The sun was setting. I let out a tired yawn as my sore legs carried me forward, step by step. I looked at the sign as we passed it. It was a simple sign, reading 'Tolbana,' just ahead of the walls around the town. It had been a hard push, with little rest, but after leaving Medai three days ago, we had reached Tolbana. The idea of a soft bed was exciting. I sigh in relief.

"We're here! At last! Haha! Warm beds! Hot food! Cold drinks! I can barely contain my excitement!" Klein remarks, laughing and cheering. The others let out whoops and cheers of their own, and we all find a little more energy in our tired bodies to push into Tolbana.

"So, are we all in agreement that tomorrow, we're doing nothing but rest?" Harry asks as we pass the first building of the town. Issin nods.

"I'm sleeping in. If anyone wakes me up early, I'm going to commit murder." Issin jokes tiredly. I look around at the houses as we walk through town.

"So, should we go house shopping before or after we eat?" I ask, looking at the others as they think.

"I'm fine getting the house buying out of the way. That way, I know how much money I have left over for food." Dale states. Harry and Kunimittz nod in agreement.

"Good idea. I'd hate to buy food and then realize I don't have enough for a house." Kunimittz states, scratching his chin.

"Yeah, let's get houses first. Besides, I'm not terribly hungry, so I might just go straight to bed." Klein adds, scanning the town.

"Very well then. Real estate first, sustenance second." I affirm, nodding. I had already spotted one house with a sale sign, on the edge of town. It was a small, modest home. I walk over and look at it. It was a modest price, and I'd have enough money left over that I wouldn't be terribly strapped for money.

"I like this one. I doubt we will keep these houses and this is good enough to serve the purpose of accommodation." I state simply, buying the house. Opening the door to peak inside, it has a common space that merges with a kitchen and two bedrooms in the back. I step back and look at the group.

"Decisive shopper." Harry comments, chuckling. I shrug.

"It's four walls and a roof. That serves me well enough." I explain. I look at Artoria."There's two bedrooms, so you can shack up with me." I tell her. She nods.

"Thanks. I'll head inside and put some of my stuff in storage, then go buy some food." Artoria replies, heading for the door to the house. I nod.

"Thank you, I'm going to continue helping the others shop for their own houses. So I will see you later." I respond. Artoria waves farewell and heads inside. I turn to look at the others.

"So why do you get the girl?" Klein asks, humoredly, crossing his arms.

"Because I don't want her shacking up with shady, ugly men." I joke, looking at Klein as he pouts and laughs.

"Are we that horrible?" Harry asks, placing a hand on his chest as if wounded. I laugh.

"A regular band of shady rogues, for sure." I reply and begin walking as we resume our house hunting.

"It is probably wisest if we split houses between us, it saves money and like Kaze said, we probably won't keep these houses once we move to new floors." Dale states after a moment of silence. Klein nods.

"I agree. We can worry about having our own, individual homes later, when we have the money for nicer residences. For now, we just need houses that serve as a place to eat and sleep." Klein agrees with Dale.

"So what do you think? Split up so it's three people to a house?" Kunimittz asks, scanning the town for other houses.

"That sounds fair." Dynamm agrees. "So who rooms with who?" He adds, looking at the others as they think.

"I'm thinking… myself, Dale, and Issin will take one house, and Kunimittz, Harry, and Dynamm can take another." Klein states after a moment. The others look at him and nod. No one disputes the decision, content with the arrangement. Dynamm looks over and sees a house, wedged between a shop and a side street.

"There's a house. It looks big enough for three people." Dynamm speaks up, bringing the group to a halt as we walk over to inspect the house. Klein pulls up the buy list and checks the price.

"If we pool money, we can afford it." Klein comments after a moment. He looks at Dale and Issin, showing them the price. They nod.

"I'm fine with that. Especially since I imagine being in Tolbana means we will make our money back a bit faster than if we were in Medai or Horunka." Issin states, handing Klein some money to cover his portion.

"Yeah, it's a decent price, and the location is convenient." Dale says as he hands Klein money. Klein buys the house. Klein then claps.

"Well, it may be in a game, but I now own a house! So long small apartment life!" Klein shouts, cheering. Harry and Dale laugh.

"I don't think our assets carry over into real life, unfortunately." Kunimittz comments, chuckling. Klein laughs.

"Hey, I can at least dream, right?" Klein replies.

"So what happens if we get nice mansions on one of the prettier floors in this game?" Issin asks, smiling.

"Conflicted and depressed when it comes time to return to the real world probably." Kunimittz responds. Klein, Issin, and Harry laugh grimly.

"Shit, that's depressing. Can we please avoid turning the dangerous death game that we are trapped in into a dangerous psychological dilemma?" Harry responds, chuckling and scratching his head. The others nod in agreement.

"What? You don't like being able to buy a house of your own on two weeks of income?" I ask teasingly. Dale shivers.

"Now that is something I don't want to think about, comparing the housing market." Dale responds, chuckling weakly.

"Fair. Fair." I chuckle, nodding. Klein opens the door into his new house. He looks back at the others.

"I'm turning in for the night." Klein reports, smiling tiredly. Dale and Issin nod.

"I'm going to buy food and settle in as well then." Dale comments, turning to head for the store next door. I nod, watching him.

"Night, Dale!" I call after him. He waves as he enters the store. I then look at the others. Issin stands around awkwardly.

"Well, guess it's an early night for us." He chuckles, walking over to the door to the house. "If you all aren't too tired tomorrow, I'll probably go to the tavern for lunch. Maybe I'll see some of you all there." He adds before heading inside. I then look at the others.

"Well, shall we go find another house then?" Kunimittz states, looking at those of us who remain. Dynamm and Harry nod.

"It is getting a bit late. The shops might close if we don't hurry up." Dynamm states, as he begins to walk down the street. Kunimittz and Harry follow him, and I end up bringing up the rear. By now, the last rays of the sun were fading on the horizon. We weave our way through the streets, eventually coming to a house for sale. Kunimittz checks the price on the house.

"So, what do you think?" Harry asks, but Kunimittz shakes his head.

"Too expensive." Kunimittz replies, stepping back.

"Well, that sucks. Better luck next time I guess." Harry comments, shrugging as we move on.

As I look around for another house for sale with the others, I spot a familiar person just as they enter a tavern. They wear a white cloak with blue highlights. I scratch my chin, watching them disappear into the tavern.

I wonder if they were the first one into Tolbana. I wonder to myself as I follow the others. No one else seemed to have noticed or cared. I return my attention to the current situation, following Dynamm and the others around.

It ultimately takes another half hour before Kunimittz finally finds a house that he deems acceptable for the price. Harry lets out a sigh.

"I had no idea you were so damn frugal. I was about ready to go off and buy a house of my own." Harry says, relieved as Kunimittz buys the house. He looks at Harry.

"I'm just trying to make sure we still have money left over to afford food and upgrades. We're in a new area. Our weapons will need repairs after such an intense push to Tolbana." Kunimittz explains and Harry sighs.

"Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm just tired and hungry, okay?" Harry responds, chuckling.

"What say we go and grab some food then?" Dynamm asks. I look at them and shake my head.

"Go ahead. I'm eating whatever is at the house. I imagine Artoria is back and so I'd rather eat that and save the money." I respond.

Though I hope she hasn't tried making chocolate again… or applying the same philosophy. I have enough on my hands just surviving the game itself. I think to myself as Kunimittz and Dynamm nod in understanding.

"Fair. For us, the taverns are probably all that is open. We'll see you later then." Dynamm states, turning for the nearest tavern. I nod and fistbump Dynamm and Harry.

"See you later. Stay out of trouble." I say, turning to leave.

"I'll keep the idiots in line." Kunimittz responds, chuckling. I wave farewell and begin making my way home. I decide to take the scenic route through town. As I do so, I learn that the town has an outdoor amphitheater, which I stop by to look at.

Huh, I wonder if there are plays and shows in this game? I wonder to myself. It was a nice amphitheater, which backed up against a cliff. It was a nice place to enjoy a view even if there wasn't a show in session. I stare up at the shadowy, ominous pillar way off in the distance for a moment. I find myself scowling.

"Reminds me of a Tree of Emptiness from a Lostbelt." I comment to myself. The pillar gave me an ominous and uncomfortable feeling, reminding me of the hellish battles to take down the trees of emptiness. I shake my head, shaking the feelings from my mind, and continue on my way back to my house.

Reaching the house, there were no lights on inside that I could see through the window. I head inside, finding that the only light was a small candle on the dining table, next to a simple sandwich on a plate. I smile softly.

You're too kind. I think to myself fondly. Then frown. Or you're trying to kill me through some abominable creation. I think, approaching the sandwich cautiously, half expecting it to come alive and initiate a boss fight. However, there ends up being no boss battle or strange, eldritch phenomena. I pick up the sandwich and take a bite. It was a decent sandwich. It wasn't anything special, it wouldn't earn awards. But it was miles better than what I expected. I quietly eat the sandwich, staring into the darkness and thinking.

So, what to do now? I think, chewing. After all, we were at Tolbana. If the handbook was to be believed, this was the nearest town to the dungeon. Which meant we had mostly covered the first floor. But then again, were we ready to confront the dungeon? I had my doubts that the dungeon would be on the same difficulty level as what we had faced thus far. It would house the deadliest and nastiest creatures on this level.

At the very least, it would be wise that we rest up then try to farm as much as we can to upgrade our weapons and armor. I resolve that objective one was building up our assets as best as possible. By now, we all had new weapons and swords, thankfully putting our starting gear behind us. My new katana, Tachikaze had been upgraded four times, and my armor, a simple and lightweight leather Dou, Kusazuri and Suneate had similarly been upgraded thrice. I knew each could squeeze out two more upgrades, so it would be best to focus on that.

After all, I doubt it would be wise to take on the strongest enemies with gear that isn't fully upgraded. I affirm to myself as I finish my sandwich and thumb the thin gap between two strips of lamellar on my chestplate.

It would also be nice to find some dyes for future gear. I think, picturing in my mind a set of light armor that was predominantly black and gray with white highlights, perhaps with the symbol of Chaldea if I could get gear emblazoned. My mystic code had originally seemed rather boring, but I had become attached to the pragmatic and simple design. Besides, the design was familiar and I wanted at least a taste of home. Even if it was only a small thing. I let out a tired sigh. Sitting down had drained the energy from me. I unequip my sword and armor, and lean my head back, staring at the ceiling, enjoying the loose and free feeling of being in basic clothes, free of the weight of protective gear.

"I'll never get tired of this feeling. It's like a full body version of taking socks off after a long day…" I whisper quietly to myself, letting out another tired sigh and yawning. I close my eyes as I reflect on the day, yawning a second time.

When I open my eyes, the room is dark. The candle was gone, burned out to nothing. I look around, blinking. My eyes were bleary. I yawn. My surroundings were unfamiliar, my heart beat faster as I looked around. Then I remembered, this is my house. I relaxed, sighing.

Nothing to get worked up over. You're safe here. I remind myself. I look around the living space, then the kitchen. Artoria hadn't entirely cleaned up, so I walk into the kitchen and quickly finish cleaning the kitchen. I look out the window to see that it was still night. Opening up my menu, I could see that it was 2am. I close my menu and step outside of the house. The night breeze, especially at this altitude, was chilly but the air was clean and refreshing.

Recalling that the center of town, near Kunimittz's house was town center with a fountain, I begin making my way to the town center.

"It's a lovely night, Mash." I remark, looking to my left. But there is no one there. Then I remember. Mash wasn't here. I frown. "Right… still not used to that." I quietly scold myself as I walk down a side street and emerge in the town center. The entire area was empty, the lanterns along the walls of the shops were out, but the fountain still glowed, giving off a gentle, radiant light that was remarkably serene, with the tree that grew near the fountain. The only sound was the wind through the leaves and the gentle trickle of the fountain.

I walk over to the fountain, running my hand under the cold water as it fell into the basin of the fountain. The sensation felt remarkably real. Removing my hand from the water, I sit on the edge of the fountain and stare up at the night sky.

"If it all feels real, and the stakes are real… is this still a game?" I ask myself quietly. Certainly, by all aspects, I was living life as if this was my reality. Further, if I died here, it was game over in real life. Everything felt real too. My sensory perception was fully engaged in this game.

Ah, I'm no philosopher. If Romani were here, he would be far better able to discuss such deep concepts. I think to myself. My mind wanders to Romani, and I smile sadly, looking back down to the ground.

"The world has changed a lot since you left us, Doc. Said goodbye to a lot more people." I mutter, closing my eyes and remembering the names of all those who perished when Anastasia and her Oprichniki attacked. "Am I doing the right thing here? We're doing to the Lostbelts what Goetia did to us." I ask a non-existent Romani. But of course, my answer is just the silent whisper of the leaves and the gentle trickle of water. I smile softly and chuckle.

Of course. No answer. Just me and Artoria now. All I could do right now was ensure she came to no danger. After all, if anything else, I knew that doing that was right. With a house, I could keep her out of harm's way.

"I'll save you this time." I whisper softly as I stand up. I begin making my way back to my house.

Making my way into the dark house, I quietly move across the living room to the open door into the unoccupied bedroom. I quietly close the door to not disturb my roommate next door and get into bed. A fresh, new bed was all it took to sap what energy I had, and I close my eyes.