Cassis stared at the house across the street from his parents' place. He knew it well from the outside—familiar like the background of a childhood photo—but he had never been inside. The Harish family had lived there: a young couple when Cassis was still living at home, with a little boy named Dominic.

That little boy was now a young man of nineteen.

His parents were gone but thankfully, Dominic wasn't alone. His grandparents had survived, and with the rejuvenating effects of awakening and levelling, they had a real chance at living long enough to support him. Maybe even thrive.

Dominic Harish and an older woman stepped out of the house just as Cassis and Arianna approached. His handshake was polite, his smile forced, and his eyes hollow in a way that Cassis recognized all too well.

"Mr. Walker, Ms. Sloan, it's great that you could come here on such short notice," Dominic said, voice tight with effort. He was trying to be professional, but grief clung to his shoulders like a second skin.

Cassis offered a small smile. "Just Cassis, please. In this neighbourhood Mr. Walker is my father."

Arianna echoed him. "And I'm Arianna."

Dominic nodded, looking grateful for the informality. "Then just Dominic. This is my grandmother, Caroline Harish—she's helping with the viewing and, if you're interested in buying, the paperwork."

Caroline Harish introduced herself with surprising energy, offering them both firm handshakes. Despite her lined face and silver hair, her eyes were sharp, and Cassis immediately saw where Dominic got his resilience.

The four of them entered the modest two-story house. It was older, but the Harish family had renovated it fifteen years ago, and it had held up well. A small garden and terrace out back gave the space charm, and inside, the open plan living, dining, and kitchen area felt welcoming and functional. The corridor led to a guest toilet and stairs that wound up to the second floor.

Upstairs, they toured a full bathroom and three bedrooms. The master bedroom was decently sized. Another room had been Dominic's, filled with remnants of a childhood that had long since faded. The last was mostly storage, though it had potential.

As they toured the house, Dominic kept quiet, his sadness palpable, but Caroline filled the space with soft chatter—describing the renovations, the little fixes, the structural integrity. She was an excellent guide, professional without being pushy. Arianna took the lead in conversation, asking thoughtful questions and easing the tension. Cassis, meanwhile, stayed mostly silent.

It all felt surreal.

He was buying a house.

He was planning a community.

His parents were alive. Liam was safe. Aunt Helen too. And Arianna—she was here, beside him, choosing this with him. This moment—this life—was dangerously close to becoming everything he'd ever wanted.

Too close. Cassis felt the dread sit just beneath the warmth like a coiled shadow. He was waiting for something to go wrong—waiting for the other shoe to drop.

They were on the cusp of evolution to E-rank now. He and Arianna would both need to meet certain requirements but that was just a matter of time. They would evolve, and when that moment came, he had made a promise to himself. He would tell her everything.

Because if they were going to live together—share a home, a mission, a life—he couldn't keep lying. He couldn't let her walk deeper into this with blind trust. Especially not when every time she touched him, the fire under his skin burned hotter, every brush of her hand nearly undoing him.

That night in the dungeon, when they had been poisoned, it had felt so right. Every moment with her since had been an exquisite kind of torture. He would not cross that line. Not again. Not until she knew. But he wanted to.

He turned his attention back to the house, grounding himself. It was a good house. More importantly, it was perfect for what they needed. A community base, a safe place to begin. Their team was all local. They could become a close-knit community and stay safe that way. They could build from here. Experiment. Start farming. Train for the next wave. Build protections.

It wouldn't just be a house.

It would be the beginning of something bigger.

After they'd seen the last room, Cassis sent a message to Arianna over their private party chat. "What do you think?"

Arianna answered: "I like it. It would be good to live here."

He felt a quiet sense of satisfaction settle in his chest. So, they were thinking the same.

Mrs. Harish brought the tour to a close in the living room, her hands folded in front of her as she looked between the two of them. Cassis turned to her and asked the question directly: "How much are you asking for it?"

Before the System, a house like this in this neighbourhood could have easily gone for 600,000 or more. But things were different now. He remembered that his parents' house had sold for 180,000 just after the System arrived. This one wouldn't go for more than 200,000 either, he figured. It was still in good condition even though he could see that some monsters had been in here. There was some damage to a wall and the door looked like it had been repaired in a hurry. A dark stain on the floor which the family hadn't gotten out told him that someone had bled a lot in the living room. This was probably where Dominik's parents had died.

"120,000," said Mrs. Harish calmly.

Cassis blinked. He must have shown his surprise, because she offered him a smile and an explanation before he could even ask.

"We're in a rush to sell," she said. "But we don't want to sell to some big developer who'll just tear it down or use the land for selfish purposes. My son and daughter-in-law died here, and I want that to mean something. You and your partner want to live here. You have grown up in this neighbourhood. Your parents live right across the street. Then I've read your website. I think I know what you're trying to do. And I believe in it. You also said you'd be able to pay quickly and in full."

He nodded, appreciating her frankness. "That's correct. We can transfer the money immediately."

Then, a thought struck him. "But… if you know that Arianna and I plan to build a community here, why not stay and become part of it? You, your husband and your grandson, I mean."

Mrs. Harish's smile turned wistful as she glanced at Dominic. "My husband and I have lived our whole lives in a small village. We already have a functioning community there. We take care of each other. We fought the monsters side by side. We protected each other. We'll take care of Dominic there, too."

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Arianna's voice was soft. "That sounds beautiful. I hope our community can become like that someday."

Mrs. Harish gave her a warm nod, clearly pleased with the response.

"We'll buy the house," Cassis said. "120,000 is more than fair. I promise we'll use this place for living but also real research—experimentation on mana and the System. And we'll share what we learn with the world, just like we've done so far."

Satisfied, Mrs. Harish reached into her bag and pulled out a simple contract. The paper was plain, but official-looking.

"It's just a preliminary agreement," she explained. "The sale price, the property address, and a handover date for two days from now."

Arianna frowned slightly. "Isn't that really fast? Don't we need a notary to handle everything?"

Mrs. Harish nodded. "Yes, but under the emergency legislation, sales like this are accelerated. We just need to sign the contract at the notary's office. I'll call and make an appointment for tomorrow morning. Once that's done, you'll get the keys."

"Is the furniture included?" Arianna asked, looking around. "Because I'd like to keep most of the downstairs, though we'll probably change the master bedroom. I assume Dominic will take his personal things?"

Dominic nodded. "Yes, I'll be clearing out my room."

Cassis shrugged. He didn't care much about the furniture—he'd bring his own from his apartment. It would fill the master bedroom and the spare room. The rest of the house would remain as it was, which was fine by him.

They settled on an additional 20,000 for the furniture, bringing the total to 140,000. Still an excellent price.

Mrs. Harish called the notary and set up an appointment for 11 a.m. the next day.

With everything agreed upon, they said their goodbyes. Dominic and his grandmother walked them to the door, and Cassis gave them both a nod of thanks.

As he and Arianna stepped back out onto the quiet street, the weight of it all began to sink in. They'd just bought a house. And not just any house—a base. A beginning.

Hand in hand, they crossed the street and walked up to his parents' house.

Before Cassis could even reach for the bell, the front door swung open.

His mother stood there, clearly having waited for them. Her expression was a mix of hope and nervous tension. Cassis smiled.

"We're going to buy the house," he said simply.

A joyful, high-pitched yip escaped her, and she threw her arms around him in a tight hug. His father followed close behind, face serious. But the moment Cassis met his gaze, he softened and pulled him into a one-armed hug as well. His mother had already turned her attention to Arianna, embracing her just as fiercely. Arianna hugged her back tightly, and Cassis saw a flicker of emotion in her eyes. His father clapped Arianna on the shoulder, and she gave him a small but genuine smile through the hug.

Once everyone had pulled back a step, his father asked, "How much do you need?"

Cassis grinned. "Nothing. We have enough."

His father's brows lifted in surprise, but the look of quiet pride that settled on his face said more than words.

Then Arianna spoke, as straightforward as always: "But we do need your help with the taxes on the donations. I just don't have the time to do it properly. I need to focus on improving my spells."

His father blinked. "Donations?"

So, Cassis explained. He told them about the website's success, how the view count had exploded, and how, somehow, donations had started pouring in. Enough to give them the financial freedom they needed. Enough to buy the house outright and set up a base of operations.

Both his parents were stunned, but in the best way. His mother looked as though her heart had grown two sizes, and his father—after the initial disbelief—nodded slowly, visibly impressed.

"That many people supporting you…" his mother said, voice soft. "It's good to know the world hasn't lost its mind completely."

While they were still talking, Matteo and Felicia came down the stairs. Matteo walked straight up to Cassis, his face serious, shoulders squared.

"I'm a warrior now," he said without preamble. "I got some skills. Teach me how to use them."

Cassis studied him for a second, then nodded. "I just bought the house across the street. We're moving in in two days. After that, I'll start training you. And… I might need your help with an experiment later."

Matteo's eyes narrowed with curiosity. "What kind of experiment?"

But Cassis just gave him a noncommittal smile. He wasn't ready to reveal his plan yet—not until he'd convinced his parents. The excursion into the mountains would be dangerous, and while he was sure Matteo would be safe because of the system protection, he knew full well how his mother would react if he told her now.

Still, it was important. They had to find out whether a level 5 'dependent' could gain experience through the party system. Arianna's theory made sense, and if it worked, they could give children even more of an advantage in this dangerous new world. But for now, that would wait.

They stayed for a while longer, chatting, planning, sharing small updates. Liam and Aunt Helen weren't around, probably handling their own situations, but Cassis made a mental note to catch them up soon and ask for updates from them.

Later, he and Arianna left, stopping by a car dealership on the way home. They needed their own vehicle now—for mobility, for the planned excursion, and eventually for traveling to dungeon gates more efficiently. It was another step toward self-sufficiency. Another marker of how fast everything was moving.

He'd also need to rent a moving van for the day after tomorrow. It was all happening.

The next two days flew by in a blur.

Between signing papers, packing boxes, transferring funds, and organizing everything they'd need for their new life, Cassis barely had time to breathe but he didn't mind. He and Arianna moved like a well-oiled machine, coordinating every step. First was the visit to the notary, smooth and fast thanks to the new emergency regulations. They walked out with keys in hand. The house was theirs. The deed with both of their names on it would arrive in a few day via mail.

They followed that with officially registering their NGO, "Survivors," at his father's urging since getting donations as private people was not good for all the tax stuff. And since they wanted to continue making money with a members-only section, they needed to be registered as a business or something like that. His father had suggested an NGO and the name "Survivors" had rang true for him and Arianna. It told their story as Arianna and him had been survivors in the other timeline and now. The name would also be a promise for everyone who depended on them and who supported them.

Arianna handled most of the paperwork, her accountant brain snapping into place. His father also guided them through paying taxes on the donations, explaining in detail how NGOs needed to maintain transparency, especially with money of that magnitude.

After sorting the formalities, they split the funds as agreed. Twenty percent to the Ranislavs for maintaining the website and cyber security, ten percent to Elena for PR. Mr. Ranislav, to Cassis's amusement, looked absolutely flustered and insisted they didn't need to pay so much, but Cassis had shaken his head. "You'll be worth ten times this when the first real cyberattack hits us."

Elena, on the other hand, cried from joy and immediately made them promise to film a video tour of the new "base." She'd already been swamped managing their exploding social media presence and was doing better than either of them could have hoped.

Following his father's advice, they had Ben create two new sections on the site—"Announcements" and "Expenditures." In the first, they listed what they did with the money from the donations, how much it cost and what they hoped to achieve:

Paid for maintenance of the website and administrative tasks.

Bought a base of operations and a vehicle for mobility.

Plan to build a community to test sustainability under the system—mana farming, mana shielding, and self-sufficient defence.

Will share all findings freely on the website with only very specialized knowledge behind a paywall.

Will begin offering daily online training sessions (5 days a week, one hour) for 200 random participants over their social media platform. Only exception: when they went on a dungeon raid.

Will continue skill and system experimentation and share all non-sensitive results publicly.

They ended the post with a genuine thank-you. Cassis hadn't expected to feel so humbled writing it. But standing there, in their new living room—their living room—he could hardly believe this was his life now.

Boxes littered the hallway and kitchen, half-unpacked. Arianna was buzzing with energy, moving from room to room with a grin that made his heart do strange things. She placed books, folded blankets, organized the kitchen drawers, humming under her breath.

His family was here—his parents, Matteo and Felicia, even Camden, carrying boxes and cursing about how such a small apartment had held so much stuff. Helen was helping unload plates while Liam put together a small shelf.

Their house. His and Arianna's.

Soon, Liam and Camden would buy the property they'd scoped out together. Helen already secured the house beside his parents. Her mysterious friend—who still hadn't introduced himself—was negotiating with homeowners on the next street over. Momentum was building.

Out of the thirty-four homes in this area, seven still had people living in them who wanted to stay. That was fine. They'd talk. They'd explain. They didn't necessarily need to join their cause, but Cassis hoped they would. The more people they brought in, the safer they'd be together.

But not today.

Today was for claiming their home. Today was for watching Arianna's ponytail swish as she flitted between boxes like a whirlwind. Today was for hearing his brother joke with his dad, for watching his mother place flowers in the kitchen window, for seeing his team turn into a village.

Today was for being happy—a word he hadn't dared to reach for in years.

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