[LIT RPG] The Bayani - Isaiah

Chapter 10

"It's good you're awake," Ephillus looked up as Isaiah emerged from the carriage, "Had we been attacked while you were asleep you wouldn't wake up again,"

"Sorry about that." Isaiah handed over his plate to Quincillus as his father gestured for Isaiah to sit beside him, "That will not happen again,"

"Hopefully... That said, can you read and count?"

"Yes."

The answer surprised Ephillus but he decided to continue, "How much?"

"Well... Good enough I guess."

"Good enough, huh..." Ephillus then picked out a sheet of paper from a bag and gave it to Isaiah "Tell me, if you add the cost of the wheat and of the flour how much do you have to pay?" He then handed him an abacus though Isaiah simply looked at the paper.

It was similar to when he first heard the language native to this planet. The words written on the document were instantly translated the moment they entered his thoughts, he was even surprised that he could read them. Granted they were using the alphabet, the words however were written in the same manner as the Slavic languages were. Yet once more, despite having no prior knowledge of anything Slavic words, he was somehow capable of reading and understanding them.

That said it took some time for his mind to adjust to this as suddenly being able to translate things is going to feel weird. However, to Ephillus it looked like something else entirely,

Ephillus waited as he looked at Isaiah who stared at the scroll, he noticed that he hadn't even touched the abacus yet and sighed in disappointment, "No need to lie, Isaiah, just tell if you-"

"1,430 RM, whatever that means..."

"What?" He tilted his head,

"Fourteen hundred thirty... RM." Isaiah replied as Ephillus took the list back and scanned it. Even Aria who had glued herself to her book looked up with surprise, she could remember that question back when Ephillus was teaching both his sons the trade, it took them quite a while to get the answer and even then they were wrong yet this man somehow got the correct answer in one go, without using the abacus.

"How..."

"My parents taught me how to count in the head," Isaiah replied as Ephillus returned the list to him and took back the abacus, slightly annoyed.

"You can count numbers without the abacus then... If you were to purchase only 10 sacks of flour, how much would each cost?"

Isaiah paused and then replied, "150."

"How did you get that number?"

"Division, multiplication, then subtraction."

"What?" Aria approached them, "Is there magic for counting?"

"Ah, no madam..." Isaiah was about to explain mathematics to them but then remembered that they were both merchants. The simplification of mathematics had rendered the abacus useless over time as it was easier to count the numbers by hand than to use the long and tedious instrument. This also meant that to these merchants, it would make their accounting much easier. And as the old adage goes, 'Time is Gold'.

Isaiah therefore remained quiet about his methods unless they coughed up some cash in exchange, "M-my mother taught me how to count,"

"She must have been a good merchant then," Aria turned to her husband who gave Isaiah another list, though this time the numbers were mixed unlike the whole numbers from the previous chart,

"This one..." He pointed at the line that listed the prices of products "If I were to buy only 4 crates of salt and use the additional money to purchase more crates of saffron, what would I get?"