One of Scott's male colleagues escorted Roger to tour the first floor of No. 4 Narcissus Street.
The space included a living room, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a washroom. There was also the underground storage room mentioned in the previous materials, plus a garden outside.
Roger was quite satisfied with the arrangement. Although there was an extra guest room, the overall cost-performance ratio seemed reasonable. The additional space might prove useful for future guests who needed temporary accommodation.
After some negotiation with the employee from "Tingen City Housing Improvement Company," he secured the rental at 6 soli per week, plus an additional 10 pence for furniture usage fees.
Of course, he didn't forget to visit his upstairs neighbor, Mrs. Wilson—a young sailor's wife with two small children, a boy and a girl.
According to Mrs. Wilson, her husband served as a sailor for the Storm Church, spending most of his time at sea and returning home once each month.
"A 'sailor' of the Storm Church... they certainly have many 'Wilsons,'" Roger mused privately.
His personal belongings were minimal—just a leather bag containing materials, belongings, and spiritual components—so moving in was straightforward. The only time-consuming task was spending nearly two hours cleaning out the underground storage room.
The soundproofing was excellent, and surprisingly, the space was quite clean. Only some miscellaneous items left by previous tenants needed clearing out, which wasn't too troublesome.
Roger removed and discarded the unusable items, keeping only a wooden table, some candles, and various metal tools like wrenches.
"This place will serve perfectly as a workshop in the future. I can even arrange small altars here," he said, clapping dust from his hands with satisfaction.
"Bang bang bang."
Just then, Roger heard knocking at the front door.
"Guests already?" he wondered, heading upstairs to answer.
Outside stood the two brothers, Klein and Benson, who explained they'd come specifically to visit their new neighbor.
"Please, come in. Welcome," Roger smiled, stepping aside to invite them into the house before giving them a tour of his new home.
"The layout mirrors our side exactly. It seems all the terraced houses on Narcissus Street must use the same design blueprint," Benson observed, looking around and nodding approvingly.
This was indeed a common and economical design scheme throughout Tingen, considering overall housing development costs.
The three chatted about recent current events, including the latest election results from the Loen Kingdom Parliament and news about ironclad ships. Eventually, Klein could no longer restrain himself, fixing Roger with an intense gaze.
"Mr. Bonway, your accent doesn't sound like that of a Tingen native. May I boldly ask where your ancestors originated?"
Earlier at the "Tingen City Housing Improvement Company," Roger had deliberately used three fingers pinched together to gesture "7." While not all regions of China used this gesture for "7," it was conspicuous enough compared to most places in the Loen Kingdom, where people typically used a bent index finger for this number.
Roger had expected Klein would ask this question, using it to rule out the possibility of his being from outside the Loen Kingdom.
He answered calmly, "To tell you the truth, my hometown lies to the east, in the Backlund region—a small town near Pritz Harbor."
When he said "east," he deliberately emphasized the word.
Roger was confident Klein would be curious about this emphasis.
Sure enough, after hearing the sentence, Klein immediately showed a thoughtful expression, though Benson's presence prevented him from inquiring directly.
"It's getting late, and we've imposed on you quite enough today, Mr. Bonway. Let's gather again another time," Benson said, glancing at the wall clock and standing up first.
Seeing this, Klein could only temporarily suppress his impulse to continue the conversation with Roger, politely bidding him farewell as well.
"The preliminary plan has succeeded. Now I just need to wait for Klein to become an Beyonder of the 'Seer' pathway. Then we'll have more opportunities to communicate at the 'Divination Club,'" Roger thought.
Considering that advancement in the Fool's pathway would deepen Klein's connection to Sefirah Castle's abilities, Roger could then find a way to have Klein invite him to join the Tarot Club.
Over the next two days, Roger took opportunities to train Bandit in various skills—using the flush toilet independently, finding food from cupboards, and other useful abilities.
Cats that had consumed potions learned remarkably quickly. Although Bandit still couldn't speak, the "Apprentice's" wall-phasing ability allowed it to avoid many problems typical cat owners faced, such as knocking over vases or dishes on tables.
"Speaking of which, today is Saturday. I should consider visiting the 'Divination Club' to take some divination commissions and, incidentally, look for Hanass Vincent."
After breakfast, Roger deliberately bathed and dressed carefully, ensuring his appearance was presentable. Then he placed Bandit on his shoulder and headed out.
"Good morning, Miss Angelica," Roger greeted the club's receptionist, tipping his wide-brimmed hat with a smile.
"Good morning, Mr. Bonway," Angelica returned the greeting, then suddenly brightened as if remembering something. "By the way, about my brother's situation that I mentioned last time? His company received new investment and has already paid off its debts!"
Her tone was excited. "Not only that, but the investor helped him find a new distributor for one of his products. They're expected to sign a cooperation agreement soon. You're truly an amazing Seer!"
Hearing this, Roger chuckled. "That's wonderful news. Please give my regards to your family. By the way, is Mr. Hanass Vincent here today?"
"Oh yes, he's in the reception hall sharing insights about astrolabe divination. You can go in and listen."
Angelica enthusiastically led Roger to a small hall where quite a few people were seated.
Standing at the podium was a middle-aged man wearing a black classical robe. His stiff brown hair stood up like hedgehog quills as he pointed at an astrolabe drawn on the blackboard, explaining knowledge related to stellar symbolism.
This was Hanass Vincent.
When Roger entered, everyone—including Hanass—immediately turned to look at him.
Recognizing this as his "conspicuous" passive trait taking effect, Roger maintained a composed smile, nodded to the group, found an empty seat, and settled in to listen to Hanass's presentation.
After Hanass spoke for a while longer, he suddenly addressed Roger directly: "This gentleman with the cat—I notice you're also wearing a Seer's cufflink. May I ask if you understand astrolabe divination?"
"To tell you the truth, I understand a little," Roger replied with a smile and slight nod.