It was weird to think that there was a pseudo-war going on between the Church and Magi right now, as there was no sign of it all the way out here in the countryside. There were troops here and there of course, but they were so far and few between and in such small groups one was hardly going to raise alarm over it. After all, why would people? So long as you weren't a Magi then the Church had no problem with you, you could do about living your life without any problems from them. And even if you were a Magi you were safe, so long as you weren't an idiot and kept your head down. Most of their kind was keeping low and out of sight as of late, avoiding anything and everything that might draw attention to them; most Magi were trying to stay out of sight, there were a few who were more interested in causing trouble and lashing out at the Church. With magic dwindling to pitifully low quantities in the world someone had to take the blame, and naturally the Church, the organization who conducted worship, would be the target. Justifiably or not, Magi had begun to attack the multiple churches throughout Adelon, met often with swift and violent opposition. It was no wonder then that many of them were just trying to hide, not wanting to be taken in for other people's misdeeds.

Ethan didn't share the fear of being arrested, nor did he have any plans of causing trouble. Hiding wasn't something he could afford to do either, not that he had any intentions of running away from all of this. He knew very few people outside of his tiny home of Kinsgrove, and even those within the vale were few in number. Of those few there had been one man he had taken a particular shining to, an older gentleman by the name of Cedric who was well known locally to be a Magi, and a skilled one at that. While the man was never able to teach Ethan anything in their time together he treasured the stories and the wisdom he received, coming to see Cedric as a sort of grandfather figure. Had nothing happened to their town he'd just as well stayed out of this whole business between Magi and the Church, but now his hand was forced; Cedric had been taken away, and likely because of Ethan's own mistakes. There was no way in good conscience that he could abandon the man to his fate, he had to try to find and save Cedric, wherever he might be. Easier said than done of course, seeing as he was utterly clueless as to where the troops might have even gone.

"Aw man... This map tells me nothing!" Ethan groaned, slouching in his seat as he laid his forehead down on the table. Staring at a sheet of paper for 20 minutes and praying it told you what you wanted to know was infuriating, so was not understanding it whatsoever. Having never exactly traveled beyond the reaches of Kinsgrove he knew little of this area, and things would only get even more difficult the further out he got. At current he had found himself in a small settlement, stuck up in a tavern as he had just finished up with an early lunch. Traveling alone as he was one never knew when you may get your next meal, and he'd be a fool not to stop here and grab a bite to eat. The soup was a bit too salty and the bread hard, but with how hungry he'd have been he'd as soon just eaten his stool instead. Sitting back upright he returned his eyes to the map before himself, staring at it yet again.

"Gotta think, let's see... I came this way out of home and headed East... I think..." Ethan mumbled, frowning as he scoured the map for familiar landmarks, "Or did I go west... let's see... I passed the river, so it had to have been East. Which means I should be roughly..." Uh, what was the name of this settlement again? There were a handful around and they were spread out here and there, he couldn't quite recall which one he'd come across. Glancing around for someone to ask he frowned at his options, having to pick between the table of drunks laughing raucously and the burly barmaid currently yelling at another patron about why he couldn't have more mead. Smiling uncertainly Ethan gave a shake of his head, opting to instead head into town and see if anyone might give him directions. Should he ask about troops, or was that too obvious? With patrols coming and going it could just be a moot question, though it may be worth the chance if someone did know something.

Right then, best to go ahead and get moving, he'd never find Cedric just sitting around here. Pushing himself away from the table he tucked the map away in his bag, fishing into his pocket and pulling free a handful of copper coins, heading over to the counter and laying them out for the barmaid. "Thanks again for the meal ma'am, it was... Good!" he lied, smiling politely as he began to leave, only to pause when the woman shouted at him.

"Anytime kid! Come around again sometime, ya hear? We don't get many cuties like you!" she called, her surprisingly deep voice carrying over the laughter of the other patrons. 

Ethan visibly shivered at the compliment from the burly woman, chuckling uneasily as he turned back to thank her, meeting her gaze, a pair of deep brown eyes resting under a bushy brow, with a sizable mole on her right cheek and a mess of frizzy black hair on her head. She was... Ah... What was a nice way to put it, imposing. "Uh... T-Thanks! I'll be sure to do that!" he called, turning around promptly and hurrying out the door, shuddering once he was well out of view. That was definitely not how he wanted to leave that place, now he was probably going to have nightmares about her. Making a face between disgust and worry he shook his head, slapping both his cheeks and smiling to himself. "Can't think about that now, need to focus on finding some answers," he mumbled to himself, looking around as the townsfolk walked to and fro, "Now... Where to start...?"