章 2: Low Key
The shopping district was buzzling with activity as more and more people came to buy and look around since it was a market day. Just like everyone a young man of around seventeen years old walked through the sea of people towards the fruit stand where he always bought the fruits that his uncle wanted. After successfully reaching the stand's location, he greeted the owner after catching his breath.
"Oh, you are here, busy day huh?" a gruff voice asked the teenager who was standing in front of his fruit stand.
"Why do I feel like that there are a lot more people today?" he shook his head then took a deep breath. The struggle of buying things during a market day was enough to make him tired even though he would only spend a couple of hours outside.
The fruit stand owner chuckled, "You should have gotten used to it already. So, what are you going to buy today?"
"My uncle wanted some oranges and peaches today. Can you give me the sweetest ones?" he nodded as he pointed at the batch of fruits that he wanted. It has become his routine to come to the market and buy sweet things for his uncle because every time he tasted anything sweet, he would immediately want to have it again. His uncle was like a child who would sparkle when they try something new and at the end, he will want to try it again and again until he gets used to it.
The owner let out a loud laugh while placing the fruits in the bag, "That uncle of yours is really an odd one."
The teenager scratched his head and gave the other a sheepish smile. He could not refute the man's words because he whole heartedly agreed with him. "He's still cool though."
Another burst of loud laughter, "Yes, you never fail to praise him." He handed him his fruits and the teenager paid then bid the owner goodbye.
He went to various shops to buy the things listed on his list and when he got to the last item, he could not help but shake his head but the smile on his face never left. It seems that he needed to learn how to make cookies. At the end of the list was a detailed description of a certain cookie that his uncle wanted and even the exact location of the shop where he could buy it was listed.
The shop was in the far corner of the shopping district, the place was a bit secluded which made the ambiance a little bit peaceful. Even after he entered the shop, he could not stop himself from feeling relaxed while he admired the simple and warm decoration inside. The walls were lined with wooden panels that at the same time served as frames to the pictures that made the place brighter because of their vibrant colors that broke the seemingly monotonous look of the walls. There were also plants in every corner and the lighting was just enough to give the place a glow.
He looked around and saw a display cabinet where a variety of cakes, bread and cookies were placed. It was a feast to the eye indeed. A haven for any people who like pastries. All choices were mouthwatering that he had a difficult time choosing what he should buy until he remembered his uncle's preference, he almost forgot about it. After finding the cookies, he also chose some tasty looking bread for himself so once he made a selection, he went to the counter area but saw that there was no one was there to receive his order. He looked around but still did not find anyone until his eyes landed on the announcement board where the words 'instructions on ordering' were written.
He became curios and read what was in it then to his surprise it was a detailed step on how to place an order since the owner of the shop was working alone. The teenager looked to the side of the announcement board and saw a stack of paper and a quill so he took them and wrote his orders then according to the instruction he needed to place the paper on the small box beside the board then press the small red button below it.
There was rustling behind the curtain covered entrance behind the counter before a man stepped out to receive his order form. The man, the owner and baker, he assumed read the contents of his form before nodding. "Are you going to eat them here or are you going to take them home?" the man asked after putting some mark on the paper.
While he was still wondering how the man knew that there was customer, he heard the owner asked so he hastily replied, "Ah yes, I will bring it back for my uncle." He answered with a smile but the owner only narrowed his eyes which made the atmosphere a little bit cold.
"Are you Jagan's nephew?" the owner suddenly asked while he kept his expression neutral.
The teenager nodded, "He asked me to buy cookies from your shop and even wrote down the specific location of the place that sells it." He raised his hand and showed him the list with a grin. "I'm Ezio by the way!"
The man frowned at the sudden action but still gave him a curt nod before leaving to pack his orders. "You are as what your uncle had describe," he muttered to himself just as he disappeared behind the curtain and Ezio stood there stunned.
He did not need to wait long because the man came back with a bag full of the delicious treats that he ordered. He took them and paid but he did not leave instead he was looking at the shop owner with eyes that was full of curiosity. "How did you do that? I just pressed the red button and you magically came out! Are you a mage?" he asked. His entire body was vibrating with excitement at the thought that he might have met a person who can use magic.
Mages were a unique existence in the continent of Prisma and Moonvale was only a small in town in the kingdom of Lunaira so mages or even magic itself in that place was scarce. It was a town that has not produced any magicians for the past decade that was why it remained unknown and isolated. But even so, the town was still thriving because there were travelers who would occasionally drop by and through them tales about the heroic deeds of these mages were spread and heard.
As a child who grew up hearing those, whenever the word mage was uttered, he would definitely get excited because it was his dream to become one but it never happened and he never manifested any magical powers but he was not discouraged and still admire those people he only heard from stories so when the thought that the person in front of him right now was a mage made his heart thump.
The shop owner was not able to stop himself from raising a brow at how excited the child was while asking him many questions. He was like a puppy begging for food. "I am not a mage but I do know how to cast simple spells and yes you are right that red button was designed so that I can know that someone has ordered and I'm the only one who can hear the sound that it produced."
Ezio's eyes widened and he even almost dropped the bag of goodies in his attempt to get closer to the man but because of the counter in between them he was not able to give the owner a hug. "Wow! Can you show me more magic?" he asked with wide eyes and even clasped the man's hand tightly.
The shop owner frowned, "No and I am busy. I have more customers to entertain so if I were you leave this place and go home because you are disturbing my business." He gestured at the teenagers back so he looked behind him and there were already people lining up to buy.
He felt instant embarrassment before carefully retracting his hand and sheepishly looking at the owner, "I'm sorry," he muttered before hastily leaving the shop.
"What an annoyance," he spat before snapping his fingers and the line of people disappeared. He returned to the kitchen while he kept mumbling, "I should not have told him that I could use magic." He rubbed his head as he could already feel a headache coming.
"Oh, this is the first time that I have seen you annoyed master," a mechanical voice spoke from behind him.
"I might have done something stupid butler," he sighed before taking a seat and accepting the cup of coffee that was offered to him.
"That might be because you were disappointed because you found nothing fun again today," the mechanical voice continued as it stood there with its hands behind his back.
"What do you think?" he gave the butler a short glance before going to back to savor the bitter taste of the coffee.
"That child might add a little bit of color into you're a little bit dull life master, why don't you let him be and see how this scene progresses." The butler suggested and it took him a couple of seconds to nod.
"You are right. My original intent was to make my life more exciting but I found it so troublesome that I decided to live normally but as usual, I am becoming bored." He squinted at the cup of coffee before letting it drop on stone floor. There was loud cracking noise but he did not care and instead it made him grin. "I should live my life to the fullest!" followed by a loud almost maniacal laugh.
The butler who was watching on the side could not help but think, 'Ah, my master has gone a bit crazy again today.'
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