Immediately after leaving the mansion, Kent used his teleportation skills to travel several times, and soon, he was in the city.
He could now teleport 2 kilometers at a time, so it only took a few teleportations to enter the city. But then his problem began.
He didn’t know where to go next. The last time he and Unity had been there, it was to buy ingredients for pills. They had only spent a few hours roaming around, so he knew little about the city beyond the herb store and the auction house.
But today, he wasn’t there for herbs or to visit the auction house. He wanted to explore the city and see what it had to offer.
Of course, he didn’t want to wander aimlessly. But with no guidance available, he could only stroll around, hoping to stumble upon something interesting.
It didn’t take long before he started seeing things he liked. He first went to a restaurant, where he spent a few spirit stones devouring some of their finest meals.
Compared to the meals he’d had back on Earth, these were far more delicious and brimming with energy.
Naturally, in this world of cultivation, almost everything that can be eaten contains spiritual energy. This was especially true for the meats, which came from spirit beasts. The energy in them was highly potent. Kent ate his fill before leaving.
He began moving around, attracting attention as he moved. Of course, he didn’t mind. Naturally, he rejected all the proposals he received along the way. Most of the ladies wanted to pay him for a night with them, but he politely declined.
He wasn’t there as a gigolo.
Five hours later, Kent started fighting off the urge to enter a brothel, as moving around alone was much more boring than he had anticipated.
He just wanted to enter and see for himself what it was made of. Of course, he didn’t want to, but with nothing else of interest, he began to consider it.
However, just as his desires were starting to take over, a certain small human came to mind.
“Good idea. If I find that tiny human, she would certainly know some amazing places I can explore,” Kent muttered before moving away.
Soon, he was in front of Li Hua’s cake shop. However, just like four days ago, it was closed. This time, though, he asked the store next door.
“Excuse me, miss. Do you know why this store is closed?” Kent asked.
“Sorry, young man, but I don’t know. You might want to ask the next store; maybe they would know something,” the store lady politely replied.
“Alright, thanks.” Kent moved to the next store.
“Please, do you know why Li Hua has closed the store?” This time, he asked in a tone that showed he was familiar with the tiny human.
“Well, they closed down the store a few days ago after making a big sale, and since then, they haven’t opened up,” the store lady answered, making Kent frown slightly.
“Would this happen to be four days ago?” he asked.
“Yes. They closed the shop about four days ago and haven’t come to work since. It isn’t like them. They used to be the first to open shop on this side of town, so it was rather shocking when they stopped coming around.”
“I see. Please, do you know where they stay?” Kent asked. He immediately suspected it had something to do with the spirit stones he gave the tiny human, so he wanted to get to the root of it.
Since he was bored anyway, looking for the small human and her grandma was something he could do to pass the time.
A few minutes later, he left and headed to the northern part of the city. Even after teleporting a couple of times, it took him an hour to get there.
Li Hua and her grandma live in a small village-like part of the city called Brown Tree. The name is literal, as when Kent approached the northern part of the city, a large brown tree could be seen in the distance.
It has been there for ages, hence the moniker given to the village. Kent quickly made his way in the direction the storewoman had given him.
A few minutes later, a small house with a baking furnace in the center appeared in front of him. Clearly, this was Li Hua’s home. They were bakers, after all, hence the furnace.
“This must be it,” Kent said, walking toward the house.
Kent didn’t know why, but he felt scared of what he might find out. In fact, despite not knowing the small human that much, he still was scared as to what he might discover.
The last time he met Li Hua, she had only wanted to sell him banana cakes for two copper coins. However, because he didn’t have copper coins with him, he gave her spirit stones instead.
This meant that while he didn’t care, it was a big deal for Li Hua and those who had witnessed their transaction.
Right now, he felt bad about what might have happened to them. If something had happened to her because he decided to show off his wealth, he would feel guilty about it.
The moment he approached the door, Kent could see it was open. He wasted no time and entered, hoping the small human or her grandma would be inside. However, to his disappointment, he found nothing.
He began looking around the room but could only see a small bed, clearly meant for Li Hua.
Nothing was out of place, but Kent didn’t see it that way. He activated his Appraiser’s Eye skill and began inspecting the house with his divine sense.
Shortly after, he noticed that some things were indeed out of place in the other room. A lamp was knocked down, and the bed seemed to have been moved.
Kent quickly entered that room and moved the bed further. Beneath it, he found a small compartment that had been opened. However, it was empty. Clearly, whatever had been inside was taken, and the compartment had not been properly closed.
“This is not looking good,” he muttered.
“Tower, do you have any insight as to what might have happened here?” Kent asked, desperate.
[No, Master, but they seem to have some neighbors. You might want to ask them,] the Tower suggested.
Kent nodded. “How foolish of me. However, what is your take on this room?” he still asked.
[Clearly, it has been tampered with. However, from the look of things, it was done by someone who knew what they were doing.]
“You think Li Hua or her grandma did this?” Kent asked.
[It seems so. If it had been an intruder, the room would have been much messier than this. But that is just my assumption. You would have to ask the neighbors for more information.]
Kent nodded, and after spending a few more minutes looking around the house, he went out to ask around.
Of course, he didn’t take long to spot a young man snooping around Li Hua’s house.
The man ran as soon as he saw Kent come out of the house, but before he could take three steps, Kent used his [Teleport] skill and appeared before him.