Ning went from room to room looking for Carlos, but couldn't find him at all. He ended up knocking on the room Kepli was in, who called him inside.
"Oh, hey. I didn't realize you were here as well," Ning said when he saw Clara on the couch. "What are you guys doing?"
"Waiting for our people to be done with testing the crystal. What about you?" Clara asked.
"I'm looking for Carlos, have you seen him?" Ning asked.
"He's out on a small errand," Kepli replied.
"Do you know when he will be back?" Ning asked.
"It should be an hour or two," Clara asked. "Why?"
"Damn," Ning spoke softly as he thought to himself.
Clara seemed a little annoyed that he wasn't answering her question. "Why?" she asked again, but louder.
"Huh? Oh, he still hasn't paid me for today, that's why," Ning said. "He was supposed to give me 50 Earth coins, but things got hectic and I ended up being unpaid."
Clara couldn't help but sigh when she heard that. "Why do you need the money? I'll pay you instead with whatever it is that you want," she said.
"Let's see," Ning thought. "I need money for 3 things. First for food, secondly to make a sheath for my sword, and finally to buy a decent technique so I can improve my Essence rank."
"Just eat what's in the kitchen for now," Clara said. "I'll send someone with you to get your sheath made. As for an absorption technique… I will find one for you by evening. Don't worry about it."
"I see, thanks boss," Ning said. "I'm going to the kitchen. Have the person who's taking me out meet me there."
Ning left the room, leaving the two by themselves again.
"Do you trust him?" Kepli asked.
"Of course not," Clara said. "Someone happens to lose their memories just as they happen to meet Carlos in a bar to get brought over by him here on a happenstance. That's too many coincidences happening that I don't like."
"Then why not just get rid of him?" Kepli asked.
"Because there's a chance it's all true," she said. "If it is, I don't want to lose someone with so much talent and potential simply because I was a little paranoid."
"I see," Kepli said as he stood up. "I'll find someone to go with him."
Clara nodded.
Ning found some bread to eat in the kitchen. While he didn't necessarily need to eat for sustenance thanks to the fruit he had drank this morning, he still found the empty stomach annoying.
So, all he did was fill up his stomach with bread and water. By the time he was done, someone came to the kitchen looking for him.
"You're the new kid that brother Kepli wants me to help?" a blue-haired woman asked him.
Ning quickly downed the rest of the food and stood up as he wiped his face. "Yes, it's me," he said as he put his hands forward in greeting.
The woman stepped back in disgust. Ning looked at his hand and took it back while smiling awkwardly. "Sorry," he said. He quickly washed his hands and came back around.
"Hi, I'm Ning," he introduced himself to her.
"You can call me Sophie," the blue-haired woman said. "Come on, we don't have much time."
Ning nodded and walked along with the girl as they left the building. Sophie looked at the sword in Ning's hand and gestured at it. "That's the sword that needs a sheath?" she asked.
"Yes," Ning said. "You got the money right? Because I don't have any."
"We won't be needing any money," Sophie said.
Ning wondered what she meant for a moment, but realized that it must have something to do with the gang. There were probably smithies that were under the gang.
He looked at the girl and saw two daggers by her left hip, and a long sword on her right. She was most likely a strong fighter in the gang.
Ning ignored his thoughts for the time being and looked around the city, enjoying the views. He looked left and right, looking at anything and everything that was in the city.
He saw the various shops, streets, houses, and even people. He saw Essence being used to creating stuff that was all over the place, from lamps to signposts.
After walking for about 10 minutes, they reached a smithy with quite a few people in it. Sophie took Ning and went deep inside until she found someone.
"Little Sophie, how can I help you today?" a man walked away from the sword he was working on and looked at Sophie.
"He needs a sheath for his sword," Sophie said as she pointed at Ning.
Ning pulled the sword out of the belt on his hip and held it flat in two hands to show it to the man. "This sword is incredibly sharp, so it needs a non-tight fitting sheath," he said.
"Very sharp? How sharp?" the man asked.
"I tested it before, and it can cut metal like paper," Ning said.
"Woah! That's certainly sharp. Mind if I test it first?" the man asked.
"Sure, go ahead," Ning said.
The man brought back a small piece of metal and laid it on top of two larger pieces of metal. "Can you try and cut this in two?" he asked.
"Yes," Ning said and placed the sword on top of the metal. Then, he simply pushed through softly, and the sword passed through.
"Wait, you didn't even swing it," the man said.
"Yeah, and it's still enough," Ning said. "You can see why I'm looking for a sheath now, can't you?"
"Yes," the man said. "Let me get some measurements for now. Give me the sword."
Ning shook his head. "You can't pick up the sword. You'll have to measure it like this."
The man nodded and brought out a measuring tape. "Alright, hold still," the man said as he measured everything. "You can leave now. I will have to think of how to make a sheath good enough to handle such a sharp sword. Come back tomorrow."
