~ The Big City

(Pov Jhonatan)

Flashback~

Sleepily, I descend the stairs. All the decorations from my 12th birthday are still hanging. It's been over a week now since my parents organized the party. The tranquility in Sun Valley has returned. This is usually the case when someone in the village has had a birthday.

My mother is already preparing breakfast, while my father is at work. I often see him briefly, but today I overslept again. Since my birthday, I've been more tired than usual. To avoid worrying my parents, I haven't told them yet. Maybe I should tell them though, because I feel like something is going on...

End of flashback~

After class, I walk in the direction of the city. It's time to replenish my wardrobe. "It may not be wise to spend a large portion of my school allowance on clothes, but it's unfortunately necessary to make this choice. I'll figure out how to get more money for food later."

After walking for a while, I reach the city wall. There are soldiers on the wall and in front of the entrance. No one is being checked, but they are keeping an eye on who enters the city. I assume this is Seperation City, the largest city on the continent, so there must be plenty of security.

The first part of the city consists of houses. People are coming and going here and there. The further I walk, the more stalls I encounter. Unfortunately, the first stalls don't have any clothing for sale. As I reach the center, I see stalls with clothing. It doesn't matter what I get, as long as it's comfortable.

Around me, I hear that most clothing items cost 5 ducatons each. For a pair of socks, pants, a shirt, and underwear, it already adds up to 20 ducatons. I have received 60 ducatons from the school to buy my food for this month. With three sets of clothing, I walk up to the vendor. "Hello there, how much will the price be reduced if I buy these three sets?" The vendor laughs and says I must be quite desperate. I laugh back and say to him, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

'That's certainly true, kid. I can take 1 ducaton off each clothing item.' It's still quite expensive, but it's the best option. I give the vendor the money and sadly look at my last ducaton.

In the distance, I see Flinn and Jace entering a shop. Maybe they can give me more information about the area. Just as I'm about to enter the shop, I see a sign outside: All Academy of Separation students can pick up their school uniforms and basic tools here. But... why did I spend my ducatons! .... I'll just go inside.

As I step into the store, I admire the interior. 'Hey Jhonatan, I'm glad you found this store quickly. It would be very sad if you had to buy clothes.' I quickly hide the bag behind my body. I'll just pretend this never happened. With a smile on my face, I agree with Jace. I quickly walk up to the counter. 'Good afternoon, may I see the room pass; you can enter your name here.'

With Jace and Flinn, I'm sitting in a bar. We've been told by the store employee that this is a fun place to hang out. It's the biggest bar in the city. I'd rather go to my room, to be honest. Then I can check the contents of the bag I just received.

Flinn and Jace offer to pay for the food. This works out well because I just spent a lot of ducatons. After eating, we decide to chat more later in the week. Jace and Flinn have another appointment and need to leave quickly. I decide to go back to the academy.

In my room, I tidy up all the items. Only the bag of basic tools is still on the bed. I open the bag and see the following items: 3 books on mana, 2 spellbooks, an ink pot, a large feather and a map. Very curious, I examine the map: (look in the comments for the map!)

My suspicions turned out to be correct. The city I was just in is called Seperation City. As I'm examining the other three cities nearby, my eye falls on Sun Valley. During my absence, the small village has turned into a town. Unfortunately, it's quite a distance from the academy. Fortunately, I finally have an idea of where I am. After being imprisoned for 10 years, I can finally go back home. The last pleasant memory I have is from my 12th birthday party. A lot must have changed in the meantime. How are my father and mother doing? Do they miss me? Have they been searching for me? Do they even want to see me again?

I place the map on the table and study the mana books. It's immediately clear that these books cover the basics of mana usage. I already have a grasp of the basics of mana use. However, I'm curious about the two spellbooks because I can only use a few spells myself.

Perhaps I can go to the teachers' room, because they are likely to have more in-depth books on mana use. It's important that I'm not seen because it's forbidden to wander on a different floor.

Before leaving the room, I quickly eat one berry. I really need to find a place to plant the Curative Goji. But first, I'm going to look for the books.