After a few days of rest, Elizabeth and I had headed to the Guild and met up with Aubrey, Summer and Xeno to pick up what we had earnt from our hunting zone trip. Xia, Olivia, Alice and Coffee were at home. I wanted to see how far I could be from Coffee before he appeared by my side, but he hadn’t appeared the entire way to the Guild. The group had believed we would make about one Diamond coin in total, so when we found out what we had earnt we were shocked.
“Fifty Mithril coins each, including an additional ten from the Guild as compensation due to an incident that I’m not privy to. In total, you lot made four Diamond coins and fifty Mithril coins, one of the biggest hauls I’ve seen recently.”
“W-why do we get so much?” Stuttering a bit, Summer looked overwhelmed.
“There were spellbooks that you retrieved along with books that contained history on the city that were worth a lot. While we did have to take a bit off to make profit ourselves, what you brought back is certainly worth the historical value to a lot of people.”
Holding three pouches, I had collected Xia’s payment and Alice had also been provided payment, she is technically an adventurer. Xia had told me that the payment she received is to go to me as well, and after trying to push her back on that, she explained that we would be building a new house and needed all the money we could. She also brought up the fact that she is my Guardian, and that all she has is also mine.
Finding that unacceptable, I decided instead that we would have a collective pool to draw upon that each of us could contribute towards. This included Olivia and Alice, they too would have access to spend from it. I trusted all of them enough to know that they wouldn’t run off with all of the money we had, though I felt a bit of fear that I would return to find the house filled with bags of monster cores…I had told Xia that she was not to put everything she owned in this pool, and she should use her own money to spend for herself. She had asked me if that was an order and after I told her it wasn’t, she simply nodded.
Bidding farewell to everyone, including Elizabeth who was heading off to look at more houses to potentially buy, I arrived back home and after telling everyone what we got, we decided to look for a plot of land and buy it first. Xia put all but five Mithril coins into the pool, and Alice as expected wanted ‘Yummy’ and didn’t care for the money. Olivia didn’t get anything since she hadn’t participated and she had known that, but we didn’t care for that. In total, we had close to two Diamond coins.
We headed out, with Alice walking alongside Coffee, Xia behind me and Olivia sticking close to me, we followed Xia’s advice and simply started by heading to the courthouse. Speaking to Sebastian, he provided a suggestion to head to a central courthouse, which could find large plots of land for us. Taking him up on his suggestion, he told us where the central courthouse was located and we headed there.
Xia told me to avoid telling them how much we had, even if they asked. We should only tell them that we wanted to know of all options and that we’d look at the locations they provide us. As we arrive at the central courthouse, I repeated what Xia had told me to and soon we left with a a map of several locations and a few papers that had the costs of each location on it.
Because of the size of Vale, we spent the majority of our time walking and talking. Most of the places we looked at didn’t hold our interest, and as night arrived, we continued looking before finding a plot of land that I knew we had to have.
Sitting atop of raised ground, it took a few minutes of walking uphill to get up there, it had a view of the outside of Vale and was isolated, which meant no houses near it. I could feel strong lunar energy here, the land itself was massive, bigger than Flowing River and Xia’s family’s land, giving us plenty of room to expand upon.
“This, we should get this.” Olivia spoke first and I could only agree.
“It’s listed down at…50 Mithril coins?!”
Raising an eyebrow, I turned to Xia. That was a lot more expensive than anything else we had found, that included plots of land bigger than this, those had been about ten or fifteen Mithril coins. We also still had to build the actual house itself so costs for the land were usually cheap.
“Let’s still buy it, the view from here is amazing. Plus it’s nice and quiet.” Olivia spoke, and turning to Xia, she smiled and nodded.
“Alice dear, what do you think?” Crouching next to Alice, she tilted her head.
“Alice ok!” Nodding her head happily while also looking a bit confused, I smiled happily.
“Alright, let's go with this place. Olivia, Xia and I don’t require sleep so we can keep going, but how about you?”
“Mm, I can use Coffee as a pillow to get some rest if we stop for a while.” Alice too nodded when Olivia spoke.
“Don’t overdo it. Alright, let's head to the courthouse here, what is the name of this district?”
“Winter’s Retreat. A rather fancy name, isn’t it, Madam?”
“Mm…Xia, we go and speak to someone about what we want to build next, right?”
“Correct, we will need to purchase the property first, then they will have someone draw out what the property and house will look like, usually one who has the Subclass of Artist. Once we are happy with the design of both the land and the inside of the house, they will then calculate the costs and once payment is done they will set to building it right away.”
“How long would it take?”
We walked down the small hill as we spoke, looking around and admiring the view before it disappeared.
“Depending on what we settle on, up to a month. In most cases, that is reserved for large, complex buildings, but with what we are looking at, two weeks.”
We soon arrived at Winter’s Retreat’s courthouse, and after speaking to an attendant, they showed surprise.
“That property…Are you sure?” I could see the attendant looking at my adventurer’s plate with a raised eyebrow. “It’s fifty Mithril coins to just buy the property, you also need money to build, that isn’t included.”
“We know, we can afford it.”
“Alright, well fifty coins then.” Handing them over, he takes it and my necklace for identification. He also took the necklaces of Xia, Olivia and Alice. I wanted it to be under all of our names since we were all paying for it in some way. After a bit, we signed a form and the attendant then found a designer to assist us with the house design. The one assisting us was an elderly lady by the name of Tiffany. Sitting in a private room, she had a map of the land we were buying as well as pencils and brushes.
“This will take some time to do, about eight or nine hours, just to let you know.”
“Do you mind if my friend and daughter here sleep on the couch?” I gestured to Olivia and Alice, both who looked rather tired.
“No problem, I take it you two don’t require sleep?” Telling her we didn’t, she smiled. “Ah, how wonderful it must be to be so young. Alright dears, let's get started. I’ll let you know of the price once we are done.”
With Olivia and Alice both using Coffee as a pillow, the three of us sat while discussing and planning what we wanted. Tiffany also suggested ideas, designs and a layout of how everything would look.
Olivia and Alive had woken up after nine hours and joined us and after twelve hours in total we finished discussing everything. We also found out the reason why this property had such a high cost. In addition to the high amount of lunar energy that gathered there, natural mana was abundant as well, making it a very high value place. The reason wasn’t really known, some places just had higher natural mana and the reason could simply be due to location. Winter’s Retreat in fact had high natural mana, but the lot we were buying had the best in the district. Other districts, which cost more, had better than Winter’s Retreat though.
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Because of this, the garden we were looking to build along with rooms like the mana gathering room would be very efficient, providing better than usual results. We had told Tiffany we were willing to spend upwards of one Diamond coin, due to the fact she had been making suggestions to lower costs so Xia trusted she wouldn’t increase them, so we ended up spending a lot more than expected, but it was well worth it.
In total, it would be one Diamond coin and 20 Mithril coins, which left us with about thirty Mithril coins. Planning to sell some of the items we didn’t need anymore, including possibly the Gravity tome since I already knew how to use the spell, it just came down to mastering it before the System would recognize it as being learnt. I was close, being able to increase the weight around monsters, the problem came down to the reverse, which is the hardest part.
With the money spent, we got everything and more. A large stone wall would surround the plot of land, with a gate that required a token to open. The garden for the fruits and vegetables would be nearly fifteen times the size of the one at home. It would have the magic circles to control everything, including what would be needed for the seeds I had found in Zalus since they had included instructions. Next to this we would place a large storage building that could store everything harvested and where all tools could be hung up.
Next, the backyard itself. It had a large patio with a beautiful and flourishing garden full of different assortments of flowers, plants and trees. A table and chairs would offer a place for us to relax. It kind of reminded me of Selenia’s garden. Along the paths and in the garden there would be stones that gave off a faint light, making it beautiful. A large heated bath sat towards the back and would offer a view of the night sky and of Vale itself. Illusion enchantments and defensive barriers would surround it, meaning no one could spy onto it, not even one who had stepped onto their Path. It was actually common for most open bathing spots to have these enchantments. It also would provide regenerative properties and make those who used it feel more refreshed. It also cleaned itself thanks to the help of a magic circle underneath it.
Lastly, the house. It ended up being nearly ten times bigger than our current house. It had five bedrooms, one for each of us and one spare, and the bedrooms were built to our liking. For example, Alice’s room would be constantly submerged in darkness as she apparently preferred it. Entering the house would lead into a lobby where we could then enter nearly every room. The kitchen was big, it would have multiple ovens and storage so I could cool or freeze anything I made. Everything cleaned itself automatically as well. The ovens would be purchased from Grandma’s as I had absolutely loved the one I had bought before. I would only need to visit her, select what I wanted to purchase and then inform the courthouse, who would then do the rest.
We also had a crafting room for Olivia, it would have all sorts of tools for her, like a strange spinning wheel that was used for threads. I didn’t know much about these tools, but she had explained exactly what she wanted while Tiffany also explained anything she may need in the future and we left room for improvement.
We had the living room, which included a fireplace that used wood for cold nights, and had multiple couches that could become beds. It had a small prep area that we could store and make tea or coffee from. The dining room had a large table and ten chairs, which was also the most basic room.
On the second floor, we had a library where we could put all of our books and tomes, a study would also be built in it, a place to read or write, something I didn’t think was needed, but Xia wanted so we got it. A meditation room, which was the mana gathering room, was next. Only one could use it, but it included a complex magic circle that would draw in natural mana. While it wouldn’t be as strong as the one at the top of the Guild, it would still help us greatly. Then there is the storage room, which would require the mana signature of myself, Xia, Alice or Olivia to open. We planned for it to be near impossible to open otherwise.
The last room on the second floor was one that surprised both Xia and I. A short range teleport room. Around Vale, there were about five buildings that had private rooms with a teleport circle that we could buy and place a two way teleport circle that connected to our house. We could have one teleport circle only, but we could connect it to the adventurer’s district, allowing fast travel to the Guild. It wouldn’t be directly to the Guild, but close. It would otherwise take two hours to walk there from our house.
We had to apply for it however, and it would need to go through the Royal Guard. In addition, we needed two references to ensure that we were trustworthy with such a thing. Tiffany had only recommended it because we mentioned we knew Roland who was a Captain in the Royal Guard and Alexander. The way it worked is that we’d be given a token that would only ever work with our mana signature and both connecting rooms required it to open the doors. The teleport circle wouldn’t work with it either, and it only required a pulse of mana to destroy in the event someone attempted to force us to use it.
Lastly, the training room, which would be below the house, underground. It had self repairing walls and floor, though it was limited and if the room was too damaged we’d need to get it manually repaired. You could increase the gravity in the room, summon earth golems and more. Xia was very excited about it and had added a lot of different functions.
“Whew, this is certainly one of the best houses I’ve done lately. Most people in Winter’s Retreat are those that just want a fancy looking house, nothing like this. I’m rather surprised adventurers like yourself would want a place like this, most just get a small house and use their money on equipment or weapons. There is a lot of work to be done, the complexity of the garden’s magic circles and the defensive enchants that cover the entire property will require experts to do.
“All up, it’ll be ready in just under three weeks. We’ll need you to organise the oven and get the approval for the teleport rooms and you’ll be set. We’ll handle all the furniture that I’ve drawn here, so once it’s all done you all just need to move in. Are you sure you don’t want a separate room for Coffee?”
“No, he tends to remain at my side unless I order him to stay somewhere, plus he doesn’t seem to want it.” We had asked Coffee, but he had simply placed his head on my lap and whined. Only after petting him to reassure him we won’t get a room for him did he return to being happy.
“Well, the backyard will give him a lot of space to run around. Now, I’ll draft up a receipt for everything and once that is done we’ll get right to work.” Handing Tiffany the money, she thanked us and left the room for some time before returning and handing me the receipt, which was four pages long.
Leaving Winter’s Retreat and arriving home, we started organising and packing what we didn’t need right away. Xia had recommended that I sell this house as we could get some Platinum coins back for it, but she also recommended possibly using it as a house we could return to in case anything happened to our new house and needed somewhere to stay. Deciding to make a decision later, I decided to take a few days to relax and after a week, I left the house with Coffee in my mana realm, who had wanted to rest and headed to the Guild.
Xia had become relaxed recently, not staying by my side whenever I left the house for something like going to the Guild. She would however leave an Arcane mark on me, so if I ran into trouble I could send mana into it, allowing her to teleport to me. It wasn’t instant as she’d had to hop several times, but it reassured her further.
Entering the Guild, I spoke to an attendant and informed him I wished to see Alexander. After confirming my identity, he led me up several stairs and to an office where Alexander had been waiting for me.
“Alisha, are you doing well?”
“Mm, still some lingering thoughts, but I’m moving forward.”
“Well, after everything that happened in Zalus I’m not surprised it will take you time, I too find myself thinking of Xander and Amanda. Now, I had originally intended to assign you various tasks before teaching you, but I don’t believe that is necessary anymore, you’ve more than proved yourself. Instead, I will take time to teach you when I am free, and seeing as there is not much happening right now, we’ll begin today. Do you have anything planned for the next two days?”
“I don’t. I am helping a Bronze Grade team next week and our new house will be done the week after.”
“Keeping yourself busy? Good, don’t get complacent. You have potential to surpass those who just stay in Gold Grade. Now, we will begin your mana control lessons. Recently, you have focused solely on your physical body but have left magic behind, correct?”
“Yes. I’m a bit frustrated because I don’t understand a lot about magic.”
“Indeed, you’ve been thrown all over the place so it’s not hard to imagine that you’ve not had the chance to really just slow down and take in magic earnestly. I will be taking you somewhere to teach you mana control over the next two days. I will be teaching magic sense which allows you to use your mana to sense mana and magic around you. This is a very helpful ability, it allows you to sense not only others but also traps or magic circles. It is how Summer locates traps while she is scouting.”
I’d heard of magic sense before, and felt eager to learn it. “I’m ready then, Master.”
“Good. We’ll take a short range teleport, come.” Following him into a small room in his office, I stepped onto the magic circle after him, arriving in a small cave. We walk out and as he snaps his fingers I begin floating behind him. Alexander steps into the air and starts moving towards a large forest.
“This place is called the Wilderness. It’s a general term that is used for extremely dangerous locations outside of cities. Unlike hunting zones, which usually have monsters of the same level, the Wilderness is fraught with natural traps, monsters that have stepped onto their Path and many other dangers. Rest assured, you will not be plunging in fists swinging. This location is perfect to help learn magic sense as monsters and traps are all around, allowing you to fine tune your control over mana.”
We landed in a clearing as Alexander continued. “Now, magic sense requires very precise control over your mana to accurately determine what you are sensing. We will spend a day on learning mana control and another day on learning magic control. I believe with your potential you will easily learn it, and if you have any difficulties you can ask me. I do not mind if it takes you longer to learn, so do not pressure yourself. Once you learn magic sense I can then begin teaching you how to maintain a foothold in the air. This will take some time to learn, about a week I’d estimate and will further increase your mana control.”
Alexander turns to look around the forest. “I will protect you while you learn, so you don’t have any fear. Nothing here matches me in strength so you can focus completely. Any questions?”
I shook my head as he nodded. “Good, then let's begin.”