The Beginning of the End of Magic

Grimoire 01 - Chapter 01 - First Meeting in Lindonium [Part 05]

"This is the place you rented?"

It was Gaheris who asked.

"Yeah, the address match. No doubt about it."

It was Finn who replied.

"Ehhh..."

"Can you please don't look at me like that."

Gaheris simply kept silent and continued staring at Finn who tilted his head away to avoid her line of sight.

It was currently sunset.

The duo already had their dinner at a local family restaurant nearby. Right now, the two of them were standing in front of the place which Finn had rented. The building was five stories tall and was relatively thin compared to the other buildings around. It held three studio apartments on every storey starting from the second, meaning that there was a total of twelve studio apartments.

Studio apartments were known as such because of their relatively small and compact design. This made it affordable and thus it gained popularity, especially so for students, or young adults fresh off from graduation.

All of that was not a cause for concern.

Gaheris gave such a reply because the building was far more run down than she expected. She knew Finn said it was really affordable and that was why he rented it.

But still.

Paint was peeling off the walls and shattered glass windows could be seen on some of the apartments. Even a couple of water pipes which seemed to have cracks previously was fixed using duct tape. For some reason, she also felt she could hear faint maniacal laughter at times. Put all of it together and Gaheris seriously felt apprehensive about the place.

Not to mention that the building was located in the outskirts of Lindonium, where the area was of relatively sparse population and also far from AMS. It took them a whole one and a half hours to reach here by tram.

"It can't be that bad right?"

"I wonder..."

"You can't expect me to rent a place like home. It'll cost me a bomb. We are really financially lacking and AMS doesn't allow its students to do part time either, but..."

"You still plan to do so right? Okay okay, I get it already. I'm really moved. I already said I'll stick with you till the end no matter what. Just like you, I will mark my words."

"You really aren't honest at all. Thanks a lot though."

Finn patted her head and rustled her hair while Gaheris gave a pout.

"Let's go."

Finn took the first step forward and entered the building. Pushing the door open, it revealed the main lobby. To the front was the stairs to the upper stories. To the left was a small lounge area. To the right was where the mailbox and strongbox combination for every individual rooms in the building..

"It's actually pretty well maintained inside."

"I don't know if I should be happy or shocked at the fact. Which unit is ours? Also, keys?"

"First unit on the third storey and yeah, the keys should be in those strongboxes. The mail came with the number combination for the lock."

Finn turned the dials accordingly on the five digit lock and in no time at all, retrieved the pair of keys from within. Along with it was a piece of folded paper.

It seemed to be a note from the landlord.

"Thanks for choosing this studio apartment! It may look dilapidated but I assure you everything is working fine. To note, you are the first tenant I have had in a while, so I'm actually pretty pleased! Anyways, I have left two keys for you, one as a spare. If you ever lose both, just give me a call at this number or send a mail to this address. I hope you enjoy your stay in Lindonium and best of luck to your studies... is what it says." Finn read it out loud.