Iron lay on the bed, hands tucked behind his head, silently staring up at the ceiling. The room was perfectly quiet.
On his retinas, Lumon projected graphs, diagrams, and a cross-section of the soil one after another. Iron leisurely reviewed each item, comparing his own observations with the dry numbers of the analysis.
"Alright..." Iron said mentally, locking onto the soil cross-section. "So, the crystal isn't even anchored to the soil itself, but to the energy channels within it."
The diagram in his head shifted, showing the faint glow of veins reaching deep into the earth.
"I propose we just trigger an anti-resonance," he continued his reasoning. "It will sever these channels, and we can just take the crystal without any issues. And after that, it will switch over to a permanent autonomous mode."
Lumon's even voice immediately echoed in his head:
"Correct. But I must ask you not to forget: after extraction, the crystal must be placed in a strictly enclosed space. This is necessary so that the energy doesn't leak out and constantly circulates within the crystal itself."
Iron replied mentally:
"Yeah, I get it, you just pulled that up for me yourself."
Switching tabs in the interface, Iron moved on to the next task. He began putting the final touches on the first working blueprint for his future golem.
He sketched out the joint articulations, adjusted the dimensions of the power frame, calculated the space for the crystal's protective capsule, and assembled the machine's overall external appearance. Finishing the draft, he locked in all the tolerances and sent the completed project straight to the scanner's memory.
Iron dangled his legs off the bed and slowly got up, stretching his stiff neck.
Yeah... he thought, rolling his shoulders and watching the scanner sort the massive data array into folders. Even though it's just a scanner, for some reason it has blueprint processing, calculations, memory, and a whole lot more.
Walking over to the door, Iron turned the deadbolt, pushed open the wooden panel, and stepped out into the hallway. Locking the room with his key, he raised his arms above his head, stretched, and strolled leisurely toward the reception desk.
As soon as the girl behind the desk saw Iron, she gave a sweet smile:
"Good morning! I hope you slept well?"
"Morning, how much do I owe you?"
"That will be seven silver coins," the girl replied.
Iron reached a hand into one pocket.
Empty. He reached into the other—nothing again. Patted his back pockets—empty too.
The girl behind the desk watched this with slight suspicion.
"Right, just a second..." Iron said calmly.
He opened his hand. In that exact second, the air above his palm shimmered slightly, and a small pouch of coins materialized right in his hand. Iron untied the string, pulled out five coins, and the pouch vanished just as instantly.
Iron slipped four coins into his pocket and placed the remaining one on the wooden counter in front of her.
"This is... wait, is this..." the girl stammered, recognizing the characteristic gleam. "You..."
Iron pressed an index finger to his lips, making it clear she shouldn't make a fuss:
"Please, just take it without any extra questions and without making a scene. Deal?"
Without waiting for an answer, he turned around and headed for the exit. The girl stared after him for a moment, then shifted her gaze to the shiny coin on the counter. Still in shock, she carefully picked it up and began to examine it closely.
Stepping outside, Iron squinted against the bright morning sun and took a deep breath of fresh air. There was practically no one on the streets yet—the capital was only just beginning to wake up.
He walked a couple dozen meters and suddenly froze.
"Well then..." Iron muttered. "I asked Liana for the name, but somehow forgot to ask where the store actually is."
He looked around. The streets were empty. Iron sighed and just kept walking along the stone facades, hoping to run into at least one local.
A couple of minutes later, a lone passerby finally appeared from around the corner—a man in simple work clothes, hurrying somewhere with a wooden crate in his hands.
"Excuse me," Iron called out to him. "Could you tell me where the Shemis store is?"
The man paused, got a better grip on his crate, and waved a hand down the street:
"Ah, Shemis? Yeah, just keep going straight down this street, you'll run right into it sooner or later."
"Thanks," Iron nodded, asking for clarification: "Is there any kind of sign?"
"Don't think so, no special sign really," the passerby shrugged and walked on.
"Got it, appreciate it."
Iron continued on his way. To make the boring walk a bit more bearable, he pulled that same Uni Coin from his pocket, tossed it in the air, caught it, and began twirling it between his fingers, examining the engraved patterns.
What kind of coins did Noah give me... he mused to himself. They're way too valuable for normal purchases. I should get them changed somehow... But on the other hand, if I decide to get change for them, one pouch probably won't be enough to carry it all.
About fifteen minutes later, the morning streets had completely come to life. The crowd had multiplied: merchants rolled their carts, townspeople hurried about their business, and Iron, weaving through the passersby, got completely lost in the alleys.
He stopped in the middle of a noisy intersection and looked around in annoyance:
"So where is it?"
Iron pursed his lips, reasoning mentally: I could jump onto a roof and quickly scout from up there, of course. But there are people everywhere. Causing a scene first thing in the morning is definitely not worth it, and activating 'Heavens'... I can't rely on that alone.
"Lumon, find Shemis for me."
"Request cannot be completed," the even voice replied dryly in his head. "The specified object is missing from the database."
"Then just give me the coordinates and be done with it."
Lumon fell silent. For a second or two, there was complete silence in his head.
"If you just don't want to help me—say so," Iron added.
Instantly, a faint navigation marker flared in the left corner of his vision, indicating the exact direction and distance.
"Thanks," Iron mentally scoffed, and set off toward the marker.
About three minutes later, he emerged onto a spacious central square. In the very center stood a massive, multi-tiered fountain, from which wide paved alleys radiated in all directions. But what caught Iron's attention the most was a massive stone bridge passing directly over a section of the square, serving as an additional elevated road. The structure was designed so skillfully that it didn't block the light or clutter the street below.
Walking beneath the stone arches of this underpass, Iron tilted his head back, carefully evaluating the supports and load distribution.
"It's beautiful, sure," he muttered to himself, shaking his head. "But completely impractical."
Passing under the bridge, Iron turned back, returning his gaze forward. The exact coordinate was blinking in the distance. Iron mentally dismissed the marker and saw the store itself.
A neat sign hung on the light facade, spelled out in bright red letters: Shemis.
Iron walked up to the door, grabbed the handle, and pushed it open.
Inside, the establishment had a perfectly white floor, an equally pristine white ceiling, and rows of wardrobes and racks stretching along all the walls, filled to the brim with all sorts of clothing.
Right at the entrance lay a thick floor mat, with a small sign hanging nearby:
"Please wipe your shoes."
Iron wiped his soles on the mat and walked deeper into the hall, browsing the clothes. He approached the first shelf he saw, pulled out a bright red hoodie, twirled it in his hands, and immediately put it back.
Nah, too flashy. Definitely not my style, he thought, moving to the next rack.
At that moment, a quiet, polite female voice sounded to his right:
"Excuse me, can I help you with anything...?"
Taking a step toward Iron and seeing his face, the girl abruptly cut herself off and froze in place.
"No, it's fine," Iron answered without looking.
He was about to step to the right to continue browsing, but since the girl was standing right in his path, he involuntarily turned his head toward her and met her gaze.
"Oh," Iron said in surprise. "So you work here, Liana?"
Liana shifted awkwardly and squeezed out quietly:
"Um... well... yeah."
Iron turned back to the racks. Finding a light, dark-colored t-shirt, he picked it up and held it to his chest, estimating the shoulder size. Satisfied that it should fit fine, he carefully draped it over his arm and squatted down by a shelf with pants.
He felt the fabric along the bottom hem, checking its durability and elasticity, and calmly asked:
"Listen, so what are you even doing here?"
Liana flinched slightly in surprise and answered haltingly:
"Ah... I'm covering for my mom."
Iron spotted some suitable dark pants, stood up, held them against his legs for length, and nodded to himself—the size was exactly his.
"Why were you working at that diner when you guys have such a great and popular store here?" he asked, looking around the fully stocked shelves with interest.
"My mom doesn't let me work..." Liana admitted quietly after a slight hesitation, lowering her gaze.
Iron stepped closer and handed her the chosen clothes:
"Hold these, please. I still need to pick out a hoodie."
"Ah, yes, of course!" Liana immediately took them.
"I hope you're not still working at that diner?" Iron asked to clarify, sorting through the hoodies hanging on the rack.
"No! I don't work there anymore. And it's all thanks to you, Sir Iron!" the girl replied enthusiastically.
Iron picked out a comfortable, loose-fitting dark hoodie and, without turning his head, asked:
"By the way, you got those coins changed, right? Can you show me exactly where?"
Liana cast a quick glance at the customer-filled hall, then at the checkout counter, clearly hesitating because of her shift.
Iron noticed her hesitation right away:
"After your shift. I'm going to be sticking around here until evening anyway, or maybe even stay another day."
"Yes, of course!" Liana nodded with obvious relief.
"Awesome," Iron took the clothes back from her, adding the hoodie to the pile.
Looking around, he noticed a row of doors nearby with a hanger symbol on a sign. Realizing they were fitting rooms, Iron walked over to one, stepped inside, and locked the door.
He quickly stripped off his old clothes and changed into the new ones: a light t-shirt, comfortable pants, and a dark hoodie. To check if the outfit restricted his movement, Iron lightly jumped in place a few times right in the stall, then performed a couple of quick lunges and threw a few short punches in front of him. The clothes fit perfectly; the fabric didn't pull at the shoulders or the knees.
Iron thought with a faint smirk: Picking out clothes yourself is still way faster and easier than doing it with someone else.
Looking down, Iron saw that he had forgotten to grab new shoes, so he quickly put his old shoes back on, gathered his previous clothes, unlocked the door, and stepped out into the hall. Liana was nowhere nearby—she was already helping one of the customers. Iron walked over to the checkout, where a saleswoman was standing.
"Hello," she greeted him.
"Can I leave my things here for now?" Iron asked, pointing to his bundled-up old uniform.
"Yes, of course, no problem."
Leaving his clothes on the counter, Iron headed to the shoe section. The shelves were right at the bottom, so he had to squat down again. He felt a dark pair of shoes made of soft material, grabbed them, and moved over to a seat. Untying the laces, he tried to put them on, but his foot barely fit inside.
Iron exhaled heavily and set the shoes aside:
"Damn, I hate trying on shoes..."
He sat on the stool, looking out for Liana. Spotting her deep in the hall, he called out to her in a calm, quiet voice:
"Liana."
The girl heard him, quickly finished advising her customers, and ran over to him:
"Yes, Sir Iron?"
"Do you have these a size bigger?" he pointed a finger at the shoes.
"Let me go check the stockroom right now, maybe there are some left," she said and immediately ran behind the counter.
Behind the checkout counter was a door leading to a staff corridor. Liana opened a door with a shelf icon, entered the stockroom, and turned on the light. Numerous boxes were stacked along the walls. The familiar universal code for model 101 led her to the correct rack. In box number 10, she found a pair one size larger, quickly grabbed it, and returned to the hall.
"Here, a size bigger!"
Iron put on first one, then the other, stood up, tapped his heels against the floor a couple of times, and paced around the floor.
Still a little tight... he noted mentally. But they'll break in over time. Besides, I can't stand being in this place much longer.
He returned to the checkout, where his old clothes were already neatly packed in a bag. Iron removed the tags from his new clothes, placed them on the counter, and added the shoebox.
"I'm taking everything I'm wearing."
The saleswoman counted the tags and said:
"Alright. That will be two gold and five silver coins."
Iron had already reached into his pocket and felt the Uni Coin there, but stopped himself just in time: If I pull this coin out now, it'll cause an uproar across the whole store. I don't need the extra attention.
He calmly withdrew his hand and said:
"I already paid. I just wanted to show you the items."
The cashier raised her eyebrows in surprise:
"What do you mean, you paid?"
"I gave the money to Liana," Iron answered casually.
"To Liana?" the saleswoman repeated, and loudly called out to her.
The girl rushed over to the counter immediately. Iron, at this point, was already heading for the exit. Passing Liana, he slipped the Uni Coin into her pocket and whispered right in her ear:
"I paid for the clothes. Please don't make a scene."
Liana froze in place, and Iron calmly walked out the door.
"Liana, is this true?" the saleswoman asked suspiciously. "He claims he already paid you."
The girl snapped out of it, felt the coin in her pocket, and answered in a strained voice:
"Yes... yes, it's true, he paid."
"Alright, but there's no money in the register. Put the money in the register, please," she asked.
Liana walked over to the cash register. Taking advantage of the saleswoman getting distracted by an approaching customer, Liana rustled the coins in the drawer, creating the illusion of payment, then closed the register, keeping the Uni Coin in her pocket.
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