'I've been had.'
Ethan thought to himself as he lay on his bed in the Church of the Beast. He had been given an old storage room, which he modified to suit his needs. It was nothing compared to his bedroom back at his estate, but it wasn't the worst, either.
He had gone through worse during his training back at the Rakaru estate. Once, he had to sleep on the corpses of giant bug monsters; compared to that, this was still a luxury. Regardless, he had customized his personal 'room' to some degree.
Taking out the useless trash was one thing, but finding something usable among it was another. Somehow, Ethan had managed to find some useful items. One of them was a magic lamp, capable of emitting a subtle light using the help of something called a Magic Stone; another was a special broom, made of what was called magical wood, known as Ars Voudi.
They were the only two decorations in Ethan's room, mainly because Ethan had been intrigued by them. He wished to study Alapur and the many things it had to offer. While the wood didn't seem to be of much use, resembling one of the many special types of timber back on his own continent... The lamp was intriguing.
Instead of electricity or using a Ki battery, it functioned on what was known as a magic stone, one imbued with the element of fire. The lamp was merely a stand for the magic stone, which rested on a small platform. The platform was riddled with what was known as magic ink and special engravings, known as runes.
The magical ink served to draw the power of the magic stone, purifying it, and then delivering it to the 'runes', which allowed the energy to function as a sort of light. It had no wires or anything that actually connected something to it, unlike back in Vakuma, which intrigued Ethan greatly.
He had no idea how the ink was manufactured, nor how it functioned, nor how the runes functioned. All of it was a mystery to him, who had just landed on this strange continent. According to Igimo, the magic stone, the most important piece of this construct, could come from two sources.
Either in the form of mineral deposits in high-mana regions or from the heart of a monster. The magic stone in front of him belonged to the 'Fire' category, suggesting it came from either a volcanic region or from the heart of a fire monster.
This wasn't surprising, as 'these' stones existed in Vakuma as well, although they were referred to as Spirit stones or Soul Stones. They came from mineral deposits as well, where high amounts of Ki imbued with a certain element were present, or from the hearts of monsters....
However, the usage was completely different in Alapur. Warriors on Vakuma used Spirit stones to augment themselves, absorbing the energy contained within them and purifying it to strengthen their bodies.
Such a method would only strengthen their bodies or give their Ki a unique element, not increase the amount of Ki a person had. On the other hand, they could also be used to form Ki Batteries, which served as a power source along with electricity back in Vakuma.
However, most of the time, they were used to craft equipment, slowly being melted into the alloy to imbue it with special properties. While the stone itself wasn't foreign to Ethan, the usage certainly was.
Coming from an area where things took a more mechanical approach, Ethan was dumbfounded by the way the energy of the stone was harnessed, not through wires, but through liquid and strange symbols he could not even begin to grasp.
He wished to study it more, but would have to hold himself back for the time being, concerned with the predicament he had gotten himself into.
'Hmmm...'
Ian had got him, while Ethan was unsure if the man truly knew his identity as a Vakuman Warrior, he was certainly suspicious about the new foreigner in the village, but to what degree?
Ethan was not against the idea of teaching Ilika, Ian's nephew, swordsmanship. The basics of a sword are similar, and even if he does mess up, it should be alright. Ethan could teach the basics of swordsmanship, and the basics of fighting really well.
Vakuman Techniques were off the charts, but regarding those, Ethan could just whip up a new style of swordsmanship after observing Ilika. He too, wanted to see how the youth of this continent used their 'magic' or the energy dormant within their bodies. How they progressed.
His only issue, however, was the amount he was offered. He had no idea how much Three Alapir really was. In fact, he did not know about the system of currency of Alapur at all. He had been focusing on learning how to communicate first.
Was it enough for a swordsmanship instructor, or was it low for one? Perhaps even higher? It could be anything. The expression of shock on the faces of the others didn't help much.
He had no idea if it was a proper amount, and he wanted to bring it up to Igimo, but the old man had been busy the entire day.
'Regardless, it should be alright...'
Still, it wasn't the worst case scenario. The current story everyone knew was that he had lost his memory, it was normal for him to forget about the intricacies of money, but not his swordsmanship.
Unlike the mind, muscles rarely forgot years and years of training.
'Also...'
Furthermore, he could fish out a lot of information from Ilika, who was an actual citizen of Miniac, the supposed second greatest city of the continent. Unlike Igimo, who was more interested in converting Ethan into the religion of the Beast god, or the tight-lipped and cautious Ian...
A child eager to learn swordsmanship would be a far, far easier target to gain information on.
Ethan closed his eyes, he had to prepare for a swordsmanship lesson tomorrow... and make sure he wasn't caught.