With a somewhat sullen mood, Sylas continue to dwell on what's going to happen to him in the future. After all, it was a treasure with potential danger stored inside. He wanted to cool his head and reassure himself that there was no direct evidence that pointed the stone tablet was dangerous, but still, he couldn't help but think of it that way.
He didn't even know how to describe his emotions right now.
As another sigh escaped out of his mouth, his mother's voice echoed from the outside. "Sylas, the food is ready."
"Okay, mom!" Sylas hollered back and sluggishly stridden off his room.
Although Sylas lives in a slum area and considers himself poor, his house is actually the biggest within the district. It consists of two bedrooms, a kitchen area, a small living room, and a lavatory. Compared to his neighbor, who only had a single room or at most two rooms, Sylas seems to be living a royal life.
As he arrived at the kitchen, his mouth soon drolled at the sight of stir-fried vegetables with chopped chicken draped above them. The fragrance was tickling his nose every second, tempting him to gobble the food instantly.
What Sylas felt glad about this world was the food here mostly had the same characteristic as the Earth's food. This fact adds more positive points to the way he views this world.
"Woah, mom, what's with the amount of food today? Is today someone's birthday?" Sylas asked puzzlingly.
"Of course not. I'm just kind of celebrating my recovery." Sylas's mother replied in triumph.
Sylas didn't make fun of her since he knew how awful being ill was. More importantly, he didn't want to get his head smacked by his mother.
"Let's dig in, I'm also famished." Sylas's mother grumbled in hunger, and without wasting more time, she started scooping the food into her plate.
Sylas followed his mother along and began joining in consuming the meal.
Time flew by, and without Sylas noticing, his mood has lifted upward. It might be due to the food's good qualities that he unconsciously forgets about his problems.
"I'm glad your expression is looking better now." Sylas' mother suddenly remarked.
"Huh? What do you mean, mom?" Sylas stunned for a second before being able to reciprocate her claim.
"Your face looks awful since last night. Although on the surface you look joyous, I could detect your uneasiness. Wanna confess to mom about what's troubling you recently?" Sylas's mother asked gently.
Hearing his mother's tender tone made Sylas's heart soften. Subconsciously, all his worries seem to have vanished at the moment. 'Right, why would I concern myself with the issues that possibly never exist in the first place? If there's any sign of problems, I can search for a solution outside the town. The world is too big for me to just give up without doing anything.'
Thinking of this, Sylas revealed a genuine smile, "It's okay, mom. Nothing happens."
Seeing he wasn't trying to fake his smile, she didn't probe further and merely patted her chest in relief. "That's good to know."
"By the way, mom, have you visited other cities or heard something about them from father?" The last time Sylas saw his father was dozens of years ago. At that time, he was still a baby, and his impression in regards to his father remains vague. But he knew that he was working as a merchant and often traveled across cities. Hence, he was curious about what's the world outside looked like. Especially since he now had countless runes residing in his mind. He desires to look for a land where magic reigns. A place where witches and magicians can exchange knowledge with each other safely without fear of being discovered by the church's members.
If he could reach such a place, he might figure out the rune's origin as well as the stone tablet.
"Oh, haven't I told you?"
"Tell me what?" Sylas asked in puzzlement.
"That, your father and I not a native here. We originally came from a big city named Claudia. Its size was five times more than Costan and had plentiful amenities that a day won't be enough to venture all of them." Sylas's mother narrated with a dazed smile. Her face looked lost as a tinge of past flashed across her eyes.
Sylas pretended not to notice this and carried on his question eagerly, "So, what makes both of you decide to settle here, mom?"
"Uhm, as you can see, living in such a lavish place are great, but only if you have enough money. After the cost of living there was skyrocketing, and your father's business went downhill, we couldn't help but tactically moved out. Shortly after, we stumble upon this small town and determined to spend the rest of our lives here."
They continued to converse for about a half hour until Sylas recalled his main intention of bringing the topic in the first place. "By the way, mom, is there a town populated by magicians or witches? Since the church has been actively hunting them in the past days, are they really exist?"
"To be honest, mom doesn't know much either. In Claudia, I'm not that well-educated, so, I don't know whether exist a city like that. But their races indeed existed. I've seen one of them were tied in a cross and burned to death." Sylas' mother said with a hint of fear.
Sylas instinctively gulped his saliva. If somehow the news of him being able to enhance the toughness of a product were leaked, wouldn't he be labeled as a magician and hanged to death immediately?
"That's why nowadays you must remain vigilant, Sylas. Don't associate too much with strangers. If they happen to be a witch or a magician, you'll also be implicated in their problem." Sylas' mother reprimanded with a knowing look.
'It seems like mother still found my last night's behaviour suspicious' Sylas thought to himself and replied to his mother with an assuring tone, "Relax, mom. If I discover a really fishy person, I'll flee immediately."
"That's good to hear."