- Shari -

We traveled without incidents, only stopping to rest the horses and for our driver to sleep.

And eventually, I see them again.

The walls and structures of Ekoras, fighting their neverending war against the growths of the Evergrove in its attempts to reclaim its territory.

Getting past the guards is almost disturbingly easy, even though I didn't meet them before.

While we carefully put on extra layers of our cosmetic powder for this occasion, it totally sufficed to show them our adventurer cards and Michael’s license as a business coachmen.

It's almost a bit of a letdown even if we got another box as expenses.

My face might look strange with that covering, but I still like showing it once in a while.

Always being the masked weirdo is getting a little exhausting at times.

However, now we need to plan our first steps.

"First things first, we need a base of operations. From a former mission, I know an inn where they don’t ask any questions. It's in the east side of town." (Michael)

Oh shit.

I forgot that part!

After all, we have a history in this town.

"Uh, maybe I should mention that we kinda got banned from that one." (Shari)

"How did you manage to get banned from Marsha's!?! She even serves murderers and outlaws!" (Michael)

"We drew trouble. Do you remember that dead underworld boss?" (Shari)

"Sigh, then we either need to find a regular inn or look for an alternative. There is another option, though it might be a bit too much." (Michael)

"Option? What other kind of options are there?" (Shari)

"Well, it would actually be beneficial to our purpose if we could secure a place close to our operation area. Yet as there's no tenant business in the slums we would have to buy a cheap place." (Michael)

"Oh, can we have a cave?!" (Liqu)

Her eyes almost sparkle at this.

"Eh, no. I had a house in the southern slums in mind. There's always something free due to the change in population. Many die, move to another city, or in rare cases, find something better, and then they leave their houses behind. Not a small number of adventurers take houses in the south to be closer to the gate. I don't think I need to mention the expected casualty rate for them. The downside is that it's not the safest location." (Michael)

Okay, buying a house.

That doesn't sound too bad.

I mean, it's certainly not as cheap as an inn but having a private place that just belongs to us has its advantages.

Foremost, that we can legally control who has access.

"I'd opt for this alternative." (Shari)

"However, there are downsides. First, the slums aren't known to be particularly safe. Burglary is a common offense. It wouldn't make for an all that great base of operations in terms of confidentiality." (Michael)

"Oh, oh! Can I take care of any intruders?" (Liqu)

I'm not so sure if all burglars deserve that kind of fate.

Sure it's a crime and a good part of those criminals might be assholes but in my opinion, a punishment should be fitting for the crime.

Getting dissolved by a slime sounds like overkill in my opinion.

"I’d rather you didn’t, Liqu. I don't want our place to be known as a building that eats people." (Shari)

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"That's silly. I'm the one who would devour them." (Liqu)

"How about you don't? Please, you know what I think about killing indiscriminately." (Shari)

"Ahem, before you go and look for nice curtains for the windows, there's a second issue I'd like to mention." (Michael)

"Which would be?" (Shari)

"Buying real estate property isn't something we can list as expenses. Our 'employer' looks unkindly on such a thing." (Michael)

Sigh!

Right, this means it's going to be on us.

"Fine, I have saved some money. I can pay." (Shari)

As soon as I have said that I realize that fairness demands a certain confirmation.

"Are you fine with that, Liqu?" (Shari)

"You're asking me?" (Liqu)

"Well, yes." (Shari)

"It's just, you never ask me about such things." (Liqu)

I know this, but it's undeniable that she helped to earn our money.

It would simply be wrong to decide by myself how to spend it.

"I can't act as if you didn’t contribute to earning it. On the contrary, since most of it is from the count I have to admit that you contributed much more than I did. So I'm asking you now. Should we see if we can buy a room at an inn, or would you rather buy a house?" (Shari)

"Uh, what exactly does it mean to buy a house?" (Liqu)

"Isn't this clear?" (Shari)

"Didn't we buy the rooms the last time? What is the difference?" (Liqu)

Oh damn, this slime is still an economic novice.

Seems like I have to explain to her the difference between ownership and possession.

"Well, it's important to know that humans make kinda complicated rules as to who has what. For example, the king owns the country but a farmer at the same time owns his farm within it. If you look deeper into it those relationships can get very complicated so I'd like to keep it simple. The last time we basically only bought the temporary right to stay in the rooms in the inn, while the rooms themselves still belonged to the innkeeper and not us. As a rule of thumb, you might just ask yourself if it would be okay to destroy the things you got. Please, tell me that you're aware that the answer would be 'no' in this scenario. And that stealing is bad, while we're at it." (Shari)

"Okay. So those 'rules' don't allow us to take something that isn't ours. Understood." (Liqu)

She's truly making progress.

The concept of 'mine' and 'yours' surely doesn't come naturally to a slime.

They just devour everything they get in their grasp.

"So, different from just buying the right to sleep in a room we would buy the whole building. This would be a much bigger scale and far more permanent for us to live there. So it's a big decision." (Shari)

"Hm, can't we have a cave?" (Liqu)

Sigh, what did I expect?

But I might compromise with her.

"No, but there might be a cellar attached to it. That's not very different." (Shari)

"Oh, then I want one!" (Liqu)

And I can already see the urban myth about the cellar slime lady forming.

"Ahem, I don't want to disturb your talk regarding choosing the place where you want to live together, but there's still the issue that you'd need the funds." (Michael)

Which basically means he won't pay his share.

"That won't be an issue. We're somewhat loaded." (Shari)

"Sure you are. Just wanted to confirm it." (Michael)

Seems like we're buying a house.

I’d rather look for something out of town, but for this operation, I guess we should look for a place close to the slums.

This operation is all about investigating if anyone has disappeared here.

That crazy scientist suggested that Ekoras would be the first address for someone going missing without anyone raising an eye.

And the slums are certainly the first place that comes to mind to investigate if we’re looking for someone going missing in this town without anyone making a fuss about it.

It's basically the part that remains unchecked within a place that is already badly supervised.

"Right, just a quick question. How are we going about this? I don't have much experience regarding such property deals. I suppose asking around if someone has a house to sell isn't the way to go about this." (Shari)

"Sigh. You'll have to visit the town hall. Any free houses automatically become city property and are listed there. I guess you should head there first. Meanwhile, I'll ask around my local contacts for information. Afterward, we'll meet up at the guard headquarters at evening." (Michael)

"The guard headquarters?" (Shari)

That's certainly the last place I want to be as a slime.

"Did you forget that we're on an official mission? The status of the Marquis of the South isn't confirmed yet. Felion Varros was always known for being reluctant to take a side. However, if we want to operate in the area we need to at least confirm if the guard can be trusted. Fortunately, we have proof with us that we're acting on the direct order of the crown. They'd have to act outrageously obvious if they'd go against us." (Michael)

That doesn't sound very reassuring.

It basically means trying an open approach while heading into a possible trap.

"And if they'd go for such an 'outrageously obvious' approach? Do you have any idea what happens if Liqu and I would have to go all out?" (Shari)

"If they're hostile, and I'm emphasizing the 'if' here. Then there's nothing we can do about it. It means the whole town has already fallen to our enemies. If this would be the case there's no harm in wiping it from the map." (Michael)

Did I mention that Michael sometimes extremely distresses me?

He has always this jovial attitude but then suddenly switches to a totally cold expression and says such things.

One can see how he's going about completing his missions.

"But that's always so exhausting. I shouldn't repeat that all that often." (Liqu)

And the calamity doesn't seem all that averse to it.

"Hey, don't worry. That's only going to happen if they're hostile. I'm sure it will go well." (Michael)

Right back to his easygoing self.

"Right. Then I guess we'll split up here." (Shari)

"Sure. I'll meet you this evening." (Michael)

Okay. Then it's time to buy a house for us.