Chapter 36

Red Beard watched Ye Chuqi tangle her hair without managing to tie it into any recognizable shape. It gave him a headache too. "Is it really that hard?"

When Red Beard took her soft hair between his fingers and felt it slip through them, refusing to do as he wanted, he realized it really was that hard.

Red Beard: "..."

Ye Chuqi held up a mirror and looked. It was actually all right. For a first attempt, Red Beard had done well. "Thank you!"

The little girl's smile was bright and sincere. She showed no dislike for the wild hairstyle Red Beard had given her, though the messy result was almost painful to look at.

Red Beard sighed and gave up.

The group returned to Kru Town in secret. Gree was quietly moved to another base, while Ye Chuqi was brought back to the courtyard. When Xiya saw her return safely, she nearly burst into tears and hurried her inside to get cleaned up.

The other two representatives, who had remained there, wanted to ask Ye Chuqi what had happened, but Red Beard stopped them.

"The thief they sent was highly skilled and quick. He escaped into the Lost Forest in the blink of an eye. We've sent people after him, but we're short-handed. If you're worried, you're welcome to go back and gather more people. The Lost Forest is vast; we won't find him anytime soon."

The Grand Mage flew into a rage. "Is this how the Red Wind Mercenary Group operates? Is this how you handle a job? You accepted the mission, yet you're dragging your feet! You caught up with him and still let him escape! And that little girl—wasn't she supposed to be bait? Why is she back when you haven't found a single clue?"

The proud Grand Mage felt his dignity had been gravely challenged. He gave no thought to what Red Beard's words implied. The martial arts master, however, had spent years in Kru Town. He knew more about how people behaved, and he understood the Red Wind Mercenary Group a little better.

The Red Wind Mercenary Group had risen to second place in the rankings within a few years. At the very least, they had always treated their missions seriously and responsibly, completing each one with excellent results and efficiency.

The martial arts master had a feeling the group was plotting something, but they were clearly one step away from ordering him out. He had no intention of staying where he was unwelcome, and he took the Grand Mage with him.

On his way out, the Grand Mage was still shouting that he would complain to the duke, demand justice from the mayor, and make the Red Wind Mercenary Group pay.

Standing at a second-floor window, Ye Chuqi watched him stomp away, still cursing. She was baffled. "So that's what a Grand Mage is like?"

Xiya had been feeling down, but Ye Chuqi's expression made her laugh. "No. I think he's a special case." Mages were rare, and most were proud, with good reason. But someone like him was indeed unusual. "Or perhaps Duke Fulton's household feeds its people badly."

The same rice could raise all kinds of people. If Duke Fulton's judgment was not the problem, then something about his household must be.

Ye Chuqi understood.

"The mayor of Kru Town must be good with people." She could tell from the person he had sent: powerful, perceptive, and without a trace of arrogance. The man Duke Fulton had sent, on the other hand, did not look as though he had come to get anything done. He had come to make enemies.

Red Beard and the others would handle the rest, so Ye Chuqi stayed in the courtyard to recover instead of going out and causing them more trouble.

With help from the space, her injuries were slowly healing. Her fractured meridians still could not hold Spiritual Power, but at least drawing on the space's Spiritual Power no longer hurt as much or interfered with her control as badly.

It felt like the first time she had drawn energy into her body, as though she were cultivating from the beginning again. There was an upside: the repaired meridians were wider and tougher. She believed that if she faced the same situation again, she would not be hurt so badly.

She still needed a weapon that suited her, though. She could use a dagger, but it was not enough.

When Jun Ruofeng handed Ye Chuqi her reforged badge and Spatial Ring, he had not expected her to ask him this:

"Deputy Leader, if I wanted a custom-made weapon, is there anyone you'd recommend?"

After a few days apart, the little girl was speaking smoothly and articulating every word clearly. Jun Ruofeng looked her over, and a faint smile appeared on his pale face. "Do you have the money?"

Ye Chuqi drew a sharp breath. He knew exactly where to hit her.

Jun Ruofeng raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Do you have more Spatial Bluestone, Black Ghost Stone, or some other resource you plan to sell to pay for it?"

It was true, but hearing Jun Ruofeng say it outright made Ye Chuqi feel as though he was implying something. Something about it did not sit right with her.

"What kind of weapon do you want?" Jun Ruofeng remembered her first encounter with Ed. She had swung a tree branch at him using exquisite sword techniques, though Jun Ruofeng had never seen her use them again. And whether they were at the Adventurers' Camp or browsing Kru Town, the only things that held her attention besides books were smithies and treasure shops.

She was looking for a weapon.

Had she found nothing and decided to commission one instead?

Just how exacting were her standards if she had not found a single weapon she liked?

Ye Chuqi rubbed the back of her head out of habit. In truth, she wanted to forge a sword bound to her life. But finding enough suitable materials in this world would be a pipe dream. She did not even understand what the materials here could do; finding substitutes would take a great deal of time.

For now, she only wanted a weapon that could withstand Spiritual Power and let her fight well enough to protect herself. After everything that had happened, she finally understood that this world's people were formidable in ways of their own. She could not afford to be too proud.

"I want a sword."

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