"There's no doubt, that's a high-quality magic tool."
Magic Power doesn't lie—whether that pendant is a magic tool, Makarov can see it at a glance.
Rhode might have survived such a beast tide thanks to this pendant—though he doesn't even know how to use it.
Rhode took the necklace off, the thin metal chain bunched up, the pendant lay quietly in his palm, its golden letters and blue circle base reflecting specks of natural light.
After flipping it around a few times, besides looking quite nice, he couldn't figure out what made it special.
"Tatsuya didn't give me a manual back then, did he!" Rhode burst out in his native tongue.
Makarov and Mirajane looked at him quizzically.
Rhode handed the necklace to Makarov and asked, "President, do you know how to make the most of this thing?"
"Using magic tools doesn't necessarily require understanding magic, but once you can use it, you can count as knowing magic."
Makarov took the necklace and said a string of words like a tongue twister.
Rhode pondered the logic in them, then saw that the necklace, unremarkable in his own hands, began to glow in Makarov's.
"Ah, I see, it's a tool similar to the Star Spirit Key; only you can use this pendant."
"Star Spirit Key?" Rhode didn't understand, what was that?
Mirajane kindly explained, even using a light pen to draw a diagram for Rhode:
"Celestial Spirit Magic is about signing contracts with Star Spirits, summoning them from the Star Spirit Realm to help. Users of Celestial Spirit Magic need special keys, it's a type of Holding Magic."
Mirajane's drawing skills were somewhat lacking, comparing her to Lidas was like abstract art.
This led Rhode to not understand what kind of creature a Star Spirit was, but he roughly grasped what type of magic it was.
He used a term he could understand: "Summoner?"
"That's about right." Makarov returned the necklace to Rhode,
"I will teach you the basics of Magic Power, and the tricks of Celestial Spirit Magic I know.
Also, the guild's library has information on Celestial Spirit Magic... How about it, do you want to learn this magic?"
"I want to learn." Rhode nodded.
Summoner, huh? With a pendant shaped like the LOL game icon, Rhode could roughly guess what he could summon.
Those hundred-plus heroes, a few powerful ones would probably dominate the world, right?
"Then it's decided, I'll teach you magic shortly. For now, let's talk about a practical issue."
"Practical issue?"
-----------------
Rhode was kicked out.
His injuries were almost healed, so he needed to move out and couldn't keep occupying the infirmary.
Having to find a place to live by himself in a strange city, or rather a strange world, made Rhode a bit anxious.
Fortunately, the President helped him find a house not far from the guild, less than a kilometer away in a straight line.
Rhode had already visited, it should count as a storefront house facing the street, with the first floor used as a shop and the second floor available for living.
The landlord is Goodman Riel, a young man in his late twenties.
He used to live here a few years ago, but moved out after getting married, only coming over during the day to open the shop.
The house has a complete kitchen, toilet, and bath facilities, with the bathroom even having a bathtub. The bedroom isn't big, but it's more than enough for one person.
The rent is 80,000 J per month, Rhode isn't very familiar with the currency here, but according to Mirajane, this price is considered very cheap in Magnolia.
The reason given by the landlord for the price is that the second floor was idle anyway, and having a mage live in could boost security somewhat.
Rhode thought he might be giving face to the President, who reportedly occasionally visits the guild tavern for drinks.
However, even though the rent is considered low, Rhode couldn't afford it either.
The money for rent was borrowed from the President, totaling 150,000 J, with the remaining 70,000 for Rhode to use as meal money and to buy some daily necessities.
150,000 J sounds like a large number, but after seeing the denominations of the bills, Rhode felt more at ease.
These thousand-yen notes and ten-thousand-yen bills… Their actual value must be much lower than RMB.
But borrowing money like this made Rhode realize that for those few days, the meals he ate and the medicines he used, seemed like he hadn't paid for any of them.
Especially those medicines, with effects so good, the price must not be cheap.
Additionally, the fee for Mr. Hibiki, who helped him learn the language, should logically be paid by him.
It's just that at the time he didn't understand anything, his mind was so muddled, he forgot to ask how much it cost.
"Who's ever accumulated such a butt-load of debt immediately upon traveling to another world..."
With a complex mood, Rhode went to a nearby shop to buy towels and toiletries, and then he had to buy a few changes of clothes.
He then discovered that this money didn't seem to last long.
Even a slightly thicker towel costs 500 J, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and cup set costs 1,000 J, soap is 100 J, shampoo is 500 J...
Plus other necessities like toilet paper, sheets, pillows, and blankets, he easily spent nearly 20,000.
"Is the remaining 50,000 J enough for a month's food?"
Rhode recalled that Natsu's flame meal seemed to cost over 1,000 J. Regular food probably wasn't that expensive, and if worst comes to worst, he could cook for himself.
Spending around 20,000 J more on a few clothes should be enough... or maybe cut it in half to keep an extra 10,000 just in case.
"Luckily it's summer now." Rhode felt fortunate for a second but then realized he might need to buy a mosquito net.
His wealth shrunk again.
Busy for half the day, Rhode finally bought everything he needed and brought it back.
While it was still daylight, Rhode decided to go to the guild for dinner.
The people at the guild were no longer as many as during the day.
Among the remaining people, most, like Rhode, were here to grab dinner.
A few were drunk, some snoring away, others with flushed faces arguing over something, seemingly ready to fight at any moment.
Natsu, who had been chasing after Rhode wanting to ask questions earlier, was also absent; he must have already gotten his answers from the President.
Mirajane placed the plates and cups on the tray in front of the guests, then looked at Rhode: "Rhode, you're back, have you finished moving?"
"Almost, I plan to grab dinner here, is that okay?"
"Of course, what would you like?"
Rhode thought for a moment: "The same as that guy just had, it seems really good."
"Alright, one portion of Super Demon Spicy Curry Rice." Mirajane gave him a look that seemed to admire a warrior, even giving him a fist pump, "Finish what you ordered by yourself, okay?"
"Wait, wait just a minute!" Rhode quickly stopped her, "Your common language is not great, just now I seemed to hear thrilling words, what kind of dish is that?"
Mirajane blinked innocently, "Curry rice."
"What about the modifiers in front?"
"Just 'Super Demon Spicy,' that's all."
Rhode raised a hand: "I don't think 'just' and 'that's all' are used like that."
Mirajane pointed to the person in front who ordered: "It's fine, see, isn't he enjoying it?"
Rhode collapsed: "He's breathing fire!"
"Aww~~ I thought you'd like this sort of thing."
"Please, absolutely, surely, you must change it to a normal one for me."
"Oh, that's too bad, I thought I'd see some funny expressions. Also, you just need to say 'surely' from that sentence."
Mirajane laughed softly and left, not forgetting to help Rhode correct his language habits.
Rhode didn't understand, was this girl truly having an ill-natured character or just purely enjoying watching the commotion?
Yesterday she wasn't like this...
Could it be because he didn't need care now?
Rhode's mood was complex, please bring back the gentle and thoughtful Mirajane...