Chapter 17: This World Has Failed As a Civilization!

"You don’t know what a Gray Magic Stone is, sir?"

Zishan stared at the stone for another second before his expression changed.

"Good, good!" he praised, throwing the crystal into the air and catching it again. "I just wanted to see whether you’d recognize it immediately or not."

Ollie’s large green eyes widened. "You were testing me?"

"Obviously." Zishan nodded approvingly and placed the stone on the tray beside him. "If you’re going to help me sort all this stuff, I need to know whether you actually recognize them. You answered immediately, so you pass."

"Yes! Yes!" Ollie straightened happily. "My mother taught me about Magic Stones a long time ago!"

"Excellent! Then keep going, Ollie!" Zishan leaned back against the pile of planks behind him. "Explain everything you know. I want to see how much you remember."

Any doubt Ollie had disappeared immediately.

The little boy sat beside the crate with noticeably more confidence and began explaining the currency system to him, completely unaware that the person supposedly testing him had known absolutely nothing about these stones a few seconds ago.

Zishan listened calmly.

’Perfect.’

He learned something without looking ignorant!

According to Ollie, Magic Stones were used as currency throughout most of Cyrune. A Gray Magic Stone was considered the lowest common denomination, followed progressively by White, Red, Orange, Cyan, Blue, Violet, Silver, and finally Gold. Each colored Magic Stone was worth ten Stones of the one preceding it, with Gray serving as the base.

So basically, ten Stones of one color were worth one Stone of the next color in the sequence.

Simple.

Zishan gestured for Ollie to continue while pulling another crate closer.

Ollie smiled from ear to ear. "My mother said ordinary people usually don’t carry the higher ones because they’re worth way too much. If somebody used a Silver Magic Stone in a normal shop, the shopkeeper might not even have enough smaller Stones to give back as change."

"Well, that’s a given." Zishan picked up another item from the crate. "If an ordinary person was casually walking around with a Silver Magic Stone, he’d probably have a few people staring at his pocket."

"Yes! Mother told me that too. She said you shouldn’t show expensive Magic Stones when you don’t need to."

"Smart mother! You’re also so smart for remembering all of this, kid!"

Ollie smiled even wider after hearing that.

The boy continued talking while they worked. Gray and White Magic Stones were the ones he usually saw around military camps. Soldiers were given allowances, while some medicines already cost several White Stones depending on what they were for.

Zishan nodded every now and then, maintaining the expression of someone who already knew everything Ollie was telling him and was merely checking whether the boy knew it too.

This was actually working.

Better yet, Ollie didn’t seem to mind answering anything. His eyes would brighten whenever Zishan asked another question, and then he would explain whatever his mother had taught him or whatever he had seen and observed around the camp.

Zishan was beginning to like this setup.

While they were sorting through some preserved food, his stomach suddenly growled.

Ollie stopped talking and looked at him. "Are you hungry, sir? There might still be some dried honeyfruit in one of the food boxes. They’re really sweeeeet!"

"Honeyfruit?" Zishan repeated. "That’s fruit."

Ollie nodded. "Yes!"

Zishan looked at him seriously. "Ollie, fruit is what people eat when they want something sweet but don’t have proper dessert."

The boy stopped what he was doing. "What’s wrong with fruits?"

"Nothing is wrong with fruits. Fruits just need to understand their place in society."

Ollie stared at him for a moment before slowly nodding.

Zishan had absolutely no idea whether the kid understood what he meant. But at least he agreed.

"Anyway, forget about the fruit thing. You have cake here, right?" Zishan asked, suddenly much more interested in their conversation.

"Of course!"

"Oh, bless me more, Goddess of Cakes!" Zishan immediately relaxed. "For a moment there, I thought this world had completely failed as a civilization."

Ollie smiled.

"Then cupcakes should be easy." Zishan’s eyes lit up. "Where do people usually buy them?"

Ollie’s smile slowly disappeared.

"Cupcakes?"

"Yes, cupcakes."

The boy tilted his head. A few strands of his messy blue hair fell farther over his eyebrow. "Is that a cake you put inside a cup?"

Zishan lowered the food packet in his hand.

"No! Why would I put cake inside a cup?" He turned toward Ollie properly. "It’s a small cake. About this big."

He raised both hands and showed him the size.

"There’s paper around the bottom, frosting on top, and they come in different flavors. Chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, whatever. You just take one and eat it."

Ollie watched his hands carefully. "That sounds really good."

"It doesn’t sound good. It is good!" Zishan pointed at him. "Actually, it’s one of the best things humanity has ever created. Now... tell me where I can get one."

Ollie thought for a while. Then, he shook his head. "I’ve never seen one before, sir."

Zishan’s pointing finger stayed in the air. "What?"

"I’ve seen cakes. Some bakeries make small cakes too, but I’ve never seen one with paper around it like that."

"Maybe they’re called something else here."

Ollie lowered his head and seriously tried to remember.

Zishan waited.

The boy thought some more. Then, he shook his head again. "I don’t think so, sir. My aunt works at a bakery, and I’ve helped her before. I think I would’ve seen one if they had something like that."

Zishan’s smile slowly disappeared.

"Your aunt works at a bakery?" he asked.

Ollie nodded.

"And you’ve never seen a cupcake?"

Ollie shook his head.

Zishan became quiet. He looked down at the food in his hands.

’No fucking way.’

He woke up in the middle of a battlefield with no idea how he got there. People tried to kill him. Apparently, he had volunteered for a war he didn’t even remember joining. He nearly killed himself using Rift Steps, got interrogated because everyone thought he was suspicious, spent hours helping inside a medical station, and then somehow ended up fighting a Level 50 Griffin while he was only Level 10.

He accepted all of that.

Mostly.

But this?

"There are no cupcakes in this world..." he muttered.

Ollie looked worried. "Are cupcakes really that important, sir?"

Zishan slowly turned toward him. "Ollie, I’ve had a very difficult day."

The little boy immediately became serious.

"I woke up on a battlefield with people trying to kill me. I apparently volunteered for a war I don’t remember volunteering for. I nearly died several times, got interrogated, worked here for hours, and then fought a giant Griffin that could’ve cut my head off." Zishan placed a hand against his chest. "Through all of that, I still thought that somewhere in this world, there would at least be cupcakes waiting for me."

Ollie’s face gradually became solemn.

"And now you’re telling me there aren’t."

The little boy actually looked sorry.

Zishan almost wanted to ask why Ollie looked guilty when he clearly had nothing to do with the invention—or the lack of invention or innovation of more variations of cakes, especially a cupcake!

Before he could, Ollie’s eyes suddenly brightened. "Couldn’t we make one?"

Zishan stopped.

Ollie moved a little closer. "You know what they look like, right? And you know what they’re made from. My aunt knows how to bake cakes, so maybe you can tell her how to make one. If it doesn’t work, we can just try again."

Zishan stared at him.

The boy stared back with those large green eyes, waiting for his answer.

Then Zishan suddenly grabbed him by both shoulders. "You beautiful little genius!"

Ollie’s eyes widened.

"You might have just saved this entire world!" Zishan exclaimed.

"I did?!"

"Yes!"

A huge smile immediately appeared on Ollie’s face.

Zishan released the boy and returned to the supplies in a much better mood. "All right! Keep going. Tell me everything you know. Currency, cities, organizations, food, Magic Beasts, things people here normally know, and especially anything else necessary."

"Okay!"

Ollie happily continued talking while they worked, still taking every question Zishan asked seriously.

Zishan interrupted whenever something interested him, and the boy answered every question without getting tired of it. If anything, Ollie seemed happier each time Zishan asked him something.

By the time Commander Holtz returned, Zishan already understood enough about Magic Stones that he probably wouldn’t embarrass himself the first time he actually had to buy something. He had also learned a little more about Olmost, found several foods he wanted to try, and heard about a few Magic Beasts he wanted absolutely nothing to do with.

But there was still one thing bothering him.

Cyrune had no cupcakes!

This part was absolutely unacceptable!!!