“I can wait for you to finish, and I have no use for the wood so you may keep it.” Arthur sat upon a simple stool off to the side of the forge while the dwarf shrugged and started sorting through the pile of weapons.
After twenty minutes of examining each weapon the dwarf entered the main building of the blacksmith and returned with a bag of coins and a list detailing the price he was paying for each.
“I’ve got 2 gold coins and 10 silver for this pile. If you have any more scrap you need to be rid of in the future come here, I’ll give you a fair price. And you can call me Burmas.” Burmas smile while extending his hand.
“And you can call me Arthur.” Arthur returned both the smile and the handshake as he took his coin.
“And if you need any armor or weapons you can come to me, I’ll give you a good price.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
********
Arthur left the blacksmith belonging to Burmas and continued on his way towards the bank. Eventually after asking for directions several times he found the bank. It was located in a large building made up from large stone bricks like many of the nearby buildings. Hanging across the entrance was a sign, and written across it were the words ‘Southern Bank of Antium.’
A mix of people both rich and poor entered and exited the building in a steady stream with those entering going in the right side and those exiting from the left. Arthur quickly entered through the right set of doors and found himself in a large room reminding him of his time in the royal treasury, but far fancier.
With several columns made up from beautiful marble lining the walls every few meters and a large chandelier made from gold and what appeared to be some very expensive gemstones. The bank was clearly showing off its immense wealth.
Towards the end of the room were several clerks working, helping the customers with whatever they might need. Whether it be depositing their money or taking out loans the clerks were there to help.
Arthur joined the smallest line and was being helped by the clerk within twenty minutes.
“Good afternoon sir, how may I help you?” The clerk was a woman with blond hair and blue eyes that looked to be in either her late twenties or early thirties.
“Good afternoon, I am interested in purchasing a house for my personal use.”
“That is excellent, many buildings and plots of land have become quite cheap in the southern district. I would assume you are here for a loan.”
“If I need one then yes.”
“Well I can send you to someone who can help you farther in our department dedicated to homebuyers. Is that alright with you?”
“Of course, just point me towards it.”
***********
Arthur was given directions to the “Department of First Time Homebuyers.” After walking down a set of stairs and a hallway he found the department quite quickly and entered.
Inside he found a room very similar to the one he left, but smaller and more modest in its design, making it feel far more homely than the last.
A small handful of people were there before him, they ranged from what appeared to be simple working commoners to commoners of above average wealth.
A clerk sitting at a desk in the corner of the room waved him over and gave him a number with an estimated wait time of fifteen minutes.
As Arthur waited for his meeting with the person that deals with home buyers several of the people that arrived before him were called up to a meeting, while some left with their happiness clear as the sky, others left with clear disappointment.
Soon Arthur was called up. “Number 42!” The clerk shouted after something behind her desk and a whirl noise. When Arthur was within two meters of the desk she pointed towards a nearby hallway behind the desk. “Go to the last door on your right.”
Arthur following her directions entered the last room, discovering a simple room with enough room for a table and two chairs on either side. On the opposite side of the room was a human man in his mid forties with brown hair and eyes, and tanned skin likely from working in the sun for long periods of time.
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Upon seeing Arthur enter the room the man immediately stood up and extended his hand. “Good afternoon sir, My name is Sevinus.”
“I am Arthur.” Arthur reached out and shook Sevinus’s hand.
‘Too well dressed to be just any commoner off the street, odds are he has a very well paying job to afford and maintain such clothing.’ Sevinus quickly looked over his newest potential customer taking note of the tailor made clothes and the bag slung over his shoulder.
“It is wonderful to meet you Arthur. I assume you are here because you are interested in purchasing your own home.”
“That is correct. I just finished up an apprenticeship, so now is a good time to own somewhere to stay.” Sevinus’s eyes lit up slightly at those words. Apprenticeship meant a well paying job, and a well paying job meant bug spender.
“Of course, owning a home is something everyone should strive towards. It is wonderful that you are striving towards it. Now for legal reasons I am required to have you read this document over, sign it, and fill in all the relevant information.” Sevinus placed a document before Arthur along with a quill and ink pot.
The document was mostly legal jargon regarding defaulting on loans and repaying them, as well as a portion dedicated to Arthur filling in personal information regarding his job, his birthplace, and if he currently had an open account with the bank.
After about half an hour of writing and rereading to be sure he understood everything Arthur handed back the document to Sevinus who then looked it over and placed it in a folder.
‘An alchemist!? Incredible, these types love to go big when they buy anything. I can almost smell the commission already.’
“Wonderful, now is the time for looking at the actual houses for sale.” Sevinus reached over to a large book that he then placed before Arthur. “This book here contains all the houses that are currently on the market. They are sorted by district as well so you can easily pick where your new home is.”
Arthur flipped open the book and found that each page of the book could be easily removed and replaced with a sort of circular clamp system made from metal.
The very first page showed a very simple home that consisted of two small rooms, the first a multipurpose room for everything from cooking to eating and the other a simple bedroom that could fit up to six people if they lay shoulder to shoulder.
A set of blueprints also were shown alongside the page detailing the actual size of the house and each of its rooms.
“That right there is a family unit for up to six people, more if you sleep in the main room.” Sevinus spoke up, giving context to the building's purposes.
Arthur flipped the page to see a one floor house with three large rooms, a multipurpose kitchen/living space, a dedicated bedroom, and a spare room off to the opposite side. There was also a small yard around the property.
This caught the interest of Arthur, it was exactly what he was looking for. Not too big and not too small. The bedroom might have been a bit larger than he normally had, but it was better to have more than you want than less.
“And on the next page I think you will see something you will really like.” Sevinus gestured to Arthur to turn the page.
Instead Arthur looked over to the price of the property, ten gold coins. That would leave him with only three silver and fifteen copper coins to his name. After a moment of awkward silence Sevinus could tell that his client had found what he wanted as opposed to something more expensive.
“I like this property. Would it be alright if I pay upfront?” Arthur asked while casually looking over the blueprints of the building. He didn’t know much about architecture, but he could still appreciate the simplistic design.
Sevinus on the other hand was almost flabbergasted by Arthur’s question. ‘Pay upfront!? He can just drop 10 gold coins on a house without batting an eye. I can only hope he buys something else in the future.’
“Are you sure? If you need to we can discuss a loan and a repayment plan.” It took a lot of effort on Sevinus’s part to keep his composure.
“Yes, I can afford it. Now where exactly might the property be? I would like to take a look at it before I purchase it.” Arthur closed the book and handed it to Sevinus.
“W-well for the next week I am fully booked, so perhaps we can meet up here in 8 days time at noon. That is the earliest I am available.”
“That works out quite well for me as well. I will see you then.” Arthur reached out, extending his hand for a handshake which Sevinus took with a fake smile. He tried to keep his annoyance from showing as it would be bad for business and his career.
**********
Arthur exited the bank from the left set of doors, or the right side from the inside. He quickly left the area and started on his way towards the mages guild located in the western district.
‘I need to join up with the alchemy club. If I don’t do it now I’ll keep putting it off like I have been currently for the past several weeks.’
After half an hour of walking Arthur hand returned to the mages guild and went inside. He passed by the clerks and went down the stairs off to the side towards the alchemy guild. After several minutes of backtracking from the last time he was there almost two months ago he eventually caught the familiar smell of an assortment of different potions in the air. Following the smell took him right back where he remembered the club was located.
Peeking inside the room he saw a few familiar faces from the last time, including the member who asked him if he wanted to join the last time, and then offered him some books of herbalism when he asked questions.
‘This might be a little awkward, but she is the only person that I know of with the authority to allow new members to join, or she at least acts like she does. Either way she can help me.’