House Hunting

"I take it that you are the ones that are looking for a new house?" the shop owner said passionately. Continuing on, she added, "It is always nice to be able to help a newlywed couple to get independence."

Not sure how to react to this, both Loraine and James decided to stay silent, and just simply nodding. Ignoring this, Alice continued, "Well, maybe it is better to continue our conversation in my office. If you would be kind to follow me." After saying that she ushered the couple to follow her, as she lead the way towards the back of the shop.

Entering through a side door, the couple arrived at an office like room. In front of them there were two chairs seated with a table in between them. Next to it, there was a big working desk with a grandiose chair behind it.

Without saying anything, Alice walked over to the chair behind the desk and signed the couple to take a seat in front of her. Following the instructions, the couple seated themselves.

Alice was waiting until the couple was finally seated before she started to speak, "I understand that you are looking for a house. To help you better, I have a few questions. The most important thing I want to know is the method of payment. We of course have a way where you can pay in terms, however, keep in mind that this method will be a bit more expensive." With that there were several questions asked to the couple.

Not having properly prepared for this, the couple made things up as the questions went on. Their prince range was up to 100 gold. Calculating the price for such a place when paid in terms, the couple thought it is a better idea to pay it all in one go.

As for the location, the couple did not want to attract too much attention because people where looking for them. Because of this, it was maybe a better idea to get a place at a side road. Another requirement that they had was that it should be close to a waterway, in case they had to escape any pursuers. Of course the part about the pursuers was not mentioned to Alice.

"Hmmm, let me take a look to what I have available that will fit the requirements you have." Said Alice as she stood up and walked to a bookshelf at the back of the room. Taking a big book of a shelf, she placed the book on the desk and opened it. Looking through it, Alice stopped at a page, "Ah, here it is, there is indeed a place that fit the requirements." Writing down the details of the house, she continued to search for more possible houses.

After a moment, there were a total of 3 houses that met the requirements of the couple. Placing the information in front of her, Alice turned around and put the book back on its shelf and walked over to a vault. Taking out some keys, she opened the vault and took out the respected keys that go with the houses.

Turning around and looking at the couple, she said, "I take it that you are eager to see the houses?" Without waiting for a reply, she walked over to the door and opened it before saying, "Well what are you waiting for? Are you coming or not?"

Taken aback by all this, James finally started to understand how the city actually works. Everyone was fast phased and barley waited for anyone to answer. It was no wonder that Valencia is regarded as the central trading hub of the kingdom.

Standing up, the couple walked to the door ready to leave. Looking at Alice Loraine was finally able to speak, "You are indeed correct, we cannot wait to see what is available to us. So please lead the way. And help us out." It looked as if Loraine was getting used to the different culture that Valencia offered.

As the group exited the store, Loraine spoke up again, "So… where are we headed towards? What will be our first destination?"

Looking towards Loraine, Alice was surprised and impressed by the way Loraine accustomed herself to how the locals of Valencia act. Not being able to hide her smile, Alice replied in pleasure, "This way, please follow me."

With that, the group made their way to the first destination.

…