After this, Nem and the others continued to chat, though it was the couple that asked the questions about Nem. Since he had come here to talk to them and that he knew about Lisa and her husband, they had a good impression of this cute little boy with a weird smile and the discussion ended a bit late.
That night, Nem didn't really sleep that well, feeling like he was in the open with countless strangers staring at him. In a way, it was indeed the case, even though the children weren't really staring at him. In any way, Nem arrived at the conclusion that he had gotten sufficiently close to the city orphans for now and that he would sleep in a more private setting the next night.
He was now familiar with the struggles of most orphans in Lunhart, had a good relationship with those who could almost be called the two leaders of the orphans and had secured a safe place to hide in case of emergency. Even though he hadn't gotten much information on the criminal gangs from these two this time, he could always come back and ask.
Being confronted with the situation here, Nem was filled with a strange feeling of urgency. He wanted to do something to change things, but he didn't know what. Or more accurately, he knew what to do, but couldn't...
'If only I had capable allies, I could probably clean the city a bit... But I can't even use one gang to destroy another, since just showing myself would make me a target and I don't know enough about them yet do to anything without doing just that.'
In the end, all he could do was temporarily put the issue on hold and acquire more information. Fortunately, it was exactly what his current mission was about and he knew roughly where his target would appear today from Mannie's own words yesterday.
At this moment, Nem was rather tempted to go directly spy on the leader of this criminal organization, but he chose not to.
Mostly, it was because he was still not sure if anyone was following him or not. For that, he would have to wait until tomorrow, when his plan was the most likely to work.
'There isn't anything wrong with spying on Mannie either, at the end of the day, he is the one actually doing the work...'
Following this thought, Nem started his "workday" rather relaxed and spent it in the same way. Since he was a bit tired from his bad night, he didn't do anything too crazy, only watching and listening from a safe distance.
He even stopped once to grab something to eat and still succeeded in finding Mannie again not long after.
'This guy really isn't hard to follow, he is more like an office worker than an experienced criminal. Compared to him, the people he meets are more dangerous and alert.'
This morning alone, Mannie had met with four different groups of criminals, all affiliated with his organization and they made Nem miss a few sentences of the conversation out of caution.
Compared to Mannie who wasn't even qualified to make Nem hide seriously, it really was quite impressive.
One thing that did make Nem seriously ponder, it was the fact he didn't hear anything about metal or such products from the factory being exchanged, neither today nor yesterday.
'Is the boss' position a coincidence ? I don't really like coincidences... In such an environment and with so many questions, things should be linked rather than independent... '
'What I learned so far from following this guy is just standard criminal stuff. Sure, it's bad but it's nothing too shocking considering where they live.'
He pouted a bit.
'I'm beginning to believe that this guy isn't really the second of this organization. Could Carl have given me this mission specifically so that I wouldn't get exposed to the really bad stuff ?'
'I'd say this is really unlikely, the man really didn't strike me as the thoughtful kind...'
The kind of person who could send a poor cute child like him to find himself in the streets of the most dangerous area in Lunhart definitely couldn't be so nice !
Thinking about it this way, Nem almost threw all caution into the wind to spy on the boss right away, but he held back in the end.
This time, the monocle-wearing Mannie took a couple more hours to return to the modern-looking neighbor than yesterday. It almost came to the point when Nem wondered if the man was going to make him spy on him for the whole day.
'Fortunately, now, I can finally start the most important part of my master plan.'
Nem checked the sun's position and concluded he wouldn't be late for another conversation with Leo and Gina if he hurried a bit. He nodded, and with the solemn look of a soldier leaving his home to go to war, he headed to the north of city.
In his mind were prayers to the God of Combustion, which he thought had a cool name, asking to not get lost.
***
Not much later, Nem arrived in the outdoor market he had encountered Pat in last time, feeling a bit mystified.
'Isn't the God of Combustion really awesome ? I didn't actually expect to succeed on the first try ! Praise him and whatever the hell he does !'
Although it wasn't as busy as in the morning, the market of Lunhart was still busing with activity and a lot of products could be seen exchanging hands before Nem's eyes.
For him, stealing enough food to live wasn't hard, even in the tough southwest area, but looking at the juicy fruits and roasting meat, Nem still couldn't hold back a loud gulp.
As a greedy look gradually formed in his red eyes, Nem suddenly shook his head decisively. He was after a much bigger fish this time, and he couldn't risk his master plan failing because he somehow got caught stealing ordinary food, no matter how delicious and juicy it looked...
Nem wiped the drool off the corner of his mouth and started to stroll in the market. Before coming here, he had cleaned his face with water and straightened up his clothes. This way, although he didn't look like a rich kid, people wouldn't think he was homeless just glancing in his direction.
After a good while of walking and getting distracted by various delicacies, Nem finally found what he wanted. From afar, he checked the size and material, doing his best to act uninterested.
What was it that could be found in the market and considered by Nem worthy of making a plan ? Of course, it was shoes. At this point, Nem would sell everything he had to get even a pair of crocs, thought it wasn't saying much considering it only amounted to a pair of sticks and a few good throwing rocks.
In any way, it was true that being barefoot in Lunhart was really painful, though it made his steps very quiet most of the time. The times when it wasn't quiet were because he would cry in pain due to the numerous sharp objects trying to penetrate his skin.
Glass, clay, rocks, wood... It simply didn't end, and even though he was very cautious, Nem really started to worry he wouldn't be able to walk anymore once he stopped paying attention or needed to run for his life.
Having identified the cheap leather shoes for the children that he wanted, Nem took a deep breath and started the action. Since he had come here, Nem had started to believe that to become a good thief, one didn't need quick hands or any artifice. The most important thing to have was confidence, and a good pair of legs to run once it failed.
'Wait, perhaps I got one part wrong... Well it doesn't matter, let's do it now.'
He approached the stall, grabbed the pair of shoes and started to put it on without any warning. It fit him quite well. The feeling of safety he got when he put them on offset completely the fact that he wasn't used to wearing shoes anymore. Nem smiled in contentment and looked up towards the shopkeeper.
It was a mustached middle-aged man, with a small portion of his hair being gray, which added a bit of charm and character to his ordinary face. At this moment, the man was staring at the boy in front of him with eyes as wide as teacups, in an expression of pure disbelief.
Nem's smile turned a bit stiff as he nodded like everything was normal.
"Oh, yes, those shoes are definitely the ones I'm looking for ! No need to worry, I'll just..." At the beginning of his second sentence, Nem had acted like he was looking for something in his pocket and before it was finished, he was already running through the crowd in a sprint.
Unfortunately, the shopkeeper hadn't waited either and already started to pursue him as soon as he ran, yelling in anger.
"Grab the thief !"