Chapter 9 A Travelogue

Chapter 9 A Travelogue

As Grenfell had mentioned, Lady Antonia Cumming was a renowned contemporary detective novelist.

The book he gave to Celes was one of Antonia Cumming's most acclaimed works, titled _Truth Fades with the Hands of Time_. For Celes, who had been exposed to Earth's internet culture, the mystery in this work did not seem particularly troubling.

But for readers of this era, it would likely be a revelation.

This immediately sparked an idea in Celes's mind. Perhaps he could really make money by writing novels. Plagiarizing works from Earth was, of course, unethical, but moving some of his own creative ideas to this world should be acceptable, right?

He needed to solve the problem of earning money as soon as possible.

If he were to pursue this path, he would need to study the current novel market.

Celes thought about his schedule for the next day—it was Wednesday, and he had to go to the Historical Society in the afternoon. He had originally planned to continue working on his lesson plans in the morning, but since the progress was going well, he might have some free time tomorrow morning to visit the bookstore in East City.

He also needed to find suitable textbooks and compile a reading list for his students.

...So he had to work hard tonight.

Celes took a deep breath, stood up, and washed his face in the washroom to clear his head. Then he ate a couple of bites of bread with jam before immersing himself back into work.

By late night, he finally managed to complete the syllabus for his elective course.

Celes leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes slightly, feeling a bit tired. The warm yellow light through his eyelids provided a comforting sensation.

In the quiet of the night, a complex mix of emotions spread within Celes. It had been three days since he arrived in this world. His actions seemed hurried and rushed, even though he appeared calm on the surface. Deep down, he felt a lingering sense of confusion.

Whether it was investigating the truth of this world or finding a way back home, there was a heavy force pushing him, making him unable to rest.

He dared not stop. Once he did, he would think of his family and friends on Earth. All the things he cherished and missed. These thoughts pulled at him, reminding him countless times that he never truly belonged here.

Celes sighed softly. When he opened his eyes, there was no trace of confusion or pain in his dark pupils. He got up, took a shower, brushed his teeth, changed his clothes, and did some laundry.

The continuous rainy weather meant that the clothes he had washed earlier were still damp. If it didn't clear up soon, he might have to buy a couple of new outfits.

However... he did indeed need to buy a new outfit. After all, he was about to step onto the stage and face the eyes of countless students.

...Celes's movements paused for a moment while doing laundry.

He sighed again.

The next morning, Celes woke up, dressed, packed his essentials, and headed to Logan Market to catch the public carriage. This time, he didn't encounter Mrs. Fein at the door and left Milford Street alone with his umbrella.

He had to go to the Historical Society in the afternoon. And according to his memory, there was a large bookstore near Arthurton Central Square, south of the Historical Society.

Celes recalled the exact location of the bookstore several times to confirm it.

The city of Lamifa, divided between West City and East City by the winding Kanra River, accommodated nearly ten million residents across its two districts.

As the capital of the Duchy of Const, Lamifa was undoubtedly a massive city.

Therefore, even though Celes had lived in this city for quite some time, he couldn't possibly know every corner of Lamifa. There were no electronic maps in this world.

Celes thought to himself that he should buy a map of Lamifa.

Would the bookstore sell maps? However, the bookstores in this world might not be as categorized and detailed as those on Earth. Perhaps there were specialized map stores.

Another bumpy ride. Since the public carriages traveled clockwise, Celes had to spend nearly three hours to reach the Historical Society.

When he stepped off the carriage, his face was pale, partly due to the jolting ride and partly because of the long journey. He thought it was too much of a waste of time. Even if he wanted to save money, it wasn't worth spending so much time.

He decided that when he went to the Historical Society on Saturday, he would hire a private carriage instead. It would probably take only an hour.

He checked his pocket watch and saw that it was almost ten o'clock. He quickened his pace towards Arthurton Central Square.

This was the heart of Lamifa. A little further south was the palace of the Duchy of Const, where the Duke of Const and his family resided in a grand and splendid palace.

However, the rainy season in July had led the duke's family to choose a warmer and drier region for their vacation, so they were not in Lamifa recently.

Celes circled around Arthurton Central Square. Despite the gloomy weather, many people were strolling there. He noticed someone painting in a corner of the square.

From a distance, it was a slender young man wearing gold-rimmed glasses.

Celes did not linger and quickly found the bookstore he remembered. More accurately, it was a book vendor market.

It was always bustling. Numerous vendors from all over the duchy came here to set up stalls, hoping to sell all their acquired books within a short period.

It was a massive building with a glass dome. On a sunny day, the glass roof would shine brilliantly, but now, it only made Celes sigh softly.

People were coming and going, many holding several books, either satisfied with their finds or disappointed.

Celes walked in, curious, and after a couple of rounds, he discovered several interesting books and added some titles to the students' reading list, as well as some he was personally interested in.

He felt a stirring desire but ultimately restrained himself and headed to the popular fiction section.

Here, it was even more lively. Men were engrossed in detective and adventure novels, while women preferred knightly and domestic novels.

Celes picked up a few best-selling books, flipped through them, and suddenly paused, wondering, where were the romance novels?

These novels dedicated to love stories and romantic entanglements, though often criticized as "not fit for high society" on Earth, were immensely popular, especially among women, surpassing any other genre.

...Did this world lack romance novels?

Celes's eyes lit up. He thought, perhaps he could write a popular romance novel?

The more he searched for best-selling genres, the more he realized the scarcity of romance novels, and the more he believed his idea was feasible. He stood there, pondering amidst the chatter of others.

Then, he bought two books similar to romance novels: one was a heroic adventure story that seemed to appeal to female readers; the other had a similar theme but featured a young noble lady as the protagonist.

He placed the two books into his bag—a shoulder sling bag he had specifically brought for today.

Afterwards, Celes wandered around other stalls and shops. This place was a mix of everything, but it also allowed him to discover quite a few books that piqued his interest. He struggled to recall the meager amount left in his wallet, suppressing his urge to spend.

In the end, he stopped at one particular stall.

This stall was located in a corner. If Celes hadn't decided on a whim to circle the entire interior of the building, he might never have found this stall.

The owner of the stall was a young man, probably around twenty years old, with an unmistakable look of disappointment. He had likely come with high hopes but hadn't sold a single book, leaving him dispirited.

When Celes stopped in front of his stall, the young man merely squatted there, dejectedly saying, "Feel free to look around."

Celes was drawn to a notebook with a parchment cover. Due to his experience signing contracts at the Historical Society, he was particularly sensitive to this type of material.

Papermaking technology in this world was highly advanced, though it was unclear how much of it was due to the contributions of the Enlightened Ones. However, the more ancient and handcrafted materials, such as parchment, wooden tablets, and stone slabs used for writing, were both expensive and rare.

During his research on the literature of the Silent Era, Celes noticed that many manuscripts and original books would use materials like parchment or vellum for their covers, unlike today where wood pulp paper is commonly used.

Thus, this notebook immediately caught Celes' attention.

He was slightly worried it might be from before the Fog Era, but when he looked at the notebook, the stall owner introduced it, "It's a travel journal."

His lackluster voice did little to dampen Celes' interest in the notebook.

"A travel journal?" Celes asked, "What kind of travel journal?"

"The Land of No Ash," the stall owner said, "But I don't know the specifics. It's not in the language of the Duchy of Const."

Celes was taken aback.

The stall owner explained further, "This travel journal was brought back by a merchant from the Land of No Ash. The owner of the journal was an explorer who was severely injured. The merchant took care of him for a while, but he still died, handing over the journal as payment before passing away.

"However, the explorer wasn't from the Duchy of Const, and the language in the journal is foreign. The merchant couldn't find a suitable translator and couldn't publish it, so eventually, the journal ended up with me."

Celes asked, "What's your relationship with that merchant?"

The stall owner pursed his lips, "That's my father."

Celes cautiously asked, "Would your father object to selling it through you?"

"Of course not!" the young stall owner said indignantly, "This travel journal can't be published! There are so many countries outside the Duchy of Const. Who knows where the explorer came from or what language he used?"

Travel journal. Publication. Celes pondered these two words together.

He keenly asked, "Does your father have publishing channels?"

The young stall owner was taken aback, "Why do you ask?"

For a moment, Celes hesitated whether it was necessary to mention his desire to write a novel. But he ultimately didn't feel the urge to discuss it with a stranger he had just met.

He simply said, "If I happen to find a suitable translator in the future, we could consider collaborating on its publication."

The young stall owner looked at him suspiciously.

Celes said, "Could you give me your contact information?"

The young stall owner hesitated for a moment before handing Celes a business card. He said, "This is my father's card."

Celes glanced down at the name: Jerome Lamill.

...Lamill? Wait, Merchant Lamill?!

Celes' pupils constricted.

In his mind, the sound of dice rolling echoed.