One of the things thrust upon Hino early on was a mundane version of his magical attire and he also aquired a mundane longsword! It was a lot lighter than he expected. He wondered now why costume swords were so heavy. Well he did. Regardless, he had that thing peace bonded. There was like no reason to actually use it besides it looked neat.
Oh, right, he gathered everyone at some point and he wanted to go down into the Market Square early! This was probably a SUPER mundane and boring thing for the other Waldians. Who wants to to go the /Market/?
Well this is like the /best thing ever/ to Hinote and /he/ wants to go down to the Market. He's waiting under a thatched overhang of what appears to be some sort of crafts workshop and horsehoes were being made! He steps away when his eyes start flinching from the banging though and moves away far enough as he looks around. It's juuuust starting to get busy. Hopefully he doesn't get lost in a strange crowd of people.
He begins to wonder how Waldians tell time. Is clockwork a thing? He looks around- and towards the castle. He hasn't quite had enough time to examine it from the outside.
Maybe a sundial?
Man, how did you even schedule appointments? 'When the chicken clucks for the fifth time!'!?
Wait. Did Waldians have chickens?
Why did he think of asking the most stupidest questions. Eggs have to come from somewhere, right!?
Being home (more or less) after spending over half a year away feels a bit odd to Gaofele, but going back to seemingly mundane tasks is a nice change from the ambient pressure of seeking out enough energy to reinforce the Barrier. A trip to the Market would fit in well with that change of pace, so when Hinote asked, the forester agreed.
Besides, Gao and the others learned much from the shops of Tokyo; who's to say that Hinote won't learn similarly from visiting the Market?
Gao strolls up, looking across the Market's early arrivals. There's a certain flow to the locals, if one knows where to look. Not a fixed pattern as much as the quirks that accumulate over the course of time, but it does make it somewhat easier to find those who are not in the flow... like, say, a certain Earth-born Guardian Knight, waiting around.
(The fact that Hinote's outfit is similar to his magical outfit also helps.)
"Good morning, Hinote!" Gao calls with a wave, heading over to Hinote. "Welcome to the Market Square!"
Sundials would be a little antiquated even for here; this world does have the very beginnings of clock design going. As for swords... mundane weaponry tends to be the realm of dealing with wild animals that can't otherwise be avoided, or the infrequent bandit problem. Neither of which really get close to the capital, and Hinote's gaze upon the castle yields the same stone walls, tall wood gate, and red and white banners with a shield and heart emblem as before.
Being back home after over half a year does not strike Rune as mundane or boring, either. A few guards had to come along, keeping at some distance... they're mostly there to help prevent people from mobbing the princess or knights, encouraging traffic to give them a little space.
Rune paces alongside Hinote, waving as Gaofele arrives. "Hey there," then she adds some explanation for Hinote's sake: "A lot happens here each morning. There's a bakery just past here, and things get unloaded from the docks most days." Such dock shipping operations would be... 'quaint', very small, by Tokyo's standards. You'll find a few shops not around here, but this is where /most/ business gets done."
Hinote Kagari doesn't have bright red hair. That's about the only change. He grins and waves. "Hey Gaofele." he says. He see's.. well. There doesn't seem to be a clock there. But the castle looks really awesome. Ugh. He'll have to come back or maybe abuse magic to get onto a rooftop where no one can see him and take a picture before he leaves.
He's sure Gaofelle and Runealy feel better here at least. This is familar. This is still exciting. But it's still a market.
"Hello Runealy." he says with a wide smile. "I have no idea what shops are here..."
His eyes glance over to the guards. Yeah he expects guards around a princess. He doesn't find this odd. /Some/ things you expect. Hinote kind of wonders how Tokyo must have felt to Runealy without the entourage, but he doesn't ask dour questions. Really. That isn't even important. Instead, he asks.
"A Bakery sounds good. I have not even had breakfast yet. I was kind of in a hurry!" he smiles. He pauses.
"Do you come down into the city often, Runealy?" he asks. "Gaofelle?" he asks. "I have no clue what a common day here is for either of you." he laughs.
Gaofele Doiru nods to the guards; he's seen them often enough on his visits to the palace, after all. "A common day usually finds me somewhere in the forest, but my family often sends some people to do trading," he remarks. "Selling some carefully harvested materials from the forest, and purchasing certain supplies that we can't just harvest from the woods."
The mention of breakfast doesn't quite make the forester's stomach growl, but it's close. "I didn't grab much to eat either, come to mention it," he admits. "A stop by the bakery would be a good idea."
The guards are keeping far enough back that everyone has plenty of personal space; their goal is mostly to prevent full-on 'celebrity-hounding' rather tnan keeping every single person away from the princess and knights.
"We have just about everything," Rune's response is perhaps not very helpful, but delivered with some quiet warmth to it as she adds: "Hiking supplies like food and waterskins," even Rune with her sheltered upbringing knows those are used. "Most of the clothing is upscale, but you can find a few more... 'practical' things here and there too. We have a jeweler, a few musicians, artists for hire, the people that carry the supplies all of them need... metalworking, leather, chances are if a big city like this needs it, someone here covers it."
'Big city' is relative when its population is measured in the tens of thousands, compared to Tokyo. She nonetheless answers the question. "I come here sometimes. Once or twice a week usually. Sometimes alone, sometimes with someone. Usually they," a gesture back to the pair in modest armor, "aren't around. Usually don't need it. It's just that the second I stepped out the gate, people kept trying to ask me all kinds of things. Guess I can't blame them, we did just reveal about... four or so 'scandals' all at once.
She's quick to chime in after Gaofele, "That's right. There's woodworking here too... does that run in your family, or is that something you got in to on your own?" As for talk of bakery visits, "Sure. Any idea what you want after that?"
Hinote Kagari ugh, 'celebrity. He has basically become numb to being called 'Sir Hino' at this point he just accepts it. It doesn't inflate his ego anymore though. He walks along with the others and stops in front of a bakery as he sniffs the air. "This is a bakery, right?" he asks looking up at the sign. He looks back at Runealy. "Well, not like I plan to go /too/ far. Not like I can hike two days away and back in time." he grins a bit. "Maybe if I run fast." he says, jokingly..
He looks to Gaofele. "Trade---? Oh. Right." he says.
"That's... not really something you think about in Tokyo. Everyone wants money." he says. "Well I'd like to see some clothes and some other trinkets." he admits. "Jewerly maybe sounds nice- but.. I can't be taking too much back with me. It's easy for me to write off clothes as--- 'costumes'. Jewerly- that's harder."
He walks in and looks around and---waves to- uh. Man. Baker? Clerk? Shopkeep.
"Hello!-" he asks. "What's fresh?" he asks with wide eyes.
"There's a certain number of woodworkers in my family, but it's not like all of us do that," Gaofele remarks to Rune. "There's certain dyes that only grow in the woods, as well as fruit-bearing plants that don't domesticate well, and other things that are only found in the forest. We know where they are and how to gather them, and we bring what we don't need to market."
He nods to Hinote. "Money is useful when you don't have something the other person would like in exchange, but if you're buying from and selling to the same person, it makes just as much sense to trade," the forester notes.
Gao takes a deep breath as they walk into the bakery. Fresh bread is always terrific to smell, and the scent of familiar grains is even better.
"We use money here too, you know... you've been getting paid in it," Rune points out to Hinote. "But yes, sometimes people do just trade instead. I'd probably go for it myself, except... I usually get the finished product of the sort of things Gao's talking about, rather than the materials." Nobody expects the princess to do her own cloth-dying or woodcrafting. It's probably for the best.
Then they're inside, and she stops to blink and take in the same scent Gaofele is. "...Been way too long since we were here, hasn't it? How would you feel about me putting you on the spot, picking out something for all of us so Hinote can get a good example? I'll pay for it." Notably, her tone is easing up and her body is too; her movements are starting to become more casual... not quite the slumped, head-down walk when she was at her lowest points, nor the extreme tension of someone who was expecting to be attacked at any minute on some days back in Tokyo.
There's probably a cut away gag here where a chibi Runealy turns around and displays a horror of a dress and/or woodcrafting project if this were an anime and a chibi Gao and Hino raise there arms and shake at it. Look, it's after the horror, you get one cutaway gag. This isn't an anime though.
Hinote crosses his arms and puts Gao on the spot! "I have no idea what to get!" he insists with a smile at Gao. This is a lie, but he feels like seeing what Gao likes here too. So maybe he'll get to see that. He does glance back at the Princess... yeah. He'd wondered what Runealy looked like 'normally' for a while. This seems to be close to something like that. It does make him smile.
"Yeah, I'd been saving most of those coins. I brought them with me but everyone is kinda shoving stuff at me and It's starting to make me feel bad now." he admits. "I get we're heroes and all- but..." he shrugs.
Gaofele Doiru chuckles at the other two. "My choice, eh? Well, in that case..." He glances over the options avaiable, then orders a trio of sweetbuns and a slightly larger quantity of hearty rolls -- a roll for each of the guards, and a roll and a sweetbun each for Rune, Hinote, and himself.
After distributing the baked goods, Gao takes a bite of the roll. The grain it was made from is a Waldian cousin to Earth wheat; similar flavor, but with a softly nutty hint to it. The sweetbun is made from a flour of mixed grains, with chopped nuts and honey added. Both are good even at table-readiness; fresh from the oven like they are, they're even better.
"So good having these again," he smiles around bites. "There's just something about the flavors of home that makes you feel safe."
Runealy lowers her voice to offer a little advice to Hinote: "There is such a thing as conveniently 'dropping' the coins where they'll find them later, if you feel that strongly about paying." She doesn't want that particular tidbit being overheard outside her friends, of course. It would ruin the usefulness of that particular trick.
Rune's smile is more clear when she figures out who Gaofele is ordering extras for, a deep nod showing obvious approval for this.
Then when food is ready, she gets into it with some enthusiasm. Nothing unsightly, no overt 'digging in' with wild abandon... but she's eating with a good pace, and clearly liking it. "It almost sounds weird to say this is 'what we worked for', but in some way it's kind of true. This is really good. You picked a winner, Gao!"
She doesn't say much more to Hinote just yet, but is idly looking his way every so often to just take in his reactions; she is curious to see how he feels about the 'real deal', the world he fought for, and is visiting and seeing now, getting a few days' glimpse of before they must return to Earth.
Hinote Kagari has two rolls, a bag of silver coins, a longsword in his inventory.
He eats the sweetroll first because it smells delicious. This tastes utterly delicious and non-processed and then he realizes there's nothing like a chemical after-taste. Oh god. He has to figure out how to make this happen in his kitchen in Tokyo because he might risk coming back here for sweetrolls.
That's totally responsible, right?
Time to research local farms he thinks, when he gets back to Tokyo.
He taps his chin a bit. "I think , either later today, or tommrow, you should take me to the forest, Gao. I'd like to meet some people important to you, too- you know." he says.
Runealy is over there lost in sweetroll heaven and he's not going to interupt that.
"-and I'd like to be shown a few things. This way. I know what I'm doing if we go camping again." he grins. "Without all the ammenities."
Gaofele Doiru nods at Hinote. "Sounds like a plan," he agrees, saving the last bite of the roll while he eats the sweetbun. "Could come in handy if you and Rune wind up out in the wilds without me around." Technically, wilderness survival is a bit more advanced than simply camping without Earth-modern gear, but if the other Knight is a fast enough study at it, Gao might still include a few basics on the topic.
"Besides, comparing notes with the rest of my clan might be productive," he adds as he finishes the sweetbun. "We're already used to keeping certain secrets; staying quiet about what gear can be adapted from Earth until we know what will work and fit wouldn't be that much harder."
He pops the saved bite of roll into his mouth -- the sweetbuns are good, but it's nice to have something to follow it with to tame the lingering sweetness. "So, what would you like to see next?"
Hinote Kagari finishes his sweetroll then begins on the regular one and the regular one is also good! If not sweet. It's a breadroll. But it's also free of well-- that chemical taste he never really noticed before. He kind of wishes he had a jar of peanut butter now. Then the usual 'does it exist'.
"Do 'Nut Butters' exist here?" he asks to Gaofele politely. Not 'Peanut Butter', but something he imagines might be the closest analouge.
He grins as he begins to leave the bakery.
"Clothes." he says. "Then. I want to go down to the docks." he says. "I want to see your ocean. The water's so cloudy in the harbor at home. I wonder if it's clearer here." he says as he eats the sweetroll.
He looks up and down the path. "Which way?" he asks politely.
Gaofele Doiru thinks as they walk along. "Some people make nut pastes, which are somewhat similar to peanut butter," he muses. "Not quite as common as peanut butter is on Earth, though." Come to think of it, trying to adapt some of the nut paste recipes into nut butter might be worth a try, especially given how Gao had enjoyed peanut butter.
It takes him a couple of minutes to recall where some tailors were; the Doiru clan tends to make their clothes from fabric, leather, and other materials, rather than purchasing them pre-made. "Let's see... ah, here we go! The craftsman here sews a sturdy seam, and he's good at making clothes that serve well," Gao remarks as he heads for a particular shop. "He'll take your measurements and ask you a few questions about its use and purpose, then he'll work on it with help from his apprentices."
He gives an apologetic shrug. "Mind you, this takes time, so it's not like you can walk in, make the purchase, and walk out," he notes. "Still, we can visit the docks while he works, and the clothes will be worth the wait."
Hinote Kagari hehs. "That's not like Tokyo at all.. you know." he says. "You walk in and if you don't like it, tough luck, find another shop." he says as he walks in and ponders. What would he like. Something... everyday. Something rugged for hikes. He finds words for this for the tailor and he's---wisked and moved and measured and all sorts of things. He has to take off his cape. That gets put back on when this is done. He already has the fancy, he's wearing it.
He politely bows to the shopkeep and lets them get to work as he looks to Gao. "Well that was painless. Let's go to the docks now."
"They're not too far away are they?" he asks.
This isn't a HUGE city, right?
"I wonder...if we could get a fish." he taps his chin.
"Depends on what kind of fish you'd like, but probably," Gao nods as they make their way to the docks. It takes a certain amount of time, as the docks were the opposite direction from the Market than the tailor they visited, but even so it's not an overly-long walk -- it's not like they're walking all the way across Tokyo, after all!
Most of the fishing ships are out at the time, but there's a few fisherfolk doing repairs and the like. The water is indeed much clearer than in Tokyo, although it's not as clear as it would be outside of town. "The weather's not quite cold enough for them to restock the icehouse for the year," the forester comments. "Getting there, though; shouldn't take more than a couple of weeks until the cutting crews can get to work."
Hinote Kagari grins. "Something edible that can be cooked." he says. "I have no idea what your fish species are. What goes good with what, and all that." he says. He walks along and peers into the water. It may not be crystal clear but you can actually see the bottom at places in the shallows! That's strange because when you're at the pier in Tokyo, you only see a few feet down into the murk of pollutants and overgrowth.
"Icehouse?..." he asks.
"...."
"...Oh!"
"That's right. Ice is practically a luxury for you guys, isn't it, because---you can't normally freeze things until it actually gets cold." he says. "I never thought of that." he says.
"So... I bet. Drying food.. is how you generally keep things longer then?" he asks. "---or have you guys invented like, jarring things?" he asks politely. 'Putting things in a glass jar' seems safe enough to mention.
"Or Pickling..." he says. He figures also safe.
He scratches his head. "I wish---I wish for a fish..." he mumbles. "What do you suggest, Gao?" he asks.
"We have a variety of methods, although it'd probably be easier to explain during harvest season," Gao notes. "Pickling and drying are definitely two of the ways we preserve food, thought."
He sizes up Hinote for a few moments, recalling the types of fish that the other Knight enjoyed eating in Tokyo. "Let's see... given the type of fish-flesh, and the season..." the forester muses, then nods. "Okay, I think I know which one you might like."
Gao walks over to a fish shop, and after a few moments of talking some coins are exhanged for a paper-wrapped fish. "Here you go," he grins to Hinote, offering the packaged fish. "They had some from one of the early-early morning boats, so it's still quite fresh."
Hinote Kagari picks up the fish package. Sniffs over it. and wheeeews and quickly retracts it. "I dunno what I expected. It smells strongly of fish." he says coyly. He laughs and puts it under his arm as he walks along. He has a seat on a pile of lumber that no one seems to be manning. He has no idea if this is polite or not. He'll get up if anyone asks.
"This has been fun." he says with a smile.
"Now that I've had some time.." he says...
"...and I feel like a trouble maker suddenly..." he says.
"...I feel like asking inappropiate questions!" he says with a flourish!
"So is there a 'legal age' to drink wine or similar beverages in Waldia?" he asks with a coy smile. Look. You're in a medevial world. You want to revel. Also, you're fourteen and this sounds exciting and you've acted the 'toast to world domination' scene in a play before.
Now you kinda wanna do it for real at least once.
Gaofele Doiru chuckles. "We're still a bit young to have some of the hard alcohol, but there's no fixed number to it," he explains. "We might be able to go for a glass of something heavily cut with juice as a rare celebration, but for the most part we should stick with lighter drinks."
The forester grins. "Well, you said questions, plural, so it sounds like their's more mischief on your mind," he notes. "What other kinds of shenanigans are you interested in learning about?"
Hinote Kagari tsks. "Well. That's no fun." he says teasingly- he's not too tore up about it. Really. Waldia seems reallllly more 'civilized' than he expected based on his knowledge of Earth's own Medevil period. He expected something like that. "It's no worries, really." he pushes up and walks back towards the Market Square---well. He stops. "Which way again?" he asks Gao.
He pauses a moment.
"Well. Not scandalous, and really..." he says. "I know you guys have to respect nature, so I don't even know if what I'm asking is polite!" he says.
"But. I think I want to go hunting. Once." he says. "..just another one of those things you can't do in Tokoyo." he says softly.
"Really. I have a small list of things I want to do in this week." he grins. "..and it's getting smaller everyday."
"It's polite enough," Gao shrugs as he guides Hinote back to the Market Square. "We just try to keep the animal populations from getting too big or too small. I can't make any promises, but if there's any hunting this week, I'll see about bringing you along... at least, once you've had some lessons in forester stealth and similar skills."
He thinks for a moment. "Out of curiosity, what else do you have on that list of yours?" the forester inquires. "I might be able to help, or at least get you in touch with people who could."
Hinote Kagari thinks. "Well." he says. "Here's my list; See the Castle. Walk around the Castle. Meet some Intresting People. Eat some Local Food. Get some clothes to take home. Get a few trinkets to take home that my parents won't ask too many questions about. 'Actually' Camp, Hunt for a breakfast/lunch/dinner, Train with someone who actually knows how to use a longsword for real.' he says. "I'm not going to be too tore up if I can't accomplish everything. There will be other times I'm sure in the future- if not close!" he says.
"Of those I have... Get a few trinkets, camp, hunt, learn to actually use a longsword... left to accomplish." he says.
He grins. "I feel like cheating using magic to use a sword is kind of disrespectful to..." he motions to the guards politely. "People who actually drill and know how to use them, you know?" he says sheepishly. "I should learn, too, right?" he asks.
"Like I'm sure you know how to 'actually use a bow'. Am I right?" he asks.
Gaofele Doiru nods. "And quarterstaff, too," he agrees. "I know a smattering of other weapons, like daggers and spears and others that are especially useful in a forest, but bow and staff have always been my strong suits."
He thinks about the remaining items on the list. "Should be able to do camping within the next day or so," he muses. "And possibly hunting sometime around then. Trinkets... well, it depends on what exactly you're looking for; perhaps looking at various handcrafts might help you decide."
The forester gives his fellow Knight an encouraging grin. "And I think learning how to mundanely wield your weapon is a great idea! It'll give you an extra way of helping to protect others if you can't use magic for one reason or another."
Hinote Kagari grins. "Good then!" he says. "Well. I'm thinking some decorative carved stuff. Wood maybe. Maybe a painting or two. I can write those off to my parents easily enough." he says.
He smiles and places a hand on Gao's shoulder. "Maybe Runealy and Vale can come camping with us! But something tells me that'd be a new one on Vale, too. But that's an assumitive hunch." he grins.
He stands back up. "Let's go see how my clothes are doing... okay?" he asks.
Gaofele Doiru chuckles. "I think we should get the two of them more familiar with camping with Earth tools, then work towards teaching them how to camp with Waldian supplies," he agrees. "And probably when things are less hectic, too. Have it be more relaxed and leisurely."
He gives Hinote a nod. "Knowing them, they'd probably be glad to have you stop by to confirm the fit," the forester notes. "And if that's goes well enough, they'll undoubtedly have your clothes finished sooner than later. Let's go!" And with that, Gao starts leading Hinote back across town to the tailor's shop.