A/N: So sorry, readers! I clicked the wrong day for the release and only realized it now
After a long afternoon of dealing with Victor, his realtor, and an obnoxious banker, the house and surrounding land was mine at a decent price. Since I owned the land, I was responsible for maintaining nearly a mile of road which included a bridge that was condemned by the county government, which was why no one had been willing to buy the property. Obviously, that was not much of a problem for me, and it had been on the market so long that I could close on it today.
I could not escape Victor fast enough after the paperwork was signed and teleported back to my new house. Of course, I had no intention of cleaning the place up myself, so I nicked my thumb and squeezed out a drop of silver blood onto the ground. Like my other avatars, a figure quickly grew in front of me, but this one was more humanoid than the others and was even taller than me.
Karazu was a tall, wiry tengu martial artist who had the swagger of a wandering drunk. His skin was weathered and reddish, feathers dark as night sprouting along his arms and down his back. His long nose was twisted from years of brawls, and a permanent mischievous grin lurked in his silver eyes. He wore loose violet robes tied with a faded gold sash, often stained with sake and torn at the knees. Perched at his hip was a large gourd-shaped flask, said to never run dry. His wings are long but ragged, fluttering just enough to give him an edge in battle.
"Master," Karazu greeted with a bow of his head.
"Welcome to our new place," I chuckled.
He eyed the broken front door of the small cottage and then the completely overgrown grounds before he took a swig from his flask. "Not the worst place you've dumped me in. Do I have to deal with the monkey and the raccoon?"
"Not for a while. I have them on a small island that I'm making our stronghold. This place is the new physical address of Asynia Zarra, so we'll have company of one kind or another eventually," I replied.
"Heh, then hurry up and bring a party; I'll have this place fixed up in no time," he laughed.
"Well, there is no furniture, food, or booze for now, and the road all the way to the gate needs to be repaved. Oh, and the bridge also needs to be replaced," I retorted, killing his mood instantly.
"Do you want me to starve?" he complained.
"You don't eat."
"I have to sleep on the floor?"
"You prefer sleeping in a tree even when there is a plush bed," I retorted.
"My stone magic is the weakest!" he protested.
"Yet, you can use it, so unless you want me to call Geobrin here because you aren't skilled enough to fix a road... a plain, boring road with no embellishment following the current one that he has to leave his personal playground to make for you," I threatened.
"Fine, fine," he grumbled. "Could I at least get Weniya? I want some company at least, even if it's just her lecturing me about my drinking."
I chuckled and cut my thumb again before I squeezed out a new drop of blood. The drop of blood swelled and took a rough humanoid shape though it was only as tall as my waist. The form solidified and looked like an overgrown beaver that stood on her back legs and wore red wool robes. Her fur was a silvery brown, dappled with ash-gray around her muzzle and hands like the colors of tree bark in winter. Her tail was wide and banded with carvings of constellations, snow hares, and wind-swirls.
"Asynia," Weniya greeted with a warm smile.
"Weniya, it's good to see you," I replied as I petted her head. "Karazu asked for you to join him, even if you want to lecture him about his drinking, but I think he just wants some furniture soon. There is a hot spring in the back along with an outdoor kitchen that I plan on expanding once I can see what's really there. The woods also have game, so feel free to hunt and use the trees, but within reason. Karazu also needs to repair the road and bridge with stone, so keep an eye on him and make sure that he doesn't just laze around; that's my job."
She chuckled lightly and nodded her head as she said, "I'll make sure that he gets it done."
"Thanks. While you are here, you must stay hidden as a human with an illusion until I can have Sythrissa set up proper wards, but I haven't called her out for the island, so don't expect this place to be shielded first."
"No rush," Karazu replied with a shake of his full body and his appearance changed to a fat, balding man with a big, round red nose.
"Take your time," Weniya said kindly as her appearance changed into a short, old woman with ashy gray hair and a walking cane.
I nodded my head while they walked back towards the house. I gave the amazing view one last look before I teleported myself back to my suite in Brightton Bay. Checking my phone, I noticed a missed message from Sarah asking if I had plans for the evening. I offered her room service, whatever she wanted, if she would join me in my room for the evening which she agreed to. Half an hour later, our dinner was ordered, and we were relaxing in the pool.
"I thought you liked going out. Why stay 'in'?" Sarah remarked.
"I spent the day closing on my new house. It's small, high in the mountains, and a bit of a fixer-upper, but I know it will look great once I (Karazu) get finished with it," I replied. "It's just something about bankers that is life draining."
"You're so dramatic," she chuckled, shaking her head.
I shrugged, "Perhaps."
"So, when do you leave?" she asked after a few moments.
"I have the suite for another ten days, but I just accepted a special student who has ties to the city; I'm actually not sure if she lives here, or it's just her father. If she does live here, I'll probably rent an apartment for a few months, depending on how long she takes to master the basics. If she doesn't, then I'll probably leave when my time with the suite is over and focus on getting my new house ready and straightening out the company now that I'm in control."
"Oh? You're a private tutor now?" she chuckled.
"For the right subject," I retorted.
"And what subject is that?" she asked, leaning in close.
Before I could speak, the elevator chimed, and the doors opened for the waiter with our dinner. I gave her a quick peck before I stood up and went to get our food. Greeting the waiter, I passed him a few bills that Victor had given me as a tip then carried out the food while he left using the elevator. Sarah had moved over to the patio furniture, so I joined her and sat down across from her, putting our plates down on the table.
"My day is fairly busy tomorrow, but I should be free for dinner, if you're interested, and maybe the day after, you could show me around the city; I'd love to see the place from a local's perspective," I commented between bites of my meal.
She chuckled softly and agreed, "I guess after ten years, I am a local now... Originally, I came here just for my degree, but it's hard to think of leaving this place now. Sure, I'd be happy to show you around the city. After all, I should capitalize on the time that I have left with you."
"Well, I'm not going to complain if that's what you want to do. Silverbrook could also use a talented doctor, I'm sure, if you are looking for a place to go after you get your doctorate. I'm getting an apartment in the city near my company that I'd be happy to let you stay at until you get on your feet in the city; I only plan on using it when meetings run late, but I'd more tempted to work late if I had someone to go back to."
"I'll consider it when I finish my thesis, but with you around, it's hard to focus on the technical aspects."
"Then treat the next few days like a vacation and, when you get back to the grind, you'll be all refreshed for the rest of your work," I suggested with a casual smile, having already planned on giving her a large Thread of Inspiration which should last throughout the last of her work on her thesis project and whatever she worked on next whenever we did part.
She took a bite of her steak, and her eyes lit up with a small smile on her face, then teased, "If you are offering, I wouldn't mind taking the next week or so off and being your personal guide around the city, but I'll need to be compensated properly."
I laughed and agreed, "I'd be happy to. Would staying here with full access to room service and me paying for any outings be enough, or would you like straight credits?"
"Using your suite would be more than enough payment," she chuckled. "After all, I would hate for your new student to become your guide instead."
I chuckled, shaking my head, and retorted, "As much fun as it would be to piss off her mother, Rae hasn't been in a relationship before, let alone anything more advanced, so there is little chance of that happening."
"How old is she?"
"Twenty-eight."
"And she hasn't been in a relationship?"
"Well... her situation is unique," I started then shrugged. "I guess there isn't a point of hiding it since you will probably meet her in the morning. Her name is Rae Lexington, but you probably know her better as Mesmer."
"Mesmer?!? As in the Superhero Mesmer? Doctor Lexington's daughter?" she exclaimed.
"Yes," I answered with an amused smirk.
"Wait, then... you're a Super?"
"The definition fits in a sense, but I'm not a member of the Hero Alliance nor do I have any ties to any Villain gangs or organizations," I said.
"Oh, wow... I should have guessed that night we first came here," she sighed softly.
"Does that change anything between us?" I asked, eavesdropping on her thoughts.
(No wonder she is so beautiful and rich; there really is no place for me by her side.) she thought to herself, yet she replied, "No, of course not."
"Good. I've been enjoying my time with you a lot," I said.
"Me too," she agreed in a casual tone, but I could still sense her sadness.
By the time that we finished our meal, I had taken her mind off my eventual departure by discussing some of the things that we could do together. Unsurprisingly, there were over a dozen museums in the city that showcased everything from the latest technological advancements to the finest artworks throughout the world and historical artifacts from nearly every known ancient civilization. I was particularly interested in the historical museum since I knew that if any "higher" powers had visited this world before, that was the best chance of finding traces of them.
Our night ended the same as it had the night before, a relaxing dip in the pool before I thoroughly wore her out in bed. As she slept next to me, I stared out the window that was overlooking the bay while I thought about my progress in this new world so far. Honestly, I was moving faster than usual thanks to Morgan's help, allowing me to examine samples from around the world, but I also knew that in this "modern" world that I would undoubtedly draw attention, not just from the Demon Lord that I needed to defeat, but every Villain out there, and even the governments of the world, once they realized just how strong I truly was. The problem was not that I was worried about my life, as even if something in this world could destroy my physical form, I would simply return to the Heavenly Realm, but the possibility of constant harassment from Mortal forces would be annoying, especially if the Demon Lord was the type to rely on such weak methods.
"This is just the beginning; only Time can tell how things will play out," I sighed before relaxing back into the bed for the night.