The flickering torchlight cast dancing shadows on the walls of Riku's small hut as he finally succumbed to exhaustion, the day's bizarre and brutal events weighing heavily on his mind. Sleep offered a temporary escape, a brief respite from the constant tension and uncertainty that had become his reality.
However, the quiet solitude of his slumber was soon broken. A soft creak of the door hinges stirred him from the edge of consciousness. He cracked open an eye, the dim light revealing Erina standing hesitantly in the doorway, her elegant silhouette framed against the darker interior of the hut. She looked uncertain, her usual composed demeanor replaced by a vulnerability he hadn't seen before.
"Riku?" she whispered, her voice barely audible.
He sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Erina? Is everything alright?"
She stepped further into the room, her gaze flickering around the small space before settling on him. "I… I saw you talking with that woman earlier. Couronne, was it? She seems… very close to you." A subtle undercurrent of something Riku didn't quite recognize laced her tone.
Riku sighed, running a hand through his disheveled hair. "Couronne? No, she's not my girlfriend. We've known each other for a long time. She's… very protective of the village, and of me, I suppose." He deliberately downplayed the depth of their past connection, the memory of their shared intimacy still causing a knot of awkwardness in his chest. He had been consciously creating distance since the System's… mission.
Erina seemed to relax slightly at his denial, a subtle softening in her expression. She moved closer, her eyes, even in the dim light, held a certain… intensity as she looked at him. Riku, however, remained oblivious, his mind still preoccupied with the day's events and the looming threat of the Flugels.
"I… I'm finding it difficult to sleep," Erina confessed, her voice barely above a whisper. "This world… it's so different, so… dangerous. Everything is so unfamiliar. I keep… remembering what happened in the cave." A shiver ran down her spine. "I'm scared, Riku. Would it be… would it be alright if I… slept here? Just… just until I feel more comfortable?" Her gaze was pleading, her usual regal bearing replaced by a palpable fear.
Riku blinked, momentarily taken aback by her request. His small hut offered little in the way of privacy, and the implications of sharing his sleeping space, even innocently, felt… complicated. He thought of Couronne, of the potential misunderstandings.
"Um… well," he stammered, his mind racing for a solution. He glanced around the small hut, his eyes landing on a spare blanket folded in the corner. An idea, slightly absurd but ultimately practical, formed in his mind.
"Actually, I know someone who would probably be a much better… roommate for you tonight," Riku said, a slightly mischievous glint in his eyes. He stood up and headed towards the door. "Just wait here."
He slipped out of his hut and quietly made his way to one of the other dwellings. After a brief, hushed conversation, he returned with a sleepy-eyed but good-natured young woman from the village named Elara.
"Elara here was having trouble sleeping too," Riku explained, a completely fabricated tale. "She'll keep you company. You two can share my blanket. There's plenty of room… sort of." He offered a sheepish grin.
Erina stared at Elara, then back at Riku, a mixture of confusion and something akin to disappointment flickering across her face. Elara, equally bewildered but trusting of Riku, offered a polite smile.
"Th-thank you, Riku," Erina managed, though her tone lacked its usual warmth.
Riku, completely missing the subtle cues, simply nodded, relieved to have seemingly diffused a potentially awkward situation. "Get some rest, both of you. We have a long day ahead of us." He then promptly settled back into his own sleeping space, oblivious to the unspoken feelings swirling in the small hut.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the village, Levi had sought out the most experienced scouts among Riku's community. He listened intently, his sharp mind dissecting their rudimentary tracking techniques, their knowledge of the surrounding terrain, and their encounters with the various monstrous races. He asked pointed questions about their methods of evasion, their early warning systems, and their understanding of the different creatures' behaviors. He was particularly interested in any information they had about winged entities, his gaze hardening slightly whenever the topic of Flugels arose. He absorbed their knowledge, comparing it to his own brutal efficiency in dealing with titans, searching for any transferable skills or insights into this new, dangerous world. He was a soldier adapting to a new battlefield, gathering intelligence with a grim determination.
The first rays of dawn painted the sky in hues of soft orange and pink, slowly filtering through the makeshift windows of Riku's hut. He awoke to the gentle sounds of the village stirring, the distant murmur of voices and the clatter of early morning activities.
He dressed quickly and stepped outside, the cool morning air a refreshing contrast to the close confines of his hut. The village was slowly coming to life, the villagers moving with a quiet efficiency as they began their daily tasks. He spotted Levi near the edge of the village, engaged in a focused conversation with a group of the scouts, their heads bent over a crudely drawn map etched into the dirt.
As Riku approached, Levi glanced up, a curt nod his only acknowledgment. The scouts, however, offered more friendly greetings, their initial wariness towards the newcomer seemingly replaced by a grudging respect for his intense focus and insightful questions about their tracking methods.
"Morning," Riku said, his gaze drifting towards the horizon.
"Hn," Levi replied, his attention quickly returning to the dirt map. "These… 'beastmen' you mentioned. Their territorial patterns? Their weaknesses?" He continued his interrogation, his sharp mind dissecting the scouts' knowledge.
Riku left Levi to his information gathering and made his way towards the communal cooking area, the aroma of breakfast already filling the air. Couronne was there, her movements efficient as she oversaw the preparation of the morning meal. He could sense her gaze on him, a mixture of concern and lingering suspicion in her eyes.
"Morning, Couronne," Riku said, offering a tentative smile.
She nodded curtly, her expression reserved. "Riku. How are your… guests?"
"They're fine," he replied, keeping his tone neutral. "Levi is… learning about the area. Erina is still resting."
Just then, Erina emerged from the hut, her elegant appearance somewhat out of place amidst the rustic surroundings of the village. She moved with a quiet grace, her eyes taking in the unfamiliar sights and sounds.
"Good morning," Erina said politely, offering a small nod to Riku and Couronne.
"Morning," Riku replied, offering a smile.
Couronne's response was a curt nod, her eyes still fixed on Erina with a hint of suspicion.
Riku unfurled a piece of treated animal hide, upon which intricate lines and symbols were painstakingly drawn. He held it up for the gathered villagers, Levi, and Erina to see. The torchlight flickered across its surface, illuminating the complex network of interconnected shapes.
A hush fell over the group as they stared at the map. The villagers, accustomed to simple sketches of terrain and resource locations, were utterly perplexed. The abstract symbols and geometric patterns conveyed no discernible meaning to them. Their faces were a mixture of confusion and polite bewilderment.
After a prolonged silence, during which no one dared to voice their incomprehension, Levi finally broke the quiet with his characteristic bluntness. "Tch. What in the blazes is this, Dola? Some sort of abstract art? Because if it is, I've seen more comprehensible titan doodles."
Riku sighed inwardly. He had spent the entire night translating his memories of a long-forgotten Earth technology into a visual representation that would be understandable, or at least intriguing, to this world's inhabitants. It seemed he had overestimated their baseline knowledge.
"This," Riku began, his voice patient, "is a schematic. A plan for generating power… electricity… without the need for constant fuel." He gestured to the intricate lines. "This design will allow us to harness a readily available resource and convert it into a form of energy that can be used for many different tasks, making our lives easier and our village stronger."
A murmur of confusion rippled through the villagers. Electricity was a concept they vaguely understood, a costly and somewhat arcane force used sparingly for essential tasks by the more technologically advanced settlements – settlements they rarely encountered. The idea of generating it without a constant supply of fuel was almost fantastical.
"Electricity… without burning wood or mana stones?" an elder asked, his brow deeply furrowed. "How is that possible, Riku?"
Riku nodded. "It involves converting motion into this energy. Think of the wind, constantly blowing. We can capture that movement and transform it." He pointed to a specific part of the diagram featuring a circular structure with radiating lines. "This device, when turned by a consistent force, will produce electricity."
Just then, a flicker of recognition crossed Levi's sharp features. He remembered the System's description of his 3D Maneuver Gear – unlimited gas. His gaze narrowed as he connected Riku's words with this unique attribute. "Your… wind device," Levi said slowly, a hint of intrigued speculation in his voice. "You're thinking of using the gas from my gear, aren't you? The System did say it was… unlimited."
Riku's eyes met Levi's, a spark of understanding passing between them. "Exactly, Levi. Your gear provides a constant, powerful stream of compressed gas. We can direct that flow to turn a turbine, generating the electricity we need."
A wave of disbelief washed over the villagers. Using a warrior's gear to power their village? It seemed absurd. "But… that's his weapon!" Couronne exclaimed, her protective instincts flaring. "How can we ask him to waste its power on something like… wind?"
"It's not wasting it," Levi interjected, his tone surprisingly matter-of-fact. "If what Dola says is true, this 'electricity' could be far more useful in the long run. Unlimited energy… it's worth a try." The strategic implications of such a resource were not lost on him.
Riku nodded in agreement. "The initial investment will be in building the generator, but once it's done, the power source is essentially limitless, thanks to Levi's gear. We can use this electricity for lighting, for powering tools, for defense… it will revolutionize our village." He spoke with a conviction born of his memories of a world powered by this very force, a world Rio had often reminisced about.
The elder frowned. "We already have electricity, Riku. The neighboring settlements use it for their workshops and some lighting. But the cost of the mana stones required to power the generators is immense. That's why we only use it for the most essential tasks."
"But this method doesn't require mana stones," Riku emphasized, his gaze sweeping over the skeptical faces. "This uses the wind… or in our case, Levi's gas. It will be a fraction of the cost, making electricity accessible for everyone, for everything." He knew it would be an uphill battle to convince them, their understanding of electricity limited by its scarcity. But the potential benefits for their village were too significant to ignore. This was the first step towards truly developing their community, towards a future free from the constant struggle for basic resources.