A meditative sigh… Focus drawn towards the ends of his fingers before his index finger sparked to life with a green flicker at the tip.A light rest on the handle before dropping it down, a quick zag left before a long zag right, a trail of light following his finger before a similar light fell on his middle, before curving it through the long zag, not even lifting his index finger, but soon to pull away. The drawing he made with his hand lingered on the handle before flashing away, followed by the quick snap of the lock.

This would have been more impressive if he had not one done it on the other side of the door, but if he didn't practice the spell on said lock every time he left his inn room. He wasn't sure if the lock was so easy to pick that the rune he had to draw was simple, or if it was more because he had gotten so used to testing it on the same item, that he knew the pins already. "There should be a better way to practice this..>" he muttered to himself as Douken left his inn room, locking the door behind him normally before heading out into the main plaza with only the fan resting on the back of his belt.

He was told that magic was a nice tool to have when it come to exploring dangerous caverns. After all, what good is a single spear when facing down a horde of wild beasts? A blast of fire could do much more damage after all. Not only that, but the spell he jsut practiced was good at unlocking nice secrets. However, he could hardly get the chanting mumbo-jumbo when it came down to magic. Nah, for him, rune-casting, the art of drawing insignias and symbols for spellcraft, felt better to him. Then again, he often fell asleep to big book anyways, and pictures were nicer to look at.

From the plaza, Douken took himself over to the marketplace, muttering to himself, "I wonder if there are any tomes that give more detail to them?"

Adeluna City was bustling and lively as ever. The young lady stepped out into the streets of the market and smiled when some of the shop owners who were well acquainted with her waved to her. It was good to be back home, and for once she was taking a holiday from her work. As much as she would have loved to continue spending weeks catching rare specimens of beetles for their shells, she needed to set aside some quality time for herself. It was easy to become wholly engrossed with testing formulas and recording minutiae when it came to alchemy–the results could vary greatly with a few pinches of powder. So while she waited for her essence of antelope horn to finish distillation, it was time to take a walk around the market.

After passing a few bakeries and restaurants, she arrived at the place she was looking for: a small bookstore that sold more obscure volumes on less popular subjects. Contrary to stores that sold those bawdy romance novels and tales of adventure which sold for a handful of silvers each, the books here were much more rare and costly. If you were lucky, you could find tomes which were no longer in circulation, but most of the stock here changed depending on what the owner had. Pushing open the door, a bell attached to a rope jingled as she came in.

"Hello Mr. Fiddle, any new volumes since my last visit?" An elderly gnome with special spectacles made in Iria peered over the lenses from behind the counter. "Is that you Miss Ellebore? Back from your little trip up north I see! One of these days you should bring me a rack of elk antlers as a gift! Or better yet, maybe transmute that old paperweight of mine into a lump of gold!" He laughed as Liselotte feigned taking offense. "Oh Mr. Fiddle, I may be an alchemist but I'm afraid I don't do miracles. But I might be able to get you a real moose head to hang over your fireplace. So how's your wife? Has Ethel been giving you trouble again?"

The gnome pushed up his spectacles and grinned ear to ear. "Not any more than she normally does. But she's been terribly zealous when it comes to grooming her birds. Wants Maybelle and Lillie to win best in show this year. Keeps saying how she needs to watch their diet so their feathers get a nice sheen. Sounds like a whole bunch of fuss over ruffling a few feathers." He slapped his knee and chortled, as Liselotte shook her head. "If you keep making jokes like those you'll be the one ruffling Ethel's feathers. Hm… 'A Treatise on the Mechanics of Signs and Circles'. It's rather thick. Where did you get this?"

The shopkeeper leaned out of his chair to see what book she was holding. "Oh that one. Got a hold of it with a few others on magic and the like last week. Seems like a collector wanted to update their collections with new tomes and wanted to see how much they could get for them. They're in prime condition; bet they've never even been used before." After flipping through the pages, she returned it to the shelf. "It looks more like a book on sorcery. Not the type of subject I'm looking for. If it was an explanation on deciphering runic symbols then I'd give it a try, but it seems to have more diagrams depicting how to arrange them up properly." She resumed browsing the shelves for anything else that caught her eye.
   

He sighed as he was trice more shot down on his search for what he was looking for. As he figured, there was certainly more into chanted chanted spells, as becoming an expert with them allowed for much faster and quicker chanting, almost to the point where they have to simply say the spell's name, if that. Mastering runecraft was more like setting traps or into small items. Some stories had even imbued the idea with enchanted tarot cards, using the faces of the Major Arcana with their own spell effects, but alas, even that had been dying down with the power of enchantments for equipment and the such. You wouldn't use a shield to throw a fireball, and if that was what you wanted, then just cast it. "Thanks anyways," he sighed before taking off.

Looking around, Douken thought to himself, Think about it like this: You are looking for a rare treasure. Would it be in a large, open region, or something more small, and collected? That was when his ears caught ear of the ringing bell, turning his attention down to a small bookstore. It looked a bit more rusty than other store about, but that only added to its charms… and to his curiosity.

Soon to follow after the previous person, the explorer headed into the shop as well, letting their small talk act as ambience to the store as he took a moment to examine the shelves. He was quite surprised to see so many old tomes and the such that had been abandoned long ago. Taking one off the shelf and opening it up, he was confronted with  text within ancient writing. Maybe it was Old Draconian? Well, why bother skimming if you couldn't even read it, so he closed it and rested it back on the shelf.

Just in time to hear the old gnome's bad pun, causing Douken to snicker a bit.

It was a good moment to catch the conversation as the talk came up to something that sounded more like that he was after. Heading over to the woman as she placed the tome back on the shelf, Douken spoke up, "Maybe because its treated like a dead art that its still in its prime," he added in as he stepped up next to the noble woman. "Forgive my intrusion, but may I see that tome? Its actually something I've been researching recently myself."

Liselotte turned to see a young man whom she hadn't noticed enter the store. "Oh by all means, go ahead. If it's what you're looking for I suggest you purchase it. You might never find a book like this ever again, especially in this condition. Now…where was that set of encyclopedias on Arriese flora?" She moved aside allowing him to access the book, moving on to another part of the small bookstore. Picking up a tome with a black cover and silver detail, she opened the cover only for it to come alive with a strange humanoid figure emerging from the pages. "What the-" The being began to speak in a distorted, echoing voice. "Who hath awakened me from my slumber? Fair maiden, I beseech you that I may set it in my praise–would thou tell me thy n-"

The voice was cut off by the sound of the book being slammed shut. Liselotte had forcibly closed the book with a look of displeasure on her face. "…Mr. Fiddle. It seems you need to have someone check the contents of your shipments before sending them to the shelves. I'm not sure whether I should feel flattered, or offended." The gnome shopkeeper came down from his stool and looked over the tome she had pressed between her hands. "Well would you look at that. Never seen one of those before. I'll need to put a special lock on this one and a written warning. On the bright side, it doesn't seem to be cursed!" She handed it off to him, and he went to the back room. After that fiasco, Liselotte decided she had seen enough ancient tomes for the day. Taking an alchemist's writings on enchantments, she waited for Mr. Fiddle to return to the counter.

"Thank you," he told her, taking the tome in hand and skimming the pages. Sure enough this was about runes, crests, and magic symbols and how to craft them, but what it was showing was way too advanced for his skillset. After all, the book showed signs and drawings that more represented three-dimensional air arts in the first few pages, and here he was still stuck drawing two-D with a surface to place it upon. "Its either nothing at all, or the advanced art it seems," he muttered to himself with a quick sigh before closing it once more. Not only that, but the pricetag was way out of his range. He'd have to take a job or two even think about affording it, and who knew how long this tome would last on the shelves.

Still, he knew how to defend himself with his weapons, so taking on such practices would be only a staple to what he knew, so he was fine not rushing out to get the coin for it, thus leading him to return it to the shelf.

However, the burst of energy that came from the black tome forced himself to turn about, drawing out his fan as he moved in close before it found itself to be slammed shut, stilling the air once more. He had no idea what kind of being was sealed inside that book, but his instincts always told him to be defensive about them. Never know what catches came with them.

Still, it seemed the gnome was used to this sort of thing, laughing it off as he handled the tome casually into the back. by then, the blonde mistress was ready to leave as she placed a few books onto the counter, ready to leave. Taking a glimpse on the cover, Douken couldn't help but think out loud, "Alchemic enchantments? Never heard of such a study like that. I mean, when I think alchemy, I think of creating, not imbuing."

"Ah yes, that is what most people assume. Although alchemy is famous for the concept of transmutation, one must not forget that the art began with theories of the elemental essence in all things. Admittedly studying bodily humors and associating them with the elements has been largely disproved, however that doesn't mean it shouldn't apply to creatures. Also, it has a higher chance of success requiring less precision. Much safer to practice."

Liselotte's eyes shone when the man inquired about the books she was purchasing. Alchemy was a wonderful, yet commonly misunderstood science among the populace. Yes there were those incidents when an attempt at transmutation went wrong and things were lost to compensate for failing to pay the costs, but those were rarities–uncommon accidents. A respectable alchemist wouldn't have conducted such brash and foolhardy experiments without knowing how much it would require. With luck, perhaps she would inspire others to learn more about it and come to know its wonders as she had. 

Mr. Fiddle returned from the back room whistling, and hopped up onto his stool behind the counter. "Now, let's see which ones you'll be buying today miss. Hm, hm, and hm. That'll be three hundred crescents total." Liselotte set the money on the counter. "A fair price. Books like these don't come around often." The price was rather steep, but she knew the gnome wasn't the type to purposefully inflate them. The goods he sold were indeed rare and the genuine article, and he couldn't undersell them if he wanted to compensate for how much he spent in getting them. Bargaining was near impossible, but you were guaranteed for every purchase. This store wasn't Mr. Fiddle's bread and butter, so he was in no rush to make a sale. With the transaction completed, she tucked the books away into her bag.

"Thank you Mr. Fiddle!" Turning her attention to the other customer in the shop she inquired, "I take it you are a spell caster then? Where did you receive your education?" There were plenty of mages and scientists graduation from Iria nowadays. It was always nice to meet new people from her alma mater.

Hmm, I see," he said, catching the twinkle in her eyes as would anyone talking about their crafts before the gnome returned from the back. It is always amazing to watch those partake in what they are skilled in, whether it be a blacksmith under the forge's heat, hammer in hand as he meticulously worked on metal gear for those who ordered them to bards singing tales of grand tales they learned about, the occasional danger moving as if to act out the scene herself. I wonder what a real alchemist lab is like? popped into his head as he let the two do business, confirming the purchase before the maiden turned her attention back to him, newly acquired texts in hand and question in lips.

As for his answers to such inquiries, Douken let off a sincere smile, as he flatly stated, "Nope. In fact, I think my magic potential is a bit below average at best, so for me, simple chants or runic casting is my way to go, and even then, I often use them more for utility than defense."  He even gave the handle of his steel fan a quick pat as if to reference such an idea. "Forgive me if I had ruined your expectations.

"Rather, I am an explorer, one who seeks out new locations, ruins, and the like. If I find something that can be of use, I make my reports to the city heads and leave it them on what to do. One job was looking at was going to be tricky, so part of me was hoping to find something to help me out in the future. Unfortunately, luck was not on my side, considering Runic Arts are pretty much a dead trade. Most that exist are typically too advanced for my baseline."

"Self-taught I see. Nothing wrong with that. Some say experience is the best teacher when it comes to practical matters. One can learn more about how to perform a skill through doing than taking notes on someone else's attempts." As he told her more about himself, she found his line of work fascinating. Frankly what he was doing wasn't too different from her trip to the steppes, only he was searching for ruins instead of stones or minerals. 

As the conversation moved on to the runic arts, Liselotte unfortunately had to agree with what he was saying. "Yes, it's such a shame. Nowadays aspiring mages prefer flashier, dramatic spells thanks to the novels circulating about. Blasting enemies with fire or calling down lightning from the heavens is far more impressive than creating magic circles. And to think the first uses of the arcane arts came in the form of using such symbols… If you're still thinking about purchasing that tome, why don't you ask Mr. Fiddle to put it in reserve for you? I'm sure he'd more than happy to." She whispered the last bit to him, as the gnome was currently dusting the shelves.

Douken couldn't help but scratch the back of his head as she complimented his ability to being self-taught. It is true that when most people think of a mage, they think of magical energies weaved about, the elements submitting to their power as they dominated the realm around themselves… and here he was with a small array of pretty much parlor tricks. Yet still, she was making it seem like he was more well-adapted in the art through practical use than through theory. It wwas a nice compliment, but not really one he thought he really deserved.

"Its not just the flashiness that draws them in. In a reaction-based situation like the heat of battle, a quick chant is still much faster than drawing out a rune. Watch." Pulling out his steel fan into his left hand, he concentrated his energies into his right index and middle fingers, causing them to once again resonate with mana. Placing them on the the top, palm parallel to the fan, the mana seemed to have sparked to the object, forging a line as he moved his hand to draw a half circle downwards, followed by a quick, upwards motion to the middle. Then, he divided his fingers, splitting the line in two, as if adding branches before a short movement down, curved towards the center and sharply back up before releasing his hand off the fan blade. As the mana crafted on the item dissipated, the fan itself began to glow in a faint light.

"With my skill-level, I do that to grant myself a decent light source when needed… And yet a practiced made only need at most three words to do the same." Moving his middle finger through the fan, the light quickly dissipated, as if the last movement ruined the crest he created.

"And while I would enjoy looking that over, its still a tome way above my skill level. I think someone else could have better use of it than for for the moment.

"Now then, why don't we see what else is around, eh? That is, if you don't mind my company for the afternoon?"

Liselotte watched as he traced the shape of a rune onto his metal fan. He did have a point there; verbal invocation was far faster if it was a simple phrase. Runes in comparison seemed better suited for scrolls and enhancements to be used in emergencies. She wondered how long a rune's effects could be maintained if used in such a manner. If someone had a set of blank playing cards, they could prepare a deck of spells in advance and need only to draw the card and activate the rune's intended ability. That certainly would make things convenient, however could that be applied to transmutation as well? She would need to sort out the scale and effectiveness of transmutation circles later on her own time.

When he asked if she would like to accompany him, she smiled. "I still have a few hours left until my distillation is finished. I don't see why not. What places do you have in mind?" She knew Adeluna City like the back of her hand, and if he wanted to find a place she was more than willing to act as a guide for the time being. She was on holiday, after all. Her mother would likely keep her out of the house until she felt she had spent enough time away from her laboratory and greenhouse.