It's the morning after our S-rank promotion, and we're gathered outside our guest rooms at the elven palace. This is the last day that we're officially royal guests here, so I instructed everyone to finalize their packing. Zara finished last night, and she is stationed on guard duty with Alara.
When Nina and Alto have their things ready, we make our way to Alara's room. When we arrive, Zara comes to greet us – she was standing guard outside Alara's door. I flash her a warm smile.
"So, how was she?" (Mizuki)
Zara shrugs.
"She was polite, though I wouldn't say she considers us friends. I'm neutral about her company on a personal level. In terms of my job as her guard, I don't think we'll have any problems." (Zara)
A typically clinical assessment from Zara. I nod appreciatively.
"Thanks, Zara. Can we speak to her?" (Mizuki)
Zara nods and knocks on the door to Alara's room. After a moment, Alara can be heard inside giving her approval, and we all enter to greet her.
The room looks pretty similar to Ilina's, but most of the personal touches are gone. There are several boxes lying around with clothes and other items inside – I guess she's packed.
Alara is sitting on the couch in her room, and she rises to greet us when we enter.
"Good morning. We're all expected to depart from the palace today, and I have gathered all my belongings in preparation for that. So, what are your plans, Mizuki?" (Alara)
"Well, we have several things to address today. The first is starting the preparations for the transport system I told you about, called a 'train'. The second is buying a house for my party and me to live in long-term. The last is sorting out your short-term living arrangements. Which would you like to discuss first?" (Mizuki)
Alara looks surprised and curious.
"I'm more curious about this train you mentioned, but I should really know where I'm sleeping tonight." (Alara)
"Ah, well you have a few options. First, I can just get you a room at an inn in Elmesia that I know, or one here in Avalon. Second, we can prioritize getting a house in the Elven Kingdom for my party and me, then you can just live with us for the time being. Third, Nina could create temporary shelter for you near the hot spring in your territory. Any preference?" (Mizuki)
Alara is a little embarrassed, and she responds hesitantly.
"Uhm…if it's okay with you…I'd like to use a room in your house for now. I'm not ashamed to admit that I've never slept outside before, and I'm not inclined to stay in an inn." (Alara)
I smile at her reassuringly.
"That's fine. I have a request for you then. Do you mind if, after we purchase a large enough house for all of us, I move it inside your territory? I was thinking we could place it on a mountain near the hot spring. I can always remove it later if you change your mind." (Mizuki)
So long as I'm careful with the teleportation, and I move the house between two hard and flat surfaces, I think I can do it.
Alara looks at me dumbfounded.
"You…want to move…a house? Between territories?" (Alara)
I nod patiently at Alara, and she seems to grapple with the idea.
"Well…that's fine, I guess." (Alara)
Awesome, that's one problem solved.
"Great, thanks! On that subject, do you mind if I borrow one of your platinum coins? I need a reference to acquire the platinum like I told you about, so I can start preparing funds for your territory's development. I can give you twenty gold in exchange if you'd like?" (Mizuki)
Alara shakes her head, then walks over to grab a small ornate box near her bed. She opens it to reveal several platinum coins, then hands me one. I toss it in my item box, much to Alara's surprise, then I smile at her appreciatively.
"Thanks! Now then, it's best if we get started on the housing situation immediately. Alto and Alara, do either of you know where we might find a nice house for sale that's big enough for all of us? Ideally, one that's secluded, so its disappearance won't be immediately noticed." (Mizuki)
After a few minutes of contemplation, Alto shakes her head apologetically. Meanwhile, Alara looks thoughtful.
"As you may know, Avalon and the surrounding territory is considered royal land. It's not privately owned by the Ophelle family, per se, but by whatever family is in power – that's just always been us. In the early history of the kingdom, noble families had houses in the outskirts of this land, but they were abandoned as the kingdom grew and territories were established. Some of the homes have been purchased by the wealthy, but others are just maintained by the royal family. They may be worth investigating." (Alara)
That's a pretty good idea. I nod appreciatively.
"Alright, let's try that! Shall we drop by and see if Dargo or maybe Elira would consider selling one of those houses to Alto?" (Mizuki)
Everyone shakes their head in exasperation, but Zara smiles in amusement. I'll take that as a yes.
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After our discussion, I put Alara's and others' packed belongings into my item box, then I teleported them to the hot spring at Nina's request. Alto and I made our way to Dargo using magic sense as my guide. We are currently in route to a door I've never seen before, and there's a guard outside it. As we approach, I preemptively call out to him.
"Good morning! Is King Dargo available to speak with? We are departing today, and there was information I thought he may be interested in." (Mizuki)
That's only half true, but I thought the guard would be less opposed if he didn't think I was casually searching for the King to ask for a favor. He looks at me conflicted for a moment, but before he can respond, Dargo comes out of the office with a curious grin on his face.
"Mizuki? I thought I heard your voice! Come in and tell me about this interesting information." (Dargo)
Wow, that was easy. I nod approvingly and we follow him into the room. It's an office with a similar layout as Gerard's, but there are shelves of scrolls and official looking documents lining the walls. We take a seat on the couch in front of his desk.
"Dargo…the thing is, what I said to your guard might have been a little misleading. I actually came for a request, but I'm sure you'll get interesting information out of this conversation, nonetheless. So, it wasn't a lie exactly!" (Mizuki)
I grin sheepishly as I confess, and Dargo's face drops a little bit in disappointment, and he sighs deeply in response.
"Very well, go ahead and ask." (Dargo)
"Great, I appreciate it. You see, we're looking for a house for Alto that's got at least five bedrooms and nice facilities. Alara mentioned these old noble houses owned by the royal family that are probably big enough. So, we were wondering, can Alto just buy one of those?" (Mizuki)
Dargo looks at me dumbfounded, then slowly responds.
"Well…Mizuki…what you've said is true, and it's not like we haven't sold them before, but there are some issues with what you're asking. The biggest one is money – the few that have been sold went for exorbitant prices. As much as we'd like to ingratiate ourselves to you, we can't just give away something like that." (Dargo)
"That's okay, we're happy to have Alto pay whatever price you think is fair. How much?" (Mizuki)
Dargo looks at me like I'm a child holding a piggy bank and asking about a car.
"Mizuki…when I say expensive, I mean between ten and fifteen platinum coins for the ones that have been sold." (Dargo)
I nod at him patiently.
"Yes, that's fine. Alto can give you the money. What are the other issues?" (Mizuki)
Dargo stares at me in shock, but he seems to slowly recover.
"Uhm…well, there are only two houses remaining. One has a quite pronounced estate, and it is somewhat of a historical site that elves visit. We realistically can't sell it. The other is pretty much just a mansion with no estate to speak of, and it's situated in a remote area. We only send people once every few years to clean it and maintain the structure. It's technically just inside the undeveloped western lands, so we couldn't really sell something like that to a common elf." (Dargo)
I can't believe it. That's…
"Perfect. The second house sounds perfect. How much would you want for it?" (Mizuki)
Dargo gives me a stupefied look.
"Mizuki, I just told you that we can't sell that land to a common elf. Not even Alto." (Dargo)
I shake my head at him excitedly.
"No, no, we don't care about the land. How much for just the house itself, the actual structure?" (Mizuki)
Dargo stares at me in exasperation for several moments before speaking.
"Mizuki, we can't sell one without the other…the house is situated on the land." (Dargo)
I make a dismissive gesture with my hand and smirk at him.
"That's no problem. Alara has already agreed to give Alto a little bit of land in her territory. If you sell Alto the house, I'll just teleport the house onto that land. Then there won't be any issue, right? You guys won't even have to keep sending people all the way out there to maintain it. It's a win-win!" (Mizuki)
Dargo's face goes pale, and his voice becomes soft.
"M-Mizuki…you…can just teleport something that size…all the way across the country?" (Dargo)
I grin at him in amusement.