Nick didn't try and pry any more information out of Manager Chen after his last outburst. It became clear to him that from the very beginning, Manager Chen never wanted Nick and his sister Luna there in the first place.
He was only forced to provide housing and basic amenities to them, in line with the income they received from the government subsidies, and that was it.
But now that Nick had turned 16 and became an adult, he was technically the legal guardian of his sister, meaning that her basic needs were now his responsibility, rather than the government's…
If they lived closer to the centre of the galaxy, where the Federation's main focus was, then things might have been different for the duo. Sadly, orphanages were basically non-existent in the outskirts of the Federation's territory, and they were lucky that the government even provided them some subsidies at all.
'So what!? I'm an Altered now, and I've just received my first Awakened Beast Armament. This already puts me ahead of other similar people in my situation. If I manage to max out my Soul Seeds with Mundane Seeds then I'll be able to hunt even more beasts, even some Awakened beasts! This will be enough to sustain both me and Luna.'
Nick steeled his mind and thought optimistically. Sure, things were looking down and bleak for the unfortunate brother and sister right now, but in the future he would improve their living conditions through his own efforts! Not through some handouts from the government!
"Luna, come here."
Nick spoke in a gentle tone to his little sister.
Her eyes were still red with tears, and she wiped them pitifully as she walked into Nick's arms. Nick embraced her in a hug before resting his hand around her shoulders and leading her out of the apartment.
He didn't bother to spare Manager Chen a second glance.
There was nothing he could do against the sad excuse of a human being that was Manager Chen for the time being, but rest assured that he would never forget this day in the future, when he was stronger and could throw his weight around…
As for the stuff in the apartment? The two of them barely had any belongings anyway, and all of the stuff inside were things that were easily replaceable. They were cheap or even worthless, so Nick would rather abandon them than have to come back to this place and deal with Manager Chen again.
"What are we going to do now, brother…"
Luna asked Nick sombrely.
Although Nick had great plans and aspirations for the future, the foundations were yet to even be laid. He still had to sort their current situation out before planning things out thoroughly.
"Don't worry, brother will take care of everything."
For now, he had a few calls to make.
After Nick graduated high school and entered the Beast Domain, many of his loose friends and acquaintances abandoned him and joined the hate mob after realising how useless his Soul Ability supposedly was, and consequently, how weak that made Nick.
However, his closest friend Kai still stuck by him despite all the backlash he had received for doing so.
For this, he gained Nick's infinite respect. Nick would never forget the help Kai had given him through those last few years since his mother and father passed, especially in the previous three weeks after his 'useless' ability was revealed.
Soon, Nick took his sister to a nearby cafe and bought her drink before walking outside to take a call.
Ring…
His comlink rang for a few more seconds, before a cheerful sounding voice answered from the other end.
"Nick! I wasn't expecting any calls from you today… What's up?"
Nick took a deep breath and tried to stop himself from getting too angry as he recalled the events that had taken place over the last hour.
"Kai, I really hate to do this, but I need to ask you for a favour… I promise I'll pay you back soon! I've found an opportunity to make some money, so I can support me and Luna after things have stabilised! It's just… I need a place we can stay for… a month, tops!"
Even though Nick knew Kai wouldn't want him to, he was prepared to beg if that was what it took to put a roof over Luna's head while he tried to sort things out for the time being.
It didn't matter to him if he had to remain homeless, as long as Luna had somewhere to stay, he wouldn't be as stressed.
She still had school to attend, while he could spend most of his time in the Beast Domain, so finding a place for him to stay was no where near as important as Luna.
"You've known me how long now Nick? Don't even mention paying me back, I know you would do the same for me. It's the least I can do. I'll give my dad a call and see if I can settle you two in a vacant apartment for sometime. A month? Forget that, take however long you need. I'll message you the address after I call my dad."
The two exchanged a few pleasantries before Kai ended the call.
Nick exhaled a sigh of relief, feeling thankful to Kai, but at the same time he couldn't help but frown.
It became clear to him that he and his sister were only able to get by their whole lives thanks to the handouts and 'generosity' of others, and he hated that feeling. The feeling of being so… helpless.
With the money he'd earned from selling the Awakened White Ox, he could have found a decent apartment a little further into the city and paid about 2 month's worth of rent. But that would leave nothing left for other essentials like food, water, electricity etc…
Now that he wouldn't have to worry about rent for the time being, that money could be put aside to pay for Luna's essentials in the coming weeks.
Suppressing his last sigh, he stepped back inside the cafe and sat opposite his little sister, cheekily taking a sip from her drink and making her laugh in the process, before telling her the good news.
Of course, he didn't tell her all the details, only that he had found another place, a better place, for them to stay, and that she didn't have to worry about cutting down on food or transport to school.
His sister was overjoyed, and couldn't stop her tears from flowing once again.
They were happy tears this time though.
Nick wanted to shoulder all of the pressure so that his sister wouldn't have to suffer the things he had to at her tender young age.