it, they are still hot."
"Oh, thank you very much."
"No problem, that will be 2 copper."
Roy quickly handed over the coins and took the skewers from the stall owner.
Platinum coins are the highest level of currency used by the people of this world, followed by gold, silver, and copper. 100 copper coins make one silver coin, 100 silver coins make one gold coin, and so on.
Under the clear sky, Roy made his way towards the Viscount's Mansion with meat skewers in his hands, occasionally taking a bite of the tender meat.
'Delicious,' Roy thought as flavorful juices burst into his mouth, making his eyes squint in delight. It tasted awfully similar to beef, but Roy wasn't sure if cows really existed in this world. He made a mental note to ask Lud when they met later today.
With such thoughts in his mind, Roy reached the mansion, and as always, a maid was waiting for him to escort him inside.
Honestly, Roy felt bad for the maid who had to stand and wait for him under the sun, but when he asked the maid about it, she swiftly declined and said it was a pleasure to wait for him, which made Roy feel guiltier.
As usual, Lud was sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, sipping tea calmly, and seemingly waiting for Roy to arrive.
Roy glanced around the hall and sighed inwardly. The room was overwhelmingly extravagant, and he still hadn't gotten used to it. With chandeliers twinkling from the ceiling, he quickly made his way over and sat in front of Lud.
"It's good to see you, Roy. How have you been?
"I am doing fine, Mr Lud. How are you doing today?"
"Oh, as you can see the usual routine, nothing much different but thewhat I am going to tell you today is a little different from usual. I think it's time for you to learn about prana"
"Prana?
"Yes the mysterious and enigmatic energy which allows us to do things that were previously thought unimaginable"
Roy who thought that they were going to have the same boring talk, straightened his back at the mention of prana.
His heart started gradually racing.
Even though he tried hard to hide it, Roy's excitement was evident to Lud, who smiled with a knowing look on his face. For a moment Lud's eyes were drowned in a feeling of melancholy, he remembered the feeling of warmth as he stared at the flickering flames in his palms, the emotions he felt as he heard the applause and compliments were overwhelming. At that moment he thought that these powers were a blessing from the divine, with them he could accomplish anything. However, it didn't take long for him to be proven wrong.
"Mr. Lud?"
Roy's voice broke him out of his stupor.
Lud couldn't believe he started daydreaming in front of someone else. As he stared at Roy, Lud had a moment of understanding, he realized that he saw his young and naïve self in front of him. Gazing at Roy's clear eyes, Lud deeply wished that those eyes won't be tainted by the cruel reality of this world even if it's for a short period of time. He didn't want the man before him to follow the same path as him.
"Ahem, sorry about that Roy"
"Where were we? Ah yes, prana is the life force energy that flows through all living beings in this world. It's not just a concept or a theory; it is very real and can be harnessed to perform extraordinary feats. In our society, those who managed to master the use of prana are often revered and holds significant influence".
"Mr Lud, can I use prana?" Roy asks apprehensively. He has been anxious since the day he came to know about prana. Ever since Lud told him that there were people in this world that could use mystical supernatural powers he has been secretly expectant that maybe he will be able to weild these abilities but at the same time he was also anxious about his inability to do so. Roy knows that he is different from the natives of this world, what may be obvious to them might not be true for him.
"….probably." It was Lud who broke the silence in the hall. He continued.
"Humans can't use prana" Roy felt his heart sinking as he heard Lud's following words. Seeing Roy's expression, Lud hurriedly continued.
"I mean we can't use magic normally. As you know prana exist all around us and we humans cannot wield this magnificent energy directly"
"Unlike other races, human needs a catalyst to harness prana."
Roy perked up at the mention of other races and thought it was obvious there were various sentient species living in this world but soon his thoughts were brought back to the topic at hand.
"A catalyst?" Roy asked curiously.
"Well, nobody can use unrefined prana directly from the environment. Different races have different methods of controlling prana, we use catalyst or artefact to refine prana so we could use it naturally.
"Now these interesting artefacts can exist in various forms, it can be a ring, a necklace, a bracelet and even a sword or a body armour".
Roy has an expression of fascination on his face. The things he only read in books and novels are a reality in this world. The existence of prana has ignited a long extinguished spark inside Roy, he felt a sudden rush of excitement and due to this he blurted out his inner dilemma to Lud.
"Mr. Lud, how can I get an artefact?" Roy asked a little louder than usual, he immediately regretted asking that. Roy already feels guilty about burdening them anymore after they provided for him and guided him and asking this felt like he is taking advantage of their kindness.
Lud felt a little troubled at his question
Artefacts are highly regulated in Celcilia. Officially it's because the people in power do not want power to fall into the wrong hands but it's an open secret in the upper echelons that the nobles are monopolizing the trade of artefacts preventing them from falling into the hands of the less fortunate.
Lud doesn't want to burst the bubble of expectations for Roy, so he had to choose his next words carefully.
"You have to contribute to the Kingdom in some way, if one wants to be considered given an artefact."
Even though it's less likely, sometimes drifters run away from their designated territories. Looking at the enthusiastic look on Roy's face when they talk about Artefacts. Lud decided to make use of it to dispel any chance of Roy running away. Giving him the bait of artefacts seems to do the trick.
Indeed Roy didn't feel anything wrong about it, he felt it was only normal. Even back on Earth firearms were strictly regulated except in a few countries, so it was perfectly justified for the kingdom to do the same.
"Well, off you go, Roy. You don't want to get an earful from that brute, right?"
"Yeah, then see you tomorrow, Mr. Lud."
Roy got up, and made his way out of the hall while still digesting the information given by Lud.
Roy wanted it, the power to create flame out of thin air, flying among the clouds, slicing boulders with a slash, the power to become extraordinary, Roy needed it. Maybe, it's because of the novels and movies he saw, he yearned to wield that power.
Lud stared at Roy's back who was deep in thought as his eyes glinted ominously. He muttered under his breath.
"Soon…soon."