We returned to the dorm after he reported what had happened between Richter and me. Mr. Draco said he'd talk to him about it, but Kiori pulled me away before the conversation went beyond asking what he meant, which was weird, since his life was on the line, yet he was more in favor of going out than discussing what to do if people became suspicious about the nature of my abilities.
"Richter won't be the only one who's suspicious about my power."
He gave me a look. "Mr. Evenicht nearly killed you."
"I think he nearly killed me for a different reason."
"But-"
"Oh, right." It clicked before Kiori could finish his sentence.
Mr. Evenicht, the old man in robes, teaches the 5th-period magic fighting class. Though I don't exactly know the requirements of being a magic teacher, he's qualified enough to oversee students fighting each other with magical abilities. If Richter sees me using my power and freaks out when he can't explain my abilities through magic, imagine how much more someone would panic if they see me using power, but don't see all of the intricacies that define magic. It'd be the equivalent of studying to be an electrician, learning all of the safety precautions and standards, and making a setup meant to turn on a single lightbulb that meets OSHA standards, only for someone to turn it on without any connected circuitry. No batteries or special setups to give the illusion of a wireless lightbulb, it's somehow without following any conceivable connection to electricity.
This is why I want to study magic: to make it believable that I'm a capable mage, and not someone who can violate its laws on a whim, because the likely conclusions of a being with limitless power are either a god or the devil, or the equivalent terms in this world. And I have no doubt there are people with strong opinions on such that I shouldn't associate with.
"Wait outside, I'm gonna go change." He shoved me out the door before I could protest.
I wanted to dissipate the shrunken hovercraft I made on a whim, since I couldn't explain why I have it or how it works.
Now that I think about it. Why didn't Alicia seem all that freaked out?
The Sci-Fi hovercraft doesn't have an existing counterpart in my world that functions as I imagined it. A real hovercraft uses powerful fans to maintain lift off the ground, and even then, the ones I saw can manage a few inches off the ground, perhaps less. This one nearly hovered a foot off the ground.
I didn't think much of the technical aspects of the hovercraft, but it made sense. Does that mean that as long as I have a proper idea of what I want to make, things that have autonomous, complex functions will remain after I produce them?
I'll have to explore this privately.
I heard the door open, and Kiori walked out in a new outfit. It was a simple, frilly white button-up and dark brown, almost black pants. It was a mix of a young, dignified nobleman who forgot to put on his vest, completing the outfit, and a young factory worker who had just finished performing maintenance after being victim to an oil spill. The outfit sort of worked, but idea clashed. Then again, wht do I know about fashion? Those ideas popped into my head the second I saw him.
"Nolval."
"Yeah?"
"Do you have anything to say about my outfit? You've been staring at it."
"I was just thinking of something from my past life. It just reminded me of that. Your outfit looks okay."
Perhaps it was just the lighting that made the pants darker than they were.
"Wait!" I shouted, seeing Kiori move to close the door.
"What is it?"
"I just need to check my stuff before we go, just a thought I'd like to finish."
"Sure." Kiori pushed the door open.
I moved to where I put the tiny hovercraft, next to my spare uniforms. Two of them were opened while my third remained safe in its box. The uniform I wore on the first day was put in the laundry batch with Kiori's clothes, while the second remained in the basket. He told me that laundry is done at the end of every week by the maids, as long as they aren't unsalvageably dirty.
The hovercraft disappeared, and peace of mind had been restored.
"I'm ready," I said, before noticing the pouch Kiori was holding. "What's that?"
"Oh, it's my allowance."
"Your money?"
"Yeah." Kiori then opened the pouch to show me.
"It's similar to what Alicia paid with."
"Do you… not understand the concept of money?" Kiori asked with a hesitant pause.
I looked at this face, seeing a combination of confusion and bewilderment. "I know what money is, I'm just a little surprised it looks like that."
I produced a penny between my index finger and thumb. "This is what money looks like from my world." I then produced what I vaguely remember to be the 1-dollar bill.
There was a look of 'what-the-fuck-am-I-looking at' confusion on Kiori's face.
"We have different denominations of currency where I'm from. I think coins are older than bills, but these…" I wiggled the paper bill. "…are widespread and more desirable than coins since they're higher valued."
I recalled hearing how steel was being used to temporarily manufacture pennies during a time of war, before it was reverted back. I don't remember what specifically, but copper was funneled into war efforts back then.
"Why do you use paper as money?"
"My guess is that metal has far too much utility to be used in making coins, and there was far too much demand for metal. So paper was used as a proxy for its value."
I recalled hearing about a voucher system being used during the gold rush, which was used to claim an equal amount of gold when presented to a distributor, before it was scrapped because the increasing demand for gold couldn't be satiated by its small supply. I merely extrapolated from that to give my answer. Although I don't recall the year this occurred. Something ending in a 49, I think.
I looked at Kiori to see his reaction. He was staring at the coin and bill, but I had a feeling his mind was somewhere else.
"Think about it all you want, but you said you're taking me out to eat." The coin and bill disappeared at my command. There was a flicker of startlement before he quickly regained his composure.
"Right, come with me."
"How are we gonna get there anyway? Walking? Carriage?"
"We'll walk there, then take a carriage back. Carriages aren't offered near the school for safety concerns."
"Huh."
I guessed it was the equivalent of a 'free candy' van parked near the school in horse-drawn carriage form. Actually, scratch that. Obvious attempts at kidnapping would never be solicited.
We walked out of the school perimeter and down the hill. On the way down, I saw a few of the buildings that caught my eye during my free fall.
"If it weren't for what happened yesterday, I bet this would be your first time in town." Kiori broke the silence, referring to the storm-in-the-sky terrorist. What was his name again? Koffins or something? It flowed naturally from how Kalits pronounced it.
"Yeah, but I'm glad it ended. Otherwise, more people would've gotten hurt."
"Actually, that's the thing. I've been listening to conversations from survivors. Apparently, the culprit intentionally avoided hurting bystanders."
Huh?
"What do you mean?"
"I've been listening to accounts of people who were up close to the disaster. Supposedly, the attacker stopped someone from being crushed by a building."
"The terrorist, who caused a state of emergency, saved someone from their own attack?"
"I know it sounds ridiculous, but that's what I've heard."
What the hell is going on?
"Could we talk about this somewhere where there aren't too many people? I don't like the idea of someone dropping in on our conversation."
Truthfully, I found the idea of openly discussing a terrorist's mindset a bit insensitive, so I wanted to do it somewhere that didn't risk being interrupted.
A smile formed on his face, "I know just the place."