"Excuse me?" Takeshi said to the librarian, who was engrossed in a leather-bound book with a thick spine.
The man, clearly in his late years, fit the description Mollie had given earlier on their walk—a carpenter who had built this library in this town for his wife. It seemed though he filled in the role for his wife or maybe she might have passed already.
"Yes? What do you need, sir?" The librarian responded without looking up, placing a red bookmark where he left off. He slid his wheeled chair slightly to the side, moving closer to the counter.
"Arthur, Arthur Crownwell Mr. Dernwick." Takeshi said as he read the name off the tag the old man had on his green wool shirt.
"Where might the non-fiction books be?" Takeshi straightforwardly asked.
"Non-fiction? That would be on the second floor. When you reach the top of the stairs, check the shelves on your right. The labels detail the genres, so it shouldn't be hard to find what you're looking for. Happy reading, Mr. Crownwell." With that, the librarian picked up his book again and resumed reading, clearly not bothered by the interruption.
Satisfied with the given directions, Takeshi headed upstairs. As he ascended, he heard sounds of children chatting softly as occasional flipping of pages were heard. Most appeared to be 7 to 10 as he glanced around, some focused on their studies or discussing something of interest.
The rest of the library was quiet, a barren wasteland of silence only broken by the voices here and there or with the occasional turning of books. To Takeshi it was perfect, the calm and serene atmosphere would help him immerse himself in his reading and search for books he wanted.
Climbing upwards Takeshi ran his hands through the railing, a smooth texture that felt nice to the touch, but the bits of dust that clung onto his fingertips put a damper those feelings.
'This place needs some cleaning.' He thought. ' I don't know if it's because not a lot of people visit, but cleaning regularly and maintaining the place wouldn't hurt.'
Wiping the dust off his finger, he reached the second floor and looked towards his right like the librarian had instructed. And sure enough labels detailing the genres of what each shelf held were there.
Geography, cultures of various kingdoms, general knowledge, power structures and systems and more filled the area
'Good, just what I needed.' Nodded Takeshi as he was pleased with the array of books and their subject matter.
Gravitating towards the history section, his eyes landed on a thick book with its spine nearly as wide as his palm. Turning it over he read the title: Encyclopedia of Ender by Heather Kashic.
Intrigued he flipped the smooth cover open to the table of contents, skimming through the myriad of topics.
It covered everything from the history of the last hundred thousand years the author compounded from other books she had read, to accounts of the cultures of different races that Takeshi was familiar with and unfamiliar with.
It held explanations of something called blessings and holders of them, to even a topic that alerted Takeshi as soon as his eyes set on them, the topic of Foreign Demons from other worlds.
While he wasn't exactly sure he could guess what the topic may be about. Making a mental note to read thoroughly on the topic later he closed the book and tucked it under his arms as he continued browsing.
Weaving through the genres and labels plastered on the shelves he would sift through the topics that aligned with his goals and had in mind.
First on the agenda were any books on the study of light as he wanted to experiment and test something with his barriers. Second was any books on patterns and engineering in general as he wanted to apply them to his barriers.
Next was a hybrid book on autonomy/cultivation that he found which touched upon both the body and how different ranks of power affected the body and how it changed.
And last was a thick encyclopaedia on monsters, power structures and power hierarchies as well as social dynamics between them.
Satisfied with his haul, Takeshi carried down six books. Encasing them in barriers so as to make sure they didn't fall, he retraced his steps and found Mr Dernwick engrossed in leather book.
Not wasting time, Takeshi spoke to him and got to the point.
"How much to borrow?" He asked.
"Nothing, you can take them home and return them once done." The librarian replied without glancing up.
"Nothing? Are you sure?" Takeshi asked, a bit surprised.
"Yes Mr.Crownwell. Must I have to spell it out to you or are you pulling my leg?" the old man replied curtly, seemingly now annoyed at him for some reason.
"No, never mind. That was an oversight on my part. Well then have a good day Mr Dernwick." Takeshi said, brushing off the awkwardness
"You as well." Dernwick said, his eyes glued to the pages of his book.
Leaving the library, Takeshi pondered on the words of the librarian. 'I think I get it. It's probably a cultural difference. In a world where strength is everything, it makes sense to offer books for free to those with strength, especially if it's just regular ones and not things like grimores or anything valuable. It builds good rapport.'
'But thinking back on it, how did he assess my strength?' Thinking about it, Takeshi made a mental note to find ways to gauge the level of others when possible as it would save him a lot of trouble down the line.
For now though he focused on getting to the meeting place near the gate where he and Mollie agreed to meet up once finished with their individual task.
-xxx-xxx-
Back at the agreed-upon meeting spot near the town gates, Takeshi leaned against a stone wall, a book open in his hand. While waiting for Mollie to finish her shopping, he occasionally glanced at a time pole, shaking his head as the minute dragged on.
'What is she doing? With her strength she should've been able to gather everything in no time. Surely she isn't chatting to every friend and merchant she runs into right?' He thought, flipping through the pages as he wondered what on earth was keeping her.
10 minutes passed. Just when Takeshi was starting to feel impatient, Mollie emerged from the bustling crowd, a sheepish expression plastered on her face. She carried a tiny pouch in her hand, which she threw at him once in range.
"Sorry for making you wait. After acquiring herbs and spices I stopped by the guild to sell the Blackstone wolf corpse but there were a few disagreements on pricing and all that, and well it took longer than expected" explained Mollie as she sighed.
"No problem. I kept busy with the books I borrowed from the library." Takeshi responded with an amicable smile as he inspected the pouch he catched, as he peeked inside the pouch, it was filled with fifty or so silver coins with the design of two swords crossing engraved.
"That's your share, a 50/50 split. The black stone wolf alpha was worth one hundred or so chivals." said Mollie.
"Cool. Shall we go to the cabin now?" Takeshi said as he calmly acknowledged his no longer empty pockets with a slight grin.
"Oh,right. Let's go, I've been dying to take a bath since yesterday" Mollie said as she started walking out the gates with Takeshi following close behind.
"Same here." he agreed, feeling the sweat and grime on his skin that felt like armour weighing him down; he hoped the cabin in question wasn't too far.
-xxx-xxx-
Fifteen minutes after heading east from the town gates, the pair emerged from the woods into a clearing. In the center of it all was a modest one story log cabin, well maintained despite its aged appearance.
On the left about twenty meters away, was a shed reeking intensely of blood. On the right though, the faint sound of rushing water suggested a nearby river, though the dense foliage and trees made it impossible to see unless he walked towards it.
As Takeshi examined the clearing and what it held, Mollie gathered mana to her throat and spoke aloud. "Open."
A ripple spread through the air as a translucent magic dome simmered into view, parting to let them through.
Takeshi's interest was piqued, but he refrained himself from asking questions. He didn't want to reveal his ignorance if this kind of magic was commonplace.
He'd learn more about magical formation and whatnot in the following weeks-there were plenty books about those in the library, it was just that he wanted to familiarise himself with this world first that he didn't grab them.
On the porch of the cabin, Molliee fiddled with a set of keys attached to a keyring she summoned from her archer ring, the metallic jingles filled the air as she searched to find the right one.
" I'll take the first bath, Arthur," She said unlocking the door. "You can get familiar with the cabin or shed while you wait. Or just read I guess."
"Sure I don't mind." Takeshi replied simply.
With a click, the door swung open, and the two stepped in. Mollie inhaled deeply, savouring the familiar scent of home, while Takeshi mentally mapped the layout of the cabin.
Mollie went through the end of the hallway, leaving Takeshi alone to explore the place. He assumed she was getting fresh clothes from her room to bath, which reminded him that he had no clothes to change into once he got into the bath after she was done.
'I'll just ask if she has any extras lying around, she probably has some, otherwise I'd have to walk back to town.' Thinking about what a headache that would be since he hadn't familiared himself with the economy and currency yet he threw that train of thought to the back of his mind as he started exploring the cabin.