With everyone in agreement, we finished getting ready and headed to eat at the Inn we were staying in. We may need a couple of days to shop for a house in case the one Gloom picked out wasn't perfect. I trusted Gloom as a captain in a defense force, though, and wanted to check out what she thought was best. After that, if we loved it, we would either purchase it or, if we thought, we could find a better move along.

We moved together after leaving the Inn towards whatever counted as a place to purchase in this world. Gloom was smiling way more than normal as she walked down the street, and her tail wasn't hidden like usual. It was obviously sticking straight up from her leather armor and flicking at the tip with every step as she walked. It was quite distracting after all that happened this morning and I wasn't sure if I ever saw this much raw emotion from Gloom other than when we first met her and the excitement that she was feeling from leaving that place behind.

It was interesting to see, and the other ladies noticed as we moved through the town. I didn't have much time to think of it, though, as we reached our destination that Gloom was pointing out, which seemed to be a general store. Gloom almost skipped inside as we followed in, and I looked around.

Inside was a varying degree of housing things for the kitchen and living room. It was mostly furniture and cloth, along with various other small things, that altogether came together to make a home feel more comfortable. The furniture looked more like showpieces to me, and as Gloom skipped in, a man was cleaning something in the corner that, as we got closer, seemed to be some sort of vase.

"Ah, Gloom, this must be the rest of the party!" The man exclaimed, "I am Rogers, the General store manager, and I also dabble with the authorities on helping sell and rent houses in the area." He introduced himself. "I take it you are here to see some houses and maybe purchase a place?" He asked.

"Yes, this is my Party," Gloom suddenly said, "We would like to see that place that you just got that is in the middle of the Casinos and the Adventurers Guild," Gloom said, taking control of the conversation. "We would like to see that one together, and maybe we will purchase it after seeing a couple more places. Do you have someone to tend to the store while we go and see the place with you?" Gloom asked.

"Yes, Gloom," Rogers said and turned, "DILLAN! Come tend to the store!" He called out to the back, "I have to go show off some places!"

"OKAY, DAD!" Someone yelled back.

"We are good to go then," Rogers said and began to lead us out of the shop.

We stepped out of the general store and moved through the City together while Rogers began to talk to us about the house. "So, The place that I am taking you to first is probably the best in our lineup and was just taken back from a human couple that hasn't come back to the house for over six months. After a certain amount of time, you will forget your house unless there is a will. This couple was registered to leave the City over six months ago and is presumed dead. Shame on that, too, as they were not weak. If they come back later, you will not have to forfeit the house, and the earned proceeds will become theirs to find a new place. That rarely happens though, but it is the law, and the houses are limited in Dark City." Rogers said as we walked, "The same will go for you. If you purchase a place here and do not return after heading out for more than six months with no whereabouts on you, the City has the right to redeem your house and if you return the money from the sale is yours as is your right as the land owner." Rogers finished.

That was an interesting law, I thought. In the real world, that would go over like a rock on a cliff, but in a game world, I could understand the logic of opening houses to new players if old players quit for a long time. "What about the possessions inside of the house?" I asked.

"The possessions are stored in a bank registered to the previous owner for another six months and, if still not claimed, will be handed out to any person on a will filed by the previous owner. If there is none, then the possessions in the bank that were taken from the house will be sent to auction for costs on the bank fees and more gold into the Taxes of Dark City." Rogers told us, making me nod, although I wasn't sure I liked the law as a corporate owner. I shook my head overall, disliking this law even in a video game. What if I had surgery and couldn't log on for a year due to recovery? I wondered if there was a pause to this somehow.

We continued to walk down the streets as Rogers continued to talk about the house. "This house has a small courtyard which is atypical for the area, and is a little more expensive because of it. Although it was an adventurer's house, the local residents were generally happy with the last couple. Having a team carrying on their legacy probably will help the optics of the situation for Dark City. Overall with three bedrooms, a large kitchen, multiple bathrooms, and showers, it makes a great place for a team to stay together although still on the smaller side of a large team." Rogers admitted, and I couldn't help but nod. With six of us, it would be two to a room, typically making it so that we were living quite closely. "There is a water source on the property in the courtyard, which is private, which also increases the cost. Overall I believe this is a great place for a team to set roots down." He finished as he slowed down, coming up to a large three-story house.

There was a wall surrounding the house with only six feet in height and not enough space for someone to stand on unless they wanted to walk along a six-inch thick stone wall. It was more of a privacy screen for now, but I knew I could change that with my profession in permanent wards. Rogers reached a small man gate that was a couple of feet away from a larger gate that looked like it could hold a carriage.

"This house has a main gate and a gate for carriages. Although the courtyard is not large, it can hold a carriage if needed. Just be careful as there isn't much space for a carriage to turn around, so I recommend against it. One of the previous tenants ran a business through here that needed it, and no one has changed it since." Rogers said before ushering us into the courtyard. "Through the man gate, you are right in front of the main house that you can immediately enter. Let us check out the courtyard first."

Moving over towards the double gate was an opening with grass in the corners that didn't look well kept. In fact, it was looking in dire need of cutting, but that was probably due to the lack of maintenance from the last tenants not being here for half a year. In the clearing towards the wall, another building separate from the house was there, looking like a little shed. "That is an empty workshop area. Has multiple uses and is larger than it looks. That same tenant that put in the gates also had the workshop made and integrated into the wall. Great if you want to set up a workshop or store things. Best for adventurers is that you can use it as a place to process kills to earn the most possible from them." Rogers smiled, and I had to say I liked it. We might be picking up crafters in the future, and that would be a great place to increase storage or a workshop for them, depending.

Rogers then waved us into the center of the clearing, and we could see that part of the house covered that the courtyard was a little larger with an indent making the house look larger than it was. "Now, this is a feature that I am not sure I like, but the first owner of this house wanted some of the courtyard to be completely covered, so it makes a little privacy area that no one can see you. So here you can practice with the sword or enjoy some extra sun when you are out of the shadow of the towers." Rogers continued and pointed to the door. "Door leading into the house behind the kitchen. It is near the stairs so that you can easily haul things in, and it is attached to a room behind the stairs that makes a great storage area." Rogers said before leading us back to the front of the house. "Let us enter through the front of the house." He said.

We followed him and entered the nice home this was shaping up to be. I could understand why Gloom thought this was the perfect base to start here in the Dark City. Not far from us were the towers that cast their shadows across the City as per the name of the City. It was not far from the city center but also far enough away that the sun was not blocked the entire day, which wasn't as common as you would think. Just looking up, you could see random towers in groups around different areas in the City that cast long shadows over large parts of the City, mostly in the morning and in the afternoon. At noon when the sun was at its highest point was when everyone in the City could enjoy the sun.

As we entered inside, we noticed it was a simple little room that went forward up to a set of stairs, and to the right, there was a large kitchen with more than enough room to put a large table in. I could see two exits into other rooms, one leading beside the stairs towards the door leading to the courtyard and another into a different room. "This is the entryway, and up the stairs leads to the floor with two bedrooms. To the left is a living area or whatever you want it to be. Maybe another workshop?" Rogers said and turned to our right, "That is a large kitchen that comes with the oven as a previous owner left it when purchasing another. You can replace it if you want, but it is getting a little old if you ask me." Rogers said with a smile, and I was sure that he had a service that could get us a new oven.

The rest of the floor was two large areas with a small hallway in between. That living room was a nice space that you could turn into a workshop, and I liked it. The back area behind the stairs had a lot of shelving, and I could see already why Gloom wanted this place. Not only was it spacious, but there was a lot of storage and room to grow into. Moments later, we went up the stairs, a simple hallway leading to another set of stairs. "Up those stairs is the master bedroom and ensuite with a shower and small bath," Rogers said before pointing out the four rooms on this floor. "There are two bathrooms on this floor, each with its own shower. No idea why the owner loved showers so much." Rogers said and continued to show us the room.

Each bedroom on the second floor was large enough for a queen and some simple setup. It wasn't much, but it was good if we picked up more party members in the future. The bathrooms were simple, with a toilet and a shower that you could stuff yourself into and rinse yourself off. It was nice, and I began to wonder why showers were so common in this game. Something I would bring up with Victoria later.

Then we went up the stairs, and A large master bedroom filled our sight. It was not as large as I was expecting as it seemed to reduce a little in size overall, and there was no door it seemed to block the sound coming from us having fun upstairs. I believe that shouldn't be an issue with some wards, though if that became an issue in the future, and when he opened up the bathroom attached to the master bedroom, I paused.

"As you can see, it is a large bedroom that the first owner created and installed a 'small' bathtub that I honestly think is more of a pain in the ass than helpful." he said, "It takes forever to fill, but the previous owner loved it." Rogers turned to us and smiled. "Well, With the whole team here, what do you think?" He asked.

"Do you mind excusing us so we can chat a bit without interference?" I asked, and Rogers smiled.

I knew that smile; it was both polite and like he caught a sale at the same time. "Sure," Rogers said, "I will be in the kitchen when you need me." He said and walked out of the bathroom, and I looked to the ladies.

As I heard him go down the stairs, we waited a little longer before we talked. "Honestly, Gloom," I said, turning to her, "Is there another place like this that you saw?' I asked.

"Nope," Gloom said, shaking her head, "This is the most convenient house. It isn't cheap, but I believe we will have enough funds if we purchase it now and then do some quests to make things up."

"How much is it?" I asked Gloom.

"Almost everything we currently have in savings saves for fifty gold coins." Gloom said, "We will have to do quests right away, and we will not have furniture in the place in the short term. In the long term, this place will be a great place for us to grow into Ward. Again if we are base shopping, I think this is the best choice." Gloom said.

Now came the question that I needed to ask when Viccy spoke up. "Vote now," Viccy said, "Do we want this place or to go shopping around?" Viccy asked.

"I think this place is good," Iona said, "LArge place and defensible. We can grow here and enjoy a bit of privacy inside this City."

"You know my vote," Gloom said.

"I think it would be a good Naughty pad," naughty Bunny said as her ears seemed to twitch.

"I like it, but it will hurt the bank, and we will have to make up the shortfall," I said.

"I think we should purchase this place after looking at others," Fidel said, "IF we lose this place because we decide to bargain to lower the price, then so be it."

That was a good point, and Viccy Nodded.

"Decision made," I said, and everyone nodded before heading down the stairs.

When we saw Rogers again in the kitchen, he smiled up until the moment I spoke, "Ah, Mr. Rogers," I began, "I like the place, but I would be derelict not to view other places first. Do you mind showing us?" I asked, and he nodded, although I could see a small frown.

"Sure, this way," Rogers replied and then started a day of walking through houses.

Gloom was right in the end. They all were too small or out of our price range. Still, after some negotiations, we lowered the gold cost of the house we all agreed on, and we left ourselves with three hundred gold which wasn't much less, but it was a bit more breathing room.

Soon we headed back when the sky was dark and purchased the house.

With this, we had a new base without a bed. But it would be our new home where we laid down roots in this virtual world. I couldn't help the smile on my face.

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