I did drop by Lauren’s shop just to see how things were holding up on that front - most of their work, Mark told me, had already been done the first few days, so they were not really doing anything and most of the other scribes were enjoying the festivities like I was.
“Oh, I heard of you winning second place in that tournament, congratulations,” Mark said absentmindedly while I was walking away.
“Right, thanks,” I said, not even sure if he had heard me as he had already gone back into the shop.
I had sort of been expecting some kind of extravagant event, maybe something like fireworks, to signal the end of the Book Fair, but it just looked like everyone was packing up and heading towards the next city without much ceremony.
That meant there was a chance to buy some things at a relative discount, and I ended up buying a Rank Two manual that granted the spell [Fireball]. Finally - I would have a real offensive spell!
The next day only a few stragglers were left, and the day after all traces of the merchant caravan were gone as it was now far beyond the horizon.
I hadn’t been able to catch even a glimpse of that girl from before, and now it looked like she had departed along with the merchant caravan.
Was I looking too far into her actions? I mean, did she really recognize the language that I was writing in? She had denied my help translating it, but she could have intended to sell it to someone else or had a translating item. That was a far more likely explanation than thinking that she was from Earth or knew someone from Earth.
The good news was that the Book Fair ended on a weekend, so I had the next day off.
The bad news was that I realized how frustrating it was to use a translating item!
What I had gotten was a medallion with a four-headed owl inscribed on it, a creature commonly associated with the Goddess Serragnin. I was told that as long as the device was handled properly and not mistreated, it would be good for at least ten years before it would have to be replaced.
I opened up the grimoire I had won which gave the [Regeneration] ability and tried using the translating device. I channeled my mana into the device, and as I did so, I saw the aura over the letters begin to shift, just like when Rose had helped me read a grimoire.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
I had been told that using a device was harder than if someone was translating for you - but this was the first time I was experiencing firsthand as to why that was.
For one, the translation did not change the direction of the original script.
And I had now learned something about the script the humans of Arconia used - it was written ‘as the ox plows the field’ as someone had described it to me.
As in the first line was read left to right, the second was written right to left, and so on.
Needless to say, it was headache-inducing to try to keep up with this. Why couldn’t they pick a direction and stick with it?
Not to mention this doubled the amount of mana I had to expend while reading.
I ended up giving up midway when my mana was almost finished. Instead, I tried working on an idea I had for a Rank Two grimoire.
I had bought some citrus fruits from the Book Fair for this very idea, and they were still fresh. Time to see if my experiment might also bear fruit.
I wasn’t able to finish it as the last dregs of my mana were used up, and as it was, I had to return to work the next day.
I groaned while getting up that day, wondering if maybe I should just quit - until I remembered that my savings had been completely drained by the Book Fair.
I did manage to negotiate a slightly higher rate at the shop given I could potentially make Rank Two manuals now - though the issue was, as Mark put it bluntly, that I couldn’t actually make any.
The day started out rather slow, as people were still recovering from the festive spirit of the last week. They were talking about their purchases, how much money they had made, and apparently some of them had even participated in the same tournament I had.
Though it seemed none of them made it past the first round.
“I saw what you did though, that was a really good performance!” came compliments on me getting second place.
After work, while I was heading home, Rob tapped me on the shoulder. “Hey - we were all going to celebrate at this restaurant after work. It’s on the boss’s dime too- you should join us!”
“Uh…” I began to say, wondering if I really wanted to tag along. The grimoire I was experimenting with back home was almost done and I probably could’ve finished it if I went back now, but I might not be able to if I went with them.
On the other hand, I hadn’t really socialized with anyone from work outside of work - and this was the first time they had invited me to anything. Did I really want to turn this down? I didn’t want the others thinking I was stuck-up or that I thought I was too good to hang out with them. “Is it really okay if I tag along?”
“Eh? Of course, why wouldn’t it be?”
“I mean, I know there are some places that only take lizardmen,” I began. If all of them were going one place, it might’ve been an establishment exclusively for lizardmen.
“Oh, no, don’t worry- that won’t be an issue,” Rob reassured me.
“Okay,” I said. I figured potentially sacrificing an evening was well worth it to maintain a cordial relationship with my coworkers. Also, I might end up seeing or finding something I wouldn’t otherwise.