When Arath woke up he saw Clara cultivating in the corner of the room, she was so focused and concentrated she didn't see the boy approaching. He sat close to her and began examining magical energy in her body. She had full control over it in the ankle and slowly began to gain more footholds in neighbouring muscles.
'Nice, she is making progress quickly. All the figthing and dangerous situations helped her with getting the grasp of it earlier than others. I guess I should get to work too.' Arath thought and also closed his eyes to fully focus on the body. He had already awakened his eyes, nerves connecting them to the brain, frontal lobe and ears were half way there. Finishing awakening his ears became his priority so he spent next two hours on connecting many parts of the organ together using elemental energy. Speed of the process massively improved after the events from the Awakening Hall so Arath was almost done when he heard a deafening scream. He opened his eyes and put his hand on first sharp thing he noticed and jumped on his feet looking around for danger. Yet there was nobody around and nothing seemed to be wrong. When he reached for his sword he heard a quiet sobbing behind him. Looking around he discovered that the source of it was terrified Clara sitting behind her bed with a lamp in her hands.
"What happened? Who screamed just now? Did you see the murderer?" Arath looked outside the window but everything looked rather peaceful.
Clara was trying very hard to calm down and close her emotions outside her emotional door but the more she tried the more tears flowed from her eyes. The boy was flabbergasted and did his best to understand why she was in such a bad state.
"Clara, it's alright. What happened?" He tried to find out. The girl closed herself and hid her face between her legs. Arath came closer, sit on the bed and wondered if there was something he could do.
"Why were you sitting so close to me?" She finally asked in a low voice after few long minutes of silence.
"What? Arath didn't understand the question.
"Why were you sitting next to me? What were you trying to do?"
"I was just checking your progress. Then I just didn't move and started to improve my own body. Did I do something wrong?" He explained.
"Oh. Oh, alright. You surprised me, that's all. Let's leave that topic behind, please."
"Em, sure."
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The awkward silence that now filled the room to the brim was broken only after another hour when Arath decided it was high time to look for a new apartment. They put on their best clothes and set off to Ruby's. When asked if she knew abything about a decent apartments for sale, she redirected them to an old friend of hers who worked in the bussines. The office was located in the inner circle close to the Tower, it was located on forth floor of a building located on the side of a giant stalagmite. The owner of this office was an elderly woman with long black hair and a very nice smile. But Arath immediately noticed the greedy look of a businesswoman behind all that facade.
"So, you want an apartment for two, preferably in inner circle. You've got four hundred denars on you and perspective to make more. Your occupation?" The woman looked at the form with info about her new customers.
"Scouts."
"Oh, right. So self-employed. Let me take a look." She excused herself and started to flick through a catalog with many houses and flats for sale. "I think I've got something just for you. Monthly cost would be fifty denars with a hundred upfront."
'Fifty denars per month? That is very cheap, I pay twenty for a shithole in the worst neighbourhood possible.' Arath thought.
"Where is the catch?" He asked out loud.
"Oh, it's nothing. The apartment is large and made for six people and two are already living there. It is divided into two parts and only kitchen and living room is shared so you don't need to worry about privacy."
"What do you think about it?" He asked Clara.
"I don't know much about prices yet, but if the price is better this way and the roommates aren't assholes I guess it's not a bad option." She answered.
Other options were significantly more expensive so they decided to see the flat and then decide. The apartment was located on the highest floor of a new building just on the border between inner and outer circle. The crystal-powered elevator brought them to the floor with the apartment and the three of them opened the door. What was inside shocked Arath and Clara to their cores, the first thing they saw was a giant living room with a long dining table, luxurious couches and a joined kitchen with running water and an oven. This view stunned them so much they almost forgot to breathe. The whole flat was pleasingly warm and the humidity was much lower than in their current apartment. The woman led them to their rooms which left them even more speechles. There were two bathrooms total, each with a bathtub with running water and a working toilet. Their bedrooms had a huge wardrobe, a soft bed and a desk.
"I don't care about the roommates, we will take it." Arath pulled out a pouch from his bag and gave it to the woman. "There is one hundred and fifty denars inside, so we are already paying our first rent."
Clara nodded and smiled at the thought of living in such a high standard place. Wihout losing more time they finished with formalities and went back to their old flat in order to bring them to their new house. Arath shared the news with the owner of their old apartment and thanked for the years of cooperation. Having brought all their belongings to their new place they prepared a dinner and bathed in hot water for hours only to fall asleep carelessly in a bed so soft that just putting one's head on the pillow would make the person sleepy.