Chapter 03 - Megane-kun, From Albat Village to the Royal Capital of Nastiarra

From Albat Village to the royal capital of Nastiarra, it apparently takes two days by carriage.

With the tedious journey ahead and plenty of time to kill, I decided to experiment with the "Glasses" aptitude. It was still a mystery to me—this so-called "Glasses aptitude"—but I was happy to have it. On top of that, my mentor had given me a bow as an adult gift.

And yet, before I could even settle in, I was dragged out of the village the next day. By royal decree. On the orders of some guy I didn’t even know. Probably some spoiled old man who’d never worked a day in his life.

I’d barely had any time to examine or test the "Glasses" before this.

After exchanging brief introductions and small talk with the two soldiers accompanying me, I excused myself to the roof of the carriage, claiming I wanted to sleep.
Sitting next to strangers was bad enough, but having someone stare directly at my face was even worse.

I’m a guy, and now that my vision was sharper than ever, I really didn’t want to see men’s faces in vivid detail.
Not to mention, I didn’t like being stared at personally.

The rocking of the carriage was far more noticeable up here, but it was still infinitely better than being crammed inside with two strangers—no, wait, the soldiers turned out to be surprisingly young.

Using my packed travel bag as a pillow, I lay flat on my back atop the carriage.

"—I’m gonna propose when I get back."
"—Good luck. I still gotta think of a name for my kid."

The soldiers’ conversation drifted up from below. For some reason, their words carried an ominous weight, but I figured it was just my imagination.

Gazing up at the impossibly clear blue sky, I fiddled with my "Glasses."

Hmm… So, curved glass blurs the vision just enough to refocus it correctly?
If I adjust the curvature, could I see even farther? Or maybe layer them…?

—After some experimentation, I figured out three things.

First, I could only manifest up to three "Glasses" at a time.
By the third one, my body felt drained—probably from magical exhaustion—and I started feeling dizzy, barely able to move.

Second, "Glasses" could be reverted back into magic.
Doing so seemed to reset the count, allowing me to create new ones. It wasn’t so much "losing magic" as the "Glasses" being magic itself. Reverting them restored the magic.

And third, they could be physically separated.
In short, given enough time, I could produce as many as I wanted.

The first "Glasses" I’d made had stayed on my face constantly, except when sleeping. Even then, I hadn’t reverted them to magic.
Over time, the magic I’d lost—equivalent to one pair—seemed to naturally recover.

Meaning, the "Glasses" I was wearing now were no longer a magical construct but a physical object.
I could probably even give them away if I wanted.

According to the soldiers, "Glasses" were a luxury item even in the royal capital. Selling them could fetch a decent sum.

"Make money selling Glasses," huh?

That sounded downright ridiculous.

Then again, even if they were high-end, demand had to exist.
Were there really that many people with poor eyesight? Or was it rare? Did people even realize their vision was bad? In my case, I only noticed because it had worsened over time—but if someone was born with it, would they ever realize their sight was different from others’? And even if they did, would they care?

Plus, if glass curvature corrected vision, wouldn’t each person need a unique adjustment?
Wouldn’t the ideal "Glasses" differ for everyone? Physical glasses varied—what even were mental glasses?

…Well, my mind was already infested with glasses. They’d become irreplaceable to me.

—As I pondered all this, I started feeling a little excited.

Others might see "Glasses Summoning" as lame, but I liked it.
Even setting aside personal use, I was beginning to appreciate this aptitude. And it seemed deeper than I’d thought.

I wanted to learn more about "Glasses."

Further experimentation revealed two things:

• Their shape couldn’t be altered much.
• Their color could be changed.

Well, maybe the shape limitation was just my imagination or creativity failing me. If I could clearly envision a specific form, maybe I could make it.

The color change came to me when the sun got too bright.

Lying on my back like this, the sun inevitably filled my vision.
With "Glasses" on, light seemed to gather even more intensely, making it painfully glaring.

But when clouds dimmed the sun, it wasn’t as harsh.
If "Glasses" worked by filtering vision through glass, then adding a "clouded" effect should reduce the glare, right?
With that in mind, I willed the lenses to turn black—like night.

Now, the world I saw was "night."
Bright daylight filtered through pitch-black glass.

Staring at the sun didn’t hurt at all.
It just looked like a tiny yellow dot.

…Well, it did still hurt if I looked too long. The sun was just too strong. My fleeting fantasy—that glasses might be the most powerful thing in the world—instantly shattered. I had no idea why I’d even thought that.

On both the first and second days, I spent the journey on the carriage roof—thinking about "Glasses," napping a little, or testing the compound bow my mentor had given me.

"—We’ll be home soon."
"—Thinking about the kid waiting for me makes me restless."

By the evening of the second day, the soldiers sounded just as tired of the trip as I was. Then, in the distance, I spotted towering walls.

That must be the royal capital. It’s huge.
Having never left my village, I couldn’t even imagine what the capital was like.

…Right, so first, I have to meet some important guy at the castle, then find my sister.
My parents told me to "see how Horn’s doing" in person.
Not that I’m worried about Horn, but I am curious how she’s been these past two years.

Honestly, when I left, all I wanted was to go back as soon as possible. But now, my feelings had shifted slightly.
Once I reached the capital, I wanted to research "Glasses."

According to the soldiers, there was a place called a "library" filled with books—perfect for research.
I only knew basic reading and writing, so I probably wouldn’t understand the harder texts, but I still wanted to check it out.