Night of the Broken Gliph

“Welco… me…” Hearing a voice, a man walked out from the backroom. He was startled to see a young boy. “Little boy, hurry and leave. This isn’t a place you should be loitering at,” he said immediately. 

“Do you need any help here?”

“What do you mean?” the man asked, utterly confused. 

“I’m here to work!” Chui Yim patted his chest and said. 

Kiu Chi Gong stood at the counter, frowning at Chui Yim. “Kiddo, how old are you even? Do you know what this place is? 

“I might be shorthanded, but not so much  that I need a child to help me,” he said, scanning Chui Yim. But just as he was observing Chui Yim, Chui Yim was observing him back too.  

He looks pretty young, about twenty something years old. It’s hard to believe that the owner is so young. Hmm, his muscles aren’t even, especially his shoulder. It makes him look like a beast when he raises his shoulders. There’s black coloured cloth similar to the ones that Chor Shing Chit uses on his right hand. So he’s a glipher too. 

“I’m not here to work,” Chui Yim said, shaking his head and looking at the man seriously. “I’m here to find someone to work for me.” 

Kiu Chi Gong looked at him, his mouth slightly open. Is this kiddo crazy? Is there something wrong with his brain? But Chui Yim ignored him and walked to the sword that looked like an iron rod. 

Chui Yim might not know anything about the water or grass style, but he was an expert at the fire forging style in a broad sense. “This sword only makes use of a single ingredient, the fallen star's stone. It’s a type of rock that comes with a gliph in it, but not one of good quality. Other than its weight, there are no other pros about the rock. If I’m right, you used at least a hundred and twenty kilograms of fallen star’s stone on this weapon. 

“You melted all the  rocks with high heat before forging it into a sword with the essence of the rock. You did well here, but not for the rest of the processes. 

“How bad are you at forging that you made the sword into a rod? And you tattooed the Strength gliph in the weapon, right? A Strength gliph is supposed to help a Glipher increase their strength, but it doesn't make sense to tattoo it on a sword’s hilt handle. Let me guess, the gliph you wanted to use originally wasn’t this, but it turned out like an iron rod unexpectedly. Thus you changed your mind and tattooed the Strength gliph on it instead. 

“So, that was how a grade two-weapon became a grade one.” 

Kiu Chi Gong stared at Chui Yim, thunderstruck. “Who… are you exactly?” 

“Someone who came to save you from the abyss of worldly sufferings,” Chui Yim said, happy with how Kiu Chi Gong was staring at him. “C’mon, call me master.” 

Kiu Chi Gong invited Chui Yim into the shop.Chui Yim sat down as if he was at home and looked around the shop. 

So he decided just to live here, huh? The front of his shop is the shop, and the back is his home. 

Kiu Chi Gong came with two cups of tea and sat at the table, staring at Chui Yim confusedly. “Who are you?” 

Chui Yim shook his shiny bald head and flashed Kiu Chi Gong a surprisingly cute smile. “Just like I said, I’m looking for someone to work for me. Just take it that I’m a great talent who’s here to help you improve your forging.” 

Similarly, Kiu Chi Gong shook his head. “This is too absurd. As a descendant of the Kiu Clan, I’m not poverished enough to scoop that low. I invited you for a cup of tea just because I thought your comments were reasonable, and I’m treating you as a guest.” 

Hearing him, Chui Yim nodded in satisfaction. He didn’t have the slightest unhappiness with Kiu Chi Gong’s reply. He’s indeed a man. 

Kiu Chi Gong sighed and looked up at the ceiling, lamenting. “In the past, the Kiu Clan was a great clan able to forge even divine weapons. However, after a hundred years, nobody in the clan could do so. We grew worse generation after generation. Finally, my father sold the last grade three weapon of our clan and gambled away the money. He then committed suicide after losing the gamble.  

“Now, I’m the only descendant of the Kiu Clan. My skills come from the two-page secret book that my ancestors left behind, and all there is are steps on basic refinement. I learnt the rest of the skills myself.” 

Kiu Chi Gong sipped the tea while telling Chui Yim about the past of his clan.

Chui Yim listened to him attentively.It was as if he witnessed the fall of an ancient clan through Kiu Chi Gong’s narration. 

“Little kid, I’m sorry for being such a joke. I, Kiu Chi Gong, have nothing of value. I can only welcome you with some tea. It was my pleasure to meet a little boy who knows about weapons.”

Chui Yim looked at Kiu Chi Gong, unsure what to feel. He initially planned to find a stupid person to work for him. But seeing how unyielding Kiu Chi Gong was, Chui Yim somehow thought of taking Kiu Chi Gong as his disciple. 

“I say, after hearing so much from me, do you not believe that I know how to forge?” 

“Alright, I’ll believe you.” Kiu Chi Gong laughed. “Or you wouldn’t be able to point out the weakness of my fallen star sword. But boy, you’re still too young. I don’t think you can even lift a hammer! I don’t know which aristocratic family you are from or what secret books you’ve read that taught you about forging. But I, Kiu Chi Gong, am not at the point that I’d be greedy for a child’s knowledge. 

“If you do see the worth in me, come over and discuss forging with me sometimes. I’ll host you with my tea too.” 

Chui Yim left Kiu Chi Gong’s shop and went back to the academy. He didn’t go to the weapon street for fun, but with the goal of finding a source of income.

I need a way to earn money because Chui Tin that bastard stopped giving me money! Money not only allows me to research more about forging, but more importantly, because of Lam Ming. 

He’s a great cook, but sadly, a poor kid like me can’t exactly get good ingredients. 

After the day that Chui Yim fainted, Lam Ming admitted that the pig heart he used in Chui Yim’s porridge had gone slightly bad. Chui Yim barely managed to hold back the urge to strangle Lam Ming when he heard that. 

So I need money to get quality ingredients. 

Lam Ming said that if we are rich enough to get gliphic beasts or gliphic plants, he could even try to make us g-food that’s excellent for developing our bodies. It’s always good to have some money too. Kiu Chi Gong is a good source, but his temper… I don’t have any idea for now. 

Chui Yim heaved a sigh and went back to his dorm. As soon as he opened the door, he was welcomed by a tantalising aroma that made him drool. 

Lam Ming was making a fire secretly. “Hurry and shut the door. I’ll be scolded if the warden finds out that I’m cooking again,” he whispered as soon as he saw Chui Yim. 

“What are you making?” Chui Yim shut the door and squatted beside him. 

“I went to the market today and picked up some unwanted vegetables… Be at ease, they aren’t spoiled. They’re just not that fresh. I made a pot of mixed soup with them and some minced meat.” 

Chui Yim’s eyes twitched. Forget about the ingredients. forget about where the ingredients came from… He repeated to himself in his head.  

But the soup was so aromatic. He pinched his nose and tried it. 

Hmm? Chui Yim's eyes widened. It’s so good! He started gulping down the soup. 

Chui Yim had a full meal together with Lam Ming. This meal made him even more determined to earn money. 

He can make even rotten vegetables taste so good, so what if it was fresh…